| Back to: History Pages | Home |
|
HAY SESQUICENTENARY WEB-LOG –– 1858
1858 – January § February § March § April § May § June § July § August § September § October § November § December
 JANUARY 1858
[‘Lower Murrumbidgee’ correspondent, extract from report ‘The Past Season’ dated 1 May 1858, Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
The hottest day was the 24th January, when the glass went up to 113 degrees, and stood at 99 degrees during the greater part of the night. The warmest period of the summer was from the 21st to 29th January, during which the mercury never went below 87 degrees at night, nor below 102 degrees at two p.m. (the hottest part of our day), and on two occasions was as high as 113 degrees – the heat during this time was very oppressive, both day and night, although there was no hot wind blowing, but the dead heat which then prevailed is much more distressing, as the body is not then relieved by copious perspiration as it is during a hot wind.
 Stock movements in the western Riverina during the mid- to late-1850s were primarily concerned with supply to the expanding Victorian market in the wake of the gold-rushes and the associated re-stocking of district runs. The Riverina was considered to be prime fattening country and developed as a sort of holding centre from where the Victorian market could be supplied with livestock as required. When local fat stock had been sold the pastoralists drew on breeding areas to the north and east (from the upper Darling, north of the Lachlan, the New England region and the hilly up-country to the east). A pattern developed whereby the Riverina runs became steadily de-stocked by the end of summer before the inward movement of stock began again in the autumn (or earlier after good rainfall).
Stock travelling to the western Riverina from the north and north-west typically converged at Dubbo, then on to the Bogan River and across to the Lachlan River near Condobolin. The stock-route then followed the Lachlan. At Lake Walgiers the route diverged into two branches: one track continued alongside the Lachlan and the other crossed the One-tree Plain to the Murrumbidgee River at Lang's Crossing-place. In the latter case the distance between water-sources was considered reasonable in normal seasons to enable stock to be safely driven across the intervening plain to the Murrumbidgee River. However, in times of drought or during dry summer months the route which followed the Lachlan River was often preferred by stockmen. This stock-route continued along the river to about the vicinity of the "Pimpara" run on the lower Lachlan, from where it crossed to the Murrumbidgee River at the "Budgee Budgee" run (about thirty-five miles downstream from Lang's Crossing-place at the present location of Maude village). Stock were crossed at "Budgee Budgee" and driven to the Billabong Creek in the area of Ashcroft's station (near Moulamein). The "Budgee Budgee" and Lang's Crossing-place routes eventually converged on the Edward River.
What follows is an account of the death of a man named Thomas Nicholson near the "Budgee Budgee" run on 21 December 1857. Nicholson was the owner of 8,000 sheep being overlanded to Victoria from the Richmond River in north-eastern New South Wales. The account of the stock-owner's death was written by the 'Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (George Boase).
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 26 December 1857), Sydney Morning Herald, 5 January 1858, page 3]
26TH DECEMBER, 1857. – A DEATH IN THE BUSH. – A most melancholy case of death has just occurred in this locality, a death in the bush far from relations or friends, and under circumstances most painful to think of. The deceased, a Mr. Thomas Nicholson, was formerly a partner in a sheep run with a Mr. Burdock on the Richmond, the partnership having dissolved the former took his share of the stock, 8,000 sheep, and set out for Victoria; after being some eight months on the road, he last week got on to the Lower Lachlan, and made across towards the Murrumbidgee. Whilst doing so, he was taken ill; but on the third day after he felt better, and, in contemplation of absenting himself for a day or two from the sheep to look out for a place to shear them, he gave written orders to his horse-driver how to travel the sheep, and gave him some cheques in case he should want money. The following day, however (last Sunday) [20 December 1857], he got worse, and became very delirious, and at last totally insensible. The spot where the party were then camped was in a belt of timber not far from the river, and about a mile from Budgee Budgee station; there was no surgeon resident within 100 miles of the spot, and it was almost impossible to do any thing for the poor man. As, however, he laboured under violent inflammation of the brain, he was bled, and apparently derived some relief, but he never again rallied, and died the same evening at sundown. Everything was done by the neighbouring settlers for Mr. Nicholson that was possible under the circumstances, but as he was too ill to be removed, and died so rapidly, it was but little, unfortunately, that could be done for him. The body was buried on the Tuesday following [22 December 1857], at Deramagee, a spot on Mr. Nicholas Chadwick's run, near the river where two persons had been previously been interred (lying between Gelam and Budgee Budgee Stations). The deceased was about thirty-three, was born near Carlisle, county of Cumberland, England; was unmarried, and believed to have no relatives in Australia; his death may be attributed to hot weather, exposure, and perhaps neglect of taking some simple medicines when first attacked with illness. The sheep remain in charge of the horse driver, now the head of the party, who has apparently written instructions from the deceased to take command of his property. It may, perhaps, serve some useful purpose to mention that Mr. Clark Irving, M.P., was the Sydney agent of the deceased Mr. Nicholson. This is a case where it was totally impossible to give notice to the District Registrar previous to the burial of the body, owing to the great distance his residence is from the spot; nor was it possible to obtain an order for the burial from a magistrate, as there was not one to be found in the district, and it was necessary to have the body buried within twenty-four hours after death.
_________________
Thomas Nicholson's death was registered at Balranald wherein it was recorded that he was "aged 37 years" when he died.
Steam-boat navigation of the inland rivers of south-east Australia developed initially along the Murray River, pioneered from mid-1853 by owner-captains such as William Randell and Francis Cadell. Captain Cadell became a founding director of the River Murray Navigation Company which operated a fleet of steamers and barges on the Murray River during the initial phase of the inland river trade.
The first attempt to navigate a steamer along the Murrumbidgee River had been made in September 1857 when the fifty-foot Mosquito, under Captain William Masson, reached as far as Balranald before turning back.
By late 1857 it was apparent that Francis Cadell was making preparations on several fronts to facilitate the extension of steam-navigation to the Murrumbidgee River and take advantage of the consequent trading opportunities. He had hired men to begin snagging operations on the lower Murrumbidgee and was preparing to establish a store at Lang's Crossing-place.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 16 January 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 26 January 1858, page 3]
JANUARY 16. – THE NAVIGATION OF THE RIVER. – That enterprising gentleman Captain Francis Cadell, has now on foot a scheme for the navigation of the Murrumbidgee; he proposes to build a steamboat of 274 tons burthen, and of 40 horse-power, at a cost of £6,000, to be exclusively used in plying on the river. It is not quite clear, from the prospectus, into how many shares the concern is to be divided, as the list simply shows the money value each person desires to hold in the company. Several wealthy settlers on the river have already put down their names for sums varying from £200 to £600, and it is almost certain that the full amount required will be forthcoming. Whilst wishing every success to the undertaking, I cannot help thinking that the tonnage of the boat is too large to allow of her navigating the river, except during the very highest floods. Two steamboats, each of about 100 tons burthen, would probably be found much more useful and more easily managed, particularly whilst the river remains in its present uncleared state. It seems, however, almost presumptuous for any one to doubt Captain Cadell's knowledge of the capabilities of the rivers in this part of the colony, and if he says such a boat as he proposes to have will be able to ascend the Murrumbidgee, and that he will see it done, then no doubt the time cannot be far distant when we shall have the great pleasure of seeing a steamboat come up this river.
From as early as November 1857 Captain Francis Cadell had begun to lobby the Government of New South Wales for the establishment of a Post Office at Lang's Crossing-place, in parallel with his requests for funds to continue with snagging operations on the river. On 29 December 1857 Cadell wrote from Echuca to Major W. H. Christie, the Postmaster-General of the Colony of New South Wales. Cadell's purpose in corresponding with Major Christie was to recommend "the young Gentleman", Alexander C. Dunbar, to be appointed Postmaster at a "new Township to be formed" at the location described as "at the great 'crossing place' on the Murrumbidgee".
Mr. Dunbar is the Son of the late Professor Dunbar of the Edinburgh University and should any Certificates of character be required they can easily be furnished [by] Magistrates on the River to whom he is known.
Cadell explained that Dunbar, who was presently residing at Beechworth in Victoria, intended establishing a store at Lang's Crossing-place. Captain Cadell's letter to Major Christie contained details that indicated he was 'talking-up' the prospective new township, which at that stage was little more than a well-frequented crossing-place on a bend of the Murrumbidgee River:
In addition to a Bi-weekly 23 Hours Postal communication to Melbourne we are to have an extension of the Bendigo Wires here in a few Months.
Cadell's dubious claims perplexed Major Christie. He wrote to his staff-member, Mr. Abbott:
I do not even know the name of the Township nor is the Postal Line established. Are there any other papers on the subject?
Abbott replied:
I am not aware [of] any papers on the subject nor have I even heard of the New Town alluded to.
On 25 January 1858 Major Christie wrote to George Macleay, the member for Murrumbidgee in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly:
_________________
[Hay Post-office files, National Archives of Australia]
My dear Macleay
Captain Cadell saw me once or twice as to the appointing a Mr. Dunbar the Postmaster at a new Township to be formed on the great Stock Crossing Place on the Murrumbidgee.
That the matter may not be lost sight of I enclose you the papers in my possession regarding this Township in order that I may have from you something more definite & official.
As I cannot gather that the Township is either named or formed, the matters seem to me a premature aspect.
But as Captain Cadell was evidently in earnest I conclude there is more in it than meets the eye.
Very Truly […]
W. H. Christie
S. P. Office
25 Jan. 1858
John Joseph Roberts of Wagga Wagga successfully tendered for the delivery of mail between Wagga Wagga and Balranald during 1858. The mail was conveyed by horseback between the Murrumbidgee townships, with the round trip of 500 miles being made once a week. The report below suggests that the route was divided into sections and several mailmen were responsible for carrying the mail along each sector of the route. Any mail to and from Lang's Crossing-place was conveyed via this mail-contract. The contractor, John J. Roberts, was paid an amount of £685 by the New South Wales Government to provide this service (which also included two trips per week between Wagga Wagga and Tarcutta). The notification of successful tenders for the conveyance of Post Office mails for 1858 was published in the New South Wales Government Gazette, No. 190, December 1857. Roberts held the Wagga Wagga to Balranald mail contract until 1860.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 16 January 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 26 January 1858, page 3]
THE MAILS. – The new contractors for the mails have just commenced their work. Mr. J. J. Roberts of Wagga Wagga, has again the weekly mail, between that place and Balranald. Mr. James Carter has the contract for the mail between Balranald and Deniliquin via Moulamein, and Mr. Denis Hanam, of Balranald, that between the last named place and Moorna via Euston. The mails in this district during the past year, notwithstanding the very high flood, were run with great regularity, and great credit is due to the contractors for fulfilling the terms of their contracts so much to the satisfaction of the public whilst so many contractors in other parts of the country, put the public to such inconvenience by their bad arrangements. I am sorry to have to state that the Postmaster-General has allowed an alteration to be made in the time allotted for running the mail between Wagga Wagga and Balranald, which, whilst it is of but very small benefit to the public, puts the contractor to considerable inconvenience. It appears that some J.P.'s residing near Balranald some time ago represented to the Postmaster-General, that they were put to great discomfort by not having sufficient time to answer their letters, and the consequence is that the mailman is now to be detained three clear days at Balranald, whilst these gentlemen leisurely write their correspondence, and the weekly mail has to be brought down in three days. Apparently the contractor had not been informed that such an alteration was to be made in the arrangements, and the mailman at this end of the line (James Hart), who has carried the bags during the last two years with great punctuality, seems to think that it will be quite impossible in future to fetch in the mail with any degree of regularity, owing to the shortness of time allotted for the work.
 FEBRUARY 1858
[‘Lower Murrumbidgee’ correspondent, extract from report ‘The Past Season’ dated 1 May 1858, Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
In the month of February the weather was very changeable, considerable heat, alternating with cold showery days.
By early June 1856 Christopher N. Bagot, the squatter leasing "Illilawa" station, had begun operating a punt at Lang's Crossing-place (at the location known today as Sandy Point). The place where the punt operated was at the western boundary of the river frontage of "Illilawa" run and close to the boundary of James McEvoy's "Wooloondool" run. Bagot's punt crossed to the southern bank just upstream of Bungah Creek. The vessel was described as "a small scow" (a flat-bottomed boat with square ends). Though not considered large it was nevertheless able to accommodate a dray and four bullocks, or two hundred sheep.
By late 1857 Christopher Bagot had sold the "Illilawa" run to the squatter Henry Jeffreys. Bagot's punt was probably taken over by Jeffreys, as it was still operating in January 1858 when Henry Leonard arrived at Lang's Crossing-place. Leonard was an experienced ship-builder who had supervised the construction of barges for Francis Cadell during the development of the steamer trade on the Murray River. Leonard recognised a business opportunity and had arrived at Lang's Crossing-place to undertake construction of a punt for use at the locality.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 30 January 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 10 February 1858]
PUNT OVER THE MURRUMBIDGEE. – Although the punt which was erected at Lang's crossing place by Mr. Bagot the year before last was found very useful, there being no other means of crossing from one side to the other at that time, it has since been discovered to be too small for the proper accommodation of the numerous travelling parties who desire to cross the Murrumbidgee at that place. Mr. Leonard, from the Murray, has just commenced constructing a punt, which, when finished, will be as large and afford as much accommodation as that now used at Maiden's [Moama]; the work is being rapidly proceeded with, and it will not therefore be long before the punt will be placed on the river, and although not intended nominally to supersede the existing punt, will in reality, from the superior accommodation it will afford, have the effect of diverting all the traffic from the present source. The new punt is to be placed somewhere near the main crossing-place, and it is understood that a public house and a store, both of which are much wanted, are to be opened in connection with the punt.
Elections were held in January and February 1858 for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly (the second parliament after responsible government was introduced in 1856). The Riverina district was divided between the Lachlan and Lower Darling electorate and the Murrumbidgee electorate (each returning two members).
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 30 January 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 10 February 1858]
THE ELECTIONS. – In the Lachlan and Lower Darling districts, Mr. William Macleay, one of the late members, and Mr. Paterson, of Illalong, are standing to represent the squatting interest. Mr. Egan is also said to be a candidate; at all events, Mr. J.P. Sheahan, of Jugiong, is busy canvassing for that gentleman, although we have not heard of his having given public notice of his intention to come forward. The electors will not certainly consult their own interest, if they elect Mr. Egan in preference to Mr. Macleay, who has now represented them so well and so assiduously during a long period; his courtesy to all his constituents is well known, and no one ever wrote him about any public or private business without receiving every attention from him. Mr. Paterson, although but little known, will most probably, in default of any other candidates coming forward, be elected in preference to Mr. Egan. The report that Mr. Edward Flood intended to contest the district, appears to be without foundation. In the Murrumbidgee district there is little doubt that the late members, Mr. Macleay and Mr. Hay, will be re-elected.
_________________
The following members were elected for the electorate of Lachlan and Lower Darling:
The following members were elected for the Murrumbidgee electorate:
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 13 February 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 23 February 1858]
OUR MEMBERS. – The election of Messrs. Macleay and Patterson to represent the Lachlan and Lower Darling Districts, has given much satisfaction in this locality, as we did not feel the least sympathy with Mr. J. P. Sheahan and his protége Mr. Egan. The gentlemen elected will no doubt truly represent their constituency and do their best to counteract the efforts that are being so constantly made by the Cowper party to increase the political influence of Sydney at the expense of the pastoral districts.
MARCH 1858
[‘Lower Murrumbidgee’ correspondent, extract from report ‘The Past Season’ dated 1 May 1858, Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
[During February] the weather was very changeable, considerable heat, alternating with cold showery days. The same observation will apply to the month of March, after which the heat began gradually to decrease, and the summer to give signs of breaking up.
On 15 March 1858 Alexander C. Dunbar wrote to the New South Wales Postmaster General, Major W. H. Christie, providing information about the progress of the store at Lang's Crossing-place and enquiring about a Post-master's salary. Alexander Dunbar was aged just nineteen years at the time; he was born in February 1839 at North Leith, Midlothian, Scotland, the son of Professor George Dunbar and his second wife, Elizabeth. Alexander's father had been Professor of Greek at Edinburgh University from 1806 to his death in 1851.
The store being erected by Alexander Dunbar (in conjunction with Captain Cadell) was on the north bank of the Murrumbidgee River, on high ground north of Sandy Point on the boundary of the "Illilawa" and "Wooloondool" runs (near what is now known as Brewery Park at the south end of Lindsay Street). Whether Francis Cadell had a direct financial interest in the store at Lang's Crossing-place by that stage is not known, though this seems most likely; in any case it is apparent that the young Dunbar and Cadell were close business affiliates. During the brief period that Dunbar was resident at Lang's Crossing-place the store was known as "Messrs. Dunbar & Co.", or "Dunbar's Overlanders' Store". On early maps the building is marked as "Cadell's Store".
Dunbar's description of the store's location – "Dr. Laing's on the Murrumbidgee" – refers to the "Mungadal" run on the opposite (south) bank of the Murrumbidgee at Lang's Crossing-place. The three brothers, Thomas, William and Gideon S. Lang, had purchased the leasehold of the "Mungadal" run (originally called "Mungadingadel") from John Tooth in 1848. The eldest of the brothers, Thomas Lang, was a medical practitioner.
_________________
[Hay Post-office files, National Archives of Australia]
River Murray
March 15th 1858
To the Post Master General Sidney [Sydney] –
Sir
As I received information from Captn Cadell to write to you about the situation as Post Master at Dr. Laing's on the "Murrumbidgee"; I should be most happy to undertake it.
At present I have only a Tent but I have a permanent building in the course of Erection which will be finished in the course of a Month or less.
I should be much obliged to you if you could let me know what the salary is. I am now quite prepared to commence duty.
I am, Sir
Your obedient Servant
AlexR C. Dunbar
Address: A. C. Dunbar
Dr. Laing's Station
"Murrumbidgee"
[The following was written on the back of Dunbar's letter by Major Christie (dated 25 March 1858)]
Inform that at present, as I understand there is no Township formed at this place or been named. Capt. Cadell mentioned Mr. Dunbar's name to me & I have every inclination to give him the appointment when one is made.
I shall be glad of particulars as to the distance from Balranald & Wagga Wagga as also whether on the main Public Route. The Salary is (…) £12.0.0. per annum & Commission of 10 per cent on the Sale of Stamps.
APRIL 1858
The following report, from the Lower Murrumbidgee correspondent (George Boase), refers to the visit of Mr. Fisher, a surveyor employed by the New South Wales Survey Department, who was sent to the Riverina district "to examine into and report upon the best place for a township, and likewise upon the best route from the Lachlan to Deniliquin".
The correspondent uses the abbreviated 'Lang's' for Lang's Crossing-place in his descriptions of stock-routes from the Lachlan River to Deniliquin. His reference to the location "Cooladgerry, opposite to Lang's, on the Murrumbidgee" refers to the vicinity of Cooladgery Lagoon, at the eastern end of the "Wooloondool" run (leased at that stage by James McEvoy). The Cooladgery Lagoon is a long horseshoe-shaped billabong at the back of a section of the river now known as Soapworks Bend, west of Hay.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 2 April 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 13 April 1858]
APRIL 2. – BETTER LATE THAN NEVER. – Owners of stock and drovers will be pleased to learn that the Government have at last discovered that there is a river in the colony called the Murrumbidgee, and that a large amount of stock crosses it annually, en route to Victoria. Whether the Government are indebted to the Press for their information concerning this hitherto unexplored country, or whether one of themselves accidentally found it out by being lost in the bush, is not at all certain; the result, however, has been that a Mr. Fisher, a surveyor, has been sent to this locality to examine into and report upon the best place for a township, and likewise upon the best route from the Lachlan to Deniliquin. On the existing route, which has now been used for about five years, the distances are as follows:–– Higgins' station [Lake Walgiers], on the Lachlan, to Cooladgerry, opposite to Lang's, on the Murrumbidgee, 30 miles; Lang's to the Billabong, 42; thence to the Edwards River, 20, and 16 from thence to Deniliquin: total, 108 miles. Mr. Parkinson some time ago laid out a new route, viz.:–– From Higgins' to Illilawa, on the Murrumbidgee 33 miles; Illilawa to the Billabong, 46; from thence to the Edwards 20, and from there to Deniliquin, 16; total, 115. The only advantage of this route over the first mentioned appears to be that it is seven miles longer, and the only apparent object for laying it out must have been that it comes on to a reserve at Illilawa whereas the other road terminates at the Murrumbidgee on leased land; but, as the Government has the undoubted right to take any of the waste lands for public purposes, this objection to the road is not worthy the least attention. It was at first thought that a road still further down this river might be obtained for a summer route, where the distances from water to water would be less, but it is found that in saving with this object a very short distance, many miles would be added on to the total mileage of the route, which would cause additional expense and trouble without sufficient additional accommodation to compensate for such a change of route. The Government Surveyor will, therefore, most probably report that the route which has been used for the last five years, between the Lachlan and the Murrumbidgee, is the best, and that which affords the most accommodation to the public – who have by their own choice already selected it as being the most convenient – and recommend that it be at once proclaimed as a public road with a reserve of a quarter of a mile on each side of it for accommodation of persons taking cattle and sheep to market. With respect to the township so long desired, and so often spoken of in the columns of the Herald, it is believed that steps will soon be taken to lay out a spot near the present main crossing place, and proclaim the same to be a Government township.
In mid-April 1858 a Select Committee of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly was appointed "to report upon the advantages likely to accrue to the Colony of New South Wales" from the opening up to navigation of the Murray River and its tributaries (including the Murrumbidgee River).
_________________
[Extract from 'Report from the Select Committee on the Navigation of the Murray, &c.; together with the proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, and appendix', Votes and Proceedings of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, 1858, Volume 3, p. 704]
VOTES No. 10. TUESDAY, 13 APRIL, 1858.
12. Navigation of the Murray:— Mr. George Macleay moved, pursuant to amended notice,—
(1.) That a Select Committee be appointed to report upon the advantages likely to accrue to the Colony of New South Wales from opening up the navigation of the Murray, the Wakool, the Edwards, the Murrumbidgee, and the Darling — and upon the best mode of clearing the Channels of those Rivers; — and that all proceedings before the Select Committee of last Session be referred to this Committee.
(2.) That such Committee consist of the following Members, — Mr. Donaldson, Mr. Hay, Mr. Jamison, Mr. Jones, Mr. William Macleay, Mr. Murray, Mr. Robertson, Mr. Suttor, Mr. White, and the mover. Question put and passed.
VOTES No. 21. FRIDAY, 30 APRIL, 1858.
18. Navigation of the Murray:— Mr. George Macleay moved, pursuant to notice, That the Return to the Address in reference to the Navigation of the Murray and its Effluents, adopted on motion of Mr. George Mackay, on the 15th December, 1857, and ordered to be printed on the 27th April, 1858, be referred to the Select Committee on the Navigation of the Murray, the Murrumbidgee, the Wakool, the Edwards, and the Darling. Question put and passed.
MAY 1858
Seasonal labour shortages in the Riverina pastoral districts (exacerbated by the Victorian gold-rushes) began to ease towards the end of the decade with a steady movement of disgruntled diggers and recently-arrived immigrants moving from Victoria into New South Wales. Settlers from South Australia also increased along the inland rivers after the advent of steamer navigation on the Murray River. European women and children had been a rarity on the Riverina pastoral runs in the 1840s and early 1850s, but the movement of families and single women into the Riverina during the late 1850s began a process of "gradual and steady change" in bush and township society.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 1 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
DOMESTIC IMPROVEMENTS. – To dwellers in the bush it becomes year by year more apparent that a gradual and steady change is taking place in the tone of society, and in the manners, customs, habits, and dwellings of all classes of society. This is owing partly to the country being more settled than formerly, partly to the influx of free immigrants who now predominate over the old hands, and in particular to the number of families now located in situations where sometime ago a female was never seen. Bush conversation, although still much interlarded with bullocks, sheep, horses, brands, and markets, is a little more intellectual, and we now sometimes hear a political discussion [and] some talk on scientific affairs. We have in a great measure to thank the authorities who caused a mail to be run up and down the Murrumbidgee, for this improvement, as the weekly supply of the latest news, and constant budgets of letters home and colonial, help to cast a civilizing influence on this part of the country – the benefit of which it never experienced before the mail came, as people then knew little and cared less as to how the world got on, as long as their bullocks were fat, their horses good, and their tea, beef, and damper always ready for them. Numerous new huts of large and improved construction, furnished with many modern comforts, are now in course of erection and female taste commences to decorate these dwellings with some slight elegances, which the mind of the rougher sex would never be likely either to think of or care for, if living still, as in olden times, in a state of singleness, when anything would do as long as it could possibly serve the purpose required of it, and when it was almost impossible to say whether the largest accumulation of dirt lay inside or outside the hut.
THE LABOUR MARKET. – Men have been very plentiful all the summer, but yet there has been a demand for them, because those walking about have been that useless class of persons who having been brought up to nothing, neither know nor desire to learn how to work. The current rates of wages are as follows, all with rations: – Stockmen, £60 to £80; tailors, 15s. a week [see comments below]; shepherds, £35 to £40; hutkeepers, £40; good hutkeeper and cook, £50; man on station, 15s. a week; fencing, 4s. 6d. a rod; splitting, 6d. per post or rail – the two last without rations. Good splitters accustomed to working in hard gumwood are in demand, and can clear, after paying for all their rations, from 25s. to 30s. a week. A few tradesmen, such as tailors, shoemakers, saddlers, and grinders of knives, scissors, &c., would, if travelling with a small-stock-in-trade, from station to station make a good living, if not above doing all sorts of odd jobs; two or three tinmen and workers in iron might also find it pay to travel these rivers.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 29 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 12 June 1858 (referring to a correction to the paragraph above)]
MAY 29, 1858. – TAILORS AND TAILERS. – In a letter of mine which appeared in the Herald of the 11th instant, in a paragraph about the rates of wages, the word tailer has by some means been changed into the word tailor, which alteration makes a considerable difference; for, whereas a tailor is a person who makes and mends clothes; a tailer, in bush parlance, is a man who herds cattle either on horseback or on foot, and derives his name from the fact of his running after the cattle at their tails or at the tail end of the mob. People living in towns are often much puzzled to know the meaning of bush words, and sometimes make curious mistakes, like the lady who hearing some one speaking of tailing cows, observed, "How cruel ! cutting off the tails of such innocent creatures."
By the late 1850s the business of running a pastoral holding in the Riverina had become a rewarding enterprise: the markets were steady and profitable and the labour market was becoming more dependable. Cattle had been the mainstay of the pastoral economy of the Riverina during the 1850s. In comparison to sheep they were less labour-intensive and more suited to pastoral runs with few improvements such as fencing and constructed water storages. Cattle grazed further from water and so utilised more land; they were allowed to wander freely over the runs until it was time for the yearly or half-yearly muster. Fat cattle could be driven faster to market and maintain condition on the journey. Keeping sheep required a larger labour-force, both permanent and casual at shearing-time; in the absence of extensive fencing sheep flocks were closely managed by shepherds.
Sheep suffered from a variety of diseases during this period, including scab, catarrh and anthrax (known as Cumberland disease). Until 1861 cattle in New South Wales suffered few diseases. Cumberland disease (anthrax) first occurred in the Sydney region in 1847; it spread from there by travelling stock into the pastoral areas of New South Wales and southern Queensland. In general cattle were more resistant to anthrax and the majority of serious outbreaks occurred in sheep.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 1 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
CATTLE, SHEEP, AND HORSES. – Numerous mobs of store cattle have continued to arrive from the North, to supply the deficiency caused by the want of natural increase, owing to the majority of the cows in the district having been spayed, and to fill up the vacancy caused by the departure of fat cattle. The mobs of fat cattle sent to Victoria have been generally of first-class quality, amongst which the spayed cows have been particularly noticed as being in splendid condition. The number of cattle in the district is well kept, and is slightly larger than it was six months ago. Great fear is entertained of the Cumberland disease, which although it has approached very close has not yet come into this neighbourhood; on the Lachlan, however, it still rages, and overland parties have met with some losses; pigs that partook of the carcasses of the dead beasts became infected, and quickly died. The number of sheep is smaller than it was, the flocks sent to market not having in some instances been replaced, owing to the high prices demanded for sheep on the New England side preventing intended purchasers from becoming possessors of this sort of stock. Many mobs of horses have been sent to Melbourne and the gold-fields, where they have realised fair prices; mixed mobs, consisting of draught, saddle, and unbroken have averaged from £25 to £33.
THE LACHLAN. – The channel of this river, after remaining full of water during more than two years, has at last gone dry again, and now contains numerous water holes only. The feed all down the Lachlan is very bad – in fact, there is none; parties coming overland have sustained considerable loss from their horses dying owing to the impossibility of procuring fodder.
In May 1858 the nearest Police Magistrate to the Lang's Crossing-place was John Kelly, based at Deniliquin (appointed to the position in June 1856). The Clerk of Petty Sessions at Deniliquin was Henry Shiell, who had occupied that position since November 1853. The other civil administrators in the district were Clerks of Petty Sessions at Moulamein (Edward T. Lindsay) and at Balranald (George Edwards), both of whom were under the authority of the Police Magistrate at Deniliquin. In 1858 John Kelly received an annual salary of £530 and the Clerks of Petty Sessions received base salaries of £175. [Details from the New South Wales Government Blue Book]
A Police Magistrate was able to preside alone at a Police Court, which had the power to deal with minor offences such as drunkenness, minor assaults or disputes under the Masters and Servants Act (as well as committals to a superior court). In the absence of the Police Magistrate two or more Justices of the Peace (honorary magistrates) were required to constitute a Police Court.
The Masters and Servants Act was a law designed to regulate relations between employers and employees. The Act was passed in 1845 (and amended in 1858); its provisions required a considerable degree of fidelity from employees to their contracted employer, with infringements punishable before a court of law.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 1 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
POLICE. – The want of a police magistrate is very much felt, as the J.P.'s in this large district are so few that it is very difficult to get a second magistrate to adjudicate on a case. One police magistrate would he able to visit a large extent of country, and could sit on appointed days at particular places, when there would be some chance of the Masters and Servants Act being made some use of in this locality, where at present, owing to the difficulty of attending court, in consequence of long distances, and the uncertainty of there being a bench, it is almost as much use as a repealed Act of Parliament.
In 1858 the Riverina district was part of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney under the Bishop of Sydney. In December 1851 Bishop Broughton had travelled as far as Moulamein during an extensive tour of the far-flung diocese. His successor, Bishop Barker, undertook three diocesan tours after his consecration in 1854, though his travels did not include the western Riverina. In December 1855 and again in October 1856 Rev. Edward Synge, representing Bishop Barker, visited the Lower Murrumbidgee region. In April 1857 an Anglican minister, Rev. Ralph Barker, settled at Deniliquin (the first resident minister in that township).
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 1 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
RELIGION. – Another half-year has again elapsed without the least sign of any minister of any denomination coming to this part of the colony. It has been thought possible that some Chinese, seeing our uncared-for condition, might one of these days come here, erect a Joss House and kindly invite us to enter; or some energetic Mormon missionary, thinking it a favourable opportunity to make converts, might visit the Lower Murrumbidgee and endeavour to induce us to join the saints at the Salt Lake. Apparently we might go anywhere, believe anything or nothing, worship idols or set up an Agapemone establishment, for anything that any bishop, president, moderator, or other ruler of a religious society in the colony, whatever name he may go by, seems to care. The Bishop of Sydney is reported to be going to visit Goulburn very shortly. Whether coming so far into the bush will have any effect in refreshing his memory about this part of the country remains to be seen.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 29 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 12 June 1858]
HOME AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. – Doubtless it is a most excellent thing to endeavour to promote Christianity amongst heathen nations, but at the same time it cannot be denied that the first duty is to attend to one's own country, and this thought must have occurred to every reflecting person who read in the Herald of 6th instant, an account of the meeting of the Church Missionary Society in Sydney. The majority of the speakers admitted it is true there was urgent necessity for home work, and yet it would appear that they are giving their attention to the interests of dark-coloured men abroad whilst white men are entirely neglected. Now, only let the Bishop of Sydney think for a moment that there is one spot (not to speak of others) in his diocese, there is a tract of country 300 miles long, which has been inhabited by men and their families, for the last twelve years at least, and yet no strenuous efforts have ever yet been made to send ministers into that district – even itinerant preachers do not pass through it – and three hasty clerical visits during that long period are all that can be recorded. How can it be said with any show of reason that his Lordship and his clergy are justified in giving their time to foreign missions, when there is such an urgent want of their services at home? In a country called (I should almost be tempted to say by complaisance only) a Christian country, children grow up unbaptised; people die and are often buried without a prayer being said over their graves; Sunday is unheeded, and oftener forgotten; old men, sitting by their fire-sides, ransack their memories to recollect the last occasion – many, many years ago – when they heard a sermon, and the young listeners wonder if it will fall to their lot also to live in a similar uncared for condition. The Bishop of Sydney is, without doubt, a just and good man, but he surely must be much informed about some parts of his diocese, or else he would long ago have sent home a request for ministers to come out here, where there is such a large field for their labours. The Bishop is well aware that we do not want to be an incumbrance to any church fund, as we are ready and willing to support ministers, so that we have already done all in our power, and the rest remains for him to do.
During May 1858 working parties continued with preparations for the opening of the Murrumbidgee River to steamer navigation. A team of men working for Francis Cadell were engaged in cutting snags in the river, while others were employed in accumulating wood-piles on the riverbanks. A man named Macgregor was engaged by Cadell to survey the river and compile a chart of the route. To undertake the survey Macgregor and two other men travelled by boat from Wagga Wagga to the Murray junction. During the voyage dangerous snags were marked with sapling beacons and coded navigation instructions painted on trees. One of the men who accompanied Macgregor on the survey was probably David Bower, who later in the year piloted the Albury steamer up the Murrumbidgee as far as Gundagai.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 1 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
THE MURRUMBIDGEE. – After the last high flood the river commenced falling on the 16th November, and with the exception of some immaterial rises, caused by very slight flushes, has continued to fall until the present moment; it is now so low that it is fordable in many places even on foot. Captain Cadell has taken advantage of the low state of the water to continue the operations for the clearance of the channel, and has had a party of men at work during the last two months cutting the snags and topping the overhanging branches. The river in now thus partially cleared from Nap Nap, near the junction of the Lachlan, to this junction of the Murrumbidgee with the Murray, and Captain Cadell, who has just visited the scene of these operations, states his intention of testing the possibility of a steamboat ascending the river as soon as the state of it warrants the belief of there being a sufficiency of water for a boat to pass over the shallow parts.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 15 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 25 May 1858]
MAY 15TH. – THE NAVIGATION OF THE RIVER. – In anticipation of a steamboat coming up the Murrumbidgee during the approaching winter, men are now employed in cutting fuel for the boat; dry wood is split into thinish pieces, and cut into five feet lengths, these are piled in stacks which are placed in such a manner that they cannot easily he moved by wind or water. Some trouble is requisite to select particular spots along the banks, which lie above the flood marks, and where the steamboat will be able to come easily alongside for the purpose of taking the wood on board. It is understood that it the workmen are being paid at the rate of 7s. a ton for the wood. Wood is at all times preferable to coal for raising steam quickly and in large quantities, but the amount of wood required would be more in proportion than that of coal; the great bulk of wood, the difficulty of stowing it, and the price that would have to be paid for it in many places, appear to be the chief reasons why coal is more commonly burnt to heat the boilers of steam engines. A Mr. Macgregor, acting under Captain Cadell's instructions, is now coming down the river, erecting beacons to serve as directing posts to indicate the situations of the worst of the snags, which, although in the present low state now visible, will, when a rise takes place, be out of sight beneath the surface of the water. It is fully expected that by the aid of these beacons in addition to the clearance which has been made in the channel towards the mouth of the river, that no serious obstacle will he found in the water-way to prevent a steamboat from ascending the river for two or three hundred miles.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 29 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 12 June 1858]
THE NAVIGATION OF THE RIVER. – The operations for the clearance of the river lately proceeding at the Junction have been continued higher up by Mr. Macgregor who, accompanied by two men, has just navigated down the river from Wagga Wagga to the Murray, a distance by water of over 800 miles. On the voyage, which has been more in the way of making a cursory survey than with the object of making a permanent clearance, the water way has all been mapped on a scale of four inches to the mile; in these charts all the main obstructions to the easy navigation of the river have been marked, and marginal notes of practical observations on the different difficult places have been appended. The very worst of the snags have been cut, and beacons erected on those that were liable to prove dangerous and yet could not be removed; these beacons are tall slight saplings, bearing bushy tops, and are driven into the bed of the river or into the root of the tree, to which they are also fixed with an iron spike. The advantage of using thin saplings is that they will bend and allow drift wood to pass over them, whereas thick ones would detain the wood until the accumulation became heavy, when it would probably break down the beacon. Marks have been painted upon trees in various places to serve as directions to commanders of boats. Thus, we see for instance a letter S and two balls which means keep on the Sydney side of the river two-thirds of the way across the channel, which is on that side; or perhaps we notice V M, which means, keep on the Victoria side in the middle of the channel. The river is found to be almost more tortuous than was generally imagined; in some parts the bends are so numerous that the route by the river is at least five times as long as that by the road, in a few places it is not more than half as long again, and on the average about three times as long. The conclusion arrived at from the hasty survey it that the Murrumbidgee is a fine river, and could at a comparatively slight cost, be easily made navigable during the greater part of the year. Great praise is due to Mr. Macgregor for the interest he has taken in this matter, and the attention he has given to making the chart of the river; no slight share of the credit for navigating the river – when it is accomplished – will be justly due to this gentleman for the experience gained by him in his boating voyage down the Murrumbidgee.
Aboriginal communities in the western Riverina had been concentrated on the more habitable river corridors prior to European settler expansion onto their lands. The rapid pace of land occupation by squatters in the 1840s, following and securing these sought-after corridors, had a devastating effect on Aboriginal communities, with their rights to their own lands simply taken from them. The Aborigines were left to respond and adjust as best they could to the conditions imposed by the invading squatters and their employees.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 1 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 1858]
THE BLACK POPULATION. – The aborigines are dying away extremely fast – wearing clothes one day and none the next, gorging themselves with flesh meat one week and starving the succeeding week, loosing the greater part of their natural food, and living to a great extent in a state foreign to their forefathers' habits, have had the effect of rendering their always short lives still shorter. Some of them die of consumption, curious to relate, and have the same short husky cough so noticeable in consumptive persons at home.
The "Illilawa" run was located upstream of Lang's Crossing-place. The squatter Henry Jeffreys had purchased the "Illilawa" lease from Christopher Bagot by late 1857.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 15 May 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 25 May 1858]
LOST IN THE BUSH. – Last week, two little boys, aged eight and ten, whilst shepherding some rams on Mr. Jeffrey's station, Illiliwa, lost their road, and found themselves unable to discover in what direction their home lay. The children, not appearing at nightfall, the people on the station became alarmed for their safety and set out to look far them, but for two nights and two days could obtain no tidings of the wanderers. However, on the third day they were discovered fifteen miles from the station, on the main road, up the river. The poor little creatures had heard the noise of men, dogs, whips, and firearms, during the two nights they were in the bush, but had carefully hidden themselves under the impression that the noises were made by blackmen, of whom they were afraid. They had also seen several strangers light fires and camp, but not knowing them had been afraid to approach, having the idea that they might meet with some harm by making their forlorn situation known to such persons.
JUNE 1858
Henry Leonard commenced the construction of his punt soon after arriving at Lang's Crossing-place in January 1858. The work was probably carried out on the eastern side of the river-bend, up-stream of the area known today as the Bush Bend reserve. The nearly-completed punt was launched in early June 1858.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 12 June 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 22 June 1858]
THE PUNT ON THE RIVER. – The new and commodious punt which has been built by Mr. Leonard, was launched last week, and now requires but little additional labour for her completion. She is to be floated down the river to the spot where the present small punt plies, at Lang's crossing-place, and will be placed there for the convenience of the public, who will, no doubt, find much greater facilities for crossing sheep than have ever yet been afforded on this part of the river.
_________________
The report of the launch of Henry Leonard’s punt indicates that the writer believed that Leonard intended to place his newly-built punt further downstream, proximate to the main crossing-place where the existing punt was operating. However this assumption was erroneous. The correspondent, George Boase, was based at “Gelam” station, about half-way between Lang’s Crossing-place and Balranald, so it is likely much of his information about the doings at Lang’s Crossing-place were received second-hand. There is no indication in Boase’s reports of the antagonism that existed between Leonard and the squatter, Henry Jeffreys (owner of the punt operating at Sandy Point). In view of this animosity, which became apparent in the light of subsequent events, it is unlikely that Jeffreys would have been amenable to Leonard’s punt being placed at Sandy Point. In any case it is doubtful that Leonard had ever intended to place the vessel there. The punt was probably constructed close to where Leonard later erected his hotel (the building of which may have already commenced), and the punt was subsequently put into operation in that general vicinity.
On 21 June 1858 the young daughter of William and Eliza Hawkings (or Hawkins) drowned in the Murrumbidgee River at "Toogimbie" station, about twenty miles downstream from Lang's Crossing-place. Elizabeth Hawkings was aged just eighteen months; her birth had been registered at Balranald early in 1857. The child's father, William Hawkings, worked as a stockman on "Toogimbie" station (which was leased at that stage by Robert Gabbett).
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 26 June 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 7 July 1858]
INFANT DROWNED. – On the 21st instant, a young child, about eighteen months old, daughter of William Hawkings, stockman at Toogimbie – a station of Mr. Gabbets', on this river, was accidentally drowned. It appears that the mother, being on the station by herself, and very unwell, entrusted the charge of the poor child to her elder brothers – two young boys – who, child-like, became interested in some amusement, and quite forgot to look after their sister. After a short time, the child was missed, and, a strict search being made, a black fellow discovered marks on the river bank, where she had fallen down. The side of the river at this spot is almost perpendicular, and any person dropping from the summit would immediately tumble into the stream below, where the water is deep, and the current strong. News of the sad occurrence was at once sent to the father, who was collecting cattle on a neighbouring station; and on his return no pains were spared in searching for the body, but according to the last account their efforts had not been attended with any success.
On 23 June 1858 the squatter, James Tyson, gave testimony before the Select Committee on the Navigation of the Murray in Sydney. His evidence consisted of a series of answers to questions from the committee members. The extracts below comprise Tyson's specific comments about the Murrumbidgee River.
James Tyson and his two brothers had taken up land in the mid-1840s near the junction of the Murrumbidgee and Lachlan rivers. The Tysons' pastoral enterprises prospered during the 1850s when the brothers sold stock directly to the Victorian gold-fields and established slaughtering facilities at Bendigo. From the mid-1850s the Tyson brothers considerably expanded their pastoral holdings in New South Wales.
_________________
[Extracts of 'Minutes of Evidence' by James Tyson, 23 June 1858, before the Select Committee on the Navigation of the Murray, from 'Report from the Select Committee on the Navigation of the Murray, &c.; together with the proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, and appendix', Votes and Proceedings of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, 1858, Volume 3, pp. 764ff]
10. [Q] There are no steamers on the Murrumbidgee as yet? [A] No; but there will be some soon.
…
44. You are very well acquainted with the Murrumbidgee country, I think? Very well.
45. And with the general aspect of the Murrumbidgee River? Yes. 46. Is that river as susceptible of improvement as the Murray? I think the Murrumbidgee is, navigable; I always thought so. 47. Are you aware that operations have already been commenced upon that river by Captain Cadell? Yes.
48. Have you had an opportunity of observing what has been done? I have not.
49. Have you heard of what has been done there? I heard my brother say that they were clearing the river by cutting the snags, and leading them into deep water, and that they reckoned on coming up this winter with the steamer.
50. Do you think that system of cutting off the tops of the snags, and throwing them to the bottom of the river, will answer there? I think it will.
51. The channel of the river being deep? They take them away from the shallows, and throw them into deep water. They should be particular in that, or they might do damage. 52. The floods are periodical, are they not, in that river? Mostly.
53. So that about from four to six months every year you might calculate upon that river being navigable? I do not think every year. I have known the Murrumbidgee to be two years with scarcely a fresh in it. 54. Two years, summer and winter, consecutively? Yes.
55. When was that? I think at the time of the three years' drought, just before the year of Black Thursday. In 1851 it was very dry. 56. And it was immediately followed by that terrific flood? Yes, in February, 1851. 57. Do you think it is worth while, Mr Tyson, to go to my amount of expenditure in clearing the Murrumbidgee? Well, Sir, I think that the Murrumbidgee is navigable all the way to Gundagai.
58. Would it be worthwhile to expend £10,000 upon it to render it as navigable as the Murray is at the present time? Well, I think that it would.
62. And that would be brought into the market very many years earlier than it otherwise would, by its being approachable by means of the river? Such is my opinion.59. The enhancement of the value of the land on its banks would, in your opinion, amply repay the Government, without taking into consideration the advantages that would accrue to the resident population? I think it would be a great public benefit, and the expenditure would be a wise one. 60. You are aware that there is a great deal of fertile land down the river as far as Wagga Wagga, and indeed to a distance below that, – do you think that land would come more rapidly into the market if that river was made navigable? Yes, I do. 61. Some hundreds of thousands of acres? Some hundreds of thousands – some millions of acres. It is the finest land in the country, and the most of it together. The commencement of steam navigation on the Murrumbidgee was eagerly anticipated by mid-year 1858. As the Murrumbidgee River began to rise there was a parallel increase in the expectation of the residents along its banks.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 26 June 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 7 July 1858]
THE MURRUMBIDGEE. – The river has at last commenced rising, after remaining very low an almost unusually long time. We are all on the qui vive respecting the navigation of the river, and have just learnt with much satisfaction, that our good friend, Captain Cadell, has made arrangements for sending the steamboat Albury up the Murrumbidgee as soon as the annual flood makes its appearance.
JULY 1858
The dry conditions prevailing in the Riverina caused delays in the annual re-stocking of runs. At the onset of winter large numbers of stock, in particular sheep, began travelling through the region.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 26 June 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 7 July 1858]
JUNE 26TH, 1858. – TRAVELLING STOCK. – The speculation in sheep carried on during 1858 and 1857 has been revived this season, and although the number coming down is not quite so large as it was last year, still it is considerable, as I am given to understand that there are nearly 200,000 sheep expected to pass through this district during the winter, part of them now on the road and the remainder not yet set out. The route along the Lachlan still appears to be the favourite thoroughfare for travelling sheep, where although cattle and horses cannot find a mouthful, these animals seem to thrive tolerably well, as they eat salt-bush, and by picking about contrive to find sufficient for their daily sustenance in spots where larger animals could procure nothing. The sheep now near at hand are reported to be – Rowe, 20,000; Hugh Glass (first lot), 20,000; Ramsy, 8,000 – shorn. The Lachlan country is in a frightful state for want of feed, so much so that no one has ventured on bringing any cattle from the north by that line of country. Some few mobs of horses have arrived down by that road and have met with heavy losses; one mob of 300 on arriving at the mouth of the Lachlan was 90 short, being loss from actual starvation. The rains have not been felt far up the river, and the spring of grass along the Lachlan is very slight indeed. Few cattle are coming down this year, owing probably to the low figure store cattle have been quoted at in Melbourne, and partly, perhaps, to the impossibility of proceeding along the Lachlan route. Some mobs are travelling down the Darling, but are none of them, as yet, near at hand.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 10 July 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 20 July 1858]
SHEEP TRESPASSING. – For some time past many parties travelling through this district with sheep have taken the liberty of running their stock wherever they pleased, imagining apparently that settlers here are so very stupid and not aware that they can oblige them to keep the road. These noble strangers are not at all particular about a trifle, they will come right through the middle of a run, select the best feed for their camping ground, and when discovered, at perhaps five or six miles distance from any road – think that a brazen face, and a falsehood about having lost their way, are quite sufficient excuse for their trespass and compensation for the harm they have done. Moreover, parties in charge of sheep have a habit of crossing the river at any place they please, without caring whether there is any right of crossing at the spot, or any road running near thereto. The settlers, hitherto from good nature and a dislike of placing hindrances in the way of travelling stock, have put up with a considerable amount of trespassing on their runs, but this year owners of travelling sheep have become so extra intrusive, that settlers have fairly had their patience worn out. For the future, all sheep found further from a thoroughfare than the distance allowed by law, or found crossing the river anywhere except at the public crossing places, are to be immediately impounded, and it is hoped that making a few examples will have the effect of deterring other drovers from trespassing, and open their eyes as to the whereabouts of the public routes.
During July 1858 an incident occurred at Lang's Crossing-place which stimulated the process of establishing a township at the locality. Henry Leonard had launched his punt in early June and was in the process of building a hotel on high ground upstream from where his punt was operating. One morning in mid-July Leonard's partially-built hotel was deliberately damaged by the superintendent of the "Illilawa" run. Below is the first of two accounts of this incident.
_________________
['Edward River District' correspondent (report dated 13 August 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 23 August 1858]
DENILIQUIN, AUGUST 13 – MORE LAND. – The cry is here for more land – land is wanted for large paddocks on the borders of the high road, from South Deniliquin to Maiden's Punt (100 acre paddocks) – the Sandhills are looked at with a longing eye, we mean those on the lower suburbs of North Deniliquin… Apropos of the land question, a curious affair happened some three or four weeks since on the Murrumbidgee; it is well known down here on the Edward and the Murray that Mr. Leonard, late foreman (as shipbuilder) in the employ of the River Murray Navigation Company, had fixed on a place on the banks of the Murrumbidgee whereupon to erect a dwelling-house; he had also built a large and commodious punt to ferry over the sheep, &c., crossing downwards for the Victoria markets. The house was nearly completed, and I believe the punt launched. The ground chosen was part of Mr. Jeffries' run, and in which locality the Government had for some time then past intended to make a considerable reserve. While the house was being completed, one fine morning Mr. Jeffries' superintendent came down with a team of bullocks, and quietly fastening them to Mr. Leonard's building, pulled a portion of it down. Mr. Leonard represented the affair to the Government, and the "powers that be" took steps to protect him. The reserve has now been chosen, and Mr. Jeffries has to yield to the necessities of the public. Accidents from drowning are occurring every winter in crossing at this part of the Murrumbidgee, and the land must be sold here; a town must be had without delay. When the Government wants a thousand pounds or so they know where to get it; let them sell the land in good quantities at the crossing place, chosen by Mr. Leonard; they will be doing a great service. Mr. Leonard is an American; he has been in these colonies for several years, and maintains an unblemished reputation; he is an excellent tradesman, and just the man we want in this quarter of the bush; therefore we shall again call upon the Surveyor-General for "more land".
_________________
The second description of the purposeful damage to Leonard's hotel was written in 1883. The writer, calling himself 'Old Resident', contributed a series of articles to the Riverine Grazier about the early days of Hay township. 'Old Resident' proposed that the main reason for the antagonism directed at Henry Leonard by the squatters Jeffreys and McEvoy was that Leonard's hotel and punt at Lang's Crossing-place encouraged trespassing across their runs. This may have been true of McEvoy in regard to the neighbouring "Wooloondool" run. For Jeffreys, whose superintendent damaged the building, the antagonism seems more likely to have derived from the fact that Leonard's punt was directing traffic away from his own punt. Henry Leonard's punt was in direct commercial opposition to Jefferys' punt. Henry Jeffreys' hostility to Leonard's improvements was in sharp contrast to his benign or encouraging attitude to other building activities at Lang's Crossing-place just prior to Henry Leonard's arrival (i.e., the establishment by Thomas Simpson of a blacksmith's shop and Cadell's store on the road leading to the crossing-place).
_________________
[Extract from 'Recollections of Lang's Crossing-place' (Part 1) by 'an Old Resident', Riverine Grazier, Wednesday, 12 December 1883]
I would remark that nine-tenths of the present inhabitants of Hay can form no idea of the difficulties and annoyances Mr. Leonard had to contend against in establishing a public crossing-place here; these were the days before "Free Selection," and the Crown tenants were most particular about any one trespassing on their holdings or runs: no one could go a certain distance of the road without giving, I think, twenty four hours notice at the head station, and then could only demand to go on the run once in three months, the penalty being thirty pounds fine with etceteras and as to putting up a building without permission nothing short of extinction was sufficient punishment for the offender. Consequently this traffic had particularly irritated the owners and manager of the Woolloondool and Illilawa runs, and they were wroth at Mr. Leonard daring to settle down and erect buildings, etc., so they tried all they knew to stop the punt from being worked and the hotel being built. I expect it will be hardly credited these days that upon the completion of the punt and its being put into working order, the manager of the station came with the avowed intention of cutting the warp and letting the whole affair adrift, but Mr. Leonard was equal to the occasion and stood with a loaded gun and threatened to shoot the man that injured the rope. I afterwards knew Mr. Leonard, and can safely say that he was just the man to carry out his threat; but happily it was not required, the other party apparently thinking better of it. Not so fortunate, however, was he with the hotel, for Mr. Perston, manager for Mr. Henry Jeffrey, the then owner of Illilawa, actually brought down a team of bullocks, hitched them on to one of the verandah posts and pulled it out by the roots; thereby, I suppose, asserting his right to pull down all buildings erected on the run without his permission. I did not see this myself, but I heard Killeen, the driver of the bullocks, say that after fastening the chain to the post he threw down his whip and Mr. Perston had to start the bullocks himself.
The following passages reflect the growing sense of frustration and discontent with the New South Wales colonial government by residents of the Riverina region. There was a widespread perception that the district was being neglected by government, despite a flourishing pastoral industry and an increasing population.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 26 June 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 7 July 1858]
SEPARATION FROM NEW SOUTH WALES. – Year by year, the word separation is often heard in this part of the colony, and there seems every probability of it soon becoming "familiar in our mouths as household words." The Government continue to tax us, and that heavily, at the same time abusing us for desiring to have a fair share in the representation of the colony and refusing, with the greatest indifference, to attend to any of our requirements. If we require a township to be laid out, the Government, when questioned, know nothing at all about it. If we want a police magistrate, they will not vote the money for his salary. If a bridge is requisite, we are told there are other districts want the money, so that people are, at last, driven to asking what do we get from New South Wales, in consideration for the sums we pay yearly into the treasury. We have no protection, no improvements, no assistance. The Parliament existing in Sydney is not of the least advantage to us, and we should be just as well off, nay, better, if the members were quarrelling, speechifying, and abusing each other in the island of New Guinea, instead of in this colony. Sometimes the Government have ever the effrontery to pretend to forget the existence of the pastoral districts, as, for instance, on the 8th of April last, when Mr. Robertson, Secretary for Lands and Public Works, during a debate in the Legislative Assembly in making some allusion to Mr. John Hay, stated "that he did not know for what place he sat," meaning, of course, that it was so very unimportant that his highly cultivated mind could not condescend to remember the name of it, as if it were possible for any one to forget that the Member for the Murrumbidgee had been one of her Majesty's Ministers in the late administration – why we might with an equal show of reason pretend to forget that Mr. Charles Cowper sat for the city of Sydney. The discontent in this part of the country has at last arrived at such a height, that it has been determined, if possible, to procure the separation of the large district of country lying between the Murray and the Murrumbidgee from the colony of New South Wales, and to get it annexed to Victoria. A petition to the Queen, praying for such an alteration is now being signed on the south side of the river. In the colony of Victoria the taxes are very heavy it must be admitted, but the people are cared for, the Government construct roads and bridges, townships are laid out, land sales are frequent, and ample police protection is afforded.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 10 July 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 20 July 1858]
POLICE MAGISTRATE WANTED. – The public in this district are put to almost constant inconvenience by the scarcity of justices of the Peace, and the consequent difficulty of obtaining the attendance of two gentlemen to sit on the bench to dispose of the police business. This unpleasant state of affairs demands the attention of the Government, who might, if so disposed, either appoint additional J.P.s, or nominate a police magistrate for the district. If they do not approve of either of those plans, they have a third alternative, which is to make arrangements with the police magistrate at Deniliquin to attend to this district, in addition to his present duties. This plan would perhaps give more general satisfaction than either of those first mentioned, and the ends of justice could in many cases be much better carried out by the same magistrate having jurisdiction over the police of adjoining districts, as at the present time persons offending in one district and immediately passing into the other are, to a very great extent, free from danger. The few J.P.s who are in this locality do all they can to oblige the public, but when they are so scarce that no two live within fifty miles of each other, it can scarcely be expected that they should devote so much time to police business as a stipendiary magistrate would, as he of course would have no private business to prevent his attendance at the court when cases required to be heard.
AUGUST 1858
The Albury steamer was another of the River Murray Navigation Company's vessels and in August 1858 it was being operated by Francis Cadell and Patrick Turnbull, principals in a new company called 'Cadell's Line of River Steamers'.
The third boat expected to arrive at the Murrumbidgee junction was the Gemini, a twin-hulled vessel owned and built by William Randell.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 7 August 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 20 August 1858]
THE NAVIGATION OF THE RIVERS. – The Lady Augusta is reported to be at the mouth of the river, waiting for a flush to enable her to come up. She sailed from the Goolwa on the 1st July, accompanied by two barges, so that her charterers must calculate on finding good sale for rations, &c., in this locality; part of the goods were, it appears, shipped on consignees' orders. The Albury is also expected to arrive very shortly, and report speaks of a third boat which is to navigate the Murrumbidgee this season.
_________________
On 18 August 1858, after a flush of water enabled progress upstream, the steamer Gemini under Captain William Randell entered the Murrumbidgee carrying fifty-five tons of cargo. Although the Gemini and Lady Augusta were approximately comparable in regard to displacement tonnage, the Gemini was carrying less cargo than the other vessel. Perhaps also the twin-hulled construction of the Gemini provided additional buoyancy to enable her to be the first to enter the river. After reaching Lang's Crossing-place, the Gemini travelled a further ten miles to "Illiliwa" station before turning back on 27 August. On his way downstream Captain Randell met two steamers making their way up the Murrumbidgee – first the Lady Augusta and then the Albury.
The Lady Augusta had entered the Murrumbidgee two days after the Gemini; she was under the command of Captain Edmund Robertson and had two barges in tow. The Albury steamer arrived at the Murray-Murrumbidgee junction on 27 August 1858. Captain Cadell was on board this vessel, which was commanded by Captain George Johnston. The Albury reached Lang's Crossing-place on 4 September, where the last of her three barges were cast off.
[The paragraph below contains the sentence: "Since I last write, acquainting you with the arrival of the Gemini, two more boats have come up." This indicates an earlier description of the journey of the Gemini up the Murrumbidgee. However the earlier report has not been located, so it was probably not published.]
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 4 September 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 17 September 1858]
STEAMBOATS ON THE RIVER. – The long debated question of the possibility of the navigation of the Murrumbidgee may now be considered as finally settled by the ascent of three steamboats, and should the traffic on the river be found to pay as a mercantile speculation, we may expect to see many boats on the river every season. Since I last write, acquainting you with the arrival of the Gemini, two more boats have come up. The Lady Augusta, Captain Edmund Robertson, 50 tons burthen, and 40 horse-power, entered the river on the 20th ultimo, attended by the barges Goolwa and Murrumbidgee, and bringing about 100 tons of cargo. She was chartered by Messrs. Allsop and Co. of Adelaide, and the goods were retailed as the vessel came along, a method of doing business well adapted to this part of the country, and found very convenient by the public, as the stores here are but few and far between. The Murrumbidgee barge was only brought as far as Primary, from whence she was sent back. The Albury, 60 tons burthen and 50 horse-power, Captain George Johnson, made the mouth of the river on the 27th August, and brought with her the barges Wakool, Mitta Mitta, and Eureka; the entrance was found to be sufficiently wide and clear to allow the Albury and two barges to come in abreast and tow the other behind. The Albury and the barges bring back 200 tons of goods, a large quantity of which are for Messrs. Dunbar and Co.'s store, at Lang's Crossing Place. The river is found to be well cleared as high up as the Lachlan junction, from which point upwards more work will require to be done, to render the water-way easy of navigation to steamboats in general. The steamboats that have come up have found no obstructions to their progress, so that at this time of the year, and for three to four months to come, the Murrumbidgee may be said to be easily navigable, and some small amount of trouble in further clearance would enable boats to navigate it during a much longer period every year. In the Albury, Captain Francis Cadell, the originator of the navigation of the Murrumbidgee, came up the river, and must feel great pleasure in seeing this successful accomplishment of his long cherished hope. We are undoubtedly indebted to the perseverance of this gentleman for the advantages we now enjoy from steam navigation, as it was mainly through his representations, that the money was voted for snagging the river, and he gave his time and I understand some of his personal means, to clearing the river and rendering it navigable for the public. Having been the first to navigate the Murray in a steamboat of large size, and having now brought up the largest steamboat that has come up this river, Captain Cadell may fairly be considered having done more than any other individual to facilitate the water carriage in this part of Australia.
_________________
The opening of the Murrumbidgee River to navigation by steam vessels profoundly changed the transportation patterns of the region and enabled new river-based business opportunities.
_________________
['Edward River District' correspondent (report undated), Sydney Morning Herald, 27 August 1858]
NAVIGATING THE MURRUMBIDGEE. – A party is gone to the Murrumbidgee to build thereon a river steamer, for plying between Lang's Corner and the junction with the Murray. The vessel will carry fifty or sixty tons, will draw two feet six inches, and be built of red gum. Between steam and lightning we are going ahead. We have but little to thank the Government for.
_________________
There is no evidence that the plan outlined in the above passage ever went ahead (though five years later the aforementioned David Bower built a steamer, the Riverine, on the Murrumbidgee River near Balranald).
In August 1958 District Surveyor Peter Francis Adams was instructed to lay out a township at Lang’s Crossing-place as soon as it was practicable. Adams was based at Albury and several months were to elapse before he arrived at Lang’s Crossing-place.
_________________
[James Jervis, 'The Western Riverina: A History of Its Development', Royal Australian Historical Society Journal and Proceedings, Vol. XXXVIII 1952, p. 147]
On 12 August 1958 Surveyor P. F. Adams was instructed to lay out a town at Lang’s Crossing as soon as practicable.
The following is an example of the hardships of life on the dry Riverina back-blocks.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 14 August 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 24 August 1858]
A COMFORTABLE CUP OF TEA. – Some persons who were recently gathering cattle on the back plains of the Lachlan, on camping one evening had great difficulty in finding any water, and when, after considerable search, they succeeded in discovering a small puddle, its contents were so thick that it was not at all easy to find any sufficiently liquid to put into a quart pot. This, however, being accomplished, and the quart boiled, some tea was put in, and the weary drovers began to anticipate the delights of a real good cup of tea. But, alas, after allowing the quart to stand by the fire a short time longer, on attempting to pour some tea into a pint, the whole contents of the pot fell out in a solid cake, of which the component parts were discovered to be tea and clay.
Stock, particularly sheep, continued to travel into and through the region, despite the paucity of feed along the stock-routes. Many of the sheep-flocks were being crossed on Leonard's new punt at Lang's Crossing-place which had "already attracted the favourable notice of overlanders".
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 7 August 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 20 August 1858]
LAMBING. – This annual business has just come to a close, and has been rather more important than usual, as during the two past years sheep owners have sold very few ewes, owing to the high price of this kind of stock inducing them to get as many lambs as possible. The season has not been over favourable, the weather being damp and cold, so that although the number of lambs dropped has been very large, there has been a considerable loss.
_________________
['Lower Murrumbidgee' correspondent (report dated 14 August 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 24 August 1858]
CATTLE AND SHEEP. – The accounts received from the Lachlan are still very discouraging, the feed is bad, there is a scarcity of water, and the Cumberland endemic continues to thin the herds of cattle. All the persons who have brought cows and bullocks overland during this season have suffered heavy and unprecedented losses, besides undergoing unusual hardships, owing to the loss of many of their horses and the extremely weak state of the remainder, obliging them to follow the herds on foot. Two mobs of cattle have recently arrived here for a station near the junction of the river; the one originally consisted of 1200, the other of 1000, but they had each suffered a loss of 400 head during the journey down the Lachlan. Of fat cattle, many mobs have left the river, of which the majority have been purchased on the runs by dealers for the diggings and the Melbourne market. The average price given on the station for cows has been £7, and for bullocks £9, but only very first rate can command these prices. The general opinion appears to be that the prices of cattle are likely to rule higher, and that sheep will suffer a slight, although probably only a temporary, fall. The sheep coming overland are stated not to have suffered in the least, owing to the hardiness of their nature and the slow rate at which they are driven, as well as to their very great perseverance in contriving to pick up almost invisible blades of grass and other minute plants. Flocks of store sheep, in fair condition, still continue to arrive, and are rapidly crossed over the Murrumbidgee by Mr. Leonard's new punt, which has already attracted the favourable notice of overlanders.
SEPTEMBER 1858
_________________
['Gundagai' correspondent (report dated 16 September 1858), Sydney Morning Herald, 17 September 1858]
GUNDAGAI.
[BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.] Thursday, half-past 10 a.m.
The steamer Albury, of Captain Cadell's line of steamers, arrived here about half an hour since. She will start for South Australia at dawn to-morrow.
Thursday, half-past 4 p.m.
Since my telegram this morning I have obtained the following particulars from Captain F. Cadell.
NAVIGATION OF THE MURRUMBIDGEE. – Captain F. Cadell has much pleasure in notifying the arrival of the steamer Albury |
