THE NULLABOR PLAIN

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21908, 8 October 1936, Page 16

THE NULLABOR PLAIN

TO THE EDITOR OF THE PRESS Sir, —I feel very much indebted to Mrs Rowlatt for her interesting talk on “Experiences Among the Australian Blacks.” This talk, which was broadcast from 3YA a few evenings ago. revived many old memories, and it was indeed a treat to sit and listen to Mrs Rowlatt describing places and incidents along the great Nullabor Plain. You will remember that in some of my letters to “The Press" I have made mention of the Nullabor Plain in the course of my long, lone trail through Australia on the bicycle. Upon arrival in Coolgardie I had been advised to branch off, and go down through Norseman. Belladonia. Lucia, Fowler’s Bay, and up to Port Augusta, but had I done so, I would, in all probability, never have got through, as it would have been impossible to travel across the long waterless stages over the soft sand. Advice Irom another quarter, which was in accordance with my previous intention, decided me to cross over the iM uliabor Plain by keeping close to the trans-continental railway. a 20-mile run brought me to the golden city of the west. Kalgoorlie. where 1 took a wrong road, bui after a further 20-mile run arrived at the site of a township of a bygone day. bulong, where I rested for three days, and wandered round among the deserted claims taking pnotographs, including one of the great “Queen Margaret," once a very busy and prosperous mine, but now silent and deserted. The township of Bulong has been pulled down, with the exception ot four buildings of galvanised iron, and what was once a hive of industry, is now nothing but a few bare acres of mounds to mark the spot, surrounded by a networx of “pot-holes” and “shafts,” and one or two very primitive camps belonging to a few old prospectors, who still hang on and scratch among the ruins for “colour.” but with little success.

From Bulong I had a fairly good track through the bush back to the railway, and after a run of more than 50 miles I arrived at Karonie, one of the places mentioned by Mrs Rowlatt. At Karonie I was well received by one of the fettlers and his good lady, and made to feel at home. Not long after leaving here I had some very hard travelling, and after pushing through miles of spinifex country I reached Zanthus. When nearing Zanthus I beheld a number of blacks round about the fettlers’ camp, but when I arrived there was not a black to be seen; they had all taken to the ,bush to view the bicycle and myself from a distance, but seeing that I was being welcomed by the fettlers. they gradually returned, and appeared to take great interest in my wonderful machine of two wheels. One of the fettlers told me to leave my bicycle outside, and it would be quite all right, and so it was; none of the blacks had touched it. These camps of the blacks travel up and down to the various camps of the fettlers, to pick up anything that is offering in the way of food, but I have not heard of them crossing over the Nullabor Plain. When I left Zanthus next morning, two blackfellows were about to start off to the next camp 30 miles away, and when I arrived at that camp in the evening the two blacks were there, squatting by the camp as if they had been there all their lives; it was completely beyond me to know how they had managed to beat me on that.3o- - run, seeing that I was riding the bicycle: but it shows the marvellous speed they can travel on foot. At the next camp I made the acquaintance of “Peter”; he was probably the same Peter mentioned by Mrs Rowlatt the other evening. When I arrived Peter was busy making boomerangs, and during the evening one of the fettlers remarked, “That boomerang not much good for blackfellow Peter,” to which Peter replied, “Urn, ah, no, him not much good for blackfellow, but very good selluni white feller on train one shilling.” I think that spirit can be found in many people outside the blackfellows’ camps. Peter was always on the platform with his stock of boomerangs when the trans-continental express came in, and passengers readily paid their shilling for what was to them, the genuine Australian boomerang: they were satisfied, and Peter did a roaring trade.

My trip right across the Nullabor Plain was very quiet and lonely during those 30 mile stages, but there were times when the tour was brimful of interest. I could mention many interesting features of the Nullabor Plain, seeing that I crossed over on a bicycle, and so had the time and opportunity to take notice of everything; experiences vastly different from those of people who viewed the Nullabor Plain from the observation window of the fast trans-continental express, and then wrote about it Every morning 1 set forth from the fettlers’ camps with a full water-bag hanging on the handle-bar; this supply had to carry me over the plain to the next camp 30 miles away, and at noon, when I had completed half the journey by my register, I would stop for the midday meal, fill my billy from the water-bag. gather up a few saltbush roots, or chins from the sleepers, boil the billy for tea, and then sit down to dine; if that portion of the plain was bare, and no chips to be had. then I would have water with my dinner. While having dinner, and resting for an hour or two, my eyes would be continually roving over the plain, and north, south, east, and west nothing could be seen but the unbroken line of the horizon. Behind me were the shining rails stretching away into the distance; ahead of me the straight line of the railway went on. to disappear over the distant horizon, and beside these rails’ I always sat down to dine, day after day, for nearly four weeks. That is why 1 feel qualified to write from real experience. I could mention many interesting features of the great Nullabor Plain, but space would not permit, so I will hasten to Qoldea, and mention two other items, Mrs Rowlatt mentions the “rockhole” between Ooldea and Fowler’s Bay; that is a very dangerous trip

for the stranger to make, for a person can easily miss the “rock-hole.” That would, of course, mean disaster to anyone taking that sandy track to Fowler’s Bay, and I was specially warned against it at Ooldea. Mrs Rowlatt also made mention of that white woman who lives among the blacks at the Ooldea “soak,” three miles from the railway. I was • told to go across and see “Daisy Bates” before I left Ooldea, and I would have done so had I not decided to pick up the “Tea and Sugar,” the following morning at 6 o’clock, in order to get across the drifting sand; so I missed the opportunity of seeing that wonderful lady who has lived for so many years among the blacks. Another very interesting feature of the Nullabor Plain is the “Tea and Sugar”; this is a train that carries water and provisions for the various camps between Kalgoorlie and Port Augusta. .This train also carries extra supplies of water in 8000 gallon tankwaggons to be dropped at various places right over the Nullabdr Plain, for the use of the engines of the "transcontinental expresses. That will be readily understood when I mention that for more than 1200 miles, the train does not pass over a drop of water —a distance equal to that from here to Sydney. On my journey travelling west, my tubes were punctured beyond repair by the “Three Corner Jacks,” not far from Port Augusta, and the transcontinental had to be specially pulled up for me. On her I went right to Kalgoorlie, a distance of more than 1000 miles, the journey taking from midnight on the Sunday till 1.30 o’clock on the Tuesday afternoon; and that was only a small ride in comparison with the size of Australia. Well, I hope I have not encroached on more than my fair share of space. At some future date I may have something further to say about those hundreds of miles of treeless, empty space —the great Nullabor Plain.—Yours, gtc ’ AUSTRALIAN SUNDOWNER. October 6, 1836,