MEAL FOR TWO KICKS

Evening Star, Issue 17700, 29 June 1921, Page 2

MEAL FOR TWO KICKS

OLD COLONIST’S REMINISCENCES. (From the ‘Arsons,’ Melbourne.) A Molbourno of another day ii; described by Mr and Mrs \V. 11. Raines, of North Carlton, who celebrated the sixtyfiffch. anniversary of. their wedding recently. “ Tho bush came down to the site of Parliament House, and there was a blackfellows’ camp whore the Fitzroy Cardens are,” said Mr Rainee. lie has a fund of anecdotes of tiro early days._ A Kent man, ho canio ont to Tasmania in n barque in 1045, the voyage occupying nearly six months. AftdV three years in Tasmania ho decided to come to Victoria, and crossed the straits in a small sailing vessel. There was very little water in tho Yarra, and they waited three, works before wind and tide enabled them to come up tho stream. Mr liahiefi wont to sea on a variety of enterprises, but in 1851 he heard tho call of tho diggings, and with seven others ho tramped inland. His next venture was an original scheme for oyster catching at Western port. The shopkeepers rushed the oysters, and paid him 2s 6d a dozen for them. His partner , was a Norwegian Bailor, who had been sent out to Australia many years _ previously for having killed a man in a fight, "lint owing to some. nsefni_ work in diving for bullion in a sunken ship he had received a free pardon. For a time the oyster catching flourished. Thou there came a calm of three weeks, and tliciv little boat was unable (,o fa >l round to Melbourne. Provisions began to give out, and tiie situation became serious. “Wo had nothing to eat except oysters,” said Mr Raines, “ and wo became very tired of them.” So ho and “Tom,” the Norwegian, decided to tramp to Melbourne. They had no idea what rivers or mountains lay in their way on the overland route; however, they took a compass and set ont. “ Tho first night out wo came to a grogshanty,” says Mr Raines in telling the story “Wo wore cold, and muddy, and hungry, and neither of ns had a shilling. ‘ Leave it to me,’ said Tom, and we went in. Tom ordered two loaves of broad, some cliooso, and some mm, and wc Had n great feed. Then he went to the landlord. ‘The boy and I haf no money,’ ho , said in his broken English. ‘ But I tell j yon vbt to do. I can seo you are angry, so you may kick mo twice. Hut only ' twice, and not too hard.’ And with that he bends down in front of the landlord I” The two set out again in tho dark, and disaster soon overtook them. They got into a swamp, where young Eainrs lost first his way, and then his Wellington boots, which were pulled off in the mnd. Daylight came, and thoro was no trace of them. With strips of material torn from a sack, wrapped around his feet, luj set off with the curly sailor again. It was a long and a painful journey. At last they heard a cock crowing in the distance “Ha! That will bo St. Hilda.” said tho sailor. It proved to be Dandelion g. Melbourne was readied at last, and Mr Raines lias amusing recollections of his • difiicuity in “bluffing” hotelkeepers until j ho borrowed enough, money in go down to | Geelong, whore his sister lived. Ho lias a I distinct recollection of the ball held to celebrate the opening of the MelbourneGoolong Railway. Governor.La Trobo was on tho dais, wearing a uniform and a Inna sword. An .alderman walking cLsc behind tripped over the sword, grabbed at the Governor’s arm" for support, the Governor clutched at the town clerk, ami tho three of thorn foil off tho dais through a curtain and into the supper room at tho bade. At Geelong ho met Mrs Raines, and marri-d her when sho was nnlv sixteen. " People married younger in those days than they do now.” Mrs Raines said reflectively. Her father came to Australia in 1836. He wa- a tailor; but when ho arrived in Adelaide- he found that there was little to do, and ha joined tho survey party which was laying out the town. Both Mr and Mrs Raines have vivid memories of tho fine theatrical performances seen in the old days. “Wo may not have had moving pictures.” ho said, “'hut we had Shakespeare!” He knew G. V. Brooke —afterwards drowned in the wreck of tho Lnndon~and used to take tho actor out fishing.