by Ellen May Johnson nee Brummell…will have
turned 84 years on
And still travelling!
Smile Awhile Yarns are true stories told to me, but the names of people in the story are fictional.
No relation to Don Johnson or family.
NELLS STORY
“SMILE A WHILE YARNS “
PREFACE
AND
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Decided to write a story that
includes a life time of
stories that I have
gathered..
Don’s War history written by his son Don . He has done a
remarkable job
to give a word for word account of
his fathers remembered war history. I can
still hear Don’s voice ; some time
heavy with emotion telling his son
over the phone.
Our son Don
is the
My
contribution is my life of fifty one and a half years with Don . Also my family
of origin...
Decided to dedicate my story to my
grandmother who lived in the time of no
contraceptive pills. The church didn’t allow divorce; so
remained married although
separated . I think she earned the title. For after she had her family of 15 and was
widowed ;
she was quickly snapped up and wed for the second time .
So I’ll give her
the honour, by dedicating the story to Sexy Susan
my
grandmother.
I want to acknowledge my deceased
husbands many God given gifts of perfection ;
This is evident in his ability in tracking ,
stock work, bush knowledge, buck
jump
riding; to running his own property.
They are well documented. As is his A.I.F
service in
love or hate Don; but you can never
ignore him. I am making a start to
put on paper
some of the many stories that I
remember seeing or hearing of from child hood…
stories; that happened many years
ago. My hand is unsteady so I will type it using the
computer; thank God for it. I know
we are told “don’t cling to yesterday” easier
said than done.
….
Since Don’s
passing ; I have too much time to think of the past with
it’s sad and happy
memories.
I know we
are told to only allow happy thoughts to enter our
head;
if so we
would have no character building. I
think the sad and truamatic events
in life teach
us to stand
on our own two feet. My dad Charles
Brummell was always a strong
reliable anchor
through out my young life. He
t
You owe
them nothing he said.; your as good as they are! I found by taking his advice;
I felt
good. It boosted my confidence ; put real positive
thoughts bubbling in my brain,
Mind you with class distinction
rife; one wondered were we all equal? . Dad said in
God’s eyes we
were!
Quoting Henry Lawson ”There will be no class distinction for
the toiling sweating
clown; For the rich and educated,
will be educated down”
My mum died and left Dad six
children to rear ; no relations
close by and in a
depression. So you see we were
fortunate to have such a wonderful under standing
strong and loving father; to iron
out our problems for us. Sometimes you can share a
thought or word with some one ; and you remember it for life., that was
Dad.!
I was also fortunate to marry a man
who believed he could conquer and
overcome
anything that befell him. He had so much faith in his own ability. Through life of
over
fifty one years with Don; I must say
he did manage most things that came to try
him He was a winner!.
Don could always come out on top in
a fist fight. He knew early in his working life
how to use the flying mare; how to
break a arm at the elbow Also the leg at the
knee. How to brush off a straight
left ; or a right cross or a upper cut to the gut or
chin
Henry Broughten , the “Cock eyed world “ had given him lessons. He
fought by the
Marquis of Queensbury Rules If the night before he was too drunk; he
always said
“come down at dawn; I’ll be ready
.to defend my honour” . Don didn’t live his life in a
envelope!
He could track a black ant up a crow
bar after rain; and you can be sure he could
ride a buck jumper, as well as a
show horse . He knew cattle and sheep
backwards. Mining and whip plaiting
was a breeze. Making a saddle no problem to
Don He always found away to end up
satisfied. with the end results.
Fancies are useful to learn from.;
little streams of joy. to a man like Don.
He wrestled with giving up smoking for many years. He had smoked since a
boy of
nine when his Dad died. A must to
roll a smoke before mounting a rough horse a real
steadier!..
Smoked
through the five years at war For the last ten years of his life ; tried many times to give up
but his nerves beat him. His nerves made
it unbearable c
Strangely
enough he needed only one smoke and he was back to normal again
;
free of the
itch that drove him mad.
Sadly the day came when Don aged
seventy six with chest and lung
problems
faced his worse battle of all .The xray said cancer of
the lung; it was devastation.
Don threw himself into beating the
cancer by having it removed. The
doctor cut half
of one lung away ;
and spoke of a chance Don
would live on. Hunger elbows no
choice; faith means you journey into
the unknown; and cling with desperation to hope.
We thought he had won again ; Home
two days and his luck ran out; a massive stroke
and darling Don was gone I’m sure he
is still watching over us ; giving us that extra
strength to cope in our daily
life.
The start
of the story “SMILE AWHILE
YARNS” dedicated to my grandmother Sexy Susan”
CHAPTER
1
The scheme
said “Free transportation to
Jobs already waiting on arrival. Chance
of a life time to make good”
The Rohnson family had four sons ;so wasn’t surprised when John
said he’d like to give it ago.
The farm
wasn’t big enough to need all hands
on the job. Perhaps some of the others would follow him
if things
went well for him.
John’s first thoughts on waking
was this is probably the last time I’ll see the sunrise in this timeless
land;
A just and
peaceful land ;and his thoughts were of the love he had for it. Home
,
he thought
,is where when you return they always take you in.
It was a sad day when John Rohnson
left his home in Hambleton in
wonderful new Migrant Bounty Scheme ;
one had to work where directed until the
fare was paid Then he would be free
and able to become a citizen; with rights to take
up land and marry.
His girl friend didn’t want to go so far away , but
wouldn’t stand in his way. He
decided maybe he would do better on his own for
a start.. His parents were middle
aged and still had his three
brothers at home with them on
the farm.. They had put on
a brave face and John had stood
proud and kept his real feelings at bay. ”Stiff upper
lip” had applied .
No hanky panicky nonsense
with this family.
The boat being a bounty ship was made up of young
men and females of working
age. They had been given instructions; and the name of the person
they were assigned
to work for. They were eager to get started .The long
journey spent on board a ship
enabled them to make friends ;
for which they would be thankful in
years to
come. John became prominent on board
the ship ; he was reliable and friendly One to
look up to as a leader of men ; the
women sort him out.
.He made friends with a happy go
lucky Irishman who turned out to be a womaniser
David Heade,
David would say ”love them and
leave them John; plenty more where
we’re
going”
John would end up being the shoulder
they cried on. Until one day he met Sarah Irwin
; the woman of
his dreams. No tears to mop up; she had done that. Now a wiser
woman and two years older than John
. She had learnt you must learn to
crawl
first ; then step back. and crawl
again. if necessary. She was determined to make a
go
of it in this country. Life is open ended
; it/’s all up to you!
Like most young women. the time for
marrying and settling down was fore most on her
mind. Sarah was a fair blue eyed
woman with long
woman she had to be to travel into the unknown. Sarah had
left a happy home in
John liked the way Sarah
politely and firmly ;
had without fuss put David in his
Place ”Why do you always think only
of below your belt ; brain power is what is
needed.. David I notice you tread
the hens as you find them . Not a good idea if you
wish to find a wife and settle down. This love them and
leave them ,will end up one
day maintenance to pay. No man
should dally with a woman he couldn’t marry if need
be.
David was fond of Sarah but he knew
he would always disappoint her with his
treatment of women. John also spent many sleepless nights ; imagining life
with
Sarah; but he knew first he had to
be able to support her, David and John went to the
same employer who had taken up land
and was starting from scratch. Erecting the
necessary first ; like the building
of permanent fixtures such as
Houses , barns `yards
, fences,
all to be erected; So the work was varied
and the experience gained was
much valuable to them in the future.
Only the rich lived in the sort of house they
built Still they had time on their
hands to save money . There was
plenty of work so they could afford
to dream.
Alas! dreams won’t make things happen; no one
got rich that way. Those who failed
often lived in kerosene tin shanties ; dirt floor.
Dying alone ; and soon forgotten. They
had lost the will to get up and go
necessary to survive. Getting hurt is the risk one
takes; when one chooses to
participate in life. The only alternate is to sit it out
on the side lines. One knows from
experience there’s no pleasure in going
that
way. only disillusion with the final
results....
Strangely enough they seemed to know
the end was coming and put their
things in
order. Often wrote apologizing,
emotional letters to loved ones to be posted They still
in their tortured minds thought of
in spirit and body returned soldiers
back from the battle fields Through no f
their own lived in the bush to try
and find peace; with only a dog for a friend Often
living off the bounty of loyal
friends.
More often than not dying
from…cancer. They would write a bit of a will in the hope
some one would see it, and carry out
their wishes. Sadly often their remains wern’t
found for a long period .Then they would tack this paper onto the bench
outside; cover with the over turned dish. Leave also there for
safe keeping their few
belongings they treasured. A photo
of a woman they loved, and probably had died ; but
still he clung to her photo.; Also a
photo of his mother , or a pocket watch his
father had given him. Or even a few
stones he’d saved for a rainy day. Some time they
would have cancer so bad, that some of their
face would be eaten away
Some just waited for death under a
mosquito net too late to visit a doctor;
all hope gone. No absolutes left
worth fighting for in their world.
That was the sad side of life; others worked and prospered.. Were glad of their
new life in such a democratic and free country as
can
see.
John wrote home “I wish you could be here and see this wide sun burnt
sprawling
country ; It
will take me a life time to see it
all.. Such things as wonderful
sunshine
would benefit immensely your tuberculosis father very
dry air ; but alas you are miles
away. Everyone treats every one as a
equal There is none of the forelock tugging
constantly seen over in
One does see police on horse back
But only if you see more than one travelling with
pack horses along the roads, do you
need to worry. Then they are looking for
someone and mean business. Rule here seriously
applied is to reply if questioned;
you’ve seen no body; know nobody
. Main requirement is to keep your mouth shut.
Australians don’t like police pimps
Remember the saying “A man who can’t hold his
guts ;or button his lips; could be
considered a police pimp or an informer. ” Remember
the general rule "never go through on a mate" They will share
their last bit of bread with
you ; always the cup of tea. Mind you they will bet and fight at the drop of a
hat. Perhaps you would think
them Mum just a little high
spirited; their general
manner and clothes a bit rough to
your standard. But
then this is a tough time we live
in. To cry tears only indicate the inability to do
something about the situation. Life
and
death is something ordained for all
men; one makes choices . No one has to live with
the results.; they can be
reversed.
In this land one is forced to develop
common sense Join any of the many useful
schemes that enable young people to get a start .
Meet lots of ticket of leave
Englishmen who will tell you they
are here living in
paid by their family to stay away
from home I notice the Welshmen I have met are
unionists they are very active in
the work force; and practice what they preach
Peter Laylor already has made a
start.
They are handed a mattress cover and told to fill it with
straw to sleep on.; before
they start work They want their
pound of flesh; no sympathy for the
worker.; they
need unions.
They work you all hours but Sunday when you do your washing. Some
people get up on a box and with much
determination and guts and firm
commitment
sprook their views. Depends, some are pelted with
rotten eggs.. Others popular with
ideas they put forward; get carried
high on onlookers shoulders. Some speak long
tiring speeches and I am reminded of
Dad’s quotation ”The longer the spoke; the
greater the tyre.”
Space is what I notice , here ; the
state of
Yes I’m proud to be living and making a life out here But when the
worker ‘s got a
quid. in his pocket; you can be sure the owner
will have one also. love John’’
Sarah together with six other young
women went to work in
factory. Sarah was saving money
and having a good time. She was always on the
lookout for some one who was going up the ladder
in position and money. Her
closest trusted girlfriend was Faith who she
could wrap around her little
f
By the time she was free to enter
the community; she was convinced John would be
her best bet to get a start in the
new country
So she searched for him and in no
time John was writing home“ I have
met the most
be
”No mention
of Sarah’s seducing him; perhaps he enjoyed that; forgotten in the heat of love
Sarah to
marry; would have to herself eat humble pie. She had dreamed of a nice
home
and church wedding; but alas not to be .A
registrar service with David &
Faith as witness.
Then into a
small tent on a gem field. Nothing to write home about. David & John had
decided
they would give mining a go; perhaps they
would find those elusive stones and hi presto
would get rich quick. No chance
says ye of little faith. “Doubt is the ally of hope ; not the enemy”
Sarah wrote to Faith in
tears
” The flies and mosquitoes drive me insane; the snakes
and lizards and goanna’s well they
really are the most terrifying animals iv’e seen over
here . No matter how often I come
across them; they still manage to scare the
daylights out of
me.
John built a bed out of four forked
posts put in the ground. With poles tied to each
post to make a frame for the bed
; to which wire netting was tied on as the spring
.
Then cover this with bushes from the
trees; serve the purpose of a mattress Yes a
hard one i must say; and certainly
not conventional.. But at least it
got us up off the
ground, and away from the nasty
creepy crawlies
Cooking is the next problem ; open
fire with a camp oven. Of course
wood is scarce
too many people previously camped
here.
Not to mention the water situation;
which is needed in large quantity to wash the pay
Dirt. As well as bathe at night. and do the washing
. It’s left to me to cart it by
kerosene bucket from. a bore near
by. Heavy hard work. for
I wash clothes for quite a few
miners and get paid a few pence ; which all goes to
wards our upkeep John & David go by sulky & horse
to town to bring back
provisions . They stop off at the
pub always.; utterly careless. Often things get
stolen from the long unattended
sulky.
They get into brawls and arrive back
with broken noses and thumbs. I notice John is
paranoid he believes firmly ; that people are talking about him
in the pub. I think
they have chosen the wrong job; not
nothing for them to crow about ; look forward
to . I can’t
imagine bringing up children in this situation.
I have to put a small piece of
carbite in the water to clear it ; very bracken I noticed
a mother scooping up water from the
small drain along side the track ; after a
heavy down fall of rain. A little stream
of joy. to the mother .She was using
a
chipped enamel mug , and poured the
water back through a piece of lint. Then when
clear ; with
a smile gave it to her baby to drink Is it any wonder they breast feed their
babies until two years old.
Been quite a number of babies died
and buried in small boxes in the sandhills.
Not many survive Diptheria,
Chickenpox, when very young . Doctors often are miles
away. So it is that more often than not a miners
wife delivers the baby.
It is registered when next some one
goes into town and visits the police station. That is
if the police aren’t away collecting miners fees
etc.
Often I’ve been called upon to act
as vet to both humans and animals. To stitch
up with needle and cotton deep
wounds. When it’s a animal that requires stitches, I
use the twine that closes the bag of
sugar.
The poor dogs are often ripped open
by a boar pig or kangaroo in a fight.
Washing is a big day in the camp. We
only have three sets of clothes The best we
keep for church, or outings in town
. It’s a must to try and always hold up ones
dignity. The other two is one on and
one being washed; it’s a bit hard if it rains . I use
a
fairly large tin bath tub , that serves as a
wash tub . A empty kerosene bucket to boil
on the open fire and a scrubbing
brush and a bar of kerosene soap. I
drape clothes
over every bush around; and save the
line between the trees to dry the sheets. Many
uses for this bucket ,
also to heat water for baths
Too tired from emptying buckets of
dirt dug out by the men ; and then winched up
from the mine This had to be lifted
off the hook and carefully lifted and emptied away
from the hole. I am always fearful
that when I lift the bucket off, I will drop it down
the hole on top of the men. It’s
heavy work but expected of
me They wash the dirt
and sieve it , when they
come up in the late evening. Has to be dumped a way from the
mine entrance; to prevent the
dirt falling back into the mine
Will close
;
love to
all
Yours to a cinder Sarah “
.
Faith could read between the lines
that Sarah wasn’t happy with her life on the mine
fields. Faith’s life had changed for
the better of late; she was happy with in herself.
She had just recently met a elderly
man who had a built a large house with room for
three families to live together; and
be one big family. He owned also twenty thousand
acres stocked with horses and
cattle. At first she had hastily rejected his proposal
of marriage, she didn’t like his
religion and what went with it. He was a Mormon and
believed he could have three wives. Mind you he knew in this
country he could
legally marry only one. He said he
would over come this by going
through a form of
marriage with the extra wives ; and support them and his children from
them .The legal
wife would decide who and when the
other two slept with him . Seeing Faith
would
be his wife she decided that she
would give it a go and married Don Dual.
Sarah was wishing something would
happen to bring John and her closer.
Then one morning Sarah discovered
she was pregnant; she was so excited she
shouted down the hole to John the news ”John your going
to be a proud father ” John
and David gave the digging away and
started celebrating Ending up letting off rifle
shots , this time not to put a
scare into the people as often John
did when
drunk. David always stayed close to
Sarah at these times; and soon John had
noticed. This meant many a night
Sarah had to keep out of sight while things were
sorted..
The baby boy arrived on time ;Walter
they called him; and Sarah found he took up a
lot of her time. John made him a cot
out of tree limbs
When he was two John and Tom were born.
And the men by now had became
better off. They had built her a
rough timber building but the toilet was still an outside
building
One day Sarah was sitting on the
seat when she felt what she thought was
the cat rub across her leg. She
looked down ,and there was this large brown snake with a
green frog in its mouth , moving
past her leg. She sprang up on the seat trembling with
fear Then pushed the door back against the wall, and
jumped straight out the
door. The snake in its fright was
just passing where she landed. The snake was still
trying to swallow the frog , luckily
for Sarah
Sarah had witnessed a carpet snake
eating eggs in her chook yard. Then to her horror
saw it swallowing her china egg; the
one she hoped would encourage the hens to lay.
The men c
egg. The snake was very docile for the
days in captivity; but soon revived.
When the boys were twelve, Sarah
decided she would leave. John had became
alcoholic and she was always a
nervous wreck, When he was drinking so
fearful
he would kill some one. So in her letter to Faith
she wrote of her fears Her already
fragile confidence had failed her.
She had sleepless nights struggling to find the
right
answer; was sorry it had come to
this . She still loved John as much as ever, but she
was stressed out with life there and
could see no future, by staying. She didn’t want to
become a wife of Don’s; and it was
just help to escape
She would have to be so extra
careful ; John was not in a good frame of mind
lately.
But do write back soon. The boys for awhile would work
free to cover any
expense’ They were strong of mind and body and only needed the
chance to get a
start , to make good in their
lives
Walter loved to cook and was a bit
of a loner; liked his own company.
He said he
heard voices advising him; and true
the advice was good
John was a womaniser but Tom was a
thinker who thought things out and
worried what he could do about his
fathers condition. He had tried with no results for
months.; to get his father to cut
back on the grog he consumed. To
join A A for
help. To join AA one needs to really
need to want to give up the cursed drink
Not there
just bec
determination to resist the urge to
drink, when in the company of drinkers.
He didn’t want to leave them ; perhaps he could return later when he had more
influence. He hoped it wouldn’t be too late.; he
got on well with his dad.; as did
his
brothers.
Another problem had a risen with
David and his gun.; to him it meant power.
David
he always carried a gun . Just lately had
used it to force a young lad to allow some
drunken miners castrate him. Bec
police jailed the lad. But when he
was released he shot all those who had wrongly
dealt to him. David was afraid his
turn would come, so kept his gun close by.
Even though the men were making good
money at the mining, They now
played two
up ; how to
spin the pennies in a game of SWY .
Often lost large sums of money
at a game..
John built a timber house but
divided the rooms by using open sugar bags laced to
posts serving the purpose Using
sugar bags sewn together for doors
. No sign of a
wood floor or glass windows. Still
wooden windows , opened by sticks
propping
them open.. This didn’t allow much
light when closed.
Still the open fire that smoked and dirt
floor. Only other improvement a
kerosene lantern that never blew out in the wind or storm A
great improvement from
a fat lamp,
Still not the home she had envisaged.
Had a bush brother hood parson ride up a few days
ago ; He pulled a paper back from his
saddle bag said with a cheerie voice
”Sarah I was given some paper backs I thought you might
be short of reading matter.” It took
my breath away when I saw it was a romance story;
I was expecting it to be church
instructions . In the saddle bags he carried used shoes
of all sizes, Each family could take a
pair that fitted their child, They would replace
them
if they had any shoes they didn’t want.
This way children often got their first pair
of shoes to wear Sand shoes, soles often
melted in the heat of summer if left outside.
The poor could’nt afford leather
shoes ; although hides from cattle , goats, and roo’s
were
many..
Sandshoes were cold in winter and
hot in summer. They sold for seven shillings and
six pence. They needed constant
washing to remove the smell.. I want a better life for
the children .
Love yours Sarah”
Faith was as good as her word she was looking forward to seeing her
old
friend ; Don was more than happy to
have Faiths friends stay with them . He was
really pleased to have the extra
help on his land. He had hired help
but the lads would
learn the ropes quickly and be like
family. Yes it would be a good thing for all to have
young people
around
So far there was only Mark, his and
his second wife’s Ruth’s son
Beside Don
wanted to try farming lambs on his land . Sheep sold for
five shillings Lambs was a
idea he had in his mind for some
time. But also the wild dogs and; dingoes killed a lot
of the calves So he had hesitated
with the idea; but now he would have extra help.
He employed Mick and Jessie. His
wife who was a south sea islander , They were
excellent workers,. Employed to trap dingoes up in the hills He chuckled
as he thought of
Jessie. Mick had said in jest to him the other
day
:”now don’t you go kidnapping my
wife to make up your numbers” The thought had
passed my mind; but no chance that
happening with Jessie : Jessie replied “I sleep in
the nude on a dark blanket and you couldn’t see me; I’m
invisible and the night and
I are as one. So catch me if you can. ” Her
lovely smile said everything. She
was
having fun being dark and enjoying
it.
On the station was a elderly man employed to be the
cowboy. Aubrey chopped the
wood cleaned the yard, killed the
meat , and fed the animals. He often went on a
bender; when he professed in his
strongest convictions to having seen the devil
himself. Aubrey lived in fear of the
devil locking horns with him one day. Too horrible
to
imagine; so Aubrey took another swipe at
the bottle but found it empty’ . So that’s as far
as
Aubrey would say of his round with
the devil.
Don would chain him to a shady tree
when he was in the DT’s so he couldn’t harm
himself while alone.. Quite a teller
of stories when sober. He thought his name should have
been “troubles” ;
he was weighed down with them . Aubrey believed
in the old saying ”friends
are like fish; they go off after
three days!”
The men
were having a two day drinking
b
They were
all sad but realized it was for the
best in the long run.
Don Dual had offered Sarah shelter
in the rooms built for the third wife. She would
help the church and do the door
knocking promoting it .The three
boys would work
on the property .
It was a opportunity for them to learn first hand the
handling of
stock .They would learn how to break in horses and become good stockmen.
Sarah found Don had a second wife
Ruth; a happy red head who had given him a
son Mark. Later Ruth would be a dear friend whom
she could rely on.
When John and David returned home
from drinking; there was a terrible
row. John
was sour from grog; and very angry.
As much as he wanted his family back his
stubborn nature wouldn’t let him go
after them.
After a month David decided he would go and
find them. In his travel he heard about
Don Duals ’life style; and was
surprised to hear Faith’s name mentioned . So he went
to the property and met them again;
It turned out Don Dual was finding it hard to
accomodate
two wives. He made a satisfactory
to all concerned deal about sharing
with two men
So David fell on his feet . He could
bring a woman with him as long as
he helped out
with sex for Don’s wives A young bull helping a old bull. The need
for there to be
children in the family . No big problem to David the womaniser; he thought he was in
paradise So there was within a year three babies;
and big dad. and little daddy were
bursting with
pride.
David often thought of rescuing
John But he was long past being
interested in sex;
booze was his master. Sarah didn’t
take any part in the breeding program; she
was a married woman .and
remained faithful to John
She had many admirers ; Keith Hall
had taken her to look at sheep and cattle
properties . It was a eye opener to
her to see how the women managed. Loneliness
was a big problem. need of other
women’s company.
He said “I visited this place a few
years back; and stayed over night Got drunk and
went up a wire rope in to a bedroom to sleep.
So here I’m back hoping to buy
it ”Sarah asked him “Why the
rope instead of stairs?” Then as
an after thought he
said ”The snakes are so bad ; but
won’t climb the rope. Be careful near the shower ;
that’s where they rest in the cool ;
they don’t appreciate company” By now Sarah had
lost interest in the place , snake
weren’t her cup of tea. The snakes
could have the
place for all she
cared.
Another place they visited wasn’t
much better, The wife a city person spent most of
her time under a mosquito net .The
floor boards were so spaced that the snakes
came up through them after the
mice. She
would almost faint with the thought of
seeing one. She felt a wee bit safer from the snakes
under the net. Her old deaf
husband was left to the mercy of many rats and snakes minus a net. He had held his
f
arrived he’d been there a hour. His wife wouldn’t step down from the verandah,
no matter what the consequences ;
life or death, for fear of a
snake.
Sarah especially remembered one
property they visited where the single owner and
his man of all trades lived on a
sand hill in a bush dwelling. This also had wide spaced
floor boards Rabbits bred in the
sand and snakes slid in between the boards in
pursuit of the rabbit kittens .The man had a mosquito
net he got under at night. He
tied a dog under the bed to scare
them away. The owner ate peanuts by
the sugar bag. and
the shells were full up under the
bed When he opened the door flowed
out the door,.
no room for snakes in his room.
As Keith drove up the lane to the
house he said : ”look at those sheep they appear to
be pawing the ground; there is no
grass growing there. I suppose they are just
scavenging;
mind you there is a drought” Then to
his surprise “it’s the grass roots in the ground
they are after. must be hungry; they
need shifting. . I think I’ll take a look at the
other sheep .The wind is blowing
from the north so they should be in the northern
corner of the paddock Sheep walk
into the wind when its blowing.”
As they drew near to the mob of
sheep that were being held in the
corner; a tall
Aborigine rode out. He was bare
footed with spurs wired onto his feet . He rode bare
Back .Keith recognized the well
known stockman Cubbie Jack He use
to say ”I’m
Cubbie Jack King of the blacks and many white people
to “ Keith knew they were
in capable . hands with him. With him was Tommy Tooth
pick who was busy
catching their dinner; a goanna. Was
tail pulling it out of a hole .
He had a good few
coals left from their lunch
fire. After killing the goanna
threw it on the coals to
cook. A speciality much enjoyed. by the old
warriors.
On their way home they pulled up at a
drovers camp near a tank. The
drover kicked
in the coals and threw on a bit of wood .Then put the tea billy on .He
was in his sixties
but his wife was only a girl. and
eager for a chat. Sarah mentioned the empty Vicks
jars scattered around the camp ”oh
we use Vicks for contraception;
don’t want
kids yet” was the instant
reply.
It wasn’t surprising to see young
girls married off to elderly men who had a bit of
money put by. On farms one would
see men from one farm married into
girls from
another close by. It looked to a
onlooker as though they swapped over ; after all they
seldom had time for travelling long distances to court .They had every thing a man
needed in a farm girl.; capable
wives they made.
Very few women went out to work
amongst the land owners ; always things to be
done at home on the
property. Bread to bake and the men
to be taken care of.
A elderly stockman was also travelling with
the drover on their way to another
job. He was complaining about the treatment he got from the moll at
the pub. ”I gave
her my five pound and I had shed my
trousers and we got going. Alas of all times I
wasn’t feeling too good and asked
her to stop while I took a Bex powder. She got
cranky and said time was running out . I said give a
man a fair go ; and
she got on her high horse. She kept looking at her clock on the wall;
and said I was
blaming her for my poor showing If
only she had waited until the Bex cut in, instead
she chucked me out.”
Tom and Walter and John all became good stock men , known for their
reliability
and hard work .They all quickly learned to ride and became great
buckjump riders
and soon travelled to compete .They would roll their swags and stay on for
the small
dances at night. They worked hard on the property for Don Dual But they wern’t like
sparrows who failed to spread their
wings and fly away from the station. They were
now ; more like
the wedge tail eagle soaring free in the sky as these mighty birds
do.
Travelled far; and
constantly dodged danger riding high spirited horses; and
enraged
bulls at the rodeo’s This way they
made lots of friends; and life was a breeze.!.
It was at one of these dances that
John met a pretty dark haired
governess called Meg.
She was only eighteen supervised;
the Graziers children’s education.
She had to iron and wash up and lend a hand ;
make herself useful when needed.
There was only one fly in the ointment
Meg was against the Mormon Religion
practices.
John told his mother ”Meg is the one I want to marry; but mum no church
involvement
“Sarah far from in tune with the Mormon
beliefs ;
and remembering as often she did back to
John and how they felt ; decided to ask Don a
favour…..
Don agreed to build for them a small boundary riders
cottage on the property five miles from the house
Meg could then marry John and live with her conscience
and Jones family when they visited.
Brother Thomas {now known as Tom } be his best man ;
M
Everything was fine they were so
much in love. No sign of what’s to come in the
future
Tom decided he would look for a wife and settle down like his brother. It was
when
he attended a cattle man’s
Martha Lee.
She a dark headed , blue eyed; was a reserved sort of girl devoted to
her family. He realized he would
have to woo her family first to win her heart. So he
went to their church each Sunday and
finally got a invitation to Sunday lunch from
her mother
Sarah or her boys weren’t Mormon’s
so no need to speak of it.. Don lived a good
few miles from their well run
property. James also was on the Shipping
Board and
quite wealthy They wern’t about to
let any Tom, Dick or Harry to court their only
child and give her a life of hell.
When asked where his home was he
was careful not
to mention Don
.
Things were running smoothly when
the bubble burst. John still went
to the rodeo
; Meg was expecting a baby and
preferred to stay home. He was on
his way to one ;
whistling and now and again breaking
into song. He was on the outskirts of the town
when he came upon the Desert Lair
fighting his swag. Calling it all sorts of names with
a punch now and again. When he
reached town he became aware that there was a
circus also on the show ground.
There was a problem the, camel had broke loose
and had frightened the stabled race
horses. They jumped the stable yard fence and
out over the common fence to freedom
from the camel
John spotted the trainer of the circus a young lady in a skimpy
outfit She used a old
gramaphone to play the music for the animals to perform to. There was
the lair
dancing to the music singing “I’ve
got the whole world in my hands ”with his fly
undone; with his old tool tightly
clasped in his hands.
John was soon on talking terms with
Sonja.. She was always on the lookout for some
one to boost her supply of jewels and furs. She looked with disgust at Bob the
bumper king who was busy picking up thrown
away cigarette bumpers
.
John his masculine feeling strained
at the lease at the thought of having Sonja as a
secret lover of course Meg would
always be there for him. He could be along distant
lover. To her he was only another
one to fleece. As the weeks went by
and he only
saw her for short periods weeks apart he started to worry. It is
frightening when
you witness what the power of love
does and the way different people react.
Some people they lose reason,
everything else is lost in
comparison. His thoughts
were how could he have his cake and
eat it to. He still wanted Meg; but Sonja
also. Then the thought came ; her in Tom’s name. He would tell her
he was
married but he would give her his
name too. Oh what misery had to come from his
foolish
whims.
Sonja thought awhile ; maybe the
family had money and after all she was blame less
Why not let John have his way. John set to and
applied for the license and they
were married in the registry office.
They didn’t see one another too often; but Sonja was
understanding about it. It was safe
money , and she was pulling the
reins.
Time went by and John thought he
would tell Tom ; imagine the shock of disbelief!
Tom just didn’t think it possible. He
was devastated what ever would he tell Ellen It
was all out of the question now; Ellen his only love mustn’t know She would have to
be let down lightly; he would file
for a divorce. Go to
contract droving
He couldn’t tell Meg, and
c
Ellen he wanted to travel and would
go droving. Confidence can be fragile. He failed
to forget her and he was never far
from her mind Hope can be really one of the
cruelest things ever; but how to reject a hope
that might never be? Sudden thoughts
brought forward a special touch of
emotions.. You could cry a million tears and it
wouldn’t compensate your pain..
Don Dual was sorry to see him go; he
had been there in good and bad times . He
wanted Tom
to have good start in life; so he put a large amount in Tom’s bank .Tom
bought two suitable horses and a pack saddle
He rolled a light swag of a thin
mattress and two pea strainer blankets ; tied it on the
pack horse Together with the both
saddle bags filled with clothing and enough food
to get by for a week. Yes he would
carry Ellen’s photo; maybe until he
gained more
strength . Gradually her face would
fade from his mind..
On the horse he was riding, he tied
to the saddle the quart pot. In his saddle bag ; that
carried his lunch; and his steak
pliers for use in removing wood from a lame horse .
A
bandage and conde crystals for snake
bite .Even threw in a paper back to read. No
he didn’t forget to take a waterbag.
It was his main stay; to stay alive,
His mother Sarah knew things wern’t good between her boys and thought perhaps
the parting for awhile might mend
things . Little did she know of the heart ache Tom
felt as he rode away. He
thought as he rode on I’ll have a
good look about by doing
a bit of droving; All the time
searching for a property suitable
in every way for my
home.
. At evening he camped in the river bend,;
The silence of the night only broken by the
dingoes calling low. Where the cool
stars smile down on a peaceful land,. By early
morning things had changed Wild rain
was falling; water dropping like a hand spilling
it out on the land. Rain is always
welcome to a bushman..
Next night he camped with Boomi Jack ; who was a
good friend in need; Woe
be tide you if you fell foul of
him.; he would never rest until he got his revenge.
Boomi Jack an arsonist who lit fires
in revenge. He had an old
tarp
many hole in it that you could count
the stars in bed. under it. He said if the Grazier
wouldn’t give him a little tea and
sugar; he would set fire to the paddock with the best
feed on it Yes they would pay in the
end He was fearful of the Russian Aeroplanes
attacking; continously saying ”hear em they’re over head” Not having a hearing
disability Tom couldn’t
agree with him .Tom decided to let him see he was amazed with his
knowledge.. He certainly lived well
off the land; perhaps he filled a roll in society and
kept everyone on their toes forever vigilant
Boomi had been
c
account. Boomi said a police man
arrested a man for flashing it. Urinating on the
footpath in full view of the public
. He was very drunk and the mate said ”look do you
recognize that man that you just
arrested? I’ll let you know that man is the mayor“
The policeman said “you can be the
horse in you go with the mare” Boomi was a bush
lawyer and a man not to be bandied
with.
By now Tom
thought he’d go into the next station he passed and buy some fresh
meat..
better set up. He needed to carry much more than his pack horse allowed him
to. Time to buy a wagonette and employ
men.
The owner was wanting some one to
deliver twelve steers by
stock routes
into the
break. So it was that the under standing boss asked Tom if he would do it with Tim’s
help. Tim had his own horse and he
could do with extra spending money The boss’s
wife cooked them a lump of corn
beef, threw in a brownie she had made and a few
chops
They had stock route all the way fenced on
both sides and four days to settle the
cattle ; Each would then take turns at night watch. The steers were toey (nervous) when they
entered the stock route. It wasn’t until
Tim to go ahead ; leading the pack horse and make camp for the
night.
The cattle travel twelve miles a
day; and there are on the stock route places where all
drovers camp. Probably a fence or corner where they hold their stock
with few
problems. The main problem is wood to make coals to cook with.. Tim lit a
log; hobbled the two horses out and
had the billy boiling by the time Tom arrived; The
steers having had water on the way.
Tim took the first shift, and every now and again
rode wide out around the
stock.
Tom as pickaninny dawn approached , let
the steers string off along the stock route
fence towards
and made haste to fix camp. He intended to take the pea rifle
and shoot some thing
for the dogs to eat. He had done his
chores , and being on a creek was
looking
forward to a swim later. He scooped
up a armful of dry leaves to help start a fire.
Felt a bite and out dropped a death
adder to the ground. Having heard
they kill with in a few minutes if
not treated . He grabbed the pea rifle, and shot his
f
Every one was shocked . Another
stockman arrived from town to help with the
trip. Luke was a first class
stockman; proud of the fact he was.
He told Tom of another
sad death to a young lad who was with a pack horse sheep
Drover The lad was wanting to please his boss. It was a hot
day and the drover was
worried that the water troughs might
be empty, So he sent the lad on to make
ready The troughs were full and
there was plenty of water in the turkey nest . So the
lad decided he’d have a swim before
he rode back So he undressed and dived into
the water …Only to be impaled on a iron fence post that he couldn’t see. Tom
decided he’d only employ seasoned
stockmen in the future.
Second last night came and the steers by
now Tom
thought were use to night
camp. They were until at two in the
morning; a small branch fell from the tree nearby .
They were up and off knocking the fence down; ending up in
the next door Graziers
paddock. Didn’t like been driven
back onto the stock route, still aroused by the
incident. Perhaps their second
senses warned them of what was to come.
Tom was crouched by the fire drinking
tea, when he hit his straps. Cattle are easily
spooked at night The fence had to be repaired after they
were mustered.; so they
didn’t camp the last night Decided
they would let the cattle string out along
the stock
route fence ; on to the town
reserve where the butcher took delivery from Tom.
Luke the stockman teamed up with Tom . They went in search of a wagonette
and two solid horses to pull it.
Luck was with them , they got a offer of a job droving
five thousand sheep to a property
over in the Quilpie area . They only travel six
mile a day with sheep So they had
plenty of time to yarn as men will when living
together.
The men were anxious to try out the
wagonette and see how the horses worked
in harness together. The horses came from different owners. Mares often
can be
real bitches if they dislike their
partners. Luck held , no problems
.
The wagonette was a winner; they put
a low slung wire netting dogs carrier under
Neath, to carry tired dogs in. They
carried a bag of oats and a bag of chaff to enable
them to feed a horse if need be.( Old drovers always had oats for horses)
Uncracked corn was ok short term, it buggers up (founded) their feet if used long term.
Also a
t
pegs to anchor it. If it rained they could sleep dry They had built into
the side of the
wagonette a slide out table that was
a improvement at meal times. They
ate well with
food cooked in the
campovens.
The owner of the sheep always put
extra sheep in as killers . But most drovers killed
any stray sheep in the mob.Stray sheep were always a different colour to the travelling mob
and would be identified by the local squatter as his, so to fix the problems it got made into chops!
Station owners are always
notified the day before the
stock are entering their property
The stock routes often unfenced. pass through
private property. It’s up to the
owner to see his stock don't enter the
travelling
mob .
Police in small towns act as the stock inspector; and with out notice
inspect sheep to see if they are
lousy In such cases they have
to stop and be
dipped. This is frowned on by
drovers as well as owners.
Tom had an old r
after the men left with the sheep;
and would make a supply of coals
and dig a small hole in
the ground to put the camp oven in. In would go a damper; and later on then a brownie ..Then later on
the leg of mutton ; to which potatoes and pumpkin and onions would be added
later
in the
cooking.
At night the corned meat would be
hung on wire hooks on a line. This would have to
be back in the bag before the flies
arrived in the morning, Sun comes up with a
bang; one minute dark then
light and flies. They. always use the fresh meat the first
day, down to having chops twice a
day to make use of them.
Bec
Consisting of a couple of rolls of
wire netting and iron pegs to erect it. To keep the
sheep in that night. Luke also
dismantled it each morning and threw it up into the
wagonette, together with his swag. Men appreciate a
good cook and will help out a old
friend; his knowledge is
valuable..
They say when some old person dies;
we lose a library.
He had just finished his chores when
the police drove up. ”Did you hear
or see any
body with sheep in a truck in the
last few days”? The police man casting his eyes over
the mob as he spoke. He was visibly
shaken as he related the story.
Bush people
love their animals; and this
saddened the men.
The owner of a property further
along had a spell of ill health and been in
Hospital .He’d left the idea of the lamb marking
go till he sorted his health out. So the
lambs were quite grown and still had
their tails Some. people had come and loaded
the lambs on a truck. After cutting
the ewes throats so they couldn’t be
heard
bleating
for their lambs. What a waste of
good stock ; and what a shock it must have
been to the owner. He was trying to
remove the fleeces of wool from the rotting ewes
to save some thing from the
gruesome
affair.
Luke and Mick knew people often
stole a killer ; but unless it was a well bred sheep
things usually went unnoticed, Cattle were more likely stolen and sold to a butcher.
On thing led to another and Mick
told them of a certain alcoholic lady who lived on
her own in a small town .She drank
with who ever turned up at her abode. On Friday
nights regularly announced the names
of all who had been at her place. She would be
drunk and the wives in town went for
cover and shut their doors. Mick couldn’t say
whether she did it to get more visitors. Or to let the women know where
the men
were of a night; or out of spite. They often drank “metho”; the fumes that came
from
their mouths could
c
it the look of
beer.!.
Don noticed a sheet of tin on the side of
a dirt track they passed So always
observant he stopped and uncovered the tin from over a hole.
There asleep in the
hole a thin old chap. It appears he
was being paid to watch out for cattle stealers. He
couldn’t camp ;
or they would know he was there. So he rested each day under the tin
and kept watch each night for the
stealer, just as well it was
cool weather. The Grazier
would find him each day with
food.
Next trip they had to visit a sheep
sale to take delivery. Don noticed a police man
together with a middle aged
well dressed man, looking through
some of the sheep
for sale. It seemed that some one
stole sheep; and were now trying to sell them. The
agent told Tom that it was the manager of the blokes property that had
stolen them.
He expected him John King to be
arrested .He was a married man with five children
there was a lot of sympathy for the
wife and children..
Still it was a serious charge;
people that acted like this should be brought to
order.
On the property also lived a old
stockman who now lived there in his retirement. He
chopped the wood; and was a great
favourite with the children. When the police
arrested John ; the old stockman he
spoke up and said it was him that stole. Now the owner was fond
of his old
r
give the money to charity; but sack
John.. It was known the old r
children; ”no good with their father
in jail’
Often the men took turns to tell
yarns of a night . Luke told of how as a young lad
worked for a strict old property
owner who had two
d
becoming old maids
bec
Luke use to open and shut gates on
the way into town in the sulky. The old boss
remarked to a marriageable Jackaroo travelling with them in the sulky
” The man who
marries my girls won’t be short of a
quid ." ” What was that he
said?” Luke got excited
at the mention of money and blurted
out he would marry the two. The boss rightly
horrified----boxed his ears;
and that was the end of a wonderful
idea.
Many a man got a suitable wife from
a “ok club ; with nice girls
wishing to marry”.
in
Tom hadn’t much to do with shearers So when they
got a job at contract mustering
for the shearing on a property ; he
was interested to hear what the old stockman
Mick had to say It was a new
learning curve
Mick was sitting on his
h
the strands of leather to the spoke
of the wagonette ; and was busy plaiting. His
old
hat would do for a few more trips if
it had a new band. In reply to Tom’s question;
he
mentioned the great shearer Jackie
Howe . Born in Killarney district 1851.His
father
John Howe had been a circus clown with Aston’s
circus His mother. only bore one son.
who was to become the top gun
shearer. At the time of Jackie’s birth , his father
managed
an estate.
Mick stopped for a breather; but Tom and Luke wanted to
know more.
“Well , I’ve
heard tell lots of stories about this legend of a man. Some say it was the
Chinese shearers around
For a time he shore at Jandowoan
,
Spread their wings and went further
out to Tambo, district; and finally
Blackall.
It was at Blackall he was to meet his future wife, Victoria
Short . Married in 1890 and
remained there. She was a dressmaker; who
later made the famous shirt for him to wear
while shearing .
It was made of a mess like flannel; very short like sleeves. No collar;
a
sort of open neck like the
grandfather night shirt, with buttons.
The shearers wore flannel shirts
with long sleeves which they rolled up .They believed
the flannel when wet would still
keep the kidneys warm. Thus avoiding
kidney chills etc.
But the long sleeves often became
tangled with the sheeps horns. A sleek singlet took
care of such problems. The shirt was
not like todays version. Jackie
wore the shirt on the
day he went for a
bet.
The men
were eager to hear about the famous bet; urging Mick
on.
“Well Jackie and his pen mate Harry Dunn
had already won a small wager winning
for shearing twenty one sheep in seven hours forty minutes. The
shearers worked
Saturday morning in 1890.So it was he
had shorn one hundred and forty
four sheep
in one
morning.
So it was that a smart arse bet that
Jackie couldn't shear three hundred in a day. He
had worked out he would shear two
hundred and eighty eight by past figures..
Money was laid on for and against.;
Jackie betting heavily on himself to win.
In those days the rule was you must
carry your sheep in ; not drag it like
today!
They were shearing at Alice Down’s
shed. in 1892.
Jackie was going well and a large
crowd were there to see the
results
They weren’t disappointed, as the time came close
, the mighty man reached the
three
hundred and went on He never stopped
to draw a breath. At three hundred and
twenty one the crowd call for a
finish; he’d well and truly won his bet.
The number was never beaten. It took
over six years for it to be with blade
shears. Jackie always sharpened his
shears after each sheep . He died in 1920.
Tom would mind his tongue around the
shearers; he didn’t want strikes on account of
him. talking out of
turn.
The ewes that they bred the lambs
from were shorn by a couple of
old shearers
they called the home guard back at
Don Dual’s place..
Mick said they were responsible for
mustering the sheep into the shed
paddock.
Then in the evening before the shed
started they would fill the yard
attached to the
shed with ;
sheep. ”It is a rule sheep must be in this yard for four hours before
shorn. This is to allow sheep to
empty their stomach and lose weight and
make
things easier for the shearer. The
musterer’s took control of the sheep after they were
shorn and counted and returned them
to their paddocks .Of course they had to keep
a supply of sheep in the small yard
for the shearers to shear. If rain came they were
put under the shed
itself.”
So the men made camp and looked
forward to meeting the shearers.
The owner had
been down to the quarters where the
shearers would sleep and eat. He
made sure
there was plenty of blocks of wood;
and water in the tank. He left the empty
mattress’s filling for them. He had
the stove cleaned and every thing
ready to go
.He still remembered the time he had
found that the men had thrown their
moccasins
into the rain water tank as they
left. The stink was woeful and he had to empty the
tank and put a bit of conde crystals
in the tank to purify the water .He carted
water from the house tank to fill
it.
Moccasins are made by shearers to
wear on their feet while shearing. They consist of
bits o f woolpacks with string threaded in them
to hold them together. They are often
full of lice ;and have to be sprayed
to get rid of the
louse
The owner asked Tom to kill any
black sheep first for meat; they held up the
shearing when let inside. Black wool
has to be kept separate ; so
no time was lost
attending to it. The shearers often
just hamstring them and throw them
aside
It s the rouse about ‘s job to kill
the meat for the cook ; He is paid extra for it. Rouse
abouts are usually around fourteen
and are kept very busy .They seldom
leave the shed once signed on until
the shed finishes.. They usually pay them a man’s
wage and they earn it. not always
liked by the shearers Bec
the cost of their mess’s bill; and
rouseabouts don’t pay for their
food..
Also on wet days Shearers can’t shear;
but rouseabouts still get paid
There is always plenty to do ; even the
boss will try to get them to do small jobs for
Him They clean the toilets , heat the coppers of water. chop the wood and help with the
sheep.
Mick said “if you keep in with the
cook, you’ll never go hungry. The cook is the
first person to be signed on There
are five stands in this
shed; so the men from one
and two will be delegated to check
on the cook and sign rouse abouts on. The cook is
required to offer two or three
choices of food each meal. Like bacon and eggs or
chops or s
morning and afternoon teas. Sandwiches of all
sorts and fritters for lunch Of course
at night all sorts of meat and
vegetables or shepherd pie. and of course baked custard
or plum pudding. They eat better
than they do at home. The shearers don’t eat with
the expert he eats on his own .The cook
seldom leaves the shed; he has to be there
Sunday night to supply food for the
men,”
Luke said
he was told wet sheep were a no no “the chap told him the union
organizer
comes and sees you've got your pink ticket before you get a
start. If it rains they
shear a
couple of sheep; and if at all wet they stop work It can be weeks
sometime.
The sheep
are shorn every ten months using
the same contractor.
They have
single and share pens of sheep .
He grabs a sheep out of the pen and
he must then proceed to shear it.
Usually the rough sheep are left to
the end of the run ; after the warning bell has
gone.
They shear the best sheep while
their combs are cutting well. Then after the bell they
Have plenty of time to shear the
rough sheep.”.
Tom said “the contractor told me they
get double pay for shearing a ram, or a lamb
with a tail still They get a shilling a mile for petrol from the nearest railway station
for transport. They don’t shear cancerous
sheep.
The contractor has a supply of cigarettes and tobacco and soap and razor
blades
with him to sell, and be deducted
from their pay packet.
At smoko the shearer cleans his combs and cutter in water with a
brush and leaves
them to be grinded Amongst the shearers are a wool
classer and expert who grinds
the tools ‘.The classer counts the
sheep and both are important men” The expert runs
the shed ;
responsible for the over head gear; and machines. He has to be
responsible
for the DIESEL LISTER MOTOR that everything is run by this ; important
motor is putting it
mildly..
Each man have at least one dozen
combs; and two dozen cutters. They become too
thin and cut the sheep, not
important when crutching a sheep.
Shearers go to bed around
their drinks cold at break off time.
When shearing if there was too much
cloud
effecting the light in the shed;
they would call out ‘Mo Pope” and walk out.
The cook told Tom that he had tried
cooking plain turkey out near
Longreach ; it
was full of grasshoppers and the
flesh was tainted by them.
Spear grass seeds get into the wool
of the sheep; they hold the fleece together like a
mat
The cook Jack Mc Cormack was a man of great independence. He rode
a
push bike from shed to shed.,
camping over night. He rolled his swag and tied it on
the bike each morning. A quick get
away if things went wrong in the kitchen.
He also carried his tools of trade
in a kit bag. He had learnt the trade of boot
and shoe repairs. When out of work
and no shearers cooking, ; he had
means
of earning his keep. One xmas he had
sent out his xmas cards the address
Burke
jail. He had bought a car and got
drunk and ran up a tree. No more cars,
he was now a slave to the drink
Anyway what’s wrong with a bicycle.!.
In the past people with a grudge
would burn the shed down. They
would get some
phosphorus and cover with water for
a few months and dry out Then it
would light
and burn the shed. The arsonist would be no where near the
fire.. We all know wild
pigs die from the same poison
and c
Luke chuckled to himself and Tom asked what was biting him. It was an odd tale he
told . It
appears Luke was a teenager working
sweeping up the floor of the shed
and
bagging the discarded wool .After
the shed finished he joined quite a few of the men
In a all night drunken party on a
sand hill.. Les who had a full
denture of gold teeth
really got drunk at these sessions
The men would all be together at the next shed
monday. For the present drink up and
let’s be merry.
Les got drunk and whilst vomiting
spat his teeth out; last thing on his mind as he
Slept When the sun rose next
morning, Les looked about worried
What had he been
up to; for his teeth were no
where to be seen The men searched
the loose sand; put
their hands far down the rabbit
burrows. A no no ,could be nasty snakes down there
after a rabbit kitten. down the
burrow. But time was of the essence and where were
the teeth? Luke coming back from
doing his business behind a tree a
little way away;
spied a shiny thing in a bower birds nest The courting
male had laid the teeth on a
piece of bark ,and around it a fence
of beer bottle tops .Inside a lot of colored
pieces of glass bottle It’s here he
would dance he would have
been greatly admired
by his lady friend ; But think of the stress
the birds felt when they returned they found
their prize gone.
One would think tracking down gold
teeth would be a piece of cake. After all they
couldn’t run away. on their
own.
Les had started out as batman to the
local doctor. He would drive the good doctor
In a T model ford on his daily
rounds. Attending to his needs. When the time came Les
Needed dentures; the worldly doctor advised Les
to have gold ones made.
He said ”they’ll be your funeral
expenses” Perhaps the doctor liked the idea of
having a distinctly different
batman!
Les as years rolled by took up
crutching. He use to drink a little.; but still had them
when he
died.
The shearers call the Kite Hawks
that circle around a shed;
old rouseabouts
looking for
food.
Mick was resting against a tree
trunk ; smoking a pipe. ”One is often surprised
to find that some people still live
in uncivilized ways . I came upon the camp of a
contract musterer. Curiosity got the
better of me. I lifted the lid of a camp oven!
It was left warming on some coals. The fire had long since gone
out. In it was a
a young piglet; with only its guts
removed. The filthy hair ;now drenched in cold fat.
It was then the stockmen returned.
The lads were hungry; they hoed in fat and all.
It made one sick to see them sucking
on the hair with such relish..
Then the eldest lad took off his
boots ; shoved his feet socks and all into the
bore
drain.. When I asked why, he said he
hadn’t taken his socks off for so long. They
were now stuck to his feet ; he
would need to soak them awhile. The dirt had turned
to mud and was growing the socks to the
feet. .The boss wasn’t fazed at
all..
a every day
affair in his house hold.
Tom decided he would get away from
shearers stories. ; Shows and
rodeo’s more
to his style ; he could hold his own when it
came to horse stories
Best to be on the safe side; no one
wants to be branded a fool or laughed
at..
He said ‘”there was a clown who made every one
l
became very depressed no longer
happy to rush in when a bloke got thrown and
divert the raging bulls attention
away from the dumped rider. So the clown went to the
doctor in tears ”I’m so unhappy what
can I do ?” The doctor thought then
smiled “I
know go
and see the clown and he’ll make you l
amazement burst into tears ”I’m the
clown” he said.
Well that had the doctor stumped ; a
unhappy clown; never heard of it..
Tom told them stories of the great
horses and riders that competed at
the buck jump
shows He had never missed a buck jump show ; he knew all
the riders and owners
Of the Skuethorpes and Tex
Morton and their horses that bucked
like
Aristocrat;
Mandrake, Rocky Ned and Strawberry Roan seldom beaten
Not least of all the donkey that
more times than not dumped the
rider when he least
expected it.
He smiled as he remembered the loud appl
a standstill ..Couldn’t let a donkey
make an ass out of him.
It was at one of these shows, Tom met the man
who was the daddy of them all.
when it came to educating horse or
dogs. He had ten white Alsation dogs and equal
number of horses. Here was a man of
distinction!
Jimmy Wilton was only a lad of
thirteen when he first left home .He started
out working on the property as a
horse breaker. He soon had a name that people
from miles around were only to ready to call on him
to educate their horses. They
noticed he could drop the reins and
lie down . The horse would stand on guard
until ordered not to The boss on the
station said Jimmy was a bit young
at sixteen to
be a horse breaker But Jimmy offered
to break and educate a horse free of charge.
The overseer was known to be the
best rider on the station; and he
wasn’t letting a
lad out shine him;. Gave him the
flightiest mare of the mob, to
ride. for the day. She
would flinch and pull back when
approached. By lunch time the men noticed Jimmy
had the mare literally eating out of his hand The horse. stood
patiently by; as Jimmy
his hat over his eyes rested against
a tree. He had let go of the reins; so the mare was
as free as a bird. Yes Jimmy knew
all the tricks of the game; but always practiced
magic in private; he was firm
but not
cruel.
Tom was talking to him , when a
mother and d
horse into a float to take it home. The mother was one of the upper crust
and the
d
put it in for you.”
The mother saw reason but the girl was far from impressed So
Jimmy led the horse a little way
over. He rubbed his f
Then before it could see again had
it on the horse float
The mother said to Jimmy ‘”my
d
girl herself should have thanked
him.; after all he did help her.
At the shows Jimmy had ten separate
markers all numbered. He could direct any one
animal to a
marker. He would say “send the ambulance to a certain marker and two
horses would grasp a stick it’s mouth and trot off to the
marker of a ambulance
station. Upon orders the dogs would
play wounded and limp and whimper.
Perhaps
he was Jimmy the whisperer able to talk to
horses.
Tom had often copied his method with great
results; and had his horse
bringing his hat to him Jimmy was a
great buckjump rider; the only difference was he
had power over animals . He must have had to be able to teach the animals their
tricks and calm
them
He refused a trip to
be the one Jimmy
Wilton
Mick was telling the story of how a
chap blaming the bushrangers the
Kenniff’s for
stealing a bag of wheat; got the
tables turned on him . Apparently there was a small
hole in the bag; it lead the police
back to the pimps door. The Kenniff’s would have
his guts for garters!
He also mentioned the orange trees
avenue that can be seen at
B
to the fallen at war. The children
pick a orange each day while they last.; I bet they
remember their fallen heroes. The
diggers would smile to see the children ‘s happy
faces at peace within their little world.
Luke spoke up ,he had heard of the ;
Carnarvon “
Two kilometer avenue of palm trees.
On each tree a plaque with each of the sailors
Names who went down on the
Often fights broke out in the pubs
.Then often the policeman would tell them to come
out over behind the railway yards;
and he would referee. Tom remembers the night
two of the bullies took to a young
new comer and gave him a thrashing. Next thing they
knew there stood a handsome man
. A crucifix on a chain around his neck and a
revolver on his hip. ”Which of you
are cattle pup ?” The said called man a seasoned
pup; a bit of a lair
s
up ;queensbury rules” clearly
stated; Then he took to ,and gave the pup
such a belting;
and all fair and above board.
Charlie Fennell had trained him well.
For once cattle pup didn’t ask” how
did I go with him mate ?”
The very same savour refused to allow
shearers to urinate in the sheep pen
whil’st
`shearing He would turn up dressed
in black; a handsome man and , a gentleman come
into the shed with crucifix and
revolver . It was often said was he God or Ned Kelly?
.
When asked why he carried a revolver
he replied “I need to
be able to put down
injured animals and kill snakes” It
was just that he was different to the run of the mill
;
At the bottom natures gentle man
with the need to defend those who couldn’t defend
themselves..
It takes all sorts and some people will do anything to get
money. Tom knew a man
who went to a dentist in a small
town who had been getting little trade lately .Tim had
been having trouble with a tooth and
expected the dentist to pull it out. The dentist
suddenly got a idea; he was no fool;
but here was a opportunity to correct his bank
balance
He went into his toilet put his
f
under Tim’s nose .Then said in a
urgent voice ”my God smell that; your teeth are
rotten. They’ll all have to come out
straight away. Your health is at great risk while
they remain in your
mouth”
Tim was flabbergasted He hadn’t had
any ill health of late Just the one bad tooth Still
he had to consider; dentist in the
bush were far and few between. The
visited the towns once a year; and helped the public out. But
he couldn’t afford to
waste time; fancy him not noticing
the smell.
Yes there was this woeful smell!; He
didn’t realize it disappeared after the dentist
took his
f
forecast
.
Tim’s sensible side chipped in ”may
be wiser than sorry’ ; Better get over and done
with ; and a
full denture while he’s at it” The dentist was no fool; he won this one I
guess many others were fooled by his
f
Mick passed a remark how people from
different towns who were less than a
hundred miles apart and knew one
another for years. Come to have had different
dispositions ;
inclinations and temper and a stranger noticed it when they entered
the town. Some people were down
right rude; as though afraid to open their mouths A
fly might enter if they
did.
Mick had lived in the area of St George ; Dirranbandi Hebel;
Mungindi and
Bollon In the nineteen thirty’s and there was a
depression on and work was
Scarce .
Mick said “ Dirran as it was
called by the people,was the friendliest you’d
pick up a job People were always ready to
help and suggest and the workers
unionists. Scab's run out of town; no good of them looking for work The
council was
making through town a gravel
road Mostly employing the
unemployed doing it by
hand labour. It was replacing the terrible black boggy dirt
road that led from the new
town past the hospital, school Following the river turned and followed it down to the
cemetery where the gravel ended
From. here it joined the black soil
road over
Whyenbah bridge and on to St
George.
The men were employed loading stone
gravel. Another lot of men would spread it
on the road,
Work on the railway and council
plus shearing and all the
teams of men
needed in the fencing,, ring barking and contract mustering and droving camps
Not forgetting the A P COY that
employed married couples and supplied boundary
riders cottages. As well their
stations employed stockmen to manage their many
properties. Other properties
employed families; and often had a governess to teach all
the workers children and their own
with the lessons from the correspondence school
Great credit should go to the
correspondence teachers; without
their help many would
Not be able to read and
write.
It was at Dirran where Mick first
saw the effect that flood water had on stock
stranded, with no place to escape
to. A number of a drovers plant horses left to
recuperate in a paddock became cut
off The property owner had been too busy
rescuing his stock from the fast
flowing flood water; to give a thought to the horses So
when the drover got back from his
trip he found the horses had been
standing in
water. The hide on their legs was
all soft and decayed. It took a long time for fresh
skin to grow over the damaged flesh. One could
always see the scars
It was here that old timers told him, you could
hear mosquitoes changing gears as
they come into land on you ; and they were right.
When talking to a Dirranite they would
say “Up to St George where they think
they have God’s given rights to all the council money; and everything
should start
and finish there. The people are all
for themselves and bugger Jack; they're alright. They
are very clickey ,
have groups of people who are friends and were for years Don’t
let outsiders in to their group
easily.
They use to even control the water
by the weir. By letting less go down the river
to
give people a fair share in the town
of
football; a fight always broke out
and it left a lot of ill feeling.
They would say “down to Hebel a
sleepy little border town with the
feeling of one
great family lives there. It comes
alive when they have the annual races and ball. The
pub is the one great meeting place
.The beer bottles are stacked high outside
Thunder Bolt the bush ranger often
spent time around the Hebel district .
When he ran short of a quid or needed to
lay low from the police.
The “Currawillinghi Station” was the
first building in the Hebel District.
It is here that Tom met the men ,who one could safely put their last quid
on,
to ride a streak of lightning. Leo
Casey, Martin Derwin, Jack Day.
Then “across to Mungindi still
reminds one of the old time border towns Horses
ridden on the streets and hitched to a
street post People give the impression that
they have all the time in the world
; spend time talking to their friends It was founded
by bullock teams carting the food
and necessitys for the town The town is on
The river divides it; and a stock
inspector is there to check
permits. The road from
Dirran to there passes through
Noondoo. The old Dareel Pub with its Bouganvilla
still flowering there even though it
has seen many droughts.and dry times.
It was here at the pub that they say a
real miracle happened There was a bloke
suffering from the delirium tremors was cured by Joe a smart stockman.,
with a sugar bag
full of brown snakes.
Noondo is a siding where the train
stops unloads mail and goods and
loads mail.
A lad from there use to cycle into
Dirran to school. The A P.Company head quarters
are close by. Where the general
manager resides with a book keeper , cook and
house maids
Also a few Jackaroo’s and
stockmen. The company employ many married
families who live in boundary
riders huts .The name Jackaroo first came from ”Johnny
raw” a raw
recruit.
They also have properties on the Culgoa river
near Dirran who have lots of single
men employed Some of the maids came
out from
quarters. The A P Coy share holders are mainly from
own Amby Downs at Mitchell and land
in the Gulf country; They drove their cattle
down and by the time they arrive are
fit to be sold at the sale yards. Also breed
horses for their use on their
properties ;and bring them down from the north. for use
on their
properties..
Then a Dirranites will say “over to
Bollon ,
the gate way to Charleville and
Cunnamulla. Small tidy town that people from St George pass through
on their way
out to heart break corner. Half way
across they pass through Boolba a post office
and phone Just a few miles on
there’s old Tom Duffey’s house that
welcomes all
travelers. He was born in the house.
He is natures gentle man; a knowledgeable
pleasant old timer who is friend to
all God’s animals and man . He also houses
dogs, cats ,
pet sheep , poddy calves , ducks
a goose, and peacocks so be
God bless
him…
The town people of the Balonne area
were different to the Graziers; who even erected
a tent to eat under at races, to be separate from the townies.
They even attended a different ball
on the night. There
were two different classes
within them as well. The old longer
settled ones were
always Mister and Missus ; even to their friends. New
comers who over stepped the
mark were chastised and soon put in their place The workers were
never invited to
eat at the boss’s table The food was passed out a
window to be eaten at the
verandah table alone. Talk of class
distinction.
I can remember calling in to give
notice at a Graziers house one
night. Wasn’t I in for
a great surprise that night
l
was a bush hut, with a big rubbish
heap blocking the view of it from the road. Was
amazed to see inside the very ordinary room, lit only by a
kerosene light; the
presence of old world charm being played out.
The boss and his wife in evening
clothes dinner suit and evening
dress. They were
dancing to a gramaphone record and
on the table two plates of stew. I wasn’t invited
to join them for a cup of tea. They
must have kept up appearances; as other drovers
had seen the same
performance
Another time I was helping a Grazier
and his wife to dip sheep and time
was of the
essence .The boss as we finished
yelled ”hurry up I’ll need to leave for town in five
minutes” Well I washed my hands and turned around and
there spied his wife sitting
patiently with her hands folded in
her seat.
She had dropped her overalls and pulled
on her scanties and powdered her nose. After that I would
never agree when men
accused woman of taking time to
dress.
Another surprise was to see a lady
at a dance in the hall, when the elastic broke in
her knickers whilst dancing; she
neatly stepped out of them and danced on. Often
after the race ball; the wives of
some of the trainers needing money would put a
message out they would sell their
flocks. All the family money had gone on bets on
the
horses”
Now don’t you get the idea that a
horse can’t be beaten “said
Luke with a grin ”I
remember going to a country race
meeting where this time in the last
race a brother
and sister owned the only two horses I knew the trainer and he said “bet on
horse
one ; I intend getting my money back
for sure this time “ Well can you imagine how
the owners were so sure of a win
after they choose the one it would
be. But they
didn’t consider the aboriginal jockey he wasn’t going to disappoint his
people their
only one sure win for the day. So he
let horse two win Imagine the
strife he was in for
but; nothing was said in
public”.
Race horses often refuse to drink
the town water at a dfferent town after
travelling long distances; Making it
necessary to cart water with them to the races. I have seen
some fed on hen eggs and others like thistles.
When the grass fed races are coming
up one often see the owner riding it
around stock for exercise. On the day before the
owners often travelled to the town for the races in a sulky with the race horse on
a
rope trotting beside the sulky This
sort of race was less costly and gave more people
a chance to
participate.
Tom had heard of a jockey who rode a
winning horse, issued with the
ribbon; but he
knew he came third. You see there
were three chestnut race horses in the race. There
was only a steward to say who won and he said number three.
Didn’t matter how
much the owners complained the
steward still stuck to his
judgement and the jockey
got his pay for riding a winner, simple
logic.
Tom said he once congratulated a young lad who he
said told him he had just got married.
Tom knew the lad spent a lot of time on
the road searching for work
had no home to call his own. While
yarning awhile he said that the wife was due
to foal This prompted Tom to say that it couldn’t be his, so soon after meeting the
mother to be .
He earnestly said ”now if your mares in foal when you buy her; the foals
yours when it is born .” They don’t teach that theory in “the birds and the
bees.”
It’s another miss understanding
Tom knew of ,was a dog that was the towns
nuisance; it was constantly disturbing the peace by howling; whining
and barking at
night People were always complaining to the
pound keeper. This night the keeper
threw a piece of meat with a
sleeping tablet in it to the dog.so everyone would get
a sleep So they did ; it
had pleased every one, a peaceful night at last.
At four in the morning there was the
owner asking the keeper to take the dead dog
away so the children wouldn’t see it. He thought a snake had bitten it.. When the
keeper got the dog and took it out
to the common to burn it; he discovered it was
awake. He thought awhile and decided best to put it down.
In the meantime
M
She visited the school one morning a
week; supervised the cleaning of
head lice. Also
managed a program for food for
neglected children . Asked mothers to leave any
spare panties their children had out grown. There are always
little accidents when
girls first start school. They can’t
be running home for dry ones.
Olive the matron slept in a private ward with any small
child sick in hospital. She had
the girls bring her extra biscuits
with her early morning tea and toast. It was nothing to
see a little one fast asleep in her
arms; all the fear forgotten. Olive said this gave the
night sister more time to deal with
her other patients. Besides Olive missed her grand
children; and she knew the little ones missed their mums. So it cut both
ways.
M
Later she would travel to
where to stay while she found work
to support herself
When she arrived in
fairy land. After seeing the land
hot and dry when she left home ; to see the green was
a real welcome .
Amy met her; and M
Amy lived alone on a small farm; the
potatoes she grew had blight in them
M
and some thatched roofs. The houses
all on ground level; you just walked in off the
ground. They had open fires run on
peat. This was dug up; sliced and left to dry before
used in the fires. No wood in sight. It was
very cold and damp and when the snow
melted very
sloshy.
What got M
night. The people seem to all go to the pub and
sing and play music and drink .They
had
open fires in their bars and men and
women were all welcome. She had heard of a
illegal drink made on some farms
named Parshein ; very
strong.
Amy liked her new found sister; decided to sell up and go where ever she went. So
after a year decided to visit John’s brother Wally at Hambleton in
It was a pretty place of lakes and
hills. The mites that bred in the
pools annoyed them
and the wind almost decapitated
their scalp as it tore through their hair.
They found Wally alone on the farm
;and he said he hadn’t had a letter for some time
from John .
After deciding Wally would come on a visit with them to see to John; they
waited until he got some one to look
after his farm for a few
months.
When back in Australia they finally reached John’s house they found him almost blind.
He was being
looked after by a lad who was
working John’s mine. He had been at deaths door
from the grog he had drunk .The
AA.society had got him to give
drinking up and
join the AA .
It left him sulking bec
good frame of mind Wally decided he’d
stay for a period and try and stabilise
him; Perhaps if he failed, take him home with him when he went. home to
.
Hambleton
M
she herself had been away from the
family two years.
The mining area had grown some since she
had lived and worked there. Even a
small one room school had sprung up
and a bush nurse cottage
Men who bought and cut stones were well
represented in the community. The pub
still stood; now the customers were
of many different races all hoping
to become rich
They were known only by their first
names ;and if they gave a surname it was
always Smith.
The different races of miners
lived in small lots away from each other, and fights
broke out in these
camps.
Sarah was so happy to see Amy again
and they talked into the night.
M
happy to; know she could go and join
the army nurses; and perhaps
end up
overseas. She hadn’t found love and
didn’t like the sort of life the Mormons lived
Since her sisters marriage broke up;
she was extra careful of who she let into her life
Amy lived in Sarah’s rooms as did any other friends who visited her
her.
Often young men who were travelling
the roads looking for work were given a couple
of days respite here. Sarah fed them
and gave them council that allowed them to
travel
on.
It was hard for families in the
depression to support the young ones. Single men
were obliged to travel from town to
town in search of work to be eligible to collect
the dole. Their soles on their shoes
wore out and needed attention often .
So it was that Sergeant Dan Trek decided to call in and see if
Sh
there. His mother needed him at home..
Dan was a past mounted police man, and
was use to travel by horse back
. He had served in the gulf country; had seen first
hand the heart break of a young
Aboriginal girl forced into marriage with a chosen older man.
What happened when the girl and her
lover ran away and were c
seen the way some people had made a
rule that disgusted him. They had segregated
the whites from the aboriginals at
picture shows ;by roping off seats. for them
to sit
in
He had heard of rules applied to all
baths in NSW. So coming to a town position
Dan had decide that he would make a
difference. He encouraged the people to mix
and play football together They all
joined the scouts and girl guides.
He hadn’t married
and the force was his
family
It had been a hard life living apart
from his family of origin; no place for a wife.
He as a junior constable fresh from the
barracks had a rude awakening from the
sergeant he served under. A very strict man who abided by the rules and was quick
to teach Dan the way he was to enact
them. He informed Dan that he must allow the
sergeant to do the talking ;and then
carry out his orders
So Dan
the eager beaver he was to get
marks on the board was pleased when
ordered to go with him to the
aboriginal camp on the river bank. One man
had escaped from the police earlier
at the pub. But the sergeant knew
he would be
asleep in his swag at the camp after
him in his swag and would give the
order for Dan to rush in and handcuff the offender.
Well when they arrived there the night was dark
and there was no light provided at
the camp,
even the moon wasn’t helping out. The children had long gone to
bed.
Sergeant knew the camp he slept in
and grabbed him in a flying tackle and was
wrestling on the ground Dan heard
the call to duty and made a dash and
c
wrist put the cuff on; and with
great speed encircled another wrist. Now what was the
sergeant hollering about? ”you
bloody fool you’ve let him escape; and hand cuffed
me” Well Dan now understood why the
public failed to respond when the
sergeant
called “ I deputise you to help me apprehend this wanted
man”
Another old Irish policeman called Lucy who rode a horse to check
out police
business. Dan liked how he
got around sticky situations
and saved face.
It was xmas time and the depression
on; the pub had on hand a dozen
chooks
ready to be killed. Xmas eve some one stole the lot so down came Lucy on his
horse. He rode up and loudly said to
all and sundry camped on the river bank ”I’m off
over to have a cup of tea with old
Gran. God help you if I find any feathers scattered
around these camps on the river bank
when I return.”
Dan remembered a police man known as
”over the shoulder ” in the depression
people formed lines to obtain the dole from the police man seated.
They handed out
chits. Often if the police thought
the dole wasn’t enough to feed and clothe the
family Then they would write out a
extra chit and hand it over their shoulder. This way
they had no conversation with the
receiver. He was very well liked and appreciated
by the families struggling to make
do.
Dan was very taken with Amy, He hadn’t expected to ever find a suitable wife; but
there she was. For once in his life
he was lost for words. He froze like he did in the
winter, riding around on the plains
outside Longreach; when the wind
came
screaming past. He’d soon be warm
again if he could have Amy‘s arms to fall
into each night. The idea took hold;
and put a spring in his
step.
By now Don Dual had given up the
idea of having three wives He was now settled
down with Faith. David also had found love with
Ruth and married her. David did
the book keeping for the station and
left Don to lead a life of retirement John had
settled down a lot and was manager
running the every day station jobs managing the
property.
Mark was now a Jackaroo there .
It was a happy lot with Sarah
as the
station matriarch loved by all who met her. Tom
had been away a long time; but he
wrote home to his
mum.
Walter had gone away with some people who thought
like he did. They had gifts
like by laying on hands made one feel better They had psychic
powers and. could read
the present just as well as the
past. They couldn’t read their own family
bec
were too
close to them; and couldn’t be sure
if they already knew. They helped the
police finding people; and parents looking for their children. They gave peace of
mind
to the bereaved and people put their
faith in them. They never told people straight out
of death ; said they were sliding
down the hill.
Yes Walter certainly was a humble
man; he thought only of doing good to others with
his power. It was a matter of those
who believed they had a special gift ; or straight
out witch craft. Most believed after
they had a reading; It all came true. and after all
how did the reader know when
ones self hadn’t known
After Dan and Amy married they continued
to live in the town and were well liked
by the people as well. The Graziers
often gave them half a
sheep and eggs; which was more than they
themselves needed.
In the past the prisoners food was
the least of the policeman’s concerns.
Dan usually made the prisoners a
sandwich for breakfast; but Amy cooked chops
and eggs for them. Cold meat
sandwiches for lunch .Some of the men were in jail for
jumping the rattler {train] instead
of walking miles.
The men appreciated the food and
cleaned all of the family shoes ; Also the residence
was always clean. They chopped the wood heap up and raked
the yard
.When there was no one in jail, Amy found ways
of seeing a cooked piece of
meat
reached the families who needed it
most.
Tom said with a look of sadness ”there
was a lady in town who couldn’t get clothes to
fit her and no money to search
further.
The society
from the city one winter sent out a army over coat; a pair of
Army boots
in reply to a call for help. They
were worn with pride and filled the bill ;
she wasn’t cold no more
Her husband died and she was asked
if she would marry again. The inquirer could’t in
his wildest imagination see anyone
popping the question. She stood there proud and
defiant saying “even if they rushed me I won’t marry them
“
Her d
to cut her hair It didn’t seem right
to her to put a steam pudding basin
over ones
head and then cut around it. The old
warrior didn’t put up much of a fight when taken
to the hospital for eye treatment.
Tom remembered the time a
religious sect visited the small town and put up a large
tent down by the river Hoping to
convert new members to their flock..
The sect
members visited the home handing out pamphlets, the same lady
told Tom In
tears. ”the man asked for payment on
handing me the paper; I said I had none. I
thought he’d walk away; but no he
wasn’t going to be put off .He opened the door
and then swung the cupboard door
open. He then said “give me that tin of syrup you
have in the cupboard;” I gave it to
him now my cupboard is empty Besides I can’t
read the paper they gave me
“
Tom was riding a horse and a whip over his shoulder; he rode straight
into the full
tent , He
cracked the whip and threatened to use it; if the tin of syrup wasn’t returned
post haste to the pensioner. There was more than one tin of jam returned that night;
and many grateful
people.
Another time a young aboriginal lad
was playing around the bush near by his
home; when he screamed ” snake’s bitten me” He was bundled up and taken straight
to the doctors surgery. The doctor
was about to administer the snake venom treatment ;
The boy looked fearful; then to
their surprise his face changed to a happy one.
When out
jumped a frill necked lizard from his pants .Well that put the cat amongst the
pigeons.
Tom l
country in around Mungindi and Goondiwindi ; when he saw a
few old timers with
red splashed in their beards. They
were drinking prickly pear juice made from the
leaves ; very frisky they were They
were head butting; banging their
foreheads
together. Just like two bulls
fighting until one fell from
exh
discolored their beards
People did drink this juice for
medication ; they believed it helped with sugar diabetes
.
Later they brought in a beetle to
eradicate it by burrowing in and eating it.
Death adders lived in the prickly
pear ; and Tom knew death adder Joe. He was
known to stamp on their heads and
kill them ; never bitten . Often people would lay
small wagers on how many he could kill in a given
time. The people would make
birdwire fencing around their houses in attempt to
stop death adders getting into their
houses. The adder would lie curled
up and once tread on would bite. This meant
instant treatment or death; not like
a snakebite..
The elderly have it all ; silver in
hair, gold in teeth, stones in kidneys, lead in feet, and gas
in stomach ; piped up Mick who was
dozing.
Tom said ”I was on dinner camp with
five thousand sheep and was resting with my
back to a tree. I had a few boils on my back; I hadn’t slept the night
before. So I had
just dozed slightly when I heard the hiss of a snake. Opened
my eye to be confronted
with a snake about to strike my
face. My reaction was to put up my hands to save my
face. In doing so the snake bit me
on my thumb; before I could kill
it.
Mick hurriedly spoke up; and asked
if they had ever witnessed snakes escaping from
a bush fire ”Well they will climb up
anything in their sight. They will go without
hesitation into deep water and swim.
If a house is in their sight, they will make it their
home. Have seen many twined around
the rafters inside sheds Even found in beds; the
fear of being burnt , over rides their usual safety instinct . I
always sleep in my swag
with my boots on; often had to kick
a joe blake (snake) out my swag Have even had to drag
one from up my trouser
leg.
Pays to watch out for snake tracks
when camped out. They’ll stay and fight if your in
their line of escape.; so never
block their space
Luke said a bloke told him of a
problem he had with snakes invading his old house
in the scrub. They were breeding up
to seven and he had tried without success
to get rid of them.
Then a traveller told him to splash phenyle in a circle
around
the house. But be sure to leave a
small exit in so the snakes could escape.
Tom said it didn’t do any good where
it’s used in a long drop dunny. Snakes
have been known to be found down the
hole. That’s why some times the paper
down the hole is set on fire. Still
worth a try ; so good luck.
Luke told of seeing a snake at his feet in a old T Model Ford car he
was driving. He
said ”my mate and I out for a spin
ran over a brown snake on a bush road. We
thought no more of it; until
suddenly we heard and saw this angry snake emerging
from the crack in the floor of the
car. It must have c
and spotted the large crack in the
steel around the steering wheel. I can tell you we
both grabbed for the crank handle ;
In the meantime the snake made a bid for
freedom under the seat. Seeing it
was wounded slightly by the wheel
running over its tail ; we were able
to dispose of it without much trouble.”
Tom said in drought time and grass was
scarce on the ground ; he had seen while
riding across barren ground snakes
pop their heads up out of the holes in the
ground. They must have sensed the
movement of the horse; perhaps never having been
noticed before, was
bec
Snakes like to travel when its windy; cooler on
their bellies. They also like milk ; many
a cunning snake has been poisoned by drinking such
milk. They also love eating
fowl eggs. In their defence they rid you of
rats and mice.
A friendly stockman listening into the
conversation asked if he could add a
remarkable story on snakes. ”Well I
know its hard to believe ; but there was I
strolling in a cemetery as one does
when looking for a grave. My mind was fully
attuned to what I was doing.
When out of the corner of my eye I
saw a brown mass
rise up and disappear down a close hole in the ground. Taking a
good look at the
hole ,I discovered that there were
quite a few rabbit warrens going down under some
of the old graves. `In fact the ends
of some the concrete had half fallen in to the
warrens.
As I walked further along I saw
other big brown snakes either going
or coming from
down the rabbit holes. They were
feasting on the baby kittens of the rabbits ; and this
evidence was easily seen in the
swelling of the snakes belly.
What a wonderful paradise created by
nature for the family of snakes; in this situation
the snakes had; food guaranteed and
homes ready made. I wondered if any
unsuspecting humans had been warned
off by a bite for trespassing , in their territory
After all they lived amongst the
dead ; and they do no one any harm”
Ted said his mate had suffered from
taking a snake carelessly . Ben drove a semi
trailer and while unloading it a
snake fell out on the ground. He cut it’s head off with a
axe; and kicked the head away
sometime later. .Later went to the pub
collapsed
there. He was very ill for a week in hospital .It appears the snake still
had
venom in
it’s fangs when Ben kicked the head away, and it had bit him on the foot.
People use to say a snake doesn’t die
until sunset.
A
aboriginal lad Kevin always said the tribes use to walk behind each other at
night
when on the
move. This way only one would get bitten; the noise would frighten the snake
away
The three men were on their way back to camp; they had been in
the near by town
for the night. Suddenly Luke asked
“what are those people in the old truck doing over
near the wind mill ?”Mick sounded
alarmed. as he replied ” I can see a woman
standing upon the platform near the
sails of the windmill. ””Oh God the fool is going
to turn the windmill on; she’s tied
to the sails ”They galloped over to the mill; were just
in time to stop the mill from
gathering speed
.When asked
Bill said he was strapping his wife to the sales to catch atoms.
He pointed
to his rabbit traps saying “I can’t trap them with these they’re too
smart”
The police
arrived and sent Bill down to the
Asylum.
His wife
and young family went to live with her mother.
The wife
had been living in the bush and found it was best to humor
Bill;
but his
last act was drawing a long
bow.
A stockman on his way to work on the
rabbit fence camped with them for the night
It was a lonely job; checking the
miles of fencing for damage. You would be lucky to
see any human being for weeks. at a
time. Clive said he was replacing a lad who had
broke the rule; and had paid for it.
Pat had ridden out on a very hot day; and seeing a
small hole in the netting had
stopped to repair it He had failed to remove his water
bag from his horse when he tied it
up. A whirly wind (willy willy) sprung up ;the horse took fright
and broke loose and galloped away..
No water for miles ; the lad perished A rabbit or
dingo fence man had to be a special
kind of man ;
one who could live with themselves
for weeks on
end.
Mick was
speaking of the roll of women in the bush. He told the tale of one well known
lady
who supplied the district with groceries
; still remained a Lady in every sense of the
word.
”Mrs Murphy
was only tiny in stature but everyone took notice when she
spoke.
Her small
shop had a street window made of chicken wire netting. Her kitchen opened into
her shop
and a wood fire stove was always alight.
There would be a long piece of wood that was
supported by a chair to enable it to be
shoved in further as it burned.
She needed
hot water ready to make the cups of tea she sold. Her teenaged son would read a
comic
as he watched the log
burn.
This day
the desert lair was poking fun at Mrs Murphy; poking his tongue out and
entered
the shop with his fly open. There were
three girls being served with bullseyes
for their pennies; they
l
Then , Mister your office door is open. The lair never hesitated
;t ell me Misses is the
Clerk
standing or seated, have a good look. Tom took the lair outside.
Then the
girls were firmly put in their place. No there would be no
lollies;
she would
keep their pennies.
She would
tell their parents how they had l
Strange how good can
come out of evil ”Mick was thoughtful awhile ”
Yes in this
case it turned out well
Old Bob he spent most of his
time drinking in the pub Always on
about his old mare
that was skin and bones. There was a
drought on and she was just hanging on. This day
he was very drunk crying in his beard.
Apparently he’d been down to the paddock to
see his mare He had decided to put her
out of her misery and had slit her throat
Well as
time went by Bob use to go into the delirium tremors from
drinking.
In one of
these turns a few months after he had attacked the mare he went down to the
paddock
to gather
her bones. It had rained and grass was growing. To his mind he saw a ghost
There was
his mare trotting about like a filly It appears he only cut a small vein and it
bled
doing the
mare some good. It was all too much
for Bob.; he had to be sent away to recover.
The men were going into town to a
bit of a dance and a chance of
meeting
friends. Mick was telling them a
yarn about an old r
wife ”She with the plum in her
mouth asked the men at breakfast if
they were going to
the dance .”What about you Pickles tell me
can you dance?” Old Pickles had a
feeling he was being taken down a
rung or two. Mind you he was never
slow in
answering replied “Yes missus I can
do the bullocky polka; you swing them around
until the shit flies out of them” No flies on. Pickles but you could see
where they had
been.
.When asked by the cook ‘can you eat
two eggs with your chops? “Pickles
replied
”’my brother had two eggs for his breakfast yesterday, and he’s still
alive”
On a very
hot day I heard him say ”Will have to put crushed ice in the
hen’s
Nest
to prevent the eggs being
scrambled”
Another
time when a over weight woman walked by he remarked “How
would
You like
her to fart on your last pound of flour? ”Crude would hardly describe him!
Droving had its draw backs; but
there are a few things in the food line you don’t get at
a pub or cafe. Mick being an old
timer often made fried scones, pufftaloons, fried
bread wiped along in the natural
gravy when the roast meat was removed and salt
and pepper added He made dumplings
for the stew; often eaten with golden syrup
known as cockies joy.. When he made a plum duff ; he
always made a few little ones
in empty jam tins. Of course dampers
and brownies that would make your mouth
water. Plenty of liver and
bacon for breakfast if sick of chops and onion
gravy..
If camped near a river ;some one
would throw a line in, and if lucky fish for supper
Tin food was kept for emergency; the day when all hands cook
included was
needed to run the
show.
Droving is not all plain sailing.;
the crawlers are a nuisance they
don’t keep up with
the mob The drover has to ride back
and drive them into the mob. Then there are
the wanderers who stray from a mob
and keep going in a different direction Some
times they hold the mob back a day
so they can be found and returned back to the
mob. Of course the worst of all can
be a maddened stampede when all men are
needed
Mick said “I was back looking for
strays and as I came around the bend in the road
I heard the sound of a grader, .It was
away in the bush miles from any where.
To my surprise it was being driven
by a chap reading a book. He had the book tied to
the steering wheel and foot tied to the pedal
.
He told me he got tired of going up
and down the same stretch of road.
miles from
nowhere. Seeing traffic was few and
far between he read a book as he worked. Mind
you he had a few surprises and had
to move fast to manoeuvre the
grader off the
road. .and prevent a
accident.”
.Luke said he knew a bloke who had a
wad of notes; that he used melted beeswax
to glue them to his under arm hairs.
.Of course people often safety pinned their wallet
to their under clothes. Or filled a
empty porridge bag with money and slept on it.
We all know of the happiness it brings to a little girl when she
receives a doll
made from the pattern of goldie
locks or teddy bear found on the porridge bag.
Or a pair of pants made from the
calico.; such treasures
Mick had been quite for awhile;
suddenly he said “I know of one family who had to
have their mother sent home on the
train C.O.D. {cash on delivery} She had been away
visiting relatives in a very small
town. Needed to come home in a hurry ; so they
put a tag on her arm with. fare to
be paid on delivery at destination. So had to wait
for family to bring the money before
being released; like c.o.d parcel!”
They were back down mustering cattle
on Cubbie Station; soon the war
clouds would
erupt and their lives would be
separated. There was a depression every where ;
there’s no better climate to start a
war than when people are at starvation
point. Down on their knees lost
faith in living. How cruel to stick the boot in; selfish to
the core.
Don Johnson
was
one of the first to enlist when they called for troops for the A.I.F.
Mick
Luke and Tom
would continue droving. and wait for Don’s return. Soon gone forever
would be the happy care free life.
In place the horrors of war and the
misery
that follows. In war there are no innocent bystanders on the battle
field.
Neutrality is not a option.;
everyone a combatant by force to stay alive.
Though in the midst of many ; one can be chilled with
loneliness..!
Don ‘s war history is now documented
by his son who bares his name. He would tell
his son of the things he saw that horrified him; to the bravery
that was never ever
recognized by medals. Little stories that happened amidst the terror of war.That Don
remembered along with the sad ones.
long after the war
finished.
Our son has done a remarkable job to
give a word for word account of his fathers
remembered war history. It is as
follows; and I for one can as I read it ; hear
Don’s
voice sometimes heavy with emotion telling it.
Don hated wars, no gain only pain’;
no guaranteed lasting peace..
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
WALTER CLARENCE LEESON born 1896 son
of SUSAN ELLEN MC CARRY born
& THOMAS LEESON (his only child)
died 3/6’/1918 buried
WALTER 5ft 5!/2 tall ; joined AIF
11/4/1918 AMIENS
neck. buried in
.WALTER’S NO 2837 MEDALS posted to
mother ;
MOTHERS PLAQUE 346330 DES
LEESON now has them in his
keeping
0n
He was a light horseman and trained in
WALTER SIDNEY BRUMMELL born
7/6/1918 Served NEW GUINEA died 10/10’/87 2/31AIF
CLARENCE KEITH BRUMMELL born
ROY CHARLES BRUMMELL
born 25/6/1922served NEW
DONALD HAMBLETON JOHNSON born
3/7/1919 served MIDDLE EAST & NEW GUINEA 2/25 AIF
“MEN OF COURAGE” died
SONS DONALD HAMBLETON & MARK
JOHN JOHNSON both joined the army AIF
A relative of Don’s a Rev. White came out from
Appointed to
Battalion. On 14 Nov.1914; 20,000 men and
7,000 horses were waiting to join the convoy
Of ships waiting in the bay. They
were the first lot of soldiers to be called ANZAC’s,
soldiers
Fron
Were thrown in the water .As he
finished praying he said “When the sun rises ,and the
sun
Goes down;we will remember them!”
The troops went first to
Arriving April
1915
END OF WAR HISTORY