TALES OF THE SHEARINGSHED.

Otago Witness, Issue 3214, 20 October 1915, Page 77

TALES OF THE SHEARINGSHED.

By J. E. MacManus.

Butterbone Station, near Warren, New South Wales, shore 4000 sheep a man in 1889, and started to shear in July. Ginger Gleeson seemed a pen there. In past years Ginger ceased shearing when the early sheds cut out. Under pretence of searching for a second shed, Ginger travelled from shearing shed to shearing shed, gambling in the shearers’ hut when an opportunity presented itself. When a shed was about to cut out Ginger would arrive at the shearers’ hut, and by being acquainted through posing as a shearer searching for work, he followed them to the first public-house, where he induced them to gamble. Ginger was clever at sleight-of-hand work. His dextertiy at “ slipping the cut” and dealing the cards he wanted to unobserved by others was the means by which he fleeced his victims. When playing hazards he would use his own loaded dice so cleverly he was never detected. When playing “two up” he could “ ring in the grey ” (the doubletaikd penny) or the “ knob ” (the two headed penny) without being seen. Big Hill, the manager of Butterbone station, was aware of Ginger’s identity and his gambling proclivities. When the early sheds were cutting out Ginger wanted to leave. Big Hill made up his mind he should not go. With a voice shaking with emotion, Ginger handed Big Hill a letter from his wife to the effect that his son was dying, and to come home at once. “ You can’t catch the train until tomorrow morning, so I propose wiring the j Dubbo police to visit your wife’s address, and, if your son is ill I’ll drive you in to-night,” Big Hill replied. The last person that Ginger wanted to know of his whereabouts or be interested in his family history was the sergeant of police. He hastened to assure Hill that to let the police know of his whereabouts would land him in gaol. “Not that I’m a bad man, Mr Hill; bat I borrowed a horse once, and it has not been returned yet,” he added. I Two hours later Hill informed Ginger j ■that, without police aid, ho discovered ■hat Ginger’s son was not ill, because ho ■ad no son. “Now,” said Hill, “that game is played out. You’ll gain nothing : by roughing the sheep to get sacked, or, if I ; you do, the police may be more interested i < in the horse you borrowed than you like, j And,” added Hill suggestively, “I am j determined that until this shed cuts out . the pigeons will bo free from one rook at . least.” _ j 1 Ginger’s fertile brain was actively em- I ; ployed in working out plans to so offend | • Hill that he would sack him. Ginger ; noticed that Hill was fond of his sheep, i which were crossed with a Vermont strain. ; i “ If I pray,” said Ginger to his pen-mats, 1 “ that some deformity may permanently i make ugly the well-bred sheep I will so j i shock Big Hill’s religious convictions and j so wound his feelings that lie will sack :• i me on the spot.” j i When Big Hill was near enough to i < hear him he prayed in a loud tone of j f voice, “ Lord, grow a hump on those | sheep as big as Mount Kosiusco, and may • tho breed inherit that hump for over and ;

j ever. . Amen.” Ginger looked round to I see the effect this prayer woud have on j Big Hill. Judge of his annoyance when j he saw Hill on his knees in an attitude of prayer, with his eyes upturned to heaven, and heard him praying, “Amen to that prayer, 0 Lord, and may the sheep grow wool all over the hump. 0 Lord, may shearers be plentiful, and contentedly shear such sheep for £1 per hundred, O Lord. Amen.” Ginger gasped, but, quickly recovering himself, once more started to pray : “Take back my prayer, O Lord, as I made a mistake. May these sheep be the size of rabbits.” “ Amen,” responded Hill devoutcdly. “ May one acre of ground feed fifty, 0 Lord. May the wool be as long as Angoras and as dense as Vermonts. May the hide be so wrinkly that it resembes a concertina, and when skinned be as big as a bullocks. May the shearer have to shear ten for the price he now shears one for. Amen.” Ginger glared at Hill, and then collapsed into silence. “It’s no good,” said Hill, “you have simply got to shear here until the cut out, so you might as well be contented.” “Contented,” said Ginger sarcastically, “why, for the privilege of shearing tinder you, it would be an honour to sleep in a hut with wind blowing in every crack; it would be simply delightful to walk on a mud floor, to eat bread made of weavily flour, drink post-and-rail tea mixed with black sugar, and devour meat from stags and old ewes. I would be resigned to my fate when I thought of your loving care, and how near I was to you.” “ Rather,” replied Hill, with equal sarcasm, “ than give you cause for complaint, I will instruct my wife to set apart the best room at the homestead for your use. In case you want to visit the kitchen I will place Brussels carpets on the floor, and tell the cook to rejoice if you walk on it with muddy boots. So that your digestive organs will be looked after and your taste properly catered for, I will engage a chef, and instruct him to cook for you alone, and tell him to give you whatever you want.” Thus it came to pass that Ginger was forced to shear right through Butterbone. He lamented his hard lot, and counted his losses by comparison with the money obtained by gambling in previous years. These reflections but added to his irritability. Finally he bowed to the inevitable, and accepted his lot with a determination lo fleece every person who gambled with him. One night some shearers, who had cut cut Lessington Station, when on their way to their second shed, Orange Plains, called at Butterbone. They were chequed up, and as was usual in those days started to play nap. An old Irishman named Docherty was «n interested spectator of the game. When Ginger, in three successive deals, went through on nap, the enthusiasm of Docherty could be no longer restrained. With admiration beaming in every glance he said : “Ginger, if Oi cud play loike you Oi’d make me forty’n.” “Give me £5,” Ginger said, “and I’ll teach you all I know before the shed cuts out. ’ ’ “Faith, an’ it’s a wager,” said Docherty. Night after night Ginger initiated Docherty in the mysteries of card playing, correcting him when he lead a wrong card and explaining his defects. About a week before the shed out out Docherty was playing nap for threepence a corner with the shearers, and his face was wreathed in smiles when he counted his winnings, eleven shillings and ninepence. Two days before the cut-out Ginger and Docherty were playing nap on their own. Ginger, in an artful manner, threw out what lie termed “a sprat to catch a mackerel.” He dealt cards for nights previously when playing with shearers so that Docherty would get a good enough hand to win on. When Ginger observed him playing with the confidence, excitement, and recklessness of the born gambler, he decided, after lotting Docherty feel the winner’s joy, that the psychological moment had arrived to Jlecre Dr ichorty. He shuffled the cards skilfully, slipped the cut, and dealt Docherty the ace, king, qnieen, and jack of clubs and the ace of diamonds. “Now.” said Ginger to himself, “the fool will go nap on this, so I will deal myself five little dobs.” Docherty banged the table with his fist, stood up, and yelled excitedly, “Oi’ll gob

nap, an’ phats more I’ll make a side wager wid you Oi’ll go throo’.” “Rot,” retorted Ginger. “You’d loss your money'.” “So confident am Oi that Oi’ud back my’self for £20,” replied Docherty eagerly. “And so sure am I you’d lose,” said Ginger’, “that I have £3O here to say’ you can’t go through.” “Done,” said Docherty', who covered tire money. He at once lead tiro ace of diamonds. Ginger's rage and Iris curses brought all hands in the hut. “If he wasn’t such a thick-headed Irishman, such a blitheringidiot, such a greenhorn, such a mug, I’d have sworn he rooked me,” he yelled disgustedly’, as Ire tore up the cards. “To think through bad play he led tho card that stopped me is the last thing I ever thought possible. You ought to go in for a fan tan ticket, or invest in a Tattersall’s sweep,” Ire snorted. “I ought to play grab with the picker-up after this, I ought,” muttered Ginger. Next evening in the twilight hours tho shearers were playing “two up.” Docherty, who had been taught to play “two nip” by Ginger, took a turn at the “kip.” “Now, Docherty,” said Ginger, “you are playing with money’ you won; you can afford to be reckless. Give me a chance to get some of my money back. I’ll bet £lO you tail them.” “Done,” said Docherty, who held out the “kip” for Ginger to put two pennies on. Ginger, to make doubly sure of betting on a certainty' “in ringing in the grey,” put two doubled-tailed pennies on the “kip.” Docherty threw the pennies, and down came two heads. “You dirty rook,” ymllcd Ginger while Docherty pocketed Ginger’s £lO. “You want to be taught to gamble,” he shieked. “You travel on the game. You a simple innocent Irishman I Why, you spieler, I put two double-tailed pennies on the kip, and it is a clever gambler can keep the pennies put on the “kip” back, and throw two others from underneath it.” “Gingher,” said Docherty, “Oi paid you £5 to teach me to gamble. I saw you throw two pennies from underneath a “kip.” Gingher, Oi’m an apt pupil; Oi did the same. If Oi didn’t do what Oi did you wucl have got moi £lO. So you wudn’t get moi £lO Oi got yours.”