Chapter 4: The Trek to the Lake

[by R E MacRae 9.4.1995 ]

The tired team of 4 horses pulled with ebbing strength against the dusty traces, the wagon continued rumbling along the road. The big steel tyres of the wheels were crushing the rocks to white powder.

Ewan's boots were cracked and broken but he had made them well and he knew they would hold till they reached their land 12 miles west of Lake Cargelligo. The Bennett Wagon was almost new and carried everything they owned. Room was made for food for the stock as they brought 4 milking cows and calves ten steers and 35 sheep. Ewan had learned to like the Australian bush whilst he and family lived on the Murrumbidgee River a 15 mile west of Wagga on "BerriJerri". He was raised near Bowral where the country side was a little more like Scotland as his father Farquhar was always telling them. The country was kinder to the traveller during May. There had been rain and the beauty of the bush was wonderful. The year was 1880. Ewan was no longer young but he still had the strength and hope of a much younger man and a determined nature. Ewan had been made tough by the very life style Australia offered to the worker in 1880.

He was born on the "William Nichol" in 1838 as his family, headed by Farquhar, traveled from Kintail Scotland to this land of hope, “Australia “.

Ewan was married in Mittagong and moved to Wagga with his wife Susanna to begin their lives together.

Farquhar had many sons most were older than Ewan they took parts of the family's land until there was none left for Ewan. He had the best education of them all and was a bright student, plus the elder brothers taught him what he needed to know, which was not available at schools.

He enjoyed his life at Mittagong and was well known and liked by all, especially in sporting circles.

Susanna sat atop the wagon looking after the younger children and the elder children played along the way or walked with their Dad.

It had been a long day, for they had made a special effort to arrive that night and they were going to make it.

The full western sky was a living canvas of the makers’ art. The reds and gold’s were awe inspiring, the clouds were liquid and slowly moving, as the sun

sank away behind the hills to the west these were to be “The MacRae hills” and left them in a warm twilight and finally darkness. The autumn months in Australia are March April May and can be very cold particularly at night. However Ewan decided to leave Wagga and Trek to Lake Cargelligo at that time of the year as it was easier traveling much better than the summer.

Susanna was not too sure who she was but that did not matter for now she had married well and the stories of her lineage around Mittagong were far behind. Some of the stories told of a certain Mr. Feather who visited Susannah's mother after she was widowed by the death of her first husband Mr. Buckman and she fell pregnant to this visitor.

However she finally married a Mr. Izard from a well known family and Susanna was taken into the family as Mr. Izard's own and he gave her his name, so some of the stories go.

Susanna was now in her early forties and had several children, the last still a baby, George, (my Grand Father) born in 1878 on the Murrumbidgee 15 miles downstream from Wagga Wagga.

She was happy living on the Station called BerriJerri.

Ewan rode boundary, shore sheep in season, made and repaired leather boots and harness and when all that was done he would go with the teams of wood cutters who cut and stacked wood on the river bank for the paddle steamers when the Murrumbidgee was up.

The steamers only ran while the river was up so they would cut and stack during the summer months and the wood would be dry enough to burn during the following winter rains and spring when the snow melted from the highlands. Much of the produce from BerriJerri, wool, wheat and live stock was carried to Adelaide via the paddle steamers towing several pontoons also some of the dry goods and machinery were brought to BerriJerri from England.

Susanna and Ewan lived nearby the main homestead because Ewan could read and write and was good with numbers and Susanna was well known for her cooking and a deft hand with first aid for small injuries. She was also the mid wife for the many families that lived on the large Station. It was an honor to live in the big house near the homestead and Ewan and Susanna had earned for themselves fine reputations as managers and parents. It would be dark when they arrived so they would camp under the wagon once more and the evening meal would be prepared by campfire light.

Ewan and the big children rounded up the stock and settled the horses for the night. It was going to be a frost.

The sky was full of shining stars, a beauty that never escaped Ewan and his family as they knelt and prayed.

The tarpaulin was stretched from the wagon to two stout saplings.

The younger children were under the tarp but the older ones slept under the stars. This had been the way they lived for three weeks.

They were traveling about 7 to 10 miles a day and the whole journey was some 190 miles.

Susanna looked forward to living under a solid roof again, though she knew it would never be as good as Berri-Jerri. It was a great gamble they took but if it worked out they would at last have land of their own. This Lake Cargelligo was a Gold Rush town, the gold had run out and the town settled down to being a centre of commerce and many hopefuls came out to settle the surrounding good land.

This land had been in the hands of a few wealthy graziers but now cut up into smaller blocks, it was available for closer settlement. Also the British Isles was beginning to rely on Australia for more and more wool and grain so it had to be opened up. 640 acres was granted for each boy of working age and 1280 for wife and females. They had taken up 6 Sq. Miles nearly 4000 acres. It would be a lot of work for everyone as Ewan was not a young man and this was long term planning. Part of the grant is that the property was to be fenced within the first 2 years and a suitable home constructed. The home could be a log cabin style in the first few years. The morning found the family waking at sunrise, the heavy frost covering everything like snow.

The stock were restless and began to move about to warm themselves breathing hot breaths like little clouds much like their owners.

From where they spent the night there was a beautiful view of the enormous lake stretching towards the rising sun covered with a light mist, it was more than they expected.

Excitement went through the family; questions came from everywhere, for only Ewan had been there before to look at the land before they took the great gamble.

No, we will not be living around the lake. Yes there is plenty of fish. On and on came the questions as breakfast was prepared and eaten.

Everyone cleaned up and loaded the wagon. Susanna could not do it all for she was three months pregnant with child. The new child would be Ken and the first MacRae to be born in the new place. Susanna hoped they had midwives to help her. Ewan announced that they were all going down into the town to look around and to arrange for food to be collected to take with them on the last 12 miles west of the lake along the Lachlan River and home.

The children were used to going into Wagga each month and were not ready for what they were about to see.

The town was very raw by comparison, buildings not completed, dusty streets, shops at various angles with the street and leaning in various directions.

The few people in the street took no notice of the family for there were many such families arriving to take up the land around the lake and to them, they were just another family. Ewan introduced his family to the land Agent Edgar Townsend who In turn introduced the MacRae's to his wife Clara who immediately brought them in to their house and offered her hospitality and sat and answered questions form everyone. The Townsends and the MacRae's became good friends as time went by. Ewan would be in demand for his skills and Susanna for her skills and the Townsend's could be the agent to find work when the farm was at rest. Edgar told them they were lucky to have the grant where it is because the river had a long deep section there and fish were plentiful so if there was a fisherman in their family a little extra could be earned in town by selling fish cleaned and ready for cooking. Excitement began to build; the town didn't bother them for the beautiful lake made up for it, plus they were going to live on a river again and they all knew and loved rivers. After making their purchases everyone carried something back to the wagon and loaded it for the last run to the farm and home.

The horses leaned on the traces. The wagon groaned forward and stock followed. The children

were naming all the new features they found as they topped a hill or rounded a corner, Ewan had to calm them and remind them to save their energy for the miles ahead, but they had energy enough to spare and kept on running around in excitement till lunch time. Lunch found them more than half way; even the stock seemed excited and lent them new energy.

The children could smell the river and wanted to look at it but Ewan said people owned that land and they would have to wait until they come to their land then they could go down and see the river. How will we know when it’s our land? Was the question on everybody's lips?

Ewan explained that their property began when they passed an old heavy wire fence like the one on the boundary at Berri-Jerri.

Finally they saw the fence and it became impossible to hold them back, so he let them go.

It was to be their land some day so why not. Ewan and Susanna took a stop to take it all in. They had to pinch themselves was it all real? Tall timber covered the land and suddenly a little band of Kangaroo went bounding past them. It would be their land, the feeling was nearly all too much for Ewan and his dusty eyes began to leak. Susanna came up and hugged him; he was a good hard working man and had always been a good father and provider.

They rode slowly on to their land. It felt so good.

The children were sitting on the river bank when they arrived, all exhausted but beaming.

Where is the house? They chimed. "Its a little further along" explained Ewan , he told them it was only a shack for boundary riders like they had on Berri-Jerri, not like the one they had near the homestead, he warned them to save building up their hopes.

But they didn't care, it would be home!

The shack was not as good as they thought disappointment was in the air.

Ewan assured them the first job he had in mind was to build a log cabin and they could all help but for now it was some in the shack and the rest under the wagon. It was decided the boys under the wagon and mum and dad in the shack with young ones and the girls. Eventually one of the cafes would be one of their best customers. The cafe owner also took turkey, pig and chicken. This was a good opportunity for the younger children to help. Susanna was the teacher and everyone was expected to learn as well as contribute to the farm. Wire was expensive and many miles were needed. Nails and many of them were needed. Hammers axes shovels and other tools wore out quickly and needed to be replaced. The extra money was essential. Ewan continued to shear and teach the 2 eldest boys the trade, also the leather trade. Life had begun on Glencoe and this is the heritage handed on till it came to Darryl. He was very aware of the great sacrifices of the past that brought this land to him and the extra property that had been added like Craig Leigh and Glen Roy, he must do something to secure it for generations to come to honor those before him, he was sure this new endeavor would do this, it had to for he was at his wits end.