Free True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey Page B

trotting along the heat hazed track to see the widow e.g. Turk Morrison from Laceby and that natty Englishman Bill Frost. Old Turk liked to sing love songs to my ma but Bill sat at our table bashing her ear about how to overcome the lack of rain. He were nothing better than a boundary rider but imagined himself a mighty expert on matters agricultural he said the Australians did not farm the land correctly they was low and ignorant etc. etc.
    Bill Frost dressed the squatter and wore his hairy brown tweed coat right through the worst of summer which is why Annie were in favour of him but I were insulted by his ignorant opinions it drove me mad to see my mother fall under his spell.
    O yes Bill is that so Bill etc. etc.
    My hands was blistered bleeding I could chop down 5 trees in one day and you might imagine it would shame a man to see a boy labour thus but Frost never picked up an axe or dropped a single gum that I recall. Instead he give me his ignorant opinions advising me to spread manure across the paddocks or warning it were no benefit to burn crop stubble unless the rain should follow shortly.
    And that were the great virtue of Harry Power for he didnt give a tinker’s fart if we seeded St. John’s Wort or tried to cross a bush rat with a wallaby. He would arrive by night and leave early in the morning always bringing a present and if he had robbed a coach he would bring a gold fob watch or a sapphire ring and if he had held up a tavern he would bring a cask of rum or some rancid banknotes and it were left to us to improve the property any way we wished with no argument or contradiction.
    But Bill Frost never brought nothing more useful than the local rag it were named THE BENALLA ENSIGN and he and my mother would pore over the cattle prices and cluck their tongues over the ignorance of colonial farmers and I took this very personal.
    Alex Gunn were another suitor that were clear the 1st time he appeared on the track from Greta township it were a hot smoky Sunday the sort of day when all your throat is caked with dust the flies crawling in your ears and up your nose holes. I were in the cow yard when a lanky rawboned rider come through the muddy creek up past the hut to where I were trying to persuade our sick jersey cow to taste water from a bucket.
    That cow has got a bald spot said the stranger.
    I knew that already said I.
    You know what will fix it?
    We been putting butter on it.
    What you need is some Ellman’s Balsam have you any Ellman’s?
    I don’t know.
    He remained in his saddle staring down at me he had blue eyes and sandy hair and a v. sunburned face he were under 28 yr. much younger than my mother. I thought he were going to criticise something else but finally he brought his horse to keep the sick cow company. Later I saw him walking towards the hut he had bowyangs tied around his bandy legs.
    I turned back to my cow when there were a mighty crash a heavy branch fell from the grey box and bounced off the roof of the hut and dropped amongst the chickens who was more or less undamaged. That grey box were often losing branches we was accustomed to it but the visitor were very loudly shocked at such a dangerous tree so close to human habitation. If this were for my benefit it were wasted there was other things to do around the place but soon he located the widow at the cowbails and gathered her children round him as if in training to be their father.
    As I come upon them I heard he were instructing them about the grey box a species of the family eucalyptus so he said it were famous for killing people with its branches. He claimed they called it widow maker in tribute to the men it struck down in their prime.
    We aint worried I said.
    The stranger glanced at me before turning back to my mother. Might I trouble you for a loan of your axe he asked.
    She don’t have no axe said I.
    He had a little broad hooked nose like a parrot he looked at me along it best as he were able.
    Ned said my mother you can bring