LIFE IN THE WILDS.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18242, 28 November 1924, Page 14

LIFE IN THE WILDS.

♦ SUPPLIES BY CAMEL. OUTBACK AUSTRALIA. (from our own correspondent.) SYDNEY, November 19. • "Do we bush folk need so much comforting?—l think not," was the remark of the bronzed wife of Mr Elliott, the owner of Engoordina Station, North Territory, while visiting Adelaide last week, in replv to an interviewer who had offered some commiseration upon the hardships of living in the scorching heart of Australia. But Mrs Elliott was not out to be pitied'; she rather gloried to be one of those who are winning mid-Australia for {ho white man, and" some of her word. l pictures of the life on a station, where it is necessary to keep a hundred or so camels as the only means of contact with civilisation, were cheery and full of spirit. Horseshoe Bend, where the station is situated, takes some reaching. First one must travel 700 miles by tram from Adelaide to Oodnadatta, and then spend at least a week on the backs of camels —and there are no hotels or restaurants en route. . . To mention the difficulties of housekeeping to Mrs Elliott is to bring a smile. "Everything from town," was the laughing response to a query, is sometimes broken and sometimes merely cracked, for the distance between us and the shops is stupendous. Groceries, draoery. ironware, glassware, furniture, aiid fruit, all come up from town, and cost much more than double their shop value by the the time they arrive. We have a number of camels, and send a string of a'xmt 50 to Oodnadsitta to bring on to the station the goods trucked to the railhead. After weeks on the road we receive our belongings, and tiitn there is a gieat Ueni or unwrapping oi packages and cases, and exaaiination ot contents. iKe summer is bad between December anu iUareli. Very olten tne truit perishes and rots, and tne canned, goods s.ieil, and tinned butter is destroyed on tiie road—but that is just a small matter, as compared with wnole uullocks going bad overnight, and dust storms lilnng tne house wun saud' in an hour or so. ilie winters are beautiful, and when we have cold mornings that tempt us oUt on Horseback, anu cold niguts witli big tires, following tunny and warm days, then life is wcJl wortli living.

'• .t'uniiture i How do we manage about that —with camel loading? Chairs are taken apart and other arncles, as much as possible, are carried to their destination 111 pieces packed upon the backs of our lix-al "delivery vans'—;the same van is liable at any tijiie to utterly wreck a sideboard portion, or a dressing mirror."