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Scenes from the Great Depression � Australia
WIFE IN MAN'S CLOTHES FOUND IN TRAIN.
. . . . . . . . WITH HUSBAND UNDER SEAT.
Before Magistrate Parker. The story of a young couple's persistent misfortune was related.
Horace Hardy, 20, and his wife, Ada Hardy, 19, were charged with travelling on the railway without tickets.
They were found at Wagga, hiding under the seat of a carriage. The woman was dressed in man's clothing and both were badly scared when discovered.
Hardy informed the magistrate that he had spent his last penny on their tickets at Moss Vale. He had been out of work for some time, and wanted to get to Melbourne in order to look for work, which he couldn't get in New South Wales.
The pair had not been married long. Each was fined ten pounds and ordered to pay one pound eleven shillings and sixpence compensation, in default nine days imprisonment.
(Published in The Railroad August 1928.
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BEN CHIFLEY
� from train driver to Prime Minister
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"I should not be a Member of this Parliament today if some tolerance had been extended to the men who took part in the strike of 1917. All that harsh and oppressive treatment did as far as I was concerned was to transform me, with the assistance of my colleagues, from an ordinary engine driver into the Prime Minister of this country."
Ben Chifley
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There are trains that carry men and women to the city and country, sheep trains, troop trains, stock trains and "poison" trains to kill weeds that would choke the track if not dealt with promptly.
Train names have become part of our folklore
One of our most famous trains was called 'The Fish' and, as is with folklore, the meaning was lost over time. Sometimes other meanings are circulated. The 'Fish' train was so-called because the driver's name was Salmon, the fireman was Trout and guard Pike
(Found in the manuscript papers of Cunningham Henderson (Born1864-1950)
- The Fish - Blue Mountains
- The Chips - Blue Mountains
- Indian Pacific � trans continent
- The Ghan � trans continent
- Spirit of Progress - Syd/Melb
- Southern Aurora - Syd Melb
- The Overland � Melb/Adelaide
- Sunlander � Northern run to Cairns
- Inlander � Townsville to Mt Isa
- Westlander � to Charleville
- Gulflander � Normanton to Croydon in the Gulf Country
- Prospector � to Kalgoorlie
- Australind � to Bunbury
- Vinelander � Victoria Mildura
- Silver City Comet � Broken Hill (world's first air conditioned train)
- The Heron - Blue Mountains to Sydney
- Silver Slug � Sydney to W'gong
- The Slogger � Mt Victoria 6.09am to Sydney.
A Texan is bragging to an Australian on the train journey across the Nullabour.
"In Texas", he drawls, "you can get on a train, ride all day long, and still be in Texas by nightfall".
"Yeah," replies the Englishman, "we have slow trains here too".
Camels at Burke Railway Station
The Australian railways were built by men from all walks of life and all nations. The Afghans, with their camels, played a leading role and have been commemorated by the naming of the trans-continent train, The Ghan. It has been said there are more wild camels in the Australian outback than the entire Middle East.
Railway Refreshment Rooms One of the most distinctive aspects of the early Australian railway was the culture of the Railway Refreshment Rooms � or 'Triple R' � as they were affectionately known. These establishments provided take away food and drink and also, in some venues, sit down meals.
Quality at the RRR depended on the staff and considering that some trains rolled into the station at 3am in the morning, would stop for 14 minutes as passengers ran, grabbed and guzzled and gulped, it was no wonder some of the staff had sour faces. The RRR staff, mostly women were amongst the earliest unionised.
The RRR's most treasured secret was the 'railway pie'. By the 1930s the railway kitchens in each State were producing millions of pies every year. They were all steak or steak and kidney and, from memory, they weren't half bad. Some country RRR supplied their own local pies and at Werris Creek in 2005 I talked to some retired RRR women who all claimed that the Werris Creek pies were the best ever.
RRR waitress: what do yer want?
Weary traveler: how about a cup of tea, a pie and a few kind words?
Waitress: There's yer tea. There's yer pie. That's two and sixpence.
Weary traveler: what about the few kind words?
Waitress: Don't eat the pie!
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 Railway Refreshment Room Singleton Station, NSW.
2005 saw the opening of the Werris Creek Railway Museum and nearby Memorial to railway men and women who have died in wars. The old Railway Refreshment Room houses the museum and considering Werris Creek was the first purposely-built railway town, it is well worth exploring when next you visit the New England region. The station is well preserved and the local pies are still excellent!
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ON THE QUEENSLAND RAILWAY LINE
On the Queensland railway lines
There are stations where one dines
Private individuals
Also run refreshment rooms
CHORUS
Bogan-Tungan, Rollingstone,.
Mungar, Murton, Marathone,
Guthalungra, Pinkenba,
Wanko, Yaamba, - ha, ha, ha!
Males and females, high and dry,
Hang around at Durikai,
Boora-Mugga, Djarawong,
Giligulul, Wonglepong.
Pies and coffee, baths and showers
Are supplied at Charters Towers;
At Mackay the rule prevails
Of restricting showers to males.
Iron rations come in handy,
On the way to Dirranbandi,
Passengers have died of hunger
During halts at Garradunga,
Let us toast, before we part,
Those who travel, stout of heart,
Drunk or sober, rain or shine,
On a Queensland railway line.
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Bottom image is a mail sorting room
Some of the early train carriages were extremely well fitted out with gas lighting, leather seats and carpet.
THE TRIPLE R
Napoleon – the warrior,
In days of long ago,
Gave out some words of wisdom,
To his soldiers, grouped below,
An army! thundered 'Boney'
On its stomach, goes to fight,
And after an inspection, of the RRR
Nap's Right!
For an army in its thousands,
Daily marches to the sign,
Where they fill your little tummies,
When you travel down the line,
See them sit and toy with cutlets,
Cups of tea and coffee too,
Pies and curry, rice and custard,
Soups, Porterhouse and 'Stoo'.
Mid the rattle of the crockery,
Scullery girls in snowy dresses,
Wash the dishes neat and clean,
Cups, saucers, spoons and teapots,
At attention! Stand and shine;
For they're waiting on the diners,
That will come at dinner time.
Watch them piling on the sauces,
With their sausages and mash,
Some eat slowly, others rush it,
Then they swiftly make a dash,
For a bell is loudly ringing,
As they hurry through the door,
With ports and rugs and baskets,
For the seven twenty-four.
But the man who really matters,
Is the cook, who stands and waits,
For the browning of the sausage,
With an eye upon the gates,
Then down the chute you hear it,
Eggs and bacon! Soup for two!
Then our cook twirls up his whiskers
And the grills prepare to do.
Up the chute the grills go sailing,
To the girls that wait with trays,
Watch them quick and safely stack 'em.
As they go their many ways,
There's a glass of milk for baby,
And a grill for Honey Sue,
Then old grandpa in the corner,
Roars out “How about my stoo!”
So I could go on forever,
Just describing how they eat,
How they wait and grow impatient,
Roll their eyes and stamp their feet,
But in spite of modern methods,
We can't live on sand and tar,
Let this game of 'eats' continue,
At the good old RRR.
The Railroad 1939
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'Strafing' could mean struggle to get through the carriage. These are the old ticket snappers that have a history of their own and Johnson, the author of this ditty, often uses the word " flapper" the 20's expression for women, as in 'chicks'.
 The standard RRR joke was:
"What's worse than finding a mouse in your railway pie?"
To which the answer inevitably came:
"Half a mouse!"
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