Reminiscences of Queensland, 1862-1869Corfield, William Henry
History
Reminiscences of Queensland, 1862-1869
Corfield, William Henry
Frontier and pioneer life -- Australia -- Queensland; Queensland -- History
Outside the property he controlled, J. B. had three personal hobbies, a
good horse, the Winton Divisional Board, and the local Hospital. Of
these three hobbies his principal one was the hospital and its sick
occupants. On his death it was felt that the most appropriate monument
to him would be a new ward for eye complaints to be added to the
hospital.
This was generously subscribed to by all classes, and the J. B. Riley
ward of the institution served to remind us of one who, by his charity,
goodness and generosity, was a good man, but whose shyness did not allow
of this being known. His brother, Mr. F. W. Riley, and Mr. R. L.
Chirnside, who were closely associated with him, carried on his good
work, and became as deservedly popular.
Throughout this year (1880) the town and district had made progress, and
new people were coming in.
We were now doing a good business in both store and hotel, consequently
we had to depend on drivers for our teams without supervision.
It was decided that I should follow the teams to Townsville to in some
way dispose of them, and also to bring up a man to assist Fitzmaurice in
the hotel.
When I reached Dalrymple I learnt that one of Fitzmaurice's teams had
been swept over the rocks while crossing the Burdekin River, and that
eight of the bullocks were drowned. It appeared that the river, though
not a-swim, was running strong at the crossing.
The first team crossed safely, but on the other reaching the strong
water, the driver of the team rode around to the off-side to keep the
bullocks up the stream. His efforts were unavailing. With his horse he
was carried into deep water, from which they were rescued in an
exhausted condition. Not so with the team.
The bullocks were all drowned, and the waggon wrecked on the rocks.
Fortunately, being empty, only eight bullocks were yoked to the waggon,
but they were the pick of the team. This accident strengthened our
desire to dispose of the teams.
I sold Fitzmaurice's remaining team at Townsville at a satisfactory
figure, and my own two teams were sold on their arrival to one of the
drivers on terms.
The agreement was that we should provide him with loading from
Townsville to Winton at the rate of L30 per ton, until he had paid the
purchase money of it. This he did in a few trips.
These teams could not carry the whole of the goods I had purchased, so I
left an order with Clifton and Aplin to forward the remainder by
carriers as soon as they could despatch them. I engaged a suitable man
to assist Fitzmaurice, and we left with saddle and pack horses for
Winton, taking the shorter road _via_ Charters Towers.
This we left at Rockwood, to make a still shorter route across the Downs
from Culloden Station, over which the road party had ploughed a furrow
across to cut the head of Jessamine Creek, at the back of Oondooroo
Station.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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