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manager. Our veteran team of workers rallied to the cause again. With such a short dash to the poll, it was not possible to mount a large scale public relations effort, but that was done was of a high quality. Ads were placed in the  Daily, and pamphlets letterboxed. MacKellar announced that he would open an office in the electorate.

Election Day went smoothly. Bob Quail drove Coombsie and me around the booths. Our tropps were holding their own with the Libs, and there was none of the tension that had developed during the Meers campaign.

At the Manly School booth, I spotted the Tooth Fairy. He was standing away from the main entrance, handing out MacKellar's how-to-votes in a low-key manner. I went up to him and we shook hands. "You know, Alan, I never realised politics was such a hard game," he confided.

"Yes," I replied, "there are other worthwhile things to do with one's life."

The party that night was at the Coombs house, looking down on Curl Curl beach. It was a good party, with everybody looking relaxed. As expected, the Liberals had retained Warringah, but Coombsie had achieved a record swing against MacKellar. On the national scene, the main interest was in the personal battle between Hawke and Fraser.

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