From the archives of motoring historian Bob Montgomery/
THE PERMIT STRIKE: Older readers may remember the intervention of the Defence Forces in 1981 to ensure the continuation of petrol supplies during the tanker drivers strike. The Army moved into fuel terminals throughout the country and took over deliveries.
Unique as this action may have seemed at the time, it did have a precedent - the "Permit Strike" affair of 1919. In November that year the Irish military authorities issued an order prohibiting the having, keeping or using of a motor cycle or motorcar by civilians, without a naval, military or police permit. In Dublin one had to apply to the Metropolitan Police Superintendent, while in other parts of the country applications were made to the RIC district inspector.
Wide-ranging powers were given under the order to any constable to search buildings at any time of the day or night where he believed the order was being contravened. Vehicles could be seized and destroyed and infringements were punishable by a fine of £100 or six months in jail or both.
As so often seems to be the case, officialdom got its wires crossed and, although the order came into effect in mid-November, the application forms were unavailable, so the order was not enforced until December 1919.
Meanwhile, a huge groundswell of opinion against the order had built up, particularly among professional drivers who were afraid that they could be refused a permit on political grounds.
The order was seen to operate in a harsher fashion in Ireland than in the rest of the United Kingdom. Fruitless appeals were made to the Lord Lieutenant and the Minster for Transport.
A meeting of the Irish Automobile Drivers and Mechanics' Union at the Trades Hall in Capel Street, Dublin, decided that its members would not apply for permits. The result was the almost total disappearance of commercial vehicles virtually overnight.
By January 1920 all deliveries of petrol had ceased throughout the country. The military authorities then intervened and took control of fuel terminals, setting up a system of limited supplies to people "having to discharge public or quasi-public duties".
The strike dragged on for 11 weeks and it was only through the intervention of Harry Wayte of the well-known Dublin taxi firm of A & B Taxies that it finally came to an end. The most contentious conditions were relaxed and several weeks' grace was given for applicants to complete their paperwork. An early Irish solution, perhaps?
THE WAY WE WERE: Looking at a 1969 Irish car price list, I was struck, not just by the prices, but by just how much has changed in the intervening 34 years.
First of all, there were no Japanese cars, their introduction to the Irish market having to wait for several more years. There were 20 makes available of which nine are no longer on sale. All of those now disappeared were of British manufacture, reflecting the decline of that country's motor industry.
The cheapest car on sale in Ireland in 1969 was the Fiat 500 - £545 including taxes and heater but excluding local delivery charges. At the other end of the scale was the Rover 3.5-litre Coupé at £2,829. The Rover was a very substantial car, and I recall been very impressed with the hole one made in a hedge on the first motor rally in which I ever participated.
Other nuggets among the listings? How about the Lancia Coupé Rally S at £2,385 - or a pretty little Opel GT (1,900cc) at £2,049?
Ah! The way we were.