William Lyall and the Acclimatisation Society

William Lyall (1821-1888) (1), the owner of Harewood, on the South Gippsland Highway at Koo Wee Rup was an enthusiastic member of the Acclimatisation  Society which was established in Victoria  on February 25, 1861. The object of this Society was the introduction, acclimatisation, and domestication of all innoxious animals, birds, fishes insects, and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental ; - the perfection, propagation and hybridisation of races newly introduced or already domesticated; - the spread of indigenous animals, &c. from parts of the colonies where they are already known, to other localities where they are not known (2).

From the First Annual report of the Acclimatisation Society, 1862, listing William Lyall as a Committee member.

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/141530#/summary

I actually own a book that was part of the Zoological and Acclimatisation Society's collection - Beeton's Dictionary of Natural History: a Compedious Encyclopaedia of the Animal Kingdom, published by Ward, Lock & Tyler in 1871 - the title page is reproduced below. No doubt William Lyall would have owned his own copy.

Beeton's Dictionary of Natural History: a Compendious Encyclopaedia of the Animal Kingdom, published by Ward, Lock & Tyler in 1871.

The ownership stamp from my copy of Beeton's Dictionary of Natural History: a Compendious Encyclopaedia of the Animal Kingdom,

William Lyall introduced many species to his property, Harewood,  including deer, partridges, pheasants and hares. There was a thread of letters to the Editor of The Argus in August 1873, about the last mentioned animal, the hare, and who was first responsible for its introduction to Victoria - the Acclimatisation Society or William Lyall. William Lyall and his business partners John Mickle and John Bakewell were the owners of large tracts of land in this area from 1851 (3) and Lyall's claim was supported by Bakewell's nephew, Edward Howitt. 

From J.R. Godfrey, Zoological and Acclimatisation Society, August 21,1873

"Honour to whom Honour is due"

Sir, - I observe that my name is mentioned in connexion with that of Mr. Lyall, at the dinner given by the Coursing Club to Mr. W.J. Clarke, in connexion with the introduction of the hare into this country and though it is true that this animal was imported by us at considerable expense, I would be sorry to claim to myself the merit of their success, as they had been introduced by the Acclimatisation Society, and were sent to various parts of the country before any were imported privately from Europe. I have often been surprised on looking over the list of subscribers to the above society, to notice the absence of the names of those gentlemen who derive most pleasure from the sport of coursing - a sport for which the Acclimatisation Society is mainly to be credited. Had the sporting community waited until the hares imported by Mr. Lyall and myself were numerous enough to afford a day's sport, they would not have been enjoying this amusement so freely at the present day (4). 

From William Lyall, August 22, 1873

"Honour to whom Honour is due"

Sir, - Referring to Mr. Godfrey's letter in this day's Argus, I beg to say that I imported hares, pheasants, and partridges long before the Acclimatisation Society had an existence, and that the county of Mornington and a great part of the Western district of this colony are stocked with hares from Harewood. (5).

William Lyall's letter

The Argus, August 23, 1873 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/5870071

From Edward Howitt, August 23, 1873
The Acclimatisation of Hares
Sir, - I observe opinion is divided with regard to the credit of first introducing hares into this colony. I am not aware of the date at which they were just imported by the Acclimatisation Society However, I send you the particulars with reference to (I believe) those introduced by Mr Lyall. In 1860, when in Yorkshire, I was partly instrumental in procuring - at the request of my uncle, Mr John Bakewell, then resident in London - 16 hares from the gamekeeper of Lord Middleton, at Rethington-house. Thirteen of these were shipped and five of them I believe arrived alive in Hobson's Bay. I mention this to show the probable date of their introduction by Mr. Lyall. (6).

Edward Howitt's account is confirmed by The Argus of June 9, 1860, where this short report appeared - By the Norfolk, which came into the bay a few days ago, we may add, five English hares arrived in good condition, out of ten embarked, for W. Lyall, Esq., of Yallock, where they are now (7)

In fact, so proud was the Lyall family of introducing the hare to Victoria that William's daughter, Margaret, wrote to The Argus in June 1937, 64 years after her father did, also noting the Lyall role in this matter

Sir, - In her letter on "Horsemen and Hounds" in 'The Argus" of Saturday, June 12, Mrs M. L. Drought is mistaken in thinking that Mr Godfrey was the first to bring hares into Victoria as my father, the late William Lyall released hares on his property at Western Port in the year 1858. Mr Lyall was also a member of the Victorian Acclimatisation Society. The station property was named Harewood from that date. - 

Yours &c, Margaret M. Timms, Warragul, June 14. (8).

I feel that we can conclusively confirm that William Lyall should receive all the 'credit' for the introduction of the hare into Victoria and that it was in 1860. Interesting that Margaret  says that the hares gave the Lyall property its name, Harewood. I did not know that. 

Margaret Lyall Timms' letter

The Argus, June 19, 1937 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/11072967

The following is a report from April 1862, of William Lyall’s project to introduce hares at Harewood (referred to in this article as his property at Western Port) and the casual manner in which some early settlers sought to eradicate native fauna to protect the introduced species. Frogmore was the Lyall property at Carnegie.

Hares. - Mr. Lyall, of Frogmore, turned out some English hares a year or two ago on his property at Western Port. The spot he selected lies between the shore of the bay and some cultivated ground. About the spot there is plenty of clover in the form of low bushes and tall grass and solsolaceous plants. Since the hares were first turned out they have been occasionally seen, have bred, and have also appeared to be thriving well. We regret to learn, however, that an enemy, has lately attacked and killed one or two grown ones. This is a species of hawk, which either strikes them when running or darts down upon them. We should like to know what hawk it is for there are very few here large enough to attempt anything of the kind. The Australian eagle commonly called an "eagle-hawk" has been known to stoop and carry off kangaroo rats, &c, and we suppose it is this bird which has killed Mr. Lyall's hares as it is also often very destructive to young Iambs.

Strychnine is the best remedy, and in many parts of the colony it has been so much used in that eagles are not so numerous as in former years. The best mode of applying it is this - Place the skinned carcase of any dead animal on an open piece of ground that it may be seen easily; score the fleshy parts with a knife, making the cuts within half an inch of each other, and sprinkle into them a few grains of strychnine crushed to a fine powder between two pieces of writing paper. We have seen five or six poisoned a single day. (9)

Hard to believe that you would kill a wedge-tailed eagle, they are so magnificent to watch. I was going to say that they were different times then, but there was a case in 2018 where a man was charged with poisoning over 400 eagles in East Gippsland, so sadly, it still happens (10).

In December 1862, we find this report William Lyall's success with introduced species - 

English hares and pheasants. - It appears that the English hares introduced a few years ago by Mr. Lyall, and turned out on his property by the shores of Western Port Bay, are now in a prosperous condition, and seem to have multiplied greatly. Mr. Lyall informs us that recently, in crossing the field where he first turned out the two or three pairs of imported hares, he started five apparently thriving animals. Mr. Lyall, we believe, was the first to bring hares to Australia, and he now considers the experiment most satisfactory, as these animals seem thoroughly established. At the spot where they were first turned out both native-cats and tiger-cats are numerous; but it appears that such animals are not so destructive to hares as we know they sometimes are to rabbits. From Mr. Lyall's experiments we may also learn that hares are not disposed to stray from localities where they may be first turned out; a very important fact, and worthy the attention of acclimatisers. 

Mr. Lyall's introduction of pheasants has not been attended with such success, thanks to the members of a surveying party in the public service. Some Cockney sportsmen belonging to the party having come
upon the half-tamed pheasants, shot them down as they sat on the gum-trees, and then, having eaten them, carried the intelligence to Mr. Lyall that they had made an important discovery of a new Australian bird- one which no traveller had ever met with before. When charged with having shot imported English birds, the sportsmen undertook to bring a specimen of the newly-discovered bird to the injured proprietor, and next day presented a lyrebird. This style of vindication, however, was self-condemnatory, for as the lyrebird never alights on trees, it would be impossible to have shot it in the gumtree, as described by the sportsmen. (11)

This is a letter, written to the Acclimatisation Society, from William Lyall about his success with some of his introduced species -
Yallock, Sept 29, 1865.
Dear Sir - A sight of the Sambur deer has just put me in mind of my duty to the  Society - that is, to report progress. The animals entrusted to my care have, l am happy to say thriven remarkably well. The three does have three fine fawns, and all are in fine condition. To-day, a doe and a buck were enjoying themselves by taking a swim in a waterhole—indeed, they appear to be fond of the water: so much so, that I am bound to believe that swamps must be their natural habitat. I feel certain that all the islands in the great swamp will, in time, become stocked with the magnificent Sambur deer. At present there is rally one of the bucks (the youngest) remaining with the does: another has taken possession of the garden here, and a very bad gardener he has proved himself to be, I propose having him taken over to join the does in the swamp, where he will he out of harms way. I believe that this part of the colony is, perhaps, better adapted for a home for the pheasant than any other part of Victoria. If the council will send a few down, I win take charge of them.
My hares are doing well and are spreading over the country.
Wishing the society every success, believe me, dear sir, yours very truly, William Lyall. (12).

So successful were his efforts at introducing new hares to Harewood that as reported at an Acclimatisation Society meeting held in December 1867, Mr Lyall had some spare ones that he was willing to give away -

 A letter was read from Mr. W. Lyall, stating that the hares were so numerous on his property at Harewood that he thought several might be safely caught now for distribution in other localities. The council decided to at once avail themselves of Mr. Lyall's kind offer, and send down men to trap the hares. (13)

Beeton's Dictionary of Natural History: a Compendious Encyclopaedia of the Animal Kingdom, has this to say about the hare - they are very prolific, and were it not for the multitudes which are annually shot, or otherwise slaughtered for the London market, they would soon overrun the country. Hares form a great object for pursuit on the part of sportsmen, and hunting them with the greyhound is termed "coursing."  Fast forward to over 160 years since William Lyall introduced the hare to his Harewood property and there are still multitudes of hares in this area.  However, by 1919 another of his acclimatised species, the deer, was said to be in short supply; The Argus reported that  that deer are to be found in the scrub around Koo-wee-rup Swamp and Lang Lang, but they are scarce now, having been thinned down by settlers (14)

Footnotes

(1) William Lyall (1821-1888) Australian Dictionary of Biography entry https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/lyall-william-4051 and http://kooweerupswamphistory.blogspot.com/2017/08/mickle-bakewell-and-lyall.html

(2) The Argus, February 26, 1861, see here.

(3) https://kooweerupswamphistory.blogspot.com/2017/08/mickle-bakewell-and-lyall.html

(4) The Argus, August 22, 1873, see here.

(5) The Argus, August 23, 1873, see here.

(6) The Argus, August 25, 1873, see here.

(7) The Argus, June 9, 1860, see here.

(8) The Argus, June 19, 1937, see here.

(9) Freeman's Journal, April 5, 1862, see here.

(10) https://eastgippsland.net.au/news/eagle-slaughter-update

(11) The Argus, December 4, 1862, see here.

(12) Australasian, October 7, 1865, see here.

(13) The Argus, December 4, 1867,  see here.

(14) The Argus, March 21, 1919, see here.

The Mickle Family

John Mickle (1814-1885) arrived in Melbourne in 1838. He came from Berwickshire in Scotland, where his family were farmers, and not especially wealthy, but John was ambitious and an astute businessman. He set up as a Stock and Station agent and was later joined by John Bakewell.  In 1848, they sold out to Richard Goldsborough who later established the Goldsborough Mort Company which merged with Elders Smith in 1962.

In 1851, Mickle and Bakewell joined with William Lyall and formed the partnership of Mickle, Bakewell and Lyall.  Previous to this, John had built a house in Collingwood, and owned seven acres of land adjoining Chapel Street in Prahran, which was valued at £100 per acre. Mickle and John Bakewell then purchased 159 aces in Kew  - the 75 acres facing Studley Park Road cost them £20 per acre and the rest £13 per acre. The pair then held various large properties in Victoria and in 1851 Mickle and Bakewell with William Lyall took up the Tobin Yallock (also called Yallock) run of 1,920 acres – this run was located on the Yallock Creek. In the same year they acquired Red Bluff (south of Lang Lang) and then the Tooradin Run in 1852 and the Great Swamp Run in 1854. The partnership was dissolved in 1857 and Mickle ended up with the Upper Yallock Run, renamed Monomeith.

By 1854, the trio were seriously wealthy. Mickle had married Margaret Lyall (William’s sister) in 1851 and in 1854 they all returned to Great Britain for a holiday - John and Margaret Mickle, her mother and her brother, William Lyall, and his wife Annabelle and their three children; John Bakewell and his brother also went plus about seven others. The group embarked on February 25, and did not clear the Heads at the entrance to Port Phillip Bay until March 1; they arrived in London on May 22. The party toured London and other parts of England.  John and Margaret Mickle returned to Melbourne in 1857 and had a house at the top end of Collins Street. However in 1861 they left again and sailed to the port of Suez in Egypt and then overlanded to London and then onto Scotland. They purchased a house in Scotland and John died there in 1885 at the age of 71.  Two personal facts about John Mickle - he was  a man who strictly celebrated the Sabbath and he was described as a  ‘huge man’, well over six foot tall, taller than his wife Margaret who at six foot tall was extraordinarily tall for  a woman in those days. They must have been an imposing looking couple.

Other members of the Mickle family also came to Australia including John’s brother, Alexander, in 1855 and his cousin Andrew Hudson. It was Alexander, Andrew and William Lyall who managed the Mickle property on behalf of John and Margaret whilst they were overseas. Alexander and his wife, Agnes, settled on the Yallock property, having come by bullock dray to Tooradin, and then by boat to the Yallock Creek. They later moved onto a new house on the Monomeith property. Sadly, in November 1861, at the age of 33, Alexander died from appendicitis and peritonitis leaving Agnes a widow, with two young children, David (b. 1858) and Margaret Isobel (b.1860) and eight months pregnant with their third child. On the day Alexander died, the only other person on the property was “the lad” John Payne, who had to ride into Cranbourne for the Police and to arrange the funeral. Four weeks after the death of his father, John Alexander Mickle, was born on Boxing Day.

Right - John Mickle (1814 - 1885) 

Image: Gunson, Niel The Good Country: Cranbourne Shire (Cheshire, 1968)

Agnes married Andrew Hudson in 1865 and she had two more children. They lived at Monomeith where Andrew operated a dairy and made cheeses, and later lived on the Warook property (the existing Warook homestead was built by the Greaves family in 1906). Again sadly, Andrew Hudson died in 1888, aged 55, shortly before the family were to move into the newly built The Grange, in Koo Wee Rup. Agnes remained at The Grange until she died in 1913, aged 86.  The Grange was sold out of the family by her son, James Hudson, in 1920; some of the land was sub-divided and Sybella Avenue was laid out in 1921. The Grange homestead is still standing and was also used for the first Presbyterian Church services in Koo Wee Rup, until the existing church opened in 1896.

Back to Alexander and Agnes - their son, David, married Alice Atyeo and they were the parents of Alexander; David, the local historian, and Fred.  They lived at Wellfield a property on the south side of The Grange, consisting of 300 acres. It was named because of the good supply of underground water.  Isabel married Richard Scott of Poowong and they had seven children.  John, the baby born after his father died, married Laura Leggo of Ballarat and they had two children. John owned the 300 acre Lauriston Park in Koo Wee Rup. The part of his land with a frontage to Rossiter Road was subdivided in the 1920s and later, around 1926, John and Alexander and Mickle Streets were created.

Thomas Roxburgh - Asparagus Pioneer

Over ninety percent of Australian asparagus is grown on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp and asparagus has been commercially grown in this region for over 100 years, so this is a look at the early history of asparagus growing on the Swamp.

The first mention I can find of asparagus was in The Australasian of October 31, 1896.  There was a report on James Pincott’s farm about three miles from Bunyip, one of the most interesting and best managed in the settlement. Mr. Pincott carried out some experiments for six months for the Agricultural Department on this plot, when the fertility of the soil was being tested, and the place locally has consequently become known as the “experimental farm." He grew potatoes, onions, strawberries, and clover, amongst other crops and found that Asparagus and celery can be raised to wonderful perfection.

The next reference was in The Age of May 10, 1912 when it was reported that Thomas Roxburgh, had planted asparagus at his farm on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp. Mr. Roxburgh who, although a busy man in Melbourne, pays a good deal of attention to his farm at Iona, and for a considerable time has experimented in the cultivation of asparagus. Some three years ago he put in one acre as a test, adopting the American principle of planting 1 foot in depth and 3 feet between the plants, with rows 10 feet apart, so as to allow of cultivation between, the soil being of a peaty nature. Now he has nine acres under asparagus, and intends extending the area, as the managers of hotels and cafes in Melbourne have advised him that the asparagus is of the finest quality. This article puts Roxburgh’s first planting in 1909; he had imported the seed from California.

Who was Thomas Roxburgh and where was his farm? His farm, Cheriton Park, was on the corner of Fallon Road and Simpson Road at Vervale, even though it is also listed in the papers as being at Iona, Garfield or Catani. The farm was locally known as Roxburgh Park and was 350 acres.

Thomas Roxburgh was born in Jamaica, West Indies to Adam Roxburgh and Jane Watson. The family arrived in Melbourne on September 28, 1853 when Thomas was two years old. They moved to Ballarat which was where he married Sarah Anne Holthouse on July 2, 1879. Sarah was the daughter of Ballarat’s well known and most esteemed citizen, Dr Thomas Le Gay Holthouse, as he was described in a newspaper report,  and his wife Hanna (nee Pratt).

Thomas and Sarah had seven children - Edith Jenny (1880-1881), Mabel Stella (1881-1970), Leslie Le Gay (1884 -1969, married the delightfully named Miss Widgie Potts of Narrabri, NSW,  in 1915. Her real name was the more prosaic Ann), Reginald Owen (1889-1953, 1st A.I.F), Dorothy Alice (1890-1987), Leeuwin Beatrice (1895 - 1981, married Peter Charles Ferguson, of Barcaldine, QLD,  in 1924),  and Mary Hope Bradgate (1899 - 1978, married Jeffrey Ivey Retallack in 1942). The first two children were born in Ballarat and the rest in Hawthorn. Sarah Anne Roxburgh died on 1942, aged 84. Thomas and Sarah are buried at Brighton Cemetery. Interestingly, their name is spelt as Roxburghe on the head stone. 

Thomas Roxburgh (1851 - 1931)

The Argus December 31, 1931  http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4432544

According to his obituary, Thomas became a member of the firm of James Fry and Co., wheat millers and ship charterers. In 1895 Mr. Roxburgh commenced business on his own account as a grain and shipping broker in Collins-street, and this business he personally conducted practically up to the time of his death. He did a large business, with the East, and was agent for steamers trading with Japan. (The Age, December 30, 1931)

Thomas died on December 29, 1931 and his pall bearers were - Sir James Elder, trade advisor to the Commonwealth Governement and Director of Goldsbrough Mort pastoral company. Read his entry in the Australian Dictionary of Biography, here; Japanese Merchant, Mr T. Hirai - I have no more information about him at the moment, but maybe connected to the Japan-Australia line of which Roxburgh was an agent; Walter Herbert Sollas, shipping agent, died 1933 aged 78; William Howell Swanton, Director of William Crosby & Co. - Ships Agents, Charterers and merchants, died 1951 aged 88; John Fordyce, General Manager Union Bank, Collins Street, died 1942, aged 78; Norman Seale, chairman of the Victorian Stevedoring Co.; Aubrey Clifton Matthews, who later became a Director of the Roxburgh Company; W. Parbury - presumably connected to the firm of Parbury, Henty & Co, merchants and importers and exporters.  

Back to Thomas and his asparagus - Roxburgh did not personally work on the farm, he employed a farm manager and by 1927 it was reported he had planted 100 acres of asparagus, and his farm was one of the most lucrative farms on the Kooweerup Swamp area, as a ready sale is found for the product at £1 per box. The rich, peaty soil is particularly adapted for the production of the plant, which grows to perfection. (The Age, September 28, 1927). By 1932, the farm had 120 acres under asparagus and in the cutting season 20 to 25 men are employed every day, and from 10cwt. to 15cwt. of asparagus a day are despatched. [cwt - hundred weight or 112 pounds or 50 kg]. (The Argus, April 2, 1932)

It seems that most of the asparagus was canned by either the Gartside cannery at Dingley or the Rosella Preserving Company or A.J.C. (Australasian Jam Company).

During the Second World War, the Roxburgh farm had the Australian Women’s Land Army (AWLA) girls working on the property. The AWLA was established to fill the gap in agricultural workers due to the War. They had training at Mont Park or the Werribee Research Station and were then allocated to farms.

Australian Women's Land Army girls - Naida Rose and Jennie Shouewille working on Roxburgh's farm.

The Australasian November 21, 1942.

View this and other photos here   http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article142417773

The Argus of November 11, 1942 interviewed Mr G. Roxburgh (this was Thomas’ son Leslie Le Gay, who was listed in the Electoral Roll at Vervale, occupation farm manager) - about the Land Army 'girls' and the  family farm which was growing asparagus for the use of the Army. Mr Roxburgh was quoted as being “very proud of the girls. He finds them fine workers, though physically they cannot stand up to the same speed of work as the men. He thinks that 5 girls can do the work of 3 men”. “They are steady workers," Mr Roxburgh said, "and once I have told them what fields I want done I do not have to worry again.” The women did the cutting, placing the spears into bundles, the picking up of the bundles onto the cart and also worked in the packing shed. The report goes onto describe the living conditions - There are 20 girls, and they live in a camp on the estate, where they sleep in tents and have a small recreation hut. The camp is run on the lines of a Girl Guides' camp, as 2 of the girls first there are Guides, and they helped to establish the camp. The day is a long one. The girls rise at 6.15 and are in the fields at 7.30. They have one hour for lunch, 12 to 1, when they all go to the cookhouse for a generous hot meal, and then spend 20 minutes or so in their tents resting. Work finishes about 5.30, or sometimes earlier if they are able to get through their day's work quicker. In spite of this long day, the reporter said that after work the girls often ride the 6 miles on bicycles to Garfield, to go to the pictures or to a dance. The day I was there several girls were going to walk 2 or 3 miles to a dance!

Australian Women's Land Army girl - Norma Elliott working on Roxburgh's farm.

The Australasian November 21, 1942. 

View this and other photos here http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article142417773

All the asparagus produced was being sent to the canneries for the American Army, as it had been declared a ‘luxury item’ by the Commonwealth Government. Mr Gartside was not happy about this and he was interviewed by the Herald on June 1, 1943 - Canneries which had processed practically the entire output, were virtually told that tins could not be provided for asparagus designed for civilian consumption. Instead of canning asparagus in long spears, canneries had been ordered to cut it into small soup pieces, which turned good food into pig's food, claimed Mr Gartside. Both civilians and service personnel were prevented from eating asparagus as it should be eaten—long spears dipped in melted butter or iced — and troops would have to eat it in soup or with a fork.

Australian Women's Land Army girls - setting out for the field after their midday rest on Roxburgh's farm.

The Australasian November 21, 1942. 

View this and other photos here http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article142417773

From October 1944 there was a small Italian Prisoner of War Camp at Koo Wee Rup (read more here) and the men were allocated to work on various local farms, including the Roxburgh farm. My Dad, Frank Rouse, who was ten at the time, remembers truckloads of the prisoners driving down the road to the farm in the morning, one guard on each truck. At lunch time a food van with a portable cooker would go the farm to feed them. 

Cheriton Park was sold in 1947 to A.J.C and by that time it had 125 acres of asparagus under production. A report in the Weekly Times of November 24, 1939 said that the Koo Wee Rup Swamp had 1,300 acres under asparagus. There were two other early growers that I found reports on.  The Weekly Times of March 22, 1941 reported that Mr Alf Ellett had noticed that after the 1937 flood, asparagus that he had planted in his garden grew well, so he started planting the crop on a commercial basis and by 1941 had nineteen acres sown with seedlings in hand to sow another 10 acres. Also, in the Weekly Times, this time on September 14, 1944, there was an obituary for Charles William Wadsley, who died in 1944 at the age of 53. The Obituary described him thus -  He was an expert on asparagus growing, and in addition to his own property [Strathellen]  supervised an asparagus farm at Geelong.

Finally, there was an interview in the Pakenham Gazette of December 8, 1999 with Bill Roxburgh, the grandson of Thomas. In the interview Bill talks about how his grandfather, who owned Cheriton Park, had planted all different kinds of trees on a five acre section of his land and had built his own park to relax in. Some of the trees are still there.

Some of the trees planted by Thomas Roxburgh at Cheriton Park.

(photo taken about 2010)

I have created a list of newspaper articles on Trove on asparagus growing on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp in the early days and Thomas Roxburgh, you can access it, here.

Local High Schools on or connected to the Koo Wee Rup Swamp

In Victoria, the Education Act, which came into effect on January 1, 1873, made State education ‘secular, compulsory and free’. The Act said that parents of children of ‘not less than six years and not more than fifteen years’ were required to send their children to school. (1). Primary schools in those days went up to Grade Eight.

For children who wanted further education, if their parents were wealthy enough, they would have been sent to a private school as the first Government High School in the area didn’t open until 40 years after the Education Act came into effect. This was Warragul High School, the construction of which began in March 1911, however classes started in the Shire Hall in the August of that year and the School was officially opened in 1912, with Mr J. McLennan as Head Master and a staff of four.  The School was opened as an Agricultural High School. It was situated on 23 acres, and the first students had to help with the clearing, draining and fencing of the site.  By the 1930s, enrolment numbers in the agricultural courses had declined so this arm of the curriculum was dropped, and the school concentrated on the Academic curriculum and introduced Technical courses. In 1936, Domestic Science was introduced for the girls and by 1940 there was a blacksmith, metal work and wood work rooms. (2). 

In 1940, enrollments were around 400 and accommodation was at a premium, so much so that in 1945 when my father, Frank Rouse, started his Form 1A had all their classes at the Warragul State School, where Olive ‘Bonnie’ Marrabel, instructed the pupils in all subjects. The school bus, which had picked up students from Garfield, Vervale, Modella and Bunyip used to drop Dad and his fellow students at the High School and they had to walk the mile every morning and night to and from the State School.

It seems that Cora Lynn was the border of the Warragul catchment area, as pupils who lived on the west side of Cora Lynn State School went to Dandenong High School and pupils on the east side went to Warragul.  The Dandenong High School (DHS) was opened on March 10, 1919. This was later than the usual School opening date due to the outbreak of pneumonic influenza that was prevalent at the end of the First World War. When the School opened it was in temporary premises with the junior students housed at the old Fire Station and the senior students at the Temperance Hall and Church of Christ. There were 104 students. The foundation stone of the permanent building was laid on November 21, 1919 and the School was officially opened in late 1920. In 1920 the DHS enrolment was 150 of which 60 students came from the Berwick, Pakenham, Garfield, Bunyip, Hallam, Lyndhurst, Cranbourne, Koo Wee Rup, Carnegie and Murrumbeena areas. (3).

However, the journey to these schools often required an early start and a late return – there was one report in a paper that said that pupils leave home at 5.45 a.m. and did not reach home until 8 p.m. (4). This was for students who lived around Heath Hill / Yannathan, so it was not surprising that there was agitation for closer school, which had actually started in the 1920s. 

In the May 13, 1926 issue of the Koo Wee Rup Sun, there was the following report -

High School Desired - A movement has been initiated by Garfield residents with the object of securing a high school to serve the swamp area. Such a proposal should have the  heartiest commendation and support of all parents of the district. The various branches of the Women's Section of the Farmers' Union are taking the matter up enthusiastically, and the different school committees and other public bodies are also giving support. This afternoon a meeting will take place at the Kooweerup State School, when the matter will be discussed. The children of the district who desire to reach a higher educational standard are beset with man difficulties, and it is earnestly hoped that something of a concrete character will be achieved for them. To reach success will involve  a good deal of work and organising, but we must keep on knocking until the doors are opens. At the Lord Mayor's dinner in Melbourne on Monday the Chief Justice, Sir William Irvine referring to the conditions of the country, said that one of the many ways of making the country more favorable was to give greater educational facilities. (5)

In August 1926, The Age reported that -
A public meeting was held at Cora Lynn when representatives were present from all parts of the Kooweerup swamp area, from Lang Lang and Yannathan to Narnargoon. Cr. P. Walsh, of Berwick shire, presided. The meeting was organised by the Iona women's section V.F.U., who have for some months been engaged in a movement to establish a high school in the swamp. A motion in favor of this was carried. Mr. Wrigley, assistant chief inspector of secondary schools, delivered an instructive address on the establishing of high schools. He said the department existed for the education of the children, but parents must take advantage of it. A site of eight acres was necessary for a H.E. [Higher Elementary] school and 10 acres for a high school, to be vested in the Minister. The local cash contribution varied from £1000 for a H.E. school to £10,000 for a high school. A committee was appointed representing 22 school centres, Cr. McCulloch and Cr. Dowd to represent Cranbourne and Berwick shires respectively. The lona and Kooweerup branches are to continue to act. (6).

The Age reported again the next month - 

 At a meeting of district representatives at Cora Lynn the high school proposal was further considered. Sites at Cora Lynn and Bayles were reviewed, and it was unanimously decided to recommend an area of Crown land at Bayles, which is above flood level and large enough for all requirements. It was resolved to ask the Education department for an early inspection of the site. An active canvass for subscriptions and guarantees from parents is to be undertaken. Mrs. Shreeves was elected president, and Mrs. Terrill secretary. (7).

Another meeting was held in  February 1927 -

At meeting of delegates held at Cora Lynn from the various centres of the swamp settlement it was decided that a site at Bayles be selected for the proposed higher elementary school. It will probably be some time before the school becomes an established fact. The Education department is to be asked to allow a temporary school to be held in the hall at Cora Lynn. (8).

Another report of this meeting noted that -

Crs. McCulloch (president of Cranbourne Shire Council), Dowd (president of Berwick Shire Council), Bennett and Sage (Cranbourne Shire) have been appointed a deputation to request the Minister for Education to establish a higher elementary school at Bayles. (9)

Two years later, in June 1929, The Argus reported that 

The Education department has decided to establish a temporary elementary high school at Cora Lynn if sufficient inducement offers. A permanent site has been chosen at Bayles. (10).

Clearly, nothing happened about that as there was never a secondary school built at either Bayles or Cora Lynn. Students were still attending Warragul High, in large numbers, as the Herald reported in December 1943, that The High School, which serves from Moe to Pakenham and from Noojee to Korumburra, has been asked to take more than 500 pupils next year, although it was over crowded this term with 390. (11)

As we saw before, with students having to start their journey at 5.45am a new bus service commencing in February 1944 would  have been unlikely to have made this day any shorter -  a new daily school bus route will be commenced from Yannathan to the Dandenong High School, opening up the way to a High School education for about 26 pupils who would otherwise be unable to attend….starting from Yannathan, thence to Catani, Cora Lynn, Bayles, Five Mile, Island road, Cardinia and Clyde North. (12).  Any students on the train line such as Lang Lang, Caldermeade, Koo Wee Rup or Tooradin would have caught the train to school. 

Dad had been at Cora Lynn State School and he had to sit an exam, in Grade 6, before he was accepted into the High School. His brother, Jim, who was two years older than him, completed Grade 8 at Cora Lynn, and also went onto Warragul High School in 1945. Despite Jim having his Merit certificate and being two years older, he was also put into Form 1. This appeared to be a common practice.  Apart from Miss Marrabel, Dad also specifically remembers two other teachers - Roma Bull (Mrs Gordon Jenkins) and Gladys Worthington (later Mrs Lindsay Jones, who incidentally is the sister-in-law of George Jones, with whom Dad did his National Service. You can see a photo of Dad and George, here.)

In 1953, the Dandenong Journal reported Tynong, situated roughly half way between Dandenong and Warragul High Schools….. feels that it has strong claims for the establishment of a High School there - and is pushing them.  (13).

Buses at Warragul High School

State Library of Victoria Image H2008.12/44

By this time (1952) the enrolment at Warragul High was around 800 and was obviously not relieved by the establishment of a High School at Tynong  as that never happened;  but did decline with the establishment of Drouin High School. Drouin High opened in 1956 and classes were held at the primary school and various Halls. It opened on the current site in 1957. This was the same year as Koo Wee Rup High School. Koo Wee Rup had started as a Higher Elementary School in 1953 with classes up to Form 4. Drouin State School operated a Form 1 and Form 2 from 1953 to 1955 as Drouin Central School. (14) Dad’s sister, Marion, had been at Cora Lynn State School until May 1951 when it became part of Pakenham Consolidated School, she then did the rest of Grade 5 and Grade 6 at Pakenham, then Form 1 and Form 2 at Drouin Central and finally went on to Form 3 at Warragul High.

Pakenham High School, the other nearest High School to Garfield, opened in 1967 with classes being held at the Consolidated School and moved to its current site in 1970. (15)  Interestingly, when Pakenham High was established the population of the town was something like 1,700 - it is now over 46,000 and when I first wrote this post in 2019, there was still only one Government High School in Pakenham and no additional High School between Pakenham and Drouin.  If you want a prime example of how none of the State governments of either persuasion have planned for infrastructure in growth areas, then this would be it. Getting back to Warragul High School - in the late 1950s there was a move to separate the Technical and High School streams and in 1959 Warragul Technical School opened. In 1994 they were merged to form the Warragul Regional College. (16)

All the Grenda's buses lined up at Pakenham High, early 1980s.

Casey Cardinia Libraries photo

Trove list - I have created a list of newspaper articles, on Trove, relating to High Schools on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp.You can access the list, here.

Footnotes 

(1)  Read the Education Act here (it is only 6 pages long) http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/vic/hist_act/tea1872134/
(2) Blake, L. J (editor) Vision and Realisation: a centenary history of State Education in Victoria,  (Education Department of Victoria, 1973), vol. 3; Warragul High School, 1911-1991: 80 years on (published by the School in 1991)

(3) Blake, ibid; Mitchell, K.B., A history of the Dandenong High School, 1919-1968 (published by the School in 1968)

(4) Dandenong Journal, January 12, 1944, see here.

(5) Koo Wee Rup Sun, May 13, 1926, p.4.

(6) The Age, August 28, 1926,  see here.

(7) The Age, September 17, 1926, see here.

(8) The Argus, February 19, 1927, see here.

(9) South Bourke & Mornington Journal, February 24, 1927, see here.

(10) The Argus, June 1, 1929, see here.

(11) The Herald, December 15, 1943, see here.

(12) Dandenong Journal, February 2, 1944, see here.

(13) Dandenong Journal, October 28, 1953, see here.

(14) Blake, op. cit;  Hooper, Fred The tale of the Blackfish: a history of the Koo Wee Rup High School 1957-1977 (published by the School in  1977)

(15) Ibid

(16) Warragul High School, 1911-1991: 80 years on , op. cit; Warragul Regional College website  https://wrc.vic.edu.au/

I have written about other local High Schools here 

Dandenong High School https://victoriaspast.blogspot.com/2024/02/dandenong-high-school.html

and local Technical Schools here 

Technical Schools in the Shires of Berwick and Cranbourne https://victoriaspast.blogspot.com/2024/02/technical-schools-in-shires-of-berwick.html

Koo Wee Rup Swamp - where birds and beast gather to elect a King

This interesting, but sort of weird, story was published in the Weekly Times of January 12, 1895. It is called False Friends and True and was written by E. Marcus Collick.  I came across it when I was looking for evidence of Lyrebirds on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp (see here)  The fictional story is about a group of birds and animals who have come together to elect their King and they meet on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp (hence my interest). The last King, the Koala, says they have even begun to drain our dear old Koo-wee-rup, the place where our kings have been elected from time immemorial. It's a bit violent  at the end as they go into battle against their enemy, the fishes. Sadly, the Lyrebird, which I am rather fond of, is portrayed as duplicitous and a 'false friend'.   You can see the story on Trove, here.

False Friends and True.

By E. Marcus Collick.

I tell you the Kangaroo is the rightful king of Australia, argued the Opossum.

Prove it, answered the Lyre-bird.

With the greatest of pleasure, returned the Opossum,  first of all, the Kangaroo is the largest and strongest of Australian animals, to say nothing of being the best mannered. Why! just look at the graceful hop.

Like the proverbial cat-on-hot-bricks, snapped the Lyre bird.

And think how fond men are of Kangaroo tail soup, murmured the timid little Wallaby.

Well! all I can say is that I would rather be a biped, than a half and half sort of creature, said the Lyre-bird,  It would simply be a disgrace to Australia to have for a king a creature who might be called anything between a biped and a quadruped.

That's just it, piped the Opossum,  that is his great recommendation, for, besides being the best natured fellow on earth, he is perfectly original. Now tell me, please, what other country can boast of an animal at all like the Kangaroo?

Well! perhaps not, said the Lyre-bird, but originality is not always a charm. I for one don't see that the Kangaroo is anything to be compared to the Emu. Such a retiring, aristocratic bird, advocating women's rights, too. 

New-fangled bosh, growled the Opossum. Women's rights, indeed. The Kangaroo has too much sense to uphold such nonsense.

What is all this? said a deep voice. The trio looked up quickly. and were surprised to see the very gentleman whom they had been discussing.

Oh, Mr Kangaroo, gushed the Lyre-bird, blushingly,  your friend Mr Opossum has just been saying that the Emu has the best right to the sovereignty of Australia. I for one do not agree with him.

Is that so? answered the Kangaroo, casting a look that meant mischief at the modest little Opossum. The talk about friendship, he continued, it seems to me that it is only a guise for the intrigues of interested and politic persons. Allow me, Mrs Lyre-bird, to assist you to a good place, the election is about to begin.

This conversation took place at the Koo-wee-rup Swamp, in the south of Victoria, where the birds and beasts had gathered together to elect a king. The two candidates were the Emu and the Kangaroo, and, as the latter was a very sociable fellow, it was thought that the question of succession would be easily settled.

The performance was about to begin. A general rush towards the place of election began; and here were soon assembled all our Australian birds and beasts - old enemies looking askance at each other out of the corners of their eyes, for by the rules of the place they were forced to be neutral.

An old and hoary-headed native bear was assisted to the chair, followed by a general burst of applause, for this was their last king, forced through old age to resign his position.

My friends, began this individual with emotion, this hearty token of affection is very pleasing to me. I have been your king for many, many years, long before the white men entered our country, spoiling all our hills and valleys with the abominations they call towns. Why, pointing with his paw,  they have even begun to drain our dear old Koo-wee-rup, the place where our kings have been elected from time immemorial (groans.) Ah, he proceeded, well do I remember the time when the only human beings were blacks, and I used to have sweet young piccaninny soup everyday. But things were all spoilt by the whites, because they frightened all the blacks away, and the white piccaninny did not make nice soup - too tough.

Well, my friends, to return to business, I wish you to choose between these two candidates - the Kangaroo and the Emu. Both of these gentlemen are highly respected by me; so put it to the vote!

Then began that commotion which usually attends on such an important performance, each creature endeavoring to drop his vote into the box first. During the fuss the Lyre-bird found time to steal to the side of the Emu, and say It is well seen whom His Majesty the Bear would prefer to succeed him; of course, he only mentions the Kangaroo out of politeness. I think your claim is indisputable.

You traitoress, sneered the Black Snake, who was stealthily creeping past,  I heard what you said to the Kangaroo; so you can just look out for your eggs this year.

When the votes were counted, it was found that the Kangaroo had a large majority; and, after the Emu had solemnly sighed, and exclaimed, Just my luck! the successful candidate made a speech which ended with - And now, dear friends, as you have seen fit to elect me king, I think that we should first subdue that impudent family which has lately separated from us - the fishes.

The successful upholders of the Kangaroo now began to flock round him to offer him their congratulations; among them came the Lyrebird, who said Oh, Mr Kangaroo, of course, we all knew that you would be successful. I am delighted to see you made a parent of this happy multitude.

Thank you, Mrs. Lyre-Bird, answered  the Kangaroo. I am deeply indebted to you for the way in which you have canvassed for me. (He had been informed of this by herself.)

Humph barked the Dingo, a parent of this happy multitude, indeed, it's not apparent to me how he could that!

I am so very glad at your success, murmured the opossum, timidly.

I think I can do without your congratulations, answered the Kangaroo, with more sincerity than politeness.

Oh, please believe that I am sincere, said the poor little Opossum, but the Kangaroo had turned and was talking to the Porcupine.

Some days afterwards the campaign began against the fishes, who had mustered in the Murray for the purpose of election also. Many indecisive battles were fought, but at last the Kangaroo concocted a simple plan which promised success. This was to have a net drawn around a shallow corner of the river, drive a few stragglers into this and attack them, and when the main army, which was in the neighbourhood, rushed down to rescue the net was to be drawn up suddenly above the level of the water. Thus the whole army would be imprisoned, to be slaughtered at leisure.

The post of honor and of danger - that of  drawing up the net at the right moment - had been allotted by the Kangaroo to the Lyre-bird as a reward for services rendered. So Mrs Lyre-bird took up her position on a log jetting out into the stream, and all went well until, when the fishes made their downward rush, and danger seemed imminent, she showed her true colors, grew frightened, dropped the cord into the river and flew away.

The Opossum, happening to glance that way, saw the danger, and without a thought of the way he had been treated, plunged into the stream, seized the cord, and regaining the log, succeeded, by an immense effort, in drawing up the net at the right moment.

The campaign was over; and, tired with his efforts, the Opossum was dolefully trudging homeward, when he heard steps behind him. On turning, he was surprised to see the kangaroo hastening towards him, in a series of graceful hops.

My friend, said the Kangaroo, with emotion, will you ever forgive me?

Oh! there is nothing to forgive, returned the happy Opossum.

You thought I did not notice you, continued the Kangaroo, but I did. Your unselfishness gained our victory, and I know now who was the false friend, and who the true. We must be friends for ever.

The Opossum unhesitatingly agreed, and they shook paws on it.

Life on the Swamp in the early days - from newspaper reports

In 1893, the Koo Wee Rup Swamp was opened for settlement and this created some interest in the newspapers. In fact, a report in the Warragul Guardian of February 6, 1894 commences with So much has been said and written about Koo-wee-rup Swamp, its reclamation works and its people, that it would almost appear that the subject was worn threadbare. (1)

The Unreclaimed Swamp

The Koo Wee Rup Swamp from The Illustrated Australian News February 1, 1894.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/46198

The settlers were under the Village Settlement Scheme - a scheme where unemployed men from the cities were given a land allocation (usually 20 acres) on the Swamp and they then spent two weeks clearing drains for wages paid by the Public Works Department and two weeks working on their block with the hope of becoming self-sufficient. They also had to erect a dwelling on their block. The first 103 blocks under this scheme were allocated in April 1893.  This didn’t always work as one of the correspondents pointed out that The men are mostly raw to cultures of any kind, and inexperienced in the matter of cutting drains, at which they are to be found employment every alternate week, in order to obtain the wherewithal to procure the necessaries of life. (2) 

Cutting down small scrub - the life of a Swamp settler

The Koo Wee Rup Swamp from The Illustrated Australian News February 1, 1894.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/46198

The fact that the settlers had some assured wages was a clearly a benefit to the settlers, many of whom had been unemployed. A reporter from The Argus July 11, 1893 interviewed a woman and she had this to say about her new life -
On one of the side drains I met a decent old dame who was busily engaged in stacking driftwood alongside her tent. She explained she was laying in a stock of firewood from what had been brought down by the flood. "Yes," she said, "it's a damp place and a dismal; but what are you to do? My husband is a plumber, and you could count the number of days he was working at his trade last year on one hand. We've been here nine months, and although it's rough enough, we're not going to leave it, especially now when we are getting the chance of a bit of land. There's my daughter, too, and her husband, who is a house-painter. They are living up at the top end (near Bunyip), and their children that were always sickly in Melbourne are fine and healthy. I didn't like the life, and I don't like it now; but where the fun comes in is on Monday morning, when there's no landlord. (3)

One issue the settlers had to face was the lack of schooling. The Warragul Guardian reported on February 6, 1894 - As yet the Government have not seen fit to provide schools for the children, who are running about in scores, and it is estimated that there are 150 children of school ago at the Bunyip end. The neglect to provide school accommodation is a serious reflection on the Education department. (4) The Iona State School and the Koo Wee Rup North State School were both opened in July 1894. Read about them, here.

Iona - looking to the south side of the Main Drain.

Berwick Pakenham Historical Society photo

The Age of January 22, 1894 had a glowing report about the fertility of the soil All down the line of the main drain are settlers' houses of canvas, felt, or weatherboard, and around them are vegetable gardens of luxuriant growth. Nearly every settler is already practically independent of the rest of the world in the matter of food. They would certainly be entirely so if vegetarians. They have potatoes in abundance and of most excellent quality, cabbages weighing from 10 to 15 lb. apiece, turnips of prodigious size, and a multitude of other garden products of really superior quality, and when you taste them you have to confess that the sour land yields very palatable food. (5) [Sour land is a term for acidic soils]

Settlements on the banks of the Main Drain

The Koo Wee Rup Swamp from The Illustrated Australian News February 1, 1894.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/46198

There were a few shops on the Swamp including a store run by the Government, however for the women used to the range of shops available in the City, they had a very limited choice. Farther on we arrived at a store run by the department in the interests of the settlers. As is known the settlers are allowed to earn certain amounts per month, according to the numbers of their families. The amounts are small and have to be made the most of. It was found that local price for necessaries were beyond their slender means, so this store was opened under the management of the department to supply groceries, clothing, &c., at the lowest possible prices. It is State Socialism without disguise. The goods are retailed at a profit only sufficient to meet the expenses. (6) 

Another report said All the provisions are distributed from the various stores by hand, the storekeepers or their assistants plodding manfully through the heavy mud every afternoon with baskets on their bucks, containing from 90lb, to 100lb. weight of provisions. (7) The same report said that Sly grog-shops and beer shanties are numerous, so the settlers didn’t miss out there.

Public transport was also another benefit of living in the City - however a report in The Australasian of September 29, 1894 seemed to think that the horse tramway was a good alternative to the train and tram network in the City At each end from the railway station along the side of the main channel a horse tramway has been constructed and in this respect few places in the colony, both for railway and postal service, are better served. All these conveniences are appreciated by people who have previously lived in town, and without which some of them would probably not stay at all. (8)

 A settler's home

The Koo Wee Rup Swamp from The Illustrated Australian News February 1, 1894.

State Library of Victoria http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/46198

So, what was the reality– many of the blocks were too wet to make a good living, some were too small – only five acres and even the 20 acre blocks were not necessarily large enough to make a living. The work was hard The men work up to the knees in slimy mud. The surface roots of ti-tree are very numerous, but a second and far more troublesome layer of roots is met with about three feet down.(9) As well, many of the settlers did not re-locate voluntarily – A large proportion of the colonists are artisans from the cities, and the wife of one of these men expressed to us her disgust of her present surroundings, and preference for her old home in one of the suburbs, and there are, doubtless, many others who find the situation trying. Some few have joined the settlement from choice, seeing in it a means of ultimately rendering themselves practically independent. (10) It would appear that the settler’s willingness to move in the beginning had an influence in the success of the scheme.

Many of the settlers relied on the wages they received for working on the drains, however this work finished in November 1897, so unless they could find other employment, or their farm was enormously successful this would have been another reason to leave. The Village Settlement Scheme on the Swamp was abandoned in 1899 and the land was opened for selection in the regular way.

Acknowledgement - I must acknowledge the book  From Swampland to Farmland: a history of the Koo Wee Rup Flood Protection District by David Roberts. (Published by Rural Water Commission in 1985) in preparation of this blog post.

Trove list - I have created a list of articles, on Trove, from 1893 and 1894 which describe life in the Village Settlements on the newly drained Koo Wee Rup Swamp.  You can access it here. All the articles referenced here are on the list.

Footnotes

(1) Warragul Guardian, February 6, 1894, see here.

(2) Australasian June 3, 1893, see here.

(3) The Argus July 11, 1893, see here.

(4) Warragul Guardian, February 6, 1894, see here.

(5) The Age January 22, 1894, see here.

(6) The Age January 22, 1894, see here.

(7) The Argus, July 11, 1893, see here.

(8) The Australasian, September 29, 1894, see here.

(9) Warragul Guardian February 6, 1894, see here.

(10) Warragul Guardian February 6, 1894, see here.

The Minister of Lands visits the Koo Wee Rup Swamp January 19, 1894.

On Friday, January 19, 1894 the Minister of Lands, Mr M'Intyre, the Chief Surveyor, Mr Callinan and the Chief Engineer of the Public Works Department, Carlo Catani, visited the Koo Wee Rup Swamp. It was reported in The Age of January 22, 1894. It is transcribed below and you can see the original on Trove, here. It is a good description of life on the Swamp.

THE KOOWEERUP SWAMP.  

VISIT BY THE MINISTER OF LANDS.

BY OUR SPECIAL REPORTER

Mr. M'Intyre, Minister of Lands, accompanied by Mr. Callinan, chief surveyor of his department, and Mr. C. Catani, engineer in charge of roads, bridges and reclamation works, made a visit of inspection on Friday to the Kooweerup Swamp. In 1890 this particular area was 52,900 acres of water 2 to 3 feet deep, shaded by scrub.In 1892 a drain had been constructed to 4 miles from Western Port. Bloomfield Brothers then contracted to carry the drain 2 miles further inland, and subsequently (when the unemployed difficulty had to be faced by the late Ministry) that contract was extended indeinitely on condition that no fewer than 400 men were employed on the work. In March, 1893, the arrangement was terminated and the 400 men were thrown out of employment.Next month the new and present Minister of Lands appeared on the scene, and he found the men clamoring for work. "Look here," he said, "if I give you a block of land each and employment at the drainage every alternate week, you to work every other week on your own land, will that suit ? " The answer came immediately in loud cries of "Yes!" Mr. M'Intyre had no legal power to do this, but he believed it to be a right thing, and took the chance of Parliament ratifying his action. The land along the main drain was duly plotted out in 20 acre lots, and the men returned to work under the new system.

 It is no exaggeration to describe what has followed as a wonderful transformation scene. The water has been gathered into channels, and the main channel forms a rapid little river, whose velocity has to be checked by means of artificial "drop downs " or falls every mile or so. The reclaimed land is of very extraordinary richness, having some 6 to 9 feet of vegetable mould on a bed of clay. The mould is no longer actually boggy, but it is nearly as pervious as a snow drift. You can easily push a walking stick into it to the handle, and it is quite elastic or springy under the feet. It Is evident that this is soil which is not only in want of the sweetening influence of the sun, but that it is very much in need of compression. It is also evident, however, that it is not necessary to wait for the sweetening and the compression before putting this land to a good use.

All down the line of the main drain are settlers' houses of canvas, felt, or weatherboard, and around them are vegetable gardens of luxuriant growth. Nearly every settler is already practically independent of the rest of the world in the matter of food. They would certainly be entirely so if vegetarians. They have potatoes in abundance and of most excellent quality, cabbages weighing from 10 to 15 lb. apiece, turnips of prodigious size, and a multitude of other garden products of really superior quality, and when you taste them you have to confess that the sour land yields very palatable food.

The Koo Wee Rup Swamp - a settler's home.

A vegetable garden of luxuriant growth as described in the article.

Image: The Illustrated Australian news, February 1, 1894.

State Library of Victoria Image IAN01/02/94/4c

The settlers' houses are well scattered, but those of them on the main channel standing in line seem to form at one place a street three to four miles in length. Then comes a break in the settlement due to the reservation of land for sale by auction, and nearing the Great Southern railway primitive houses again come into evidence scattered broadeast over the reclaimed swamp. To Mr. M'Intyre it was truly a very gratifying sight.

At the Bunyip railway station Mr. M'Intyre was interviewed by Mr. Charles Wilson on behalf of himself and 11 other men who desire to form what they would call the Blue Gum Valley Land Settlement Association It was stated that the men were all hard workers and residents about Longwarry and Drouin, and they coveted 2000 acres on the highest part of the swamp to the south of Longwarry. Mr. M'Intyre asked that the names should be forwarded to him, and promised to give the matter consideration. He however pointed out that Parliament had determined that in future swamp land should be sold. Mr. M'Intyre and party next embarked on a very primitive but serviceable tram car which was drawn by a reinless horse over a tram line built by the settlers, with timber provided by the Government at the small cost of about £50 per mile. The car was loaded with bags of flour, boxes of provisions and eight passengers ; and although the progress made was slow, it was safe and sure. At the end of a mile and a half we came to a locality known as the Bunyip Junction, where there is a general store and an experimental garden - the latter being a departmental affair.

Behind the store half a dozen men were working one of Davies and Company's Bennett American stump pullers. This seemed rather slow work, but the settlers said it was very effective and satisfactory. The machine is provided by the department, and the settlers are charged about 1s a day for the privilege of using it. The experimental garden is a plot of 2 acres, and it is a complete success. It was only started in August last, but it is already covered with all kinds of vegetables, fruit trees and grasses. Apricots and cherries are doing remarkably well, cabbages are as big as cheddars and as hard as boulders ; there are heavy crops of very toothsome peas and beans ; also splendid samples of sugar beet, lint, maize, buckwheat, clover, &c.

The Koo Wee Rup Swamp - Settlements on the bank of the Main Drain.

This is the serviceable tram car which was drawn by a reinless horse over a tram line built by the settlers, described in the article. 

Image: The Illustrated Australian News, February 1, 1894.

State Library of Victoria Image IAN01/02/94/4a

At the Minister's request some potatoes wore dug up; and there was a pot full at every root; although they were only planted four months ago. A medium sized cabbage weighed 10 lb.This garden has  served its purpose. It has demonstrated what the soil of the Kooweerup swamp is capable of in the immediate present, and it will now be disposed of by the department, probably to the gardener, a Mr. Pincott, who is one of the settlers.

Two houses, alleged to be sly grog shanties, were called at, and the occupants received what should prove vary salutary warnings from the Minister. A settler named West, who has 20 acres allotted to him in one part of the Swamp and who has cleared several acres there, expressed a desire to change his 20 acres for 5 acres nearer Bunyip. There are about 30 others anxious to make a similar exchange. The complaint is that the land they hold is not yet sufficiently dry for cultivation. The land they now desire is part of an area on a slightly higher level reserved for sale ; but no sooner did Mr. M'Intyre see the land objected to than he jumped at the proposal made. "Five acres elsewhere for 20 acres here? Yes," he said, " It's a bargain." There could be no doubt that the despised country was of immense value, which was indicated by luxuriant crops of thistles wherever clearings had been made, and that the bargain, although it may suit the present settlers now, will be to the ultimate advantage of the State.

Farther on we arrived at a store run by the department in the interests of the settlers. As is known the settlers are allowed to earn certain amounts per month, according to the numbers of their families. The amounts are small and have to be made the most of. It was found that local price for necessaries were beyond their slender means, so this store was opened under the management of the department to supply groceries, clothing, &c., at the lowest possible prices. It is State Socialism without disguise. The goods are retailed at a profit only sufficient to meet the expenses. The consequence is an all round reduction in prices by about 33 per cent. Boots for which 16s. had to be paid elsewhere are here obtainable at 9s. 6d. ; mole trousers are sold at 5s. instead of 6s. 6d., ling at 5d. instead of 1s. per lb., soap at 4½d. instead of 6d., tea at 10d. instead of 1s. 6d., sugar at 2d. instead of 3d., and so on. The amount of business done by the store is about £30 a week, and it has been in successful operation since November last.

Close to Kooweerup railway station a stump extractor was examined with much interest. It is a heavy triangular structure with two steel edged beams, and is pulled by a team of oxen. It tears up every root. The department have provided this implement; and let it out at a price equivalent to 8s. an acre. Some of the local settlers asked for the construction of a bridge over the main drain on the ground that they had been debarred from using the railway bridge. Mr. M'Intyre seemed rather indignant at the action of the Railway department in this matter, and he promised to provide the material for a small bridge if the settlers would erect it themselves. This was eagerly agreed to. On the whole of the swamp there are now 368 settlers, representing about 2000 souls, and it was estimated by a local official, who has full knowledge of them, that at least 70 per cent, are permanently fixed on the soil. As to what might happen to the reclaimed swamp in case of a phenomenal flood, time only can reveal. It was pointed out to the visitors that whereas the water in the main channel is only from 6 to 18 inches in depth it ran a banker in the flood of last year, but that it only overflowed and caused damages at certain points, where flood gates to keep the water back have now been constructed. Mr. M'Intyre and his party returned to town on Friday night by the Great Southern line.