Welcome to the Hay Historical Society web-site newsletter No. 6. Included in the newsletter is:
'A TOUR TO THE SOUTH'. – EXTRA ARTICLES ADDED. – The series of travel articles entitled 'A Tour of the South', published in 1872 in the Town and Country Journal, have been considerably expanded on the Hay Historical Society web-site. Four articles in the series with descriptions of Hay and the surrounding district were originally up-loaded to the web-site in November 2002. These articles have proved to be extremely popular and their availability has received positive feedback over the years. I recently discovered that there were three articles missing from the sequence. These have now been located and added to the 'A Tour to the South' web-page. The three newly-added articles describe the anonymous correspondent's journey from Hay to Balranald and on to Wentworth, back to Balranald and across to Moulamein, before making his way to Deniliquin. The added articles are:
All seven articles can be found here.
PREVIOUS NEWSLETTERS. – I've had a number of requests for copies of previous newsletters, so they have now been made available on-line. This link connects to an index page with links to each previous newsletter.
BOOK REVIEW:
Beyond the Lachlan: A History of Tom's Lake and the Crossley Family
by Norman Crossley.
The publication Beyond the Lachlan: A History of Tom's Lake and the Crossley Family by Norman Crossley has been recently added to the list of available local history publications on the web-site. This is not a Hay Historical Society publication and is available for purchase directly from the author, or locally from the Riverine Grazier office. For further details see: link.
Norman Crossley's book, Beyond the Lachlan, is a thorough examination of "Tom's Lake" station and the Crossley family (who have been associated with the station from the late 1870s to the present day). "Tom's Lake" station is situated on the Willandra flood-plain between Booligal and Mossgiel. The book begins with an overview of the geological evolution of the Riverine Plains, and includes a chapter regarding the Aboriginal people that lived there. European exploration and the beginnings of pastoral settlement are recounted, interwoven with the observations of the first European visitors to the region. The history of "Tom's Lake" station is traced from its formation to recent times, including an account of the fortunes of early settlers in the region such as the Brodribbs and Desaillys, followed by the experiences of the Crossley family.
Beyond the Lachlan has a broad scope; it investigates the fortunes of the settlers of the region within a variety of frameworks – social, economic, legislative and seasonal. Crossley takes a comprehensive approach to his subject-matter, using a range of primary and secondary sources to explore his themes. His extensive use of primary references is effective; quotations from personal recollections, official documents, original letters and journals are used throughout the book. Crossley's stated intention is to let the gathered information speak for itself, rather than the author attempting to interpret events.
The use of secondary sources in Beyond the Lachlan is occasionally more problematical, relating very much to the quality of the sources. For example, in Chapter 5 ('The Road North, Coaches and Wells'), extensive use is made of extracts from John Bushby's Saltbush Country: History of the Deniliquin District (published in 1980). An informed reading of Saltbush Country reveals occasional errors and, by quoting sizeable portions of the text, Crossley in some cases repeats the errors. The writing of Saltbush Country was a comprehensive and ambitious undertaking. John Bushby had an extensive knowledge of the western Riverina and obviously undertook a large amount of research (particularly as regards the Deniliquin Pastoral Times newspaper). Unfortunately it seems that in sections of the book Bushby gave priority to letting the story flow, sometimes filling information gaps by inferring erroneous conclusions. Moreover Saltbush Country is only occasionally referenced, so the sources of many of his statements are often difficult to verify.
For example Crossley quotes a passage from Saltbush Country which discusses the road between Hay and Booligal. Included in the extract is the following:
Another of Bushby's errors is identified by Crossley: Bushby wrote that in 1867 "a rabbiter was found dead in his tent, almost eaten by his starving dogs" [italics added]. Crossley adds the comment: "perhaps bilby hunter as rabbits hadn't arrived in the area then". The death referred to by Bushby seems to be that of a man "supposed to be C. Stewart" who was found by Constable Michael McNamara of Booligal on the "Mossgiel" run on 20 November 1867. The man, aged "about 50", had died about six months beforehand. He was found with the "remains of a dog", and it was supposed he had "perished of thirst". On the registration of his death the man's occupation was recorded as "supposed [to be] a Shepherd" [Death registration – Stewart (Hay 1867)].
In addition to Saltbush Country Crossley quotes from a number of other secondary sources, a few of them of high standard such as Gordon Buxton's The Riverina 1861-1891: an Australian regional study (1967) and Bill Gammage's Narrandera Shire (1986).
Norman Crossley's Beyond the Lachlan is a quality publication that deals with a geographical area with very few written histories. The author's intimate knowledge of "Tom's Lake" station adds considerably to the book's impact. It is highly recommended to anyone with an interest in the history of the western Riverina. Beyond the Lachlan has been produced in A4 format, with a plasticised cover. The book is comprised of 216 pages, 74 photographs and 17 sketches, diagrams, maps etc. (though the book unfortunately lacks an index). It is printed on quality paper enabling excellent reproduction of photographs.
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JOHN TAYLOR Successful pastoralists such as James Tyson and Henry Angel are often cited as examples of men of modest means who, by hard work and canny strategic decisions, became large landholders. John Taylor and his two younger brothers can also be counted in this category. But the life-stories of John Taylor and his brothers (recounted below) are all the more remarkable; they achieved membership of the squatting class in a later period than Tyson and Angel. The cost of Riverina pastoral leaseholds was significantly elevated by the late 1860s and 1870s, due to a number of factors including the development of transportation links, rising wool prices, improvements on pastoral runs and closer rural settlement patterns. In parallel with these developments was a tightening of credit availability by financial institutions in the wake of the drought conditions of the late 1860s. |
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John Taylor (1834 - 1907)John Taylor was born on 19 November 1834 at the Aird, county Antrim, Ireland. He was the second of six children of the tenant farmer Samuel Taylor and his wife Ann (née Wilson). John and each of his siblings were baptised into the Presbyterian Church. Samuel and Ann Taylor left the Aird and emigrated to Scotland with their young children; they probably left during the Potato Famine of 1844-9. Samuel Taylor died soon afterwards of typhoid fever. Ann Taylor and her children were recorded as living at Glasgow in the census of 1851. [Taylor family records]
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In Scotland John Taylor was apprenticed to a stone-mason and became a builder. In 1857 John Taylor emigrated to Australia aboard the Glen Isla, which departed from Liverpool in England and arrived at Sydney on 2 July 1857. During the voyage to Australia John Taylor met Helen Grierson (born on 1 March 1836 at Ardentinny, near Dunoon, Scotland). The couple were married on 18 September 1857 in the Presbyterian church at 22 Lower Fort Street in Sydney. John and Helen Taylor left Sydney after their marriage. In June 1858 Taylor was working for Edward B. Cornish on the "Gunningbar Creek" run on the lower Macquarie River near Warren. John and Helen's first child (a son, Samuel Alexander) was born at "Barlingarah" station, near Nevertire (possibly another of Cornish's runs). In late 1858 John Taylor's younger brother Samuel emigrated to Australia, arriving at Melbourne aboard the Admiral on 19 January 1859. [NSW & Victorian Shipping records; Taylor family records] |
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Helen Taylor (née Grierson)By late November 1860 John and Helen Taylor were living at "Illilawa" station on the lower Murrumbidgee River, near the emerging township of Hay. Taylor worked as the 'Sheep Overseer' on the station. A complicated series of transactions regarding the sale of the "Illilawa" leasehold had occurred during 1859-60; in the end the lease was held by a company, of which E. B. Cornish was a principal, with John Downie the managing partner in the enterprise [Ronald, p. 73]. John Taylor's move from "Barlingarah" station on the Macquarie River to "Illilawa" on the Murrumbidgee was probably linked to Cornish's involvement in the purchase of the leasehold. John and Helen Taylor's second child, a son named Hugh, was born on 16 November 1860 at "Illilawa". In January 1863 the couple's first daughter, named Helen, was born there. Another of John Taylor's brothers, William George Taylor, travelled to Australia and arrived at Melbourne in July 1863.
In about April 1865 John Taylor purchased a hotel at Willanthry, upstream of Hillston on the Lachlan River [Pastoral Times, 4 March 1865, p. 3]. The vendor was George Dorward, an early storekeeper and publican at Hay, who in 1862 had established a hotel and store at Willanthry in partnership with James Mann. John Taylor had left "Illilawa" at about the time the station was sold by Cornish and Walker to John Rutherford and Co. (with Walter Tully as manager) [Ronald, p. 73]. When Taylor took over the Willanthry Hotel in April 1865 he obtained a publicans' license for the business. However the venture was short-lived; evidence suggests that Taylor did not actually obtain ownership of the hotel at Willanthry. By the end of the year, Taylor was back at "Illilawa" working as the sheep overseer under Walter Tully. On 11 December 1865 a son, John, was born to the couple there; (this child, John Taylor Jnr., seems to have been called 'Henry' by the time he was four or five years old).
In the meantime John Taylor's younger brothers, Samuel and William George Taylor, had set themselves up in business at Whealbah, on the Lachlan River between Booligal and Hillston. Samuel Taylor had recently married (to Janet Lang in September 1865 at Bendigo in Victoria). In January 1866 the following advertisement appeared in the Deniliquin Pastoral Times:
To the Settlers of the Back Blocks, and the Lachlan neighbourhood generally.
S. & W.G. TAYLOR, General Blacksmiths, Horse-shoers, and Wheelwrights, have begun business on Whealbah, three miles west from Cowl Cowl Station, where they intend to follow the above trades in their several branches. They are well acquainted with all manner of station work, viz.:– mounting of whims, scoop ploughs, cutting of tiers, &c., &c., and they hope by turning out good work, punctuality in business, and moderate charges, to meet with a liberal share of support. [Pastoral Times, 20 January 1866, p. 3] |
During 1866 John Taylor began to construct a hotel at a location known as the Nine-mile Box, north of Hay on the road to Booligal (twelve kilometres from Hay on the present highway). In May 1866 it had been reported that a spring had been found at the Nine-mile Box "of beautiful, clear, fresh water, about four feet from the surface" and that "teamsters can water their horses there easily, and it is a good camping place" [Pastoral Times, 5 May 1866, p. 5]. Taylor probably began constructing the hotel soon after this report was published (though Busby [pp. 147-8] claims the hotel was already built by February 1866). By November 1866 the structure was completed and Taylor had been granted a license. The hotel was described as being "nearly all brick":
The western Riverina experienced drought during the latter half of the 1860s, but throughout this period the spring at the Nine-mile Box apparently provided a reliable source of water to complement the comforts of Taylor's public-house. In late December 1866 it was reported:
In late July 1867 it was reported that John Taylor had a paddock of "a few acres" sown with oats and barley at the Nine-mile Box; "they promise to give a fine crop and will well repay him for the tillage". [Pastoral Times, 3 August 1867, p. 2; 31 August 1867, p. 2] Two daughters were born to John and Helen Taylor during the period that Taylor was publican of the Weradgerie Hotel: Annie (born on 9 April 1868) and Sophia (born on 25 October 1870).
In February 1870 an item in the Pastoral Times stated that "Mr. John Taylor, of the Nine Mile Box, reports having selected 900 acres of the Illilliwah run, in the neighbourhood of the Ghallah [Galah, between Hay and Gunbar]". The writer added "It is probable from what I hear, that his right to do so will be contested" [Pastoral Times, 26 February 1870, p. 2]. The selections were actually made in the names of Taylor's young sons. A total of 918 acres on "Illilawa" station were selected as follows: Hugh Taylor, 320 acres; Samuel Alexander Taylor, 318 acres (in four separate lots); and, 'Henry' (John) Taylor, 280 acres (seven 40 acre lots).
In July 1871 a teamster named George Barnes purchased the Nine-mile Box Hotel from John Taylor.
As had been predicted by the Pastoral Times in February 1870 the lessees of "Illilawa" station, Sir James McCulloch and Co., had protested about John Taylor's selections on their station, but Taylor stood his ground, maintaining that he had not infringed the Crown Lands legislation and the selections had been ratified by the Survey Office at Sydney. Eventually McCulloch and his partners were able to draw attention to the case within the upper echelons of government. In about September 1871 the District Surveyor was summoned to Sydney to receive a dressing down by the Colonial Secretary, John Robertson (who had been the chief architect of the 1861 Crown Land Acts that allowed selection before survey in New South Wales).
On 21 December 1871 the Bench of Magistrates at Hay heard the case brought against "Mr. John Taylor and his youthful sons, Samuel, Hugh, and Henry" for being in illegal possession of Crown Lands situated on the "Illilawa" run, under rental to Sir James M'Culloch, John Rutherford and Robert Sellar. At the hearing Walter Tully, manager of "Illilawa" and agent for the lessees, revealed that a fortnight beforehand he had entered into two agreements with Taylor "by which all John Taylor's right, title, and interest in his conditional purchases" were to be transferred to Messrs. M'Culloch, Rutherford and Sellar, "together with all improvements on all the lots conditionally purchased by defendant and his sons", and that Taylor and his sons would surrender possession of the land on 2 March 1872. [Hay Standard, 13 December 1871, p. 2]
By March 1872 John Taylor had acquired the leaseholds of five runs constituting "Hunthawang" station (with Lachlan River frontage near Hillston), which he purchased from the Colonial Bank of Australasia. Taylor probably received monetary compensation for his improvements on the "Illilawa" selections which he was able to utilise as deposit for a loan to facilitate these purchases. Taylor's acquisition of "Hunthawang" seems to have been a short-lived enterprise as by October 1872 the property was in the possession of George C. Loughnan. [Hay Standard, 27 March 1872, p. 2; 23 October 1872, p. 3]
On the morning of 21 June 1872 the George Barnes' public-house at the Nine-mile Box was burned to ground. Later that day an inquest at the site of the fire was held by the Hay Police Magistrate, Joseph E. Pearce.
Shortly after selling "Hunthawang" station to the Loughnan family John Taylor purchased the leasehold of the much smaller "South Merrowie" run, close to Hillston township and adjoining "Hunthawang". John Taylor and his family settled for a time at "South Merrowie". In late March 1873 Taylor and several of his children selected a total of 558 acres "on Merrowie run" (probably "South Merrowie") [Hay Standard, 2 April 1873, p. 2]. In July 1873 Helen Taylor gave birth to her seventh child, a daughter named Mary; John Taylor reported his occupation as 'squatter' at this time, living at "South Merrowie".
In the latter half of 1873 John Taylor put the "South Merrowie" station on the market. Interest in purchasing the station was shown by Mr. A.G. Jones of Wagga Wagga, "for a price which would in all probability reach to upwards of £12,000".
During 1874 John, Samuel and William George Taylor combined their resources to purchase "Carwell" and "Mobala" stations west of Coonamble in north-west NSW. John Taylor later acquired the "Wirrah" run, on the Barwon River near Mungindi, and also purchased the Australian Inn, on the corner of Market and Kent streets in Sydney. In 1875 Samuel and William G. Taylor purchased "Polly Brewon" on the Castlereagh River in the Walgett district. John Taylor sold "Wirrah" in about 1876 in order to purchase "Kidgar" cattle run (on the Castlereagh adjoining "Polly Brewon"). In July 1877 John Taylor purchased "Dobikin" and "Woolabra" stations, sheep runs at Ballata, north of Narrabri. During a drought in 1877-8 heavy stock losses were incurred at "Kidgar" (by that stage managed by John Taylor's eldest son Samuel). The three Taylor brothers sold their holdings near Coonamble in 1878. During this period Helen Taylor had another two children: James, born in January 1876; and, Margaret, born at "Dobikin" in May 1878.
During the 1870s it seemed to have been John Taylor's general practice (probably since his possession of "Hunthawang" and "South Merrowie" in 1872-3) to build up stock numbers and sell stations in their prime season, before moving on. The sale of "Kidgar" in 1880 probably followed this general pattern, though it also marked a change from this strategy. From about this time Taylor made efforts to consolidate his financial position and focus on improvements and longer-term management at "Dobikin" station.
The last of John and Helen Taylor's children, a daughter named Lily, was born in August 1882 at Glebe in Sydney. In August 1883 Taylor purchased "Glen Alvon", "a well-watered mountain station of some 15,000 acres at Murrurundi" in the upper Hunter Valley. John and Helen Taylor, with their younger children, moved to "Glen Alvon", with "Dobikin" being managed by their eldest sons, Samuel and Hugh. "Dobikin" station continued to be the most productive of John Taylor's pastoral properties. In 1887 Taylor added to his off-farm assets with the purchase of commercial office premises in Bridge Street in Sydney. In 1888 he purchased the freehold property "Maryville" (later called "Tourable") near Mullaley. In the same year Taylor's sons, Samuel and Hugh, purchased "Dobikin" in partnership from their father and Samuel remained there as manager while Hugh managed "Maryville".
The consolidation of pastoral holdings carried out by John Taylor during the 1880s was paralleled by similar activities by his brothers. William George Taylor married Sarah Blackett in January 1881. Sarah's father was the squatter at "Bimble" station near Coonamble. Samuel and W.G. Taylor sold "Polly Brewon" in 1882 and dissolved their partnership. Both brothers had a break of a few years from pastoral activities. In early 1884 William G. Taylor acquired "Bimble" station from his wife's family. "Bimble" remained in possession of the family until 1926. In November 1884 the other brother Samuel Taylor purchased "Ganoo" sheep station, 20 miles from Wellington in central western NSW, and settled there with his family. A portion of "Ganoo" called "Yarrawonga" remained in family hands until 2004.
In 1893 John Taylor had a wool-store built for him at Pyrmont. In 1895 John Taylor and his wife retired from station-life, and in 1902 bought "Rothesay House" in Greenwich Road at Greenwich in North Sydney. During the next decade John Taylor added to his Sydney property with the purchase of shops in Castlereagh Street, houses in Elizabeth Street, the Frisco Hotel at Woolloomooloo in 1897 and the Angel Hotel (corner of Pitt Street and Martin Lane) in 1902. In 1898 Taylor's third son, John, acquired "Tourable" from his brothers and in 1900 purchased "Glen Alvon" from his father (which still remains in the family by the Arnott line). After the accidental death of his daughter Margaret in 1905 John Taylor built a commemorative church for the Presbyterian congregation at Greenwich. ['Taylor', Matthew Taylor]
John Taylor died on 19 June 1907 at "Rothesay House", Greenwich in Sydney. The cause of his death was recorded as "cancer of the oesophagus and stomach, marasmus and exhaustion" (duration 12 months). Taylor was buried in the general section of Waverley cemetery in Sydney's eastern suburbs; Rev. Robert Jackson, a Presbyterian minister, performed the funeral rites. [Death registration – John Taylor (St. Leonards 1907)]
References cited in the text & Acknowledgments:
Saltbush Country: History of the Deniliquin District by John E.P. Bushby, 1980.
The Riverina: People and Properties by Robert B. Ronald, F.W. Cheshire, Melbourne, 1960.
'The Wide Family of Ros Taylor (née Jones)' http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:1688587&id=I74764990, Rootsweb.com web-site, researcher: Ros Taylor. A source of details regarding John Taylor and his family. The web-site also includes various biographical details relating to John Taylor which have been superseded by the document 'Taylor', by Matthew Taylor (see below).
New South Wales Births, Deaths and Marriage records.
New South Wales Government Gazette, records of the transfer of runs.
'Taylor', by Matthew Taylor. This family history document was the major source of information to 1860 and from late 1873 when the three Taylor brothers left the Riverina. A special appreciation is extended to Matthew Taylor for corrections, editing and feedback in preparing this article. Thank you also to family researcher, Ros Taylor, for feedback and corrections.
The following long letter to the editor of the Sydney Morning Herald was published on 13 July 1865 under the title 'A Tour in the Riverine District'. The writer, calling himself 'A Riverine Tourist', travelled from Echuca to Deniliquin, then on to Hay and across the One-tree Plain to Booligal. The letter is an interesting account of travel in the early years after the establishment of Hay township. It includes a description of the original One-tree Inn, just eighteen months after it was built, and an early description of settlement at Booligal.
[Sydney Morning Herald, 13 July 1865, p. 2 (cols 3-5)]
To the Editor of the Herald.
SIR, – Having heard much about Riverina, the country lying on the western side of New South Wales, and understanding that during the winter months was the best time of year for visiting it, I determined on taking a tour through the Riverine District. Accordingly, I left Melbourne by train for Echuca, remaining there one day to inspect the township and its neighbourhood.
I found the Murray very low, – too low for the navigation of any kind of vessel; and the country along the river's banks appeared in a wretched condition through the want of rain; insomuch that not a particle of vegetation could anywhere be seen. No rain, it is said, has fallen in the neighbourhood for upwards of seven months!
The township itself is improving, having now several fine large brick buildings completed. Mr. Hopwood has nearly finished a neat two-story brick house for his own residence, besides making an attempt to establish a vineyard of some six or eight acres. Whether he will succeed, time alone can prove; but, so far as I could judge, it is likely to be a hopeless case unless he incurs considerable outlay in irrigation, as the soil, a deep red clay, requires a great deal of moisture. The fruit on the vines was parched and withered; but, notwithstanding, Mr. Hopwood was trying to make a little wine from it. I was not favourably impressed with Echuca; but people told me I ought, in order to see the beauties of the locality, to visit it in the spring, after a wet winter. Leaving Echuca, I took a seat in Cobb and Co.'s four-horse coach for Deniliquin, the intended capital of Riverina. This vehicle leaves Iron's Hotel about 2 p.m. daily, immediately after the train arrives from Melbourne. Cobb and Co.'s coaches have become a great institution in Victoria as well as New South Wales. I always feel quite safe in their mail coaches, which are strong and good, while the drivers are generally first-rate, and the horses in excellent condition. Throughout their long journeys these coaches travel at about six miles an hour.
Immediately after crossing the Murray on a large punt (the Pontoon bridge being too narrow for drays or coaches is used only for crossing sheep and horses), you pass through Moama. Here are erected a few straggling houses of wood or brick, while the land around is wretched, and for about six miles along the main road I passed through the most miserable country I ever remembered; a country covered with stunted gum and apple trees, growing so close that you can hardly see one hundred yards a-head; a country without vegetation of any value, and which, I imagine, is at various periods (perhaps once or twice in ten years) all under water for a considerable time.
Of all the places I have visited in the Australian colonies, the lower banks of the Murray, near Echuca, are the very last on which I should ever establish an agricultural farm. I am told that the soil and the country continue the same for hundreds of miles on each side of the river, and I felt relieved when we reached the open plains, where observing on the road side a great many pegs, at short distances from each other, I asked the driver what this indicated? "Oh," said he, "the Government of New South Wales has surveyed and marked off some 10,000 acres, in small blocks of 320 acres each, for agricultural farms; so that at the expiration of the old leases, which terminate at the end of this year, these ten thousand acres may be taken up by free selectors under the Land Act of 1861."
Alas! thought I, I wish them joy in their selections. We all know that agriculture scarcely pays in Victoria, which possesses a splendid soil, good roads, railway transit, and a better climate. How, then, could it pay in the dried up, parched country I was travelling through? Well, after changing horses at Moira, we proceeded to Red Bank, where a Mr. Carter has established a brick public-house. I felt anxious to look at this locality, because I had on various occasions read long articles in the Deniliquin and Echuca papers giving glowing accounts of a splendid garden that Mr. Carter had formed at Red Bank, and I expected to see something beyond the common, in the midst of what appeared to me a desert. Alas! to my disappointment I observed three or four acres fenced and stocked with fruit trees, withered and dried up. I had the curiosity to walk over the enclosure, and could easily see that Mr. Carter had gone to considerable expense in laying out these three or four acres; the whole has been well trenched, and fenced in by a high fence to protect the trees from the hot winds; it is situated on the bank of the Gulpa Creek, so as to reserve water for the use of the garden in summer; and for this latter purpose considerable expense must have been incurred in fixing force-pumps, piping, &c. On account of the garden being some twenty feet above the creek, water for irrigation has to be raised by artificial means. Upon an average of years, I don't believe that this garden yields to its owner one per cent. for his outlay: perhaps once in three years he is fortunate enough to secure a crop of good fruit.
The country between Moama and Deniliquin is all of the same description: nearly level the whole way, and exceedingly monotonous. Cobb and Co.'s coaches reach Deniliquin every evening about 9 o'clock. On their arrival, another coach starts within half-an-hour for Hay, a distance of about seventy miles. I felt somewhat fatigued with my journey, having travelled about two hundred miles since 7 o'clock in the morning, and so determined on remaining at Deniliquin, to rest and learn something more of the Riverine capital and the surrounding country. The town is situated on the Edward River, and a branch of the Murray. The township extends on both sides of the river, although the bulk of the population resides on the south bank; and all business is transacted on the south side, where are situated the post-office, telegraph office, stores, shops, and public-houses. The Royal Hotel is a large and commodious brick building, kept by a Mr. John Taylor, who seems a very active, enterprising man. Deniliquin is certainly much larger and better situated than Echuca, while there is more business carried on there than at the latter place. I am told that since the railway came to Echuca, trade has fallen off, and land has become reduced in price. A great many of the settlers who reside on the banks of the Murray used to supply nearly all their requirements from the Echuca storekeepers and shopkeepers, whereas, now being able to visit Sandhurst or Melbourne by train in a few hours, they naturally prefer either of those localities as affording a better, larger, and perhaps cheaper selection of goods than can be obtained at Echuca. At both Echuca and Moama I heard this made matter of complaint.
On inquiry at Deniliquin I learnt that cultivation in Riverina is carried on to a very limited extent. The squatters cultivate a little Cape barley to make hay for their horses, but nothing further, as the climate and soil are unfavourable to all cultivation. During the winter months, if rain fall (which is the exception, not the rule), they manage to grow in favoured spots cabbages, lettuces, radishes, cress, and many other table vegetables. Potatoes are very uncertain – perhaps one year in five they may be produced. I heard of only two instances on the Edward River of gardens where vegetables had been produced in the driest part of the year, viz., from January down to May. Some Chinese, about one mile below Deniliquin, have succeeded this very dry season in producing a limited supply of vegetables for the township; but they have to water the garden three times each day. I was also informed that Mr. Henry Gwynne, forty miles below Deniliquin, had succeeded in establishing a good garden of fruit and vegetables; but this is done by artificial means, and at considerable expense. The spot too is a very favourable one, lying on the south bank of the river, surrounded by a thick forest of red gum trees, which shelter the garden from the November summer hot winds. Water is procured from the river by force-pumps, consequently it is daily irrigated. In this instance, Mr. Gwynne had the pleasure of seeing luxuriant vegetation around his homestead, little thinking that by the moist atmosphere he was creating he was endangering the health of himself and family. Not long since he was recommended by his medical adviser to leave the locality for a few months to recruit his health, which had been injured by the miasma constantly rising about his garden. The Riverine settlers have failed to grow wheat, although many have tried it for years. All their flour and potatoes are obtained either from Adelaide, Melbourne, Wagga Wagga, or Orange; and this has been the case ever since the country was settled.
During my stay at Deniliquin, I met with your valuable issue of the 7th of April, containing a full report of the debate on Mr. Macpherson's amendment on the report of the Committee of Ways and Means; and, having carefully read over Mr. Robertson's speech on that occasion, I was rather astonished at some of his concluding remarks. He said, "We were told there were some runs on the borders of Victoria, rich and valuable, beneficial in every regard for population. * * * * We were told that these lands were very valuable – that great improvements had been made upon them, &c. If it were so, it must be remembered that these lands, the most valuable, the most fertile, the most suitable for settlement in Australia, had been held by the present occupants for more than twenty years, &c." I have no doubt that hundreds who have read this speech and who have never seen the country the honorable member was alluding to, would imagine it comprised the most fertile lands in New South Wales for every description of agricultural and horticultural pursuits. I only wish Mr. Robertson would take the trouble to inspect personally the country he was speaking of so confidently, I fancy he would then form a widely different opinion, and would blush for making such unfounded statements. Unquestionably, Riverina is a country valuable for pastoral purposes, and will remain so for hundreds of years to come, or until the price of wages is reduced one-half the present rate. Indeed, till then, no sane man would attempt cultivation to any extent north of the Murray from Echuca. The debate was adjourned. I looked up your next issue to read the result, and was astonished to find that neither the members for Balranald, the Murray, or Orange attempted to contradict the startling misstatements made by the Minister for Lands. I am told that either of those gentlemen could have spoken from personal knowledge of the real capabilities of Riverina, having resided in this part of the country for many years; and it seems to me that they owed it to their constituents to place before Parliament and the country the real facts of the case; and not to allow such erroneous impressions to be formed in the public mind.
In conversing with some of the squatters, I found they were all anxiously looking out for rain. Their lambing commenced about the beginning of May; and if rain were not to fall, many expected to have to destroy their lambs in order to save the mothers. I left Deniliquin by the coach at 10 o'clock at night for Hay. The country between these two places is of the same character as that between Echuca and Deniliquin, almost a dead level, intersected by belts of gum and myall timber. Thirty miles brought us to Wanganella, on the Billabong Creek, where a township has been formed and a neat bridge erected. The former consists of two public houses, a blacksmith's shop, and a shoemaker's shop. The runs of Messrs. T. and G. Lang, who reside on the north side of the creek, and of Messrs. Peppin, on the south bank, are stocked with sheep. The latter gentlemen have made vast improvements on their stations, having fenced in with wire the whole of their South Wanganella Run, as well as their Marago Run [Morago] on the Edward River – improvements that must have cost them many thousand pounds. They have also paid great attention to the improvement of their sheep, rams of their own breeding commanding high prices.
As I proceeded on my journey to Hay, I could not help exclaiming, from time to time, what do the stock really live upon? Nowhere could I see any grass, and scarcely any water. About ten miles from Wanganella, we reached the Black Swamp. Here was collected some water, and a small hut, covered with bark, was the only sign of habitation. Eight miles further on, we came to the Piney Ridge, where we changed horses. No good water was obtainable within two miles, and that was some collected by a dam erected months ago by a Mr. Darlow. A well had been sunk at the Piney Ridge, but the water was so exceedingly salt that the horses and cattle would only drink it when very thirsty, and it was quite unfit for domestic purposes. I reached Hay about 11 o'clock a.m., and quickly sought the hotel to procure something to eat and a good wash, for I was covered with dust from head to foot.
The township of Hay lies prettily situated in a bend of the Murrumbidgee, on the north bank. Several good buildings are already erected here, comprising two public-houses, three or four good stores, a post-office, telegraph office, and police office; also a blacksmith's shop and a few cottages. If ever Riverina should be separated from New South Wales, I imagine Hay will form the capital. It stands on a part of the river that is navigable up to Wagga Wagga. I hear already that small steamers are being built, to convey wheat or flour, potatoes, &c., down the river to Balranald. I am informed that on the banks of the river above Wagga Wagga, up to and beyond Gundiqui [Gundagai] on the Tumut, all the country is well adapted for agriculture, and the settlers in these localities can depend upon good average crops of wheat, oats, barley, potatoes, and pumpkins. If such be the case, at no distant day the trade of Melbourne and South Australia, with Riverina, may be considerably diminished. The New South Wales Government ought to turn their attention to removing the snags in the river between Wagga Wagga and Balranald, rather than spend money in removing the snags from the Murray.
Most of the settlers on each side of the Murrumbidgee have made considerable improvements, not only for their personal comfort, but improvements conferring great additional value upon their runs. They have indeed gone to considerable expense in the sinking of wells and the formation of dams and reservoirs. Some, however, have not done so; and now in this trying season they are suffering for their neglect. In riding along the banks of the river, one occasionally sees a flock of sheep brought in to be watered from the back country, where there is scarcely a blade of grass to be seen. A friend having kindly supplied me with a horse near Hay, I rode leisurely along to Wagga Wagga. On my return to Hay, I proceeded across the country to Booligal, the distance being about fifty miles, with scarcely a tree to be seen the whole way – a wretched, cheerless journey. About twenty-five miles from Hay, the traveller comes to a solitary public-house, the proprietor of which has to cart his wood some ten or twelve miles; and when I stayed there, he had to cart his water the same distance from the nearest point on the Lachlan River. Mr. Finch, the landlord and proprietor, deserves much credit for locating himself in this desolate region. The house is remarkably well kept, the rooms and beds very clean, and the table well furnished; in fact, it is far superior to any house of accommodation I stopped at since I left Deniliquin. Mr. Finch has sunk a very large tank, now without any water in it; and he has dug a well some 100 feet deep, but, unfortunately, the water is too brackish for domestic purposes. All the materials for this well he had to cart twenty-five miles from the Murrumbidgee. I think the Government ought to give him the fee simple of a half section of land around his dwelling, on account of his industry in providing accommodation for weary travellers. From One Tree Hotel, as this is called, I proceeded on to Booligal, situated on the south bank of the Lachlan. Here are erected two public-houses, a store, a police cottage and a blacksmith's shop. The public-houses are badly kept, and I understand are crowded nearly every night with men who have been employed by the settlers in the back country. I hear it is not unusual for some of these men to expend in one week £100, the earnings of a few months in well-sinking or dam-making. Sleep is quite out of the question, for the partitions between the bedrooms and the tap and bar are so thin that every word can be distinctly heard. During the night I slept, or rather remained there, I could clearly hear the hostess continually calling to some men; "Jim," or "Jack," or "Bob," "arn't you going to shout?" Very glad was I to take my departure early next morning, whereupon I travelled up the Lachlan for some days, then across the river northwards, and down the Willandra Creek, a branch of the Lachlan. The old settlers on the Lachlan live in a very wretched state in miserable bark-covered huts, and they have almost altogether neglected making any improvement in the way of securing water on the back portions of their runs, leaving everything to the mere chance of rainfall. I can now readily understand how it is that they suffer every two or three years through the want of water. Some three years ago the cattle were dying by hundreds; and no wonder, as the poor animals had every day to travel ten or fifteen miles to the river for water, and back the same distance for grass. During the dry season there is scarcely any grass on the frontage, whereas if the owners had gone to some expense in making wells or tanks in the back districts, hundreds of cattle – I may say thousands – might have been saved; but the same destruction will take place this year if the present dry weather continue. There are only two Lachlan settlers who have made some provision in this way for the future – Messrs. Tyson and Darchy; they reside on the lower part of the Lachlan.
The new settlers located on the back blocks north of the Lachlan are showing their brother squatters a laudable example for imitation. Messrs. John Brougham, William Bennett, Edward Brodribb and Neale, Desaillys, Ryan and Hammond, Kennedy, William Brodribb, Hugh Glass and others, have all taken up these back blocks within the last two years, either by purchase or tender – country which was hitherto considered almost valueless, except in very wet seasons. These gentlemen have expended immense sums of money in making the country available, and they have to some extent succeeded. I understand they have not less than 150,000 sheep on these blocks; and although scarcely a drop of rain has fallen since October last, yet not one of them has been compelled to travel with his sheep for water. It is said that the Desaillys have spent in improvements alone between £20,000 and £30,000. They have several immense dams in the Willandra, Billabong, besides numerous wells, some fresh and others brackish. I know also that Mr. William Brodribb has sunk three wells at a cost of £1000, and from these he has secured an abundance of beautiful fresh water at a depth of 150 feet. These wells are now watering every other day 20,000 sheep, and he is expending large sums of money in damming, fencing, &c. Mr. Edward Brodribb and Mr. Bennett, as well as Mr. Brougham, have been equally fortunate in their wells. The two former have their families residing with them, and they are now building neat cottages to live in, but have a long way to cart their timber. Messrs. Ryan and Hammond and Mr. Glass have been less fortunate; they have dug wells, and found the water rather brackish; I believe they intend to go deeper with their wells in the hope of striking another stratum of water. This they are encouraged to do because the Messrs. Desailly, some twenty-five miles north of Willandra, sank a well and came to very salt water; with boring-rods they went down about 100 feet farther, struck another vein, and then fresh water rose up the hole nearly sixty feet; to all appearance a full supply. It is noticeable as a peculiar feature in the Riverine country that it does not follow because salt water is come to in one well that all the other wells are likely to be the same. I am informed that of two wells sunk within a few miles of each other, one may be salt and the other fresh: all depends upon the strata through which the water flows. In any future alteration of the land laws the Government ought to deal liberally with these indefatigable pioneers of Riverina in giving them a good and secure tenure; say, leases renewable every ten years, or until the country should be required for other purposes than pastoral. The Sydney gentlemen little know the privations and risks these squatters undergo in such out of the way places.
I learn that at the end of this year free selection before survey will extend over the whole area of New South Wales, unless the present Parliament make some alteration (which I consider absolutely necessary) in the existing Land Act. Land laws ought to be enacted to meet the requirements of those localities suited by climate and soil for certain pursuits only. There ought for instance to be agricultural laws and pastoral laws, distinct from each other and applying only to certain defined districts. They ought likewise to be so adjusted as not to conflict with each other, for, as matters now stand, the agriculturists are at war with the squatters. I confess that I cannot see the necessity or expediency of extending free selections over an area of four hundred thousand square miles of country, when the population, including women and children, numbers only 400,000 people, or one to every square mile. Clearly the idea is an utter fallacy.
A member of the Riverine Council lent me a small book, called "The Riverine Question," containing speeches in the Legislative Assembly of New South Wales in 1864; and having carefully read through all these speeches, I was struck with the remarks of Mr. Martin, at page 187. He compares Riverina with certain portions of Russia, and says:— "I think, therefore, the House would do well to consider the propriety of expending a large portion of the revenue collected there in the district. The digging of wells might be new here; but, in the Russian Empire, it had been extensively carried on for many years, that being a pastoral country, like this, having a greater number of sheep and large squattages. Indeed, it is one enormous pastoral country, from the Caspian Sea to the Pacific. And wastes extend for many miles, and to traverse them would almost be impossible, unless there was some artificial water supply. We have here also large tracts of country which cannot be settled by reason of the want of water. It strikes me that the digging of wells at intervals would greatly facilitate transit across these arid districts; and that this is a kind of work to which a portion of the revenues of the district might well be devoted. I think the residents are entitled to have a portion of the public funds expended in this way – the digging of wells in that part of the territory not to be traversed except in the most favourable seasons. It would lead people to form stations, &c."
Now these remarks of Mr. Martin are perfectly true; and they apply exactly to the Riverine province. A pastoral country it must remain for hundreds and hundreds of years to come. If it were possible to produce wheat in Riverina with any degree of certainty, the squatters would not be so foolish as to purchase their flour in Adelaide, Melbourne, or Orange, and cart it to their stations year after year, at a cost for carriage of £20, and sometimes £25 per ton. Several squatters, north of the Lachlan, told me that their flour cost them between £40 and £50 per ton; and that they could not get their wool to market
under £15 or £20 per ton.
On my return to Victoria I made diligent inquiry about the lambing. I was informed by many old settlers residing in Riverina, that the average would not be more than 20 per cent., and if rain did not fall soon, scarcely any would be saved, and a vast number of old sheep had already died for the want of grass and water.
I am, Sir, yours, &c.,
A RIVERINE TOURIST.
July 6th.
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