[Editor: This poem by Barcroft Boake was published in Where the Dead Men Lie and Other Poems (1897).]
Down the River
Clink of hobble and brazen bell
Mark the passage of stalwart shearer,
Bidding Monaro soil farewell.
Where is he making for? Down the River —
Down the River with eager tread!
Where is he making for? Down the River,
Down the River to seek a shed.
Where is his dwelling on old Monaro? —
Buckley’s Crossing, or Jindaboine?
Dry Plain is it, or sweet Bolaro?
P’r’aps ’tis near where the rivers join.
Where is he making for? Down the River!
When, oh, when will he turn him back?
Soft sighs follow him down the River:
Moist eyes gaze at his fading track.
See! behind him the pack-horse, ambling,
Bears the weight of his master’s kit —
Oft and oft from the pathway rambling,
Crops unhampered by cruel bit.
Where is he making for, equine rover? —
Sturdy nag from the Eucumbene,
Tempted down by the thought of clover
Springing luscious in Riverine.
Dreams of life and its future chances;
Snatch of song to beguile the way —
Through green crannies the sunlight glances,
Silver-gilding the bright jack-shay.
‘So long, mate! I can stay no longer.
So long, mate! I’ve no time to stop:
Pens are waiting me at Mahonga,
Bluegong, Grubben, and Pullitop.
What! that the melted snow has come?
What! that it locks and bars our prison? —
Many’s the mountain stream I’ve swum.
I must onward and cross the River:
So long, mate! for I cannot stay;
I must onward and cross the River —
Over the River there lies my way!’
One man short when the roll they’re calling!
One man short at old Bobby Rand’s!
Heads are drooping and tears are falling
Up on Monaro’s mountain lands …
Where is he making for? Down the River,
Down the river of slimy bed!
Where is he making for? Down the River,
Down the River that bears him — dead.
Source:
Barcroft Boake, Where the Dead Men Lie and Other Poems, Sydney (NSW): Angus and Robertson, 1897, pp. 113-115
Also published in:
The Bulletin (Sydney, NSW), 6 February 1892, p. 15, column 4 [by Barcroft H. Boake]
The Hummer (Wagga Wagga, NSW), 13 February 1892, p. 5
The Worker (Brisbane, Qld.), 22 July 1899, p. 7
Relevant notes from the “Notes to poems” section in this book:
25. DOWN THE RIVER, p. 113. — Printed in The Bulletin, February 6, 1892. Signed ‘Barcroft H. Boake.’ Notes by author were appended: Verse 1. ‘the river’ — the Murrumbidgee. Verse 2. ‘where the rivers join’ — the Snowy and Eucumbene rivers.
Verse 2. ‘Buckley’s crossing’ — of the Snowy River, N.S.W. ‘Jindaboine’ (properly Jindabyne), ‘Dry Plain,’ ‘Bolaro,’ are villages in the Monaro district.
Verse 4. ‘jack-shay,’ a billycan or quart pot. I should be glad to learn date of first use and origin.
‘Mahonga,’ ‘Bluegong’ (properly Brookong), ‘Grubben,’ and ‘Pullitop’ are well-known Riverina stations.
Verse 6. ‘old Bobby Rand.’ An eccentric Riverina squatter, not long dead, and formerly owner of Mahonga station and others.
Editor’s notes:
According to the version of this poem published in the The Bulletin (6 February 1892), the river referred to in the poem is the Murrumbidgee River, and the section which mentions “where the rivers join” is a reference to the joining of the Snowy and Eucumbene Rivers.
See: 1) “Murrumbidgee River”, Wikipedia
2) “Eucumbene River”, Wikipedia
3) “Snowy River”, Wikipedia
The poem published in The Bulletin (6 February 1892) included two notes. The first note was indicated by an asterisk at the end of the line “Where is he making for? Down the River”; the second note was indicated by a dagger at the end of the line “P’r’aps ’tis near where the rivers join”. The footnotes were as follows:
* The Murrumbidgee.
† Snowy and Eucumbene Rivers.
The editor of The Hummer (13 February 1892) added an extra note to the end of the verses, having this to say about Barcroft Boake and his poem:
[This yarn wasn’t written by a Union man, or he’d found some other station than Rand’s to build the rhyme. — Ed. H.].
Bobby Rand = Robert Rand (1819?-1894), a pastoralist who owned the Mahonga and Urangeline stations (located south-east of Urana, in the Riverina district of New South Wales); he was born in Suffolk (England) in 1819(?), came to Australia in 1834, and died in 1894, at the age of 75
See: 1) Minoru, “Life of ‘Bobby’ Rand: A wonderful pioneer”, The Gundagai Independent and Pastoral, Agricultural, and Mining Advocate (Gundagai, NSW), 7 October 1926, p. 5
2) “Death of Mr. Robert Rand of Mahonga”, The Albury Banner, and Wodonga Express (Albury, NSW), 13 July 1894, p. 24
crannie = (also spelt “cranny”) a small indentation, crevice, fissure, opening, slit, or space (especially a narrow one) in something which is solid; a square or oblong crevice or space in the wall of a house (plural: crannies)
equine = of or relating to horses, or to animals of the horse family
Eucumbene = the Eucumbene River, a river located in the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales
See: “Eucumbene River”, Wikipedia
Jindaboine = an older spelling of Jindabyne
See: “Jindaboine (older spelling of Jindabyne)”, IAC list (on Trove)
Monaro = a region in the south of New South Wales
See: “Monaro (New South Wales)”, Wikipedia
nag = (slang) horse; can also have a negative meaning, referring to a horse which is regarded as inferior or worthless
oft = (archaic) often
p’r’aps = a contraction of “perhaps”
the Riverina = a region of south-central New South Wales, which encompasses Albury, Coolamon, Cootamundra, Deniliquin, Griffith, Gundagai, Hay, Jerilderie, Junee, Leeton, the Murrumbidgee River, Narrandera, Temora, Tocumwal, Tumbarumba, Tumut, Wagga Wagga, and West Wyalong
See: “Riverina”, Wikipedia
Riverine = the Riverina [see: the Riverina]
shed = in a shearing context, a shearing shed; may also refer, in a collective sense, to the men who work in a shearing shed
stop = stay
station = a large rural holding used for raising livestock, usually sheep or cattle (a pastoral property); can also refer to the principal homestead and main business centre of a pastoral property
See: “Station (Australian agriculture)”, Wikipedia
’tis = (archaic) a contraction of “it is”
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