Poets Trek 27th 28th 29th September

[Hully]

yeah its a funny piece that 'Hungerford'....also the "Paroo River' is well worth a read..

I am firmly of the opinion that Lawson's time in Bourke permeated his writing through to the end - I think it was the single most influential experience he had as a writer, and everything else he experienced was through the filter of his experience in Western NSW - There are too many references to go into - but I think often of the reminiscences Lawson wrote about in his later years....and having walked that track with a mate - I am particularly touched by the poem 'Since Then' - probably my favourite Lawson poem.

Since Then

I met Jack Ellis in town to-day —
Jack Ellis — my old mate, Jack —
Ten years ago, from the Castlereagh,
We carried our swags together away
To the Never-Again, Out Back.

But times have altered since those old days,
And the times have changed the men.
Ah, well! there's little to blame or praise —
Jack Ellis and I have tramped long ways
On different tracks since then.

His hat was battered, his coat was green,
The toes of his boots were through,
But the pride was his! It was I felt mean —
I wished that my collar was not so clean,
Nor the clothes I wore so new.

He saw me first, and he knew 'twas I —
The holiday swell he met.
Why have we no faith in each other? Ah, why? —
He made as though he would pass me by,
For he thought that I might forget.

He ought to have known me better than that,
By the tracks we tramped far out —
The sweltering scrub and the blazing flat,
When the heat came down through each old felt hat
In the hell-born western drought.

The cheques we made and the shanty sprees,
The camps in the great blind scrub,
The long wet tramps when the plains were seas,
And the oracles worked in days like these
For rum and tobacco and grub.

Could I forget how we struck 'the same
Old tale' in the nearer West,
When the first great test of our friendship came —
But — well, there's little to praise or blame
If our mateship stood the test.

'Heads!' he laughed (but his face was stern) —
'Tails!' and a friendly oath;
We loved her fair, we had much to learn —
And each was stabbed to the heart in turn
By the girl who — loved us both.

Or the last day lost on the lignum plain,
When I staggered, half-blind, half-dead,
With a burning throat and a tortured brain;
And the tank when we came to the track again
Was seventeen miles ahead.

Then life seemed finished — then death began
As down in the dust I sank,
But he stuck to his mate as a bushman can,
Till I heard him saying, 'Bear up, old man!'
In the shade by the mulga tank.

He took my hand in a distant way
(I thought how we parted last),
And we seemed like men who have nought to say
And who meet — 'Good-day', and who part — 'Good-day',
Who never have shared the past.

I asked him in for a drink with me —
Jack Ellis — my old mate, Jack —
But his manner no longer was careless and free,
He followed, but not with the grin that he
Wore always in days Out Back.

I tried to live in the past once more —
Or the present and past combine,
But the days between I could not ignore —
I couldn't help notice the clothes he wore,
And he couldn't but notice mine.

He placed his glass on the polished bar,
And he wouldn't fill up again;
For he is prouder than most men are —
Jack Ellis and I have tramped too far
On different tracks since then.

He said that he had a mate to meet,
And 'I'll see you again,' said he,
Then he hurried away through the crowded street
And the rattle of buses and scrape of feet
Seemed suddenly loud to me.

And I almost wished that the time were come
When less will be left to Fate —
When boys will start on the track from home
With equal chances, and no old chum
Have more or less than his mate.

h

[manfredvijars]

can I be naive and ask..

Is this a horse riding trek, a foot (walking) trek, do you have to drive 4x4 of your own or is it by coach or other transport? (or have I been too lazy to read it properly?).

... errrr, Yes Zondrae ...

[Zondrae]

..so..

which one?

[Rimeriter]

Zondrae, this is copied from Hully's original post in this thread -

The (almost) annual Poets Trek in Bourke takes place in September from the 27th - 29th.

More info on the website. poetstrek.com.au

The website will tell all.

[Neville Briggs]

That's a good poem of Henry Lawson's , Andrew. He was apparently very sensitive about what someone might think of his appearance, I think. I seem to remember that theme come up a number of times in his verse.

Did Henry Lawson stay with Will Ogilvie up near Enngonia for a while? that's nearly as remote as Hungerford.

[Hully]

Hi Zondrae,
its a bit more comfortable than horse or foot (those I suppose that's subjective)
Once you get to Bourke the trek is by bus or 'tag along' tour - 4WD not necessary but recommended.
...3 days on the road plus about a day either side to get to and from Bourke....and very very tops !

www.poetstrek.com.au

Neville, yes, Wil Ogilvie worked on Belalie Station for a long time (in between Engonnia and Barringun)- wrote some significant verse there - The old ledger at the Barringun Hotel still records that W. Ogilvie has an outstanding amount of a few shillings for unpaid race club membership ! !....true story.
- And yes that does recur in (what I know of) Lawson's work (self appearance - the man he might have been) - I would post 'Peter Anderson and Co' but its probably a bit too long - worth a look if anyone is interested....

"Where, though haunted by the man he was, the wreck he might yet be'
Or the man he might have been, or each spectre of the three..."

Now that's great Australian poetry....

cheers

h

[Zondrae]

..

thanks H

[Maureen K Clifford]

Sounds like a fabulous few days and the participants are going to be in for a treat with Hully and Mannie there to set the atmosphere. I was surprised at how relatively inexpensive the Poets Trek is. Wish I could make it along. I remember passing through Hungerford once many years ago being completely ignorant of any of its finer points, it was a one blink and you miss it kind of place to me then, but I would view it quite differently today after reading the gen on the site

Good to see it programmed into our annual calendar of events on the site here

Cheers

Maureen

[Hully]

Hi Maureen,
yes it is very cheap - but there is a bit of expense involved in just getting here.

Keep it in mind for next year??....and Hungerford is still a 'blink and you'll miss it' kind of place - but you have to stop to open the gate to get into (or out of) QLD - so you get a chance to have a look....

I was thinking of this thread this morning and remembered a poem I wrote after visiting Lawson's grave - a modest monument to say the least...


The grave it might have been
©Andrew Hull2004

The khaki man he pointed over
Six rows down, then five across
Where stones that grew up from the clover
Spoke with words of love and loss

A red, hand painted rusty sign
Pointed us the proper way
The stone was basic and benign
That stood above where Henry lay

No cross or angel marked the place
No obelisk or standing stone
A shrunken marker filled the space
The broken border overgrown

The graveyard is of high repute
The leafy grounds are soft and green
But not a suitable tribute
And not the grave it might have been

I looked to see a statue or
A marker to longevity
I hoped the grave would reassure
The sense of our identity

The words and pictures that he made
The images that fill my mind
I felt as if this grave betrayed
The legacy he left behind

The Khaki man, he wandered by
His mild demeanour uninspired
He said he always wondered why
This grave should be so well admired

His neighbours on this coastal hill
Would give their souls to view the scene
But the sea breeze blows a bitter chill
It’s not the grave it might have been

The bush lived only through his pen
The subject matter, his by choice
He gave a truth to common men
And gave Australia a voice

But time can change the best laid plan
And history can breed renown
Our Henry was a broken man
By the time they laid him down

Few can guess their final scene
Men will rise and men will fall
What the gravesite might have been
Would not have bothered him at all

The Khaki men will come and go
And clean the tributes from the grave
And few will ever care or know
Why visitors should so behave

The man lives on, his words the same
The master of his own demesne
It’s only us who feel the shame
It’s not the grave it might have been

h

[Maureen K Clifford]

I'm always rather surprised that the cemetery hasn't been taken over by developers despite its historical significance as it is a prime piece of real estate - no doubt the day will come when that happens and developers will perhaps take out the historically important headstones and set them into memorial gardens in the new cliff side estate.

Recall reading somewhere that Henry's funeral was paid for by the Government as he was apparently broke