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Newspaper-Articles

• 4 Dec 1925: THEFT OF TEETH.
  Early on Wednesday morning thieves broke in a side window of the dentist's parlor conducted by Joseph Ackroyd at 198 Barkly-street, Footscray, and stole about 500 loose artificial teeth and a quantity of gold fillings. Youthful miscreants are suspected.⁹
• 11 Apr 1933: Footscray Dentist's Home Destroyed In Bush Fire.
  All that remains of the seven-roomed country home of Mr J. Ackeroyd, a Footscray dentist, after a bush fire which raged during a fierce north wind at Upper Beaconsfield in the early hours of today. A timely downpour of rain and change of wind saved other homes in the vicinity.
  Latest advices are that all townships in the bushfire areas are out of danger.¹⁰
• 11 Apr 1933: HOUSE OF TREASURES MENACED.
  Antiques, oil paintings and historical relics, worth thousands of pounds, narrowly escaped destruction in the bush fire which swept through the hills near Berwick early today and burnt a six-roomed week-end home belonging to Mr J. Ackroyd, a city dentist.
  The fire approached within 100 yards of Miss Ada Armytage's homestead, "Holm Park," at Upper Bcaconsfield. But for a sudden change of wind Miss Armytage's home, a weatherboard house where Mr J. Binks and five children live, and other houses would most likely have been destroyed.
  Miss Armytage's house contains antiques dating back hundreds of years. They include a mirror used by Marie Antoinette, which was taken from the Tuilleries in the French Revolution; a Bible printed in 1602 (claimed to be the oldest in Australia); one of the first pianos ever built, and hundreds of pounds worth of old silver and other ornaments.
  Many of the oil paintings in the house are by famous artists of last century, and have never left the Armytage family.
  BRIGADES RUSH TO SCENE
  In the garden are trees transplanted from Mount Lebanon (Palestine), Japan and England, which would have been killed but for the quick change of wind.
  The fire was first noticed about 12.15 a.m. The Upper Bcaconsfield and Berwick Brigades were rushed up into the hills, but the strong north wind made it impossible to control the flames. Just when the position was desperate, the wind veered to the west, and soon afterwards heavy rain fell.
  Mr Ackroyd's house was furnished. It was insured.
  FIREBREAKS IN FORESTS
  In denying today that the methods of the Forests Commission in burning fire breaks were wasteful, Commissioner W. W. Gay said that the breaks were now being made only 16 feet wide, whereas formerly they were from one to three chains wide.
  Mr Gay was referring to a motion agreed to at the annual conference of the Western District Bush Fire Brigades' Association condemning the alleged present wasteful methods of burning firebreaks and recommending that breaks be burnt in early spring or late autumn as the accumulation of debris was considered by the conference to be a menace to the forest and also the landowners.
  Mr Gay said that it was now the practice of the Commission to burn back a chain or two from the fire breaks in the early spring or autumn, so that the breaks could be kept free of rubbish or debris.
  MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
  "The question of the width of fire breaks was considered at a State-wide conference of the Bush Fire Brigades Association two years ago," said Mr Gay, "and it was then agreed that the policy of the Commission was satisfactory.
  "Many people have the idea that fire breaks are made solely to stop fires. This is incorrect, as they are also made to provide a rapid means of transit to the heart of the forests and as a general means of communication. Our only regret is that we have not got sufficient money to make more so that the forests can be made more accessible." Ada Elizabeth Armytage, James Binks Upper Beaconsfield¹¹