22 December 2012 - The Case for Vaccination

Tip for some men:

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THE CASE FOR VACCINATION

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KAY KOENIG

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G'day guys,

Here is another article by Kay Koenig who has often featured on this blog. Thanks, Kay ...

Do you believe that the past can teach us lessons for the present, and indeed for the future? If the answer is yes, then why do we not listen to these lessons?

Take the case for immunisation.  Many people think that there is a risk in immunising babies against childhood diseases.  After all Autism is on the rise and there must be some environmental cause.  Could this be the measles vaccine?  Certainly, if your child is allergic to the vaccine, the consequences can be dire. There is nothing more heartbreaking than to meet a beautiful young girl suffering from intellectual disability and epilepsy, due to an adverse reaction to the measles vaccine. Maybe the risk is less if your child is not vaccinated. After all, the measles is only a mild childhood disease, isn’t it?

Today few people remember the epidemics of the past.  No longer does everybody know a child in leg irons due to polio. In these days of modern medicines, it simply could not happen, could it?

In Victoria, Australia, the little village of Blowhard sits amongst rolling hills, not far from Ballarat. During the 1860’s it was a prosperous little town serving a vibrant farming community. It was boom time. All the people, who rushed to the area to make their fortunes from gold mining,  had to be fed. There was an eager market for all that the farmer could produce.

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Fryer’s Mill stood on the rise of a hill just outside Blowhard. Beneath the mill was a row of well kept cottages, home to the mill workers and their families. Each morning a horse and dray would collect children from the cottages and transport them up the hill to the local school.  You can imagine the scene- little girls in pinafores, boys in shirts and britches and the morning mist rising from the fields.  One day, in the winter of 1866, a little girl woke up with a sore throat. Never mind, sore throats and colds were common in winter.  But it wasn’t a common cold. A grey web developed across her tonsils. Diphtheria had arrived in the town. Children suffered from Diphtheria every year and sometimes a few died. Childhood diseases were common and every parent feared that it would be their child who would succumb.  But 1866 was different.  The disease spread like wildfire. So many children died, that the town carpenter lacked the time to construct enough coffins to bury them in.  It was common for the father to attend the funeral of one child, while a mother nursed and prayed for several others sick at home. Every family in the town was affected.

When the epidemic finally abated, Blowhard had lost a young generation.. There was no longer the need for a horse and dray to collect children each day and take them to school.

My great grandparents lived in the nearby gold mining town of Creswick.  He was a carpenter, wheelwright and father of nine healthy children. In the winter of 1866 two of his daughters died of diphtheria during the first three weeks of the epidemic.  With two sons fighting for their lives and a new baby to care for, a nine year old daughter was sent to live with her grandparents in Ballarat. It was to no avail. She also died of the disease, as did the baby boy, John.

The two older boys survived but they never really recovered. Both died in their twenties from tuberculosis.

Sadly, many families experienced similar tragedies before the advent of vaccination. Today we cannot imagine such events. Many of us think that some diseases no longer exist. This is not so. Each year there are cases of Whooping Cough. In some parts of the world Diphtheria is still feared. Tuberculosis is on the increase and is often not immune to antibiotics. We should learn from the past.  We should  have our children vaccinated.

The past can teach us many lessons.  The story of a family is much more powerful than statistics in a history book.  We must preserve and tell our family stories. This is what I hope can be done via Australian Family Stories.  If you have written a book about Australia, or if you have a story to tell, why not visit www.australianfamilystories.com.au ?   Together we can put a human face on our past and keep it alive.

Clancy's comment: Thanks, Kay. Another interesting article. Visit Kay's Kay's site at:

www.australianfamilystories.com.au

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4 December 2012 - Kay Koenig - Guest Author

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Kay Koenig

 

- Guest Author

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G'day guys,

Today I feature an Australian writer who is very involved in recording Australian history - Kay Koenig. Kay's work has often featured on my blog. Welcome, Kay. Tell us more about your journey as an author ...

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR WRITING JOURNEY.

I was born and bred in Broken Hill. My father was a miner, as was his father before him. I grew up listening to stories. Tales about mine accidents, great mineral finds, battles between unions and the rich mine management. At an early age I began collecting minerals and had a desire for a career in a museum.  Weekends were spent in the bush visiting old mine sites, station properties and ghost towns. Everywhere there were stories of the past – of German Charlie and his sly grogshop, the mine manager who killed his wife and hung himself above the fireplace and metal balls from outer space littered the countryside in the far outback of NSW.  I remember these stories and have a desire to record them.   For twenty years I worked at the Geological and Mining Museum in Sydney. Mostly I was Exhibition Manager and spent my time researching topics, writing exhibition text, exhibition notes, publicity blurbs etc.  This was the beginning of my writing journey.

 WERE YOU A GOOD READER AS A KID?

I was an avid reader as a kid, spending lots of time late at night reading under the bedclothes with a torch.

WHEN AND HOW DID YOU BECOME A WRITER?

I meet my father-in-law in 1969. He was a Czech refugee who had been on the Russian Front in World War I, dodged a bullet whilst escaping the Nazis at the beginning of World War II and then lived in the lap of luxury in the home of Clementine Churchill’s bridesmaid. The first night I met him he told me he was the last of the convicts- this was a story waiting to be written and I wanted to write it from 1969. About eight years ago by brother -in-law gave me a case of letters, photographs and documents belonging to his father Karel Koenig. They were a gold mine. They covered the first fifty years of the 20^th century. Many were written from behind the Nazi lines and forwarded via the Red Cross.  This case of documents was like a drug. I could not put it down until I had answered every question posed. Initially I only intended writing for the family but the story from the case was so good that it begged a broader audience. The result was Voices from his Suitcase. It is my first book.

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Copyright Raymond Sanders (c)

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WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT BEING A WRITER?

Without a doubt the research. I love digging for snippets of information and firmly believe that the answer you seek is always somewhere.

 WHAT IS THE HARDEST THING ABOUT BEING A WRITER?

Spelling. I have always been a poor speller and require a good editor.

 WHAT WERE YOU IN A PAST LIFE, BEFORE YOU BECAME A WRITER?

I am a geologist and a historian by profession. My first career was in a Museum, initially as a Museum Assistant in the collections section, then as exhibition manager.  This was a most enjoyable and fulfilling twenty years. After the birth of our third child in 1990 my husband and I changed our careers.  James has Angelmen’s syndrome, a genetic condition on the autism spectrum with many similarities to Cerebral Palsy. We purchased a Garden Centre so we could both care for him.  Running the centre was a steep learning curve but a great place for our son.  He learnt to crawl, at the nursery, in an ornamental creek between two ponds!   We operated the business for ten years.  From 2002 I was involved with two respite organisations that provide respite for parents and entertainment and community access for young people with disabilities.

 WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST WRITING ACHIEVEMENT?

Something in the future, I hope.

 WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON AT THE MOMENT?

My main task at the moment is to establish and publicise Australian Family Stories. I have a dream to build an online business to promote and sell books by Australians about Australia. Australian Family Stories has a facility to promote and sell books. I hope writers and readers will also use it to communicate via a blog and to use it to present their short stories to the public, and that it will become a hub for all those interested in Australian literature.  This will, no doubt, take some time. As far as writing is concerned, I have a great desire to write about a naughty lady who lived in Victoria in the 1800’s. Most of the research for her story is finished.  Writing it will be fun.

 WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

People who are faced with adversity but can rise above it and enjoy life.

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Copyright Clancy Tucker (c)

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WHAT GENRE DO YOU WRITE?

I don’t think I have been writing long enough to say emphatically that I only write in one particular genre, but my writing will always be rooted in reality.   I am interested in history and most probably will always write about something with a factual background.

 DO YOU SUFFER FROM WRITER’S BLOCK?

Yes. I sometimes find that I cannot string two words together and I certainly cannot spell them.  If the muse has disappeared I do some research or go to bed. There is always tomorrow.

 DO YOU HAVE A PREFERRED WRITING SCHEDULE?

A son with a disability takes up a fair amount of each day so writing is squeezed in, usually for two or three hours in the middle of the day and for a similar amount of time late at night when he is in bed.

 DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE WRITING PLACE?

I write at my desk in the study, a sort of cave-like room at the bottom of the house.  Except for four walls and lots of books there is nothing to look at and nothing to cause a distraction.

 WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST JOY IN WRITING?

I love researching a story. This is the joy of the hunt. If you are lucky you can go places that you have never been before and spend some time in somebody else’s shoes -a most enjoyable experience.

 WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHOR AND WHY?

This is a difficult question because different authors appeal at different times. I love John le Carre’, especially if George Smile is featured.  He is a great writer to curl up in front of the fire with.  Tolkien is the author whose books I have re-read the most.

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WHAT’S THE GREATEST COMPLIMENT YOU EVER RECEIVED FROM A READER?

Couldn’t put the book down. Read it over two nights.

 WHAT WAS THE WORST COMMENT FROM A READER?

Silence.

WRITERS ARE SOMETIMES INFLUENCED BY THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN THEIR OWN LIVES. ARE YOU?

I’m influenced by the people I have met during my life and the stories they have told me. I have a stack of stories that can be fleshed out and written down.

 HOW MANY BOOKS HAVE YOU PUBLISHED?

1. Two booklets- History of Broken Hill and History of Mining in Australia. Voices from his Suitcase is my first book.

 HAVE YOU WON ANY PRIZES OR AWARDS?

No

OTHER THAN WRITING, WHAT ELSE DO YOU LOVE?        

Family and friends of course. I love travelling, building things, gardening and cooking.

 DID YOU HAVE YOUR BOOK / BOOKS PROFESSIONALLY EDITED BEFORE PUBLICATION?

No, but I probably should have. I published 50 books in 2009 and gave them to several people to read and asked my readers to give me honest comments.  I took these on board, did a writers’ course and then completely rewrote the book. It was then edited by my husband who is a stickler for spelling and grammar.

 IF YOU HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO THE ENTIRE WORLD, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY?

I would suggest that people Googled galaxies and examined some of the wonderful images taken from the Hubble telescope. One photograph includes about  500 galaxies – how vast is our Universe? The closest spiral galaxy, (a galaxy similar to our Milky Way) is Andromeda which is 12 million light years away.  Our Galaxy, the Milky Way, has a diameter of about 100,000 million light years.  How far is that in reality? It is approximately 9,000,000,000,000 km. We cannot travel at the speed of light. The fastest man-made object to be sent into space is Voyages 1. It was launched in 1977 and is just passing from our solar system into outer space. It has taken 35 year to make the trip. It travels at a mere 17.36 km per second.  Our little planet, Earth is a very insignificant dot in the vastness of the Universe.  How stupid are we to fight amongst ourselves?  When viewed from outer space there are no boundaries between countries, no colour differences amongst our people.  Our orb is so small and we are trapped on it. Unlike science fiction, it is unlikely that people will be able to leave our world and colonise another. The distances are too great.   The only hope we have for a future is to co-exist peacefully and to stop trashing our planet!

 DESCRIBE YOUR PERFECT DAY.

Breakfast overlooking the ocean, a walk in a rainforest, a comfortable hammock and a good book followed by a romantic dinner & good bottle of wine with my husband.

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WHAT ARE YOUR GREATEST ASSETS AS A WRITER?

Tenacity. I don’t give up.

 IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A DESERT ISLAND WITH ONE PERSON, WHO WOULD YOU LIKE IT TO BE? WHY?

In reality a boat builder would be the best choice. However if you mean who would I most like to spend time with, it would be Nelson Mandela. I would like to ask him how he maintained his sanity, why he didn’t succumb to depression and most of all, how he managed to leave prison after so many years with humanity intact.   A most amazing man.

 SHOULD YOU WRITE YOUR PERFECT BOOK, WHAT WOULD IT BE ABOUT?

Voices from his Suitcase is not a perfect book but it is a perfect topic. It has everything adventure, love, tragedy, war, it covers the first turbulent fifty years of the 20^th century, it has lessons to teach about life and Australian’s treatment of refugees. I wish I was more experienced when I wrote it. My perfect book would have an equally important topic with a similarly interesting and sympathetic main character.  I haven’t found it yet.

 WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?

To travel more and write my next book.

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Australian Family Stories: http://www.australianfamilystories.com.au/

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Clancy's comment: Thank's, Kay. Now, slip onto the hammock with a good book and relax.

I'm ...

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26 November 2012 - War Stories

Copyright Clancy Tucker (c)

'Rain on Uluru - Australia Day, 2007'

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Quote of the day:

"America will never be destroyed from the outside.

If we falter and lose our freedoms,

it will be because we destroyed ourselves"

Abraham Lincoln

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War Stories

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G'day guys,

Today I feature another short story by Kay Koenig, El Supremo of a great site: Australian Family Stories.

Australian Family Stories is a new web site for tales about Australian and Australians. Is it surprising that three of the four stories, sent to her since the site opened, were about war? What does this say about us, as Australians?

Our troops first set sail to fight in a war on 3^rd March 1885. An infantry contingent from NSW, travelled to Africa, to help England defend Khartoum in the Sudan. The young men, who volunteered to across the globe to fight in England’s war, were full of enthusiasm. What an adventure!

Since that time, have Australians ever refused to go to war when Britain, or more recently the US, requested our assistance?

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Percy’s War is a reader’s tale about a twenty year old labourer who volunteered to fight in the First World War.  What is remarkable about this short story is the unusual nature of Percy’s war experience and the statistics provided by the writer, Jill Slack. Apparently 37% of the total male population of Australia, between the ages of eighteen and forty-four, fought in World War I. Of those 14% died, 40% were wounded and 21% suffered from illness. In fact, serious illness was the main experience of those who served at Gallipoli.

Percy Ashton served in the Middle East throughout the war. No doubt he saw a lot of fighting. What is remarkable, is the number of times Percy that was evacuated due to illness. He suffered from a wide range of bacterial and fungal diseases. His record begs the question, ‘Why did so many healthy young men succumb to illness during the First World War’? The answer lies in the nature of that war. Thousands of troops lived in narrow trenches that were freezing in winter and muddy, mosquito infested quagmires in summer. They were surrounded by rotting corpses. Imagine the horror, imagine the flies and imagine the smell. Apparently, shells were constantly flying overhead. To evade a bullet from a sniper, one had to walk through the trenches doubled over. Opposing soldiers flung grenades into enemy trenches. You would never know when a grenade would go off beside you. In these conditions you had to eat and sleep for days. Personal hygiene was always a problem. Even when you were rotated away from the Front, your rest period would be plagued with the fears associated with returning to battle. When these factors are considered, the miracle is that only 21% of our soldiers suffered illness.

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The second story was a biography of a friend’s father. When the Korean War began he was a nineteen year old postal worker, bored with his life in Sydney. The Australian Government asked for volunteers to serve with the United Nations in Korea. Ernie Holden answered the call. He, like so many others, thought it would be an adventure, thought he was serving his country and thought he was invincible. Time had marched on and the methods of killing were different. The results were not. Seventeen thousand Australian troops went to Korea. Three hundred and thirty nine were killed including five of Ernie’s mates. One thousand two hundred were injured, include Ernie Holden. He and a mate strayed into a mine field and were badly wounded. They lay in the mine field overnight not knowing whether they would see the light of day. When day break arrived, they were rescued. The Chinese held their fire while the stretcher contingent rescued them. To this day, Ernie carries eleven pieces of shrapnel in his body from the landmine, enough to set off the metal detectors in airports.

The third and most amazing story is a memoir published by June Collins. Goodbye Junie Moon deals with the Vietnam War. Like the currently popular Australian film, ‘The Sapphires’, June entertained the troops in Vietnam and like the film, her story is a rivetingly good read.

Goodbye Junie Moon is a book that interweaves two stories. June’s childhood, of riches and poverty in Australia during the 1950’s, is juxtaposed with her life as an exotic dancer in Vietnam during the war. Following a failed marriage, she decided to follow her dream of becoming a dancer. After learning her trade and dancing in clubs in Australia, June was obtained a job in the Philippines.  Various engagements in Japan and Korea follow then June is offered a contract in Vietnam importing and selling jewellery to the American Troops. Once there, she has second thoughts about the job description and began entertaining the troops instead.

In 1966, June was a curvaceous young blond. She toured across the length and breadth of South Vietnam performing for troops very close to battle zones. Initially she was a magician’s assistant, then an exotic dancer with her own troupe of Pilipino entertainers. The solders loved her.

When June began to tour her own entertainers she became aware of a get rich quick scheme involving the sergeants running the American Army Clubs. They were safe in the big towns. They never saw active service but demanded money from the performers who worked on the front line. Incensed, June reported them, gathered evidence against them and eventually addressed the US Senate hearings into corruption amongst the Armed Services in Vietnam. She co-authored ‘The Khaki Mafia’ with Robin Moore (The French Connection). That story was fiction based on fact. This is the true story of what happened in Vietnam. It is an absolute page turner with an erotic first chapter that has you hooked from the beginning.  June was a very brave young woman. Her story deserves to be read. She is one of our heroes.

Goodbye Junie Moon can be purchased at www.australianfamilystories.com,.au

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Clancy's comment: thanks, Kay. Great looking website.

http://www.australianfamilystories.com.au/

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4 November 2012 - The Case for the Boat People.

Photography Copyright Clancy Tucker (c)

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The Case for the Boat People

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G'day guys,

Here is another enchanting story written by author Kay Koenig from 'Australian Family Stories'. It is very interesting.

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At a recent luncheon party a friend remarked that she could not bear to think of all the starving refugees, waiting for assistance, in various parts of the globe. It was much better not to think about it, she said.

Are you tired of reading about refugees arriving off the Australian coast? Do you wonder about the queues of legitimate refugees that are being jumped?  If there were queues of patiently waiting refugees, would it make a difference?

There have always been people begging embassies for refuge and asking for asylum. Unless they are close by, or in numbers too great to ignore, their cries go unnoticed in Australia.

Just before World War II the number of refugees in Europe was large enough to be noticed.  Swarms of people mobbed foreign embassies throughout Europe desperate to escape the Nazi tide. Most, but not all were Jewish. The reactions of countries to these cries for mercy had a sizeable impact on the fate of the eleven million people who died in the holocaust.  In the beginning the Nazis did not contemplate mass murder. They certainly wanted to rid their territories of Jews. They hoped to achieve this by encouraging them to emigrate. Very few countries were willing to accept Jews. The Nazis then contemplated forming a Jewish colony, somewhere far away such as Madagascar. Mass murder was the third alternative.

The fate of Jews from the Sudetenland is a good illustration.

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In 1938, the leaders of France, Britain, Italy and Germany decided the fate of the Sudetenland. Czechoslovakia was not consulted. Surely the Munich agreement would have included a policy for the resettlement of Sudeten refugees. Apparently it was not considered necessary. Czechoslovakia was expected to accommodate those who did not wish to live under German rule.

In early October, before Germany assumed control of the mostly German speaking parts of Czechoslovakia, they began to leave. Eventually 40, 000 people moved into what remained of Czechoslovakia.  About 20,000 of these were Jewish.  As 1939 approached and it became apparent that a German invasion was imminent, the refugees were joined by thousands of Czech Jews clambering to leave their homeland.  Britain was willing to accept the well educated, the wealthy, those it considered able to advance the British economy.  The United States accepted applications for visas but then took years to approve them.  In Europe, the Swiss response was typical. They refused to accept Jewish refugees because they might cause anti-Semitism in Switzerland.  Australia - well the Australian government considered the Jewish refugees a European problem. Australia was an Anglo-Saxon community they said.  It would not be in the countries best interest to be swamped by large numbers of ethnic refugees.

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Karel Koenig was a Solicitor from Karlsbad in the Sudetenland. While the Munich conference was being held he was in the army defending the Czech-German border. After Czechoslovakia capitulated Karel settled in Prague. Because he had a Jewish mother, Karel realised he would have to leave his homeland. He applied for US visa.  While waiting for the visa that never arrived, Karel worked for the St Raphael Society. This Catholic organisation was assisting Jews to escape Czechoslovakia.  They used false documents, false passports and false certificates of baptism, anything to ensure the safety of the Jews they were trying to help.  They had guides to smuggle people across the border into Poland.  The biggest problem was to find a country willing to accept the refugees. Some South American countries and China were helpful but, there were very few other options.

When the Germans occupied Prague in March 1939, they began arresting people. Their list, of those to be detained, was long. It included those who criticised Nazism, students, academics, members of the judiciary, politicians, union representatives, members of the clergy and, of course, Jews. Karel’s name was on the list. One day in April, he was warned that he was about to be arrested. He was told that he must leave now. There was no possibility of obtaining the correct papers, no more time to wait for a visa. The St Raphael Society provided him with some false documents, a reference and a guide to escort him into Poland.  The guide made the journey on at least a weekly basis. This time he was unlucky. He was shot in the back by border guards. Karel continued to zigzag through the forest and made the crossing into Poland.

He arrived in England in May 1939. He had been admitted, with the approval of the British Committee for Refugees from Czechoslovakia, on the basis of information provided by the St Raphael Society. They said Karel was a Roman Catholic committee member of the Centre Party, that he had a visa for Ecuador and would travel there on 12^th May and that he had a cousin living in Sussex who would support him. All of this information was false. In a climate when arrest and possible execution are imminent, escape, not truth, is important.

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For over twelve months Karel lived a charmed life in England. For many months he was a guest of Mrs Allhusen, bridesmaid to the Churchill’s. He walked with Clementine Churchill, in the rose garden of Havering House, listening to her complaints about her husband. He taught German at a school a stone’s throw away from Kenley Aerodrome. This was one of three air fields used to defend London during the Blitz. Years after the war Karel remembered that each day it was covered with camouflage to make it resemble street of houses.  Under such suspicious circumstances, is it any wonder that Karel was eventually arrested, tried at the Old Bailey and transported to Australia on the Dunera?

Karel, and the 2000 other mostly Jewish refugees on the Dunera, were interned for years at Hay and Tatura. This was despite the fact that the British Government realised they had made a mistake and asked for their release. Not only did the Australian Government refuse to releases the Dunera refugees, but they also stipulated that any family members, who travelled to Australia in the hope of being close to their husbands and fathers, would be deported.

Eventually Karel, like many other ‘Dunera Boys’ joined the Australian Army. After the war he returned to University and studied the law again. He practised law in Pitt St Sydney for the next thirty years. He was a member of the International Law Society and was awarded a British Empire Medal for his services to the community. His wife, sons and mothers all perished in the Holocaust.

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In contrast, consider the assistance that was given to refugees from Vietnam at the end of the Vietnam War.  Those boat people were welcomed to our shores. They were processed in Asia and flown here by the plane load. Following the Tiananmen Square incident, Chinese students, and also Timor refugees were given refuge in this country.

Was it because the Vietnam War was the first such horror to greet us on the nightly news? Did we feel responsible? Is there now so much bloodshed on television that we are immune to the horrors of Afghanistan? Is it easier to justify our intervention into that country? Are Afghan refugees less worthy of our help?

If you would like to read more about Karel Koenig’s story, his biography is available on Australian Family Stories. It is a ripping yarn, full of luck, adventure, love and tragedy.   If you believe that a picture tells a thousand words, this book is illustrated by over 250 photographs and documents. It covers the first fifty years of Karel’s life and the people and events that affected it.

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Clancy's comment: Thank you, Kay. This is an extraordinary tale. Yes, I agree with you. Australia felt guilty after losing more than 500 Aussie soldiers in Vietnam.

I recommend all of you to visit www.australianfamilystories.com.au. Check out Kay's website if you have an amazing Australian story to tell or a book you have already published with an Australian flavour.

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'Freedom through work.'

Mm ... yeah, right!

1 November 2012 - Mr McGregor’s Watch

Photography Copyright Clancy Tucker (c)

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Mr McGregor’s Watch

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G'day guys,

Welcome to November. Here is an interesting story written by Kay Koenig - El Supremo of the 'Australian Family Stories' website.

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In every mining venture there are victims. Those who lose fortunes because they invest unwisely, speculate in mines that fail to live up to expectations.  Those, who leave home and rush off to the latest boom town in the hope of making a quick buck, only find that there are no high paying jobs available. Then there are those who find work and die as a result.

Broken Hill was a boom town. It spawned two of Australian’s largest companies. Broken Hill Proprietary, (BHP), was formed in 1883, following the first discovery silver. Rio Tinto began in 1905. Its founders hoped to find a method of processing the ever growing mounds of untreatable sulphide ore that surrounded the town.

Today, as mining continues, Broken Hill has become a popular tourist destination. Amongst the old mines that overlook the town is a striking memorial to those who died while digging up the riches beneath. Their names are inscribed on the monument. This is the story of one of them.

Percy McGregor had been a miner for years. The forty –six year old worked as a timberer at the South Mine. Timber was used extensively underground. As an area of ore was removed the sides were sealed with timber. Strong Oregon timber props and cross beams were used to secure the roof. Then the walls were timbered to form an empty enclosed box. When completed the space was filled with ‘tailings’, fine sand like waste from the processing plants.  It was then safe to mine the ore adjacent to the filled timber box. In this way it was possible to excavate an entire level of the mine.

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In June1939, Mr McGregor was working the dayshift. This was the favoured shift for most miners. Work finished at 4 o’clock, leaving lots of time for a drink at the local pub before going home to wife and family, for dinner. Mr McGregor lived in Rowe St, Railway Town. He would often roll home drunk and have endless arguments with his wife. Their voices were accompanied by the high pitched barks of their little Chihuahua, providing endless entertainment for the neighbourhood children.

By 1939 mining was a safer activity than during earlier years. Lead poisoning was on the decline because; the ore was no longer smelted in a line of furnaces belching lead laden smoke over the town.  The use of water with the pneumatic drills had reduced the incidents of ‘Dust on the Lung’. Nevertheless sometimes accidents happened.

On 16^th June 1939, Percy McGregor and four mates were installing timber supports, about 300 metres underground. It was an older part of the South Mine. Just after 2.00pm, there was a large explosion followed by a shock wave that reverberated throughout the workings. A large earth fall had occurred. The five miners were trapped.

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The rescue effort was near impossible. The area was buried beneath a jumble of timber and tailings, which behaved like a pile of fine sand. As rescuers attempted to excavate, the earth would move and fill in the hole they had created. A miner, lying on his side and using a small shovel, carved out a two foot square space and inched forward forming an incredibly narrow tunnel.  When the tunnel was about five metres long, a voice was heard.  One miner, Ray Byrne, had survived. His foot and arm were trapped under a timber beam. The beam had fallen in such a way as to create a small cave, just big enough for the 22 year old survivor.  The hand of Mr McGregor was found poking through the fallen earth above the rescued miner.  He was identified by his watch. The second body to be recovered, Jack Falchi, was identified by the number on his miner’s helmet.  It took four days to recover the other two bodies.

The names of these four men, and the over 700 others killed, are inscribed into the beautiful sculpture that is the miners’ memorial.  They were ordinary men, sons, fathers, husbands; the ultimate victims of this great mining venture.

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Clancy's comment: Thanks, Kay. If anyone has told an Australian story, send it to www.australianfamilystories.com.au. Kay will feature it on her website. Remember, personal stories bring history to life.

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