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From England, 1851I was born in Barnstaple, Devonshire, England, in the year 1848. I was baptised in the Exeter Cathedral, and came out to New South Wales in 1851, with my parents and two brothers. We all came out in a sailing ship called the “Julindur”, and the voyage occupied three months. As my father was a blacksmith by trade, and the first person he worked with on his arrival was a Mr. Portus of Morpeth, on the Hunter. We lived one year at Maitland, and then about six years at Woodville, Dunmore. My father carried on his trade as a blacksmith. There being no means of crossing the river, he purchased a punt from Mr. Sandy Graham, of Hinton, and worked her across the river at Woodville, for the convenience of the general public. He, of course, levied the usual tariff. Many an old pioneer of the Hunter, Paterson, and Williams Rivers (and now living on the Manning and Hastings Rivers) were well acquainted with my father when he was in business.
Arrival on the Manning, 1859I arrived on the Manning from the Hunter, per bullock dray, 55 years ago [1859]. The party consisted of' my brothers, myself, and two others. We left Dunmore one bright morning, for the Manning, and our cargo consisted of farming implements and provisions. We crossed the Wallarobba Mountain, which is now pierced by a railway tunnel, through which daily thunders the iron horse from Taree and Wingham, thus providing rapid transit between the Manning and all important centres of the State. We passed through Dungog, which then only had a few houses. The Karuah River was crossed at the Washpool, near where the railway line now crosses it. Thence we wended our way through Gloucester, which boasted of two houses. We then had to leave what was called "a road," and branch off for the Manning. 'There was practically no road - only a bridle track. Two of the party had to go ahead with axes, and cut trees and logs out of the way of the team. We climbed up, by a leading spur, on to the top of Tuggerabark Mountain. The Manning side was very steep - so much so that we were compelled to fell a fairly large tree and to chain it to the axle of the dray. This was done to ease the dray down, as the bullocks were powerless to "pole" the dray in its descent, the grade being so steep. We made our way through the bush to Larry's Flat, now known as Krambach. The blady grass was three feet high at the time all over the Flat. A day was spent at Larry's Flat, for the purpose of resting. Tinonee was the next place towards which we directed our footsteps - or, as it was then called, "The Old Wharf.". Tinonee was then the metropolis of the Manning. A road had next to be made over the Brushy Mountain, to the Bight, which was to be our destination. We were going to a brush farm that my father had purchased at auction in Maitland, without having seen it, or knowing what it was like. I thus came to the Manning as company for my elder brother, and to also assist him to civilize the farm. [Note: "The Bight" was on the southern side of the Manning near present-day Wingham]
Though only a lad of tender years, I had to turn to and do my share of the pioneering. We had to bake our own bread and butcher our own beef - that is to say, when we could get a beast to butcher. The journey from Dunmore, on the Hunter, took three weeks to accomplish. At this time there, was only a once-a-week mail to the Manning. The mail was carried on horseback, right through to Port Macquarie, which was then a penal settlement. The late Mr. Robert Breese's father used to be mailman; and later, Mr. Robert Bryant, who is still in the flesh, and a resident of Wingham. There were no roads in the district then, and no punts plying across the Manning. Many a time I have swam the river on horseback (opposite Mr. D. Lobban's residence, which is commonly known as "The Falls") in order to get our mail.
SchoolThere were no public buildings in the district at that time. The residents would erect a rough slab building, at their own expense, and then select from among themselves, a suitable person to teach the children. Then the Government would grant such a teacher a small salary. There was no Education Department, as far as I am aware, then. The old school building on Mr. Pollock's property at the Bight was for years a standing monument to the old days on the Manning. Within its four walls I received a part of my education, under the tuition of Miss Bella Lobban, Mr. John McIntosh, Mr. W. W. Board (father of the present Under-Secretary of the N.S.W. Education Department), and Mr. John Cameron, of North Shore, Sydney.
The ManningThere were no punts or bridges spanning the river or creeks. If you were travelling you would be compelled to swim your horse over behind a boat or cross at the various fords. The first punt which did duty on the Manning was installed at Tinonee, somewhere in the '60's. The first sea-going steamer that ran to the river was the "Mollouse", but she could only negotiate the Manning as far as Taree, as the river above Taree was in places very shallow. The residents of the district agitated for years to get a dredge, to clear out the shoals in the river. In the course of time a first-class dredge, known as the "Ulysses" was built. She, in due course, dredged a channel from Taree to Wingham - the said channel being ninety feet [about 30 metres] wide, and nine feet deep [about 3 metres] at low tide. Any vessel that could then cross the bar could come right up to Wingham.
HomeI came here when quite a lad, 55 years ago, then being only 10 years of age. My brother built a slab and bark house to live in. We then began to clear the brush away, and until that task had been accomplished we could not see any distance, unless it was by looking skyward. We had to do our own cooking, mending, and so forth, and did not see anyone else for a month at a time. When provisions were required, we had to walk to Wingham, and crossed the river in a flat-bottomed boat or punt, the property of Mr. Pollock. Water carriage was depended on for all provisions. I have known three months to elapse before a vessel arrived from Sydney. Yes, provisions would then run short, and there was not a bag of flour on the river at times. Flour was 30s [30 shillings or $3.00] per 100 lb [about 45 kg]. Sugar was not obtainable, people had to live on hominy in place of bread. It was nothing strange to see a farmer walking off to his neighbour's steel mill with a bushel of corn on his back, to get his hominy ground for the family. There being no sugar to eat with it, honey had to be bought into requisition as a substitute. The securing of honey meant going out into the bush, and finding a bees' nest, falling the tree, and removing the honey. There was plenty of honey in the bush those days and the bees were quite healthy. I have found three English bees' nests in one tree.
Visiting ClergyI remember on one occasion the Rev. W. C. Hawkins (C.E.) going out to the Wallamba to baptise some children. The good mother had carefully put away a small parcel of tea and sugar, expressly for the clergyman, both being scarce commodities. The children, however, found the plant, and ate the lot. The visiting clergyman, when he did arrive from the Manning, was naturally somewhat in need of refreshment, and the hostess of the house had to find some way of catering for his requirements. She hied away to the barn and got a cob of corn, put it in the fire, and when roasted, grated the charred tops off the grain, and put it in the tea-pot. Thus a cup of tea was made - or at least a substitute for it: this was sweetened with honey, and (with a plate of hominy) the tired clergyman was refreshed. In fact. he said he enjoyed the repast. The same cleric has often roughed it on the Manning. He used to pull a boat from the town of Taree to Harrington, in order to conduct service; and also used to ride from Taree to the head of the Manning for the same purpose - attending to the whole district himself.
Clearing FarmsI assisted to clear four farms. The brush was felled and then a "running fire" was put in the felled timber then the corn and pumpkin seeds were planted between the logs. When ripe, I have crawled over the logs, pulled the corn, and carried it in bags to a slide. The only thing I can compare a "slide" to is a dray without wheels, and it was drawn by two or four bullocks to the barn - or straddle, as they were called in those days. A "straddle" was built of rough poles, often with the bark left on them. Sometimes it was 20 x 20 feet, or say, 30 feet by 15 feet, covered with bark. The floor was made of small poles about the size of clothesline props. The corn was then husked, and when the farmer intended to market it, he would place some sheets of bark under the straddle, which was built for the purpose - the floor being built two or three feet above the ground. The farmer, would get into the straddle with a flail, i.e., two pieces of wood joined together with a piece of greenhide, forming a swivel. He could then thresh away until he had enough for shipping, the grains dropping right through the openings in the floor during the threshing process. It would next be cleaned through the medium of a hand sieve. When ready for the market, a team would be secured to convey it to the wharf, or the shipping place. That was the gravel bed at the foot of Farquar street; it was conveyed from here by drogher to the sea-going vessel; but when sold, it would often only realise 15 pence per bushel.
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