A monthly Bulletin of matters of interest to The Sydney Bush Walkers, 5 Hamilton Street, Sydney.

The point of noon is past, outside: light is asleep;
brooding upon its perfect hour: the woods are deep
and solemn, filled with the unseen presences of light
that glint, allure, and hide them; ever yet-more bright
(it seems) the turn of a path will show them: nay, but rest;
seek not, and think not; dream, and know not; this is best:
the hour is full; be lost: whipering, the woods are bent,
This is the only revelation; be content.

By Christopher Brennan.

I;'ERSON!f!'LITIES & INCIDENTS MET ON AC'J::,;:;.s COill:J'TRY TREK. By DOROTHY H..!'..SLUCK. The lure of unknown tracks once more calling, Ray in whom names strike a chord of ·r-esponse was intrigued by the name “Dampier Rangesn. So forth she goes with a sugge~tion that we start from Moruya, follow the Geo1·ges Pack Trail to Bendethra and traverse the Dampiers to Cooma. I also being fired with the idea, Ray immediately set out to gain as mucn information as possible, but in spite of all her efforts very little was attained, of whi·ch more anon. Arriving at I:Ioruya_ we were m~t by very depressing accounts of the dangers that awaited us, dingoes being one, until we felt we were about to penetrate.the wilds of Tibet or worse. However nothing daunted we set forth and at our first camping spot met our first two pers0l1alities in the shape of sleeper cutters. Whenever they finished work vvhich seemed pretty freq-uent, they came along and just sat on their haunches.saying nothing; reminding me very forcibly of the old man who when asked what he did all day said, “Sometimes I just sets and thinks and sometimes I just sets”. Well, these two just set as far as I could see while Ray and I cast round desperately for topics of conversation, all falling on the d~sert air; especially one on-vegeterianism. That was the only time I saw any expressions on their faces, which looked o.s though they thought us escaped lunatics. Through a change of plan we crossed the Dampiers instead of traversing them, thus reachir-g Can Eunice Station, where we were received vvi th much kindness by Mrs. Griggs, a most interesting woman. On tqp of doing all the work, cooking for shearers, baY~ng bread ~nd making butter, she had achieved a very beautiful garden, was most artistic and very well read~ In the course of conversation she mentioned that a Mr. Jack Woods had last year crossed Black Badger from Cooma and calle~ at the Station. You can imag~ne Ray's disgust on hearing this; as she was in the habit of seeing the gentleman almost every day and hadn't even known he walked. Methinks he was a dark horse. We left here with very warm feelings for the occupants and proceeded to the local P.O. as I wanted to send a wire, rather unheard of you'd think, vn1en I was met with 111iifhatever do you want to. send a wire for? 11 There was then a vJild hunt for the one and only pencil, the mother finally deciding after about ten minutes that the child must have taken it. All the time a long harangue went on about the amount the Government charged for its services, the effect of which was rather lost on discovering that she had overcharged me. To cap all, after making out the. form, with a grumbled 111Nhy should I kee_p this?” she crumpled it up and threw it into the waste paper basket before the outraged eyes of we two business women. Our next port of call was a small farm where we were to get directions for a short cut. Short, did I say? These people were most hospitable and we were very impressed by the self sacrifice of the wife, w~o though not in very good health and vrith a great deal of work to do, had put aside her petrol iron so that she might do her share in the saving of petrml. The next day was very cold and bleak and on calling at a house some miles c further on for more instructions, the woma … ~ .<..t:: one look r;;t. our bare legs said.t “0- come into the fire• God he help you”. She tlwn tolcl us to continue on until we came to tha sixth house from where we could cut acroqe to Po.rk~r'a Gap, and thcmce on to Co.ptuin 's Fln.t, Wa went on nnd' on, the sixth house turning out to be twelve miles o.wo.y. By this time ·bh\J short cut had run :t.,d:o 22. miles so 1i.'·;) decided to call it o. duy, o.s the Gp.p still loomed in th~;~ dist.:,1~t hills, The country is full of surprises, for c.s wo were wonor:U~-:.g on: wo.~r thrc:-1.~.gh t:; .. J bush tho next day, W<:l met a bullock. ten.m driven by a. boy Wuurin.;s e. :::L::;'e School bndge. After c. few hours waU·..:i.ng v1e reached Cuptain' s :F'1o.t, so c~.1.:Llocl aft or o. frunous bullock which ho.d died there • Amidst all tho m:l.ui~g bl..\ildings nnd debris, therewo.s ona lone tree ·which Ray v1as qui to sure must have boon the tree th•.l fo..“llous Capto.in ho.d U£>.!cl to rub his back ngninst, as never would it ho.va been spared otherwise; the one spot of botlut;y o.midst the desolation. He concluded our trip at Co.nberro. which wn.s garbed in o.ll the boo.uty of spring, forming a. strong con trust to Nature Is beauty throu£;11 which we had tr0~c1.::od in the last fortnight. These arc just a. few of the personal incidents which, to me, add greo.tly to the enjoyment of a trip. There is so much to be learned from contact with peo1Jle other than those we aro ~·· ··ting every dey, for it gives us a wider understanding, the lack of which is :..;-ponsiblc for much of the hatred and strife in the world. NEW GUI1L .. L by EZC. CiJRRUTHERS? When I first knew I was on my v~o:y to Hew Guinea I triad to conjure up all the ncv~s I hnd he::trd and read about the plo.ce and could only remember something about head hunters. I recalled hearing Jock Marshall lecturing one night but I was very hazy as to what the country was like. Full of expectations of something tropical I watched the dim distant coastline gradually assume larger proportions and through the shimmering heat haze I discerned mountains in the distance. On a very hot afternoon we disembarked and I was very much intere9ted in the native population who seemed to be lying around in convenien~ patches of <;· shade. The scene just looked like a bush walker re~on after lunch. The natives were only wearing ramis and showed well develop~d torsos, At fi~st glance they looked like women as they have large mops ot frizzy hair which ~s ~. usually ·ado:ned with a tropical flower - the frangipanni is very popular. Their features are good and they are not what I pictured head hunters to be. When spoken to they usually giggle although a number of mission taught boys are always reaQy to do business such as washing of clothes or the selling of bangles, bananas, etc. These chaps usually live in the native villages which fringe the shores. Some of these are very picturesque·· as they are framed in a grove of cocoanut 4, palms. Pigs, dogs and piccaninnies roam around the huts ana. play together in the dust and mud. Their dwellings consist of huts built.on poles and constructed from bambos and woven palm leaves. They are rather cool to live in and are mterproof even in heavy rainstorms. . The women do most of the work in the camp and it is quite the usual thing to se0 a kikenny chopping the wood while the menfo~k sit around yarning or smoki~g plug tobacco. The women mostly wear only a grass skirt in accordance with the tropical stories. So far the natives have been like bush walkers but when gear has to be carried it is always the woman who docs th.; carrying. Rather a good idea I think. She uses a woven dilly bag which hangs over her back and is supported by a hand around her foro head, On first a~)pearance the countryside is very similar to our own State especially on the' southern coastal area around Gerringong, Gum trees grow profu9ely and intermingle with pandanus Jlalms and pawpaw trees. In ord0r to provide shade the inhabitants have planted a very pleasant glade of casuarina trees. Furthe·r out from the tovm small peculiar shaped hills break up the coastal plains and present some fine ·sights. Rocky knolls are a feature of the landscape and combine with a mantle of green foliage in creating an impression of verdent pastures. From a high vantage point a £:ine view can. be obtained of a lexge area which includes a fei.v m:Lles of coastline out frqm ·vuhich lazy breakers form a line of white f·oam as they curl over the coral :r-cqf. Small hills in the immediate foreground lead up to .a vast mountain ran·ge .culminating in the .mighty Mount Victcilr:i t;l·which rises to nearly 1~{000 feet and ·forms p~rf of the Owen Stanley Range. From this same view:Joint the whole countryside ·presents a mixture of greens as trees, bushes and grasses intermingle and ~:>rovidc homes for numerous wallabies and bandicoots. Away in the distance a line of dnrk groan trees denote the course of the Lalaki River with its rapids and crocodiles. Portions of this· river are very similar to the Port He.cking. -,;i th the exception that now and aguin cocoanut and banana ulantations remind one that he is still tn the_tropics, Further upstream how~ver~ the whole countryside alters and the river rush~s wildly over huge boulders and between towering and precip- > itous cliffs. That is in the mountainous r0gion where some fine scenery rouses the bush walker blo9d 1?-nd makes the photographer very enthusiastic. It was in.tho mountains that Arthur Austin and myself spent a very pl~asant time chatting over past eXlJeriances and admirin,g the scenery. It was the first time I bad met Arthur for two yen.rs so· v'H~ h'O:d a lot to s:::w to e<:tch other. We . ' • •' •' . . ' ·. t u . . did not boil the billy although we ·did enjoy ci ·ari:nls: from a dcligl1tful mo,untain stream . .that splashed down some rocky vmlls. · · - '·· It is runongst the mount<iins that the Laloki finds 'its source and there are a number of views that ramind m'c of portions of the Kowmung. For the first few miles the r.iver falls ra}Jidly and rushes oVer rocky bars before p=!-ui),ging for 250 feet down to a narrow canyon where it roars as it twists and.turns around massive blocks of conglomerate rock that litter the narrow dofilo. Patch0s of tropical jungle growth are seen occasionally as vines and tall trees intertwine and form almost impenetrable forests.. The whole area i~ similar to our Macquaric Pass with massive :rocky walls for.m~ng thG sides of th~:. valley. ————–~———–~ Walking up here is not a. very populc.r pc.&time as the: hoc.. t does not encourage undue exertion. There are lJlenty of nla.ces'- Worthy of a visit but off the bea.ten tra.ck the long grass hides pitfo.lls in tho form of holes, rocks and logs. _There are numerous cruks and springs a.bout but j_t is not always advisable to drink the wa.ter a.s the no.tives cannot be trustocl in their metho→3 of hygeine. A few miles_bo.ck from the town there o.rc some high spots· from whore views of distant mountain ranges ca.n be seen beckoning to the wa.ndorur to come and cXj?lbre,. ·rhey look very interesting but so fa.r I have not been a.b_le t-o go o.nd have a look a.t them. CamJ_Jing in this a.reo. is very plca.sc.nt and. rom.indcd me of some of our week end ca.mps around the mountains. Our t\.n~t w::..s si tua.ted in a v0ry picturesque spot surrounded bzt—tr.:;es and other- ·t;a.1l chaps tha.t grow in clumps. We enjoyed some very good cu,s of coffee while a.t this camp and I introduced the beverage to the boys, as we had f~csh milk a.nd America.n coffee the results were better t'l;J.an I expected. We were also fortuna.te in being able to obta.in ba.na.na.s, paw J?:·:ws, tomo.t00S pumpkins and svreot pota.tQes, all brought in by the natives. It ·was quitQ the usual thing to soe a native come to the tent with a. bundle under his a.rm and sa.y “noospa.pern. He would immediately barter a. few sheets of paper for his fruit or vegetable and he went away quite contented he could go and roll a few cigarettes and enjoy a qui.::t smoke for a fov: hours before runn:i.ng out of 11noospa.:rer11 • These chaps co..n speak a. little of our la.nguo.ge but have some o..musing ways of describing vc.rious things? Most of the Bushwalkers wiil remember the way they describe the cross-c1.1.t S;J.W:- “Brother belong a.xe, pullom him como, push em him go, all tine kai ko..~. (.;a. t) tro0. 11 They o.re not a.lvn–.ys so roundabout in their descriptions o..nC. i:Z :_:r0:porly educated and trained arc qui to brainy a.nd useful, I h:>,ve net a. few vvho could speak as well o.s most white men and who were well educated and interesting. They arc very few, however, most of the n::-.tives being simple folk who h<.\.VC a. very a.nusing wa.y of laughing CLt life. Bird life around Port Moresby is very sco.rcc, the :most co:,tr'lon visitor being the noisy friCLr who certainly ke0ps UJ.) to his no.r1o, csyociuly e.::trly in tho morning ·when we are trying to get ”'- fcvv extra. minutes of ulo0~1. 'rhG old crow ro;:u-:!.S q.ro und, uruno lest.:; d, <…md mo..li:.es so1~c v0 ry C\.r.msing no is.:: s o.. t o..ppropria.te moments. Ho is protcct0d in this area so he c~u1 afford to G o..y Ha.l Hd Ha.o..l ~ This dosc:riJ.Jtion of Port Lioresby vvould not be COI:ll1leto without soi:J.e re:foronces to our own conditions. SloG~) is a. v-.:;ry 1)recious thing although ho..rd to obtn.in. Owing to tho hords of mosquitos, nets are ossoutia.l. ~. This mo~ns tho..t we spend very hot nights in our nets o..nd although stripped off we c::-.n~ot stop tho pers~irCLtion fran pouring out of our bodies. Masqui toes, flies and a.nts all present problor:.1s but we still nc..na.ge to saile a.nd take it all in the trctdi tiona.l Aussie s~;iri t, so I r.n.1st tba.nk the Club for ny l)r.;;vious tro..ining with ny follow me1.1bers of the old da.ys o.nd I q.m quite ha.ppy in the fact that exporLmce gained in the Australian bush is st::;.nding o.e in good stead now th~::.t events hc.ve to.ken o. serious turn, Whether on the Blue Mountains of New South \''.los or th.c Mounto.ins of New Guinea., tho spirit·of coLJ.ra.deship still prcvo.ils o.nd a,.ll our trio.ls and troubles· o.'re ~vell worth the while if vw ·can keep our country free frou the ywllow peril. GOOBRt.~.GANDP.A CAi'IPSITE. For two do.ys we ho.d wo.lkod by conpuss course o.cross a bla.nk spa.cc on o. totally in.b.dct:tua.te tourist rmp. \J”Jc hccd tra.nped over trackless swamps, cmmod nidst snow drifts, be.::n confronted 1Nith u rmltitude of cattle tro.~ks, but uhr.ct;;rs on our loft were the lovely towering Bogong Pee:.ks that invited us to to.ke our direction frou them o.nd se~ued to be ke~ping u watchful eye upon us. Then vve hud cor.tc to the to:) of the “Zig.zugn, an QDo_zing cattle pa.ss that winds in zigzag fQshion soLJ.e thousand feet or so to th river valley below. It wns a. stupendous tlowent.. .L·The ma.p ha.d given no indication of the glories of tha.t river va.lley. The river itself, a. silver threo.d, wound its wo.y between green trce2 clo.d hills to the fur disto.nco, whore it becaLJ.e lost in tho foothills of lovely nisty blue pco.ks. Here and thoro wJre tiny dots that indicccted hol:lestoo.ds, o.nd occasionally tho vQlloy widened into fertile lookin.:; flc.ts. After cc long tine we descended to the river. An exciting bolter skelter strea.r:1 the Goobragandra, that races over rocks and rapids o.nd swirls o..round the river bends in aba.ndonDcmt. In the lo.te o.ftcrnoon we rounded a. band and were confronted with an obvious ca.npsito. Fron our feet ·ran o.. brilliantly gre..;n tiny river flat, on the far side of wln_ch w.;;re a. grou1) of to..ll and stettely elo.s, whose uutur.m tinted leo..vcs were illu::.1ina ted by the last ro.ys of the sun. We bud co1:1e fror.1 tho bitter cold of the highla.nd9 to tho COl:llJ:::Lra. tively ba.lily vullcy o.nd a.s we Dade our cn1:1p in those lovely surroundings wo o.ll felt I think that we hnd found perfection indeed. E • GARR.li.D • …. - - - - - - - -~·- c —————–··———-'—— 7. June 12 (Friday) June 26 (Friday) July 17 (Friday) July 31 (Friday) What! Not another Prospective· Muskell ?. The Voice of the Social Committee S n y s PLE¥E NOTE THE FOLLOVIING DATES:- 8 p.m. 8 p.m. 8 p.m. 8 p.m. Reg Alder vdth musical background will show his color slides. COME ALONG. Annual Photographic Exhibition. Mr,Neville Cuyley will tell us about “BIRD CAM:OUFLAGE 11 illustrated with slides. Club Room Party. Don't miss it ! ! l MEET MUSKEL AN.D . DAWN Ah! But Dawn is a walk Joe, she 1s be~n to Bure:, Pa, ;_ . . D2.ng ~s lots crf timan. 8. — -·— — ···—– -AT- ·O-U-R ·-OH-I~- -I,-L~J-!:·:T-IN-G In the n.bscnce of the President, Fra.nk Duncnn took tl10 chnir nt tho r_,r.;,jting~ The B.S. C. Photograp hl.C c onpe t.1 t.1 on vn. nners were anno u. n c.v d • ”'.·.'-·l_e,.,·,; - m”~n ru f.f.oorge Dibley, first, nnd Johnny Woods, second. The o.nin business of th..; e;vening wo..s n discD.ssion on Chc:.rlGs Jones' ;:-1ot·~.1J11 Thnt tho Club should send delegates to the Youth Pa.rlinnent. fl. sub-com:li ttee, nppointed by the General Conoittee reported in favour of sending d·:legates. The sub-.co1:1ni ttee wns of the opinion that the Club could the:reby further tvm of its objects, those of establishing n d.:dini te r•.:: :;c.rd for tho wild life nnd na.turnl boa.uty of this country, a.nd of helping othors to n:::lprccic.tc. those na.tul'uJ. gifts. In rGSlJonse to a.n invi ta.tion fron the Club, the Youth Pa.rlia.1:1ent sent a. speaker; Miss Morris, to a.ddress the 1:1eeting. hiiss Morris expla.ined tha. t the Easter sessions of the Youth P~:.rlinnent o.re modGlled exactly on the procedure of Pn.rlinr..1ent. A number of Bills a.re prGsented a.nd debn.ted. At the lust session the Bills dealt with Youth Employne:nt, 'Youth Educ2..tion, Physica.l Fitness a.nd Nationa.l Reconstruction. Lo..st December t\e subject of “Youth and the International Situation” was debated. The Po..r4.L:.:.il..;nt ha.s decided to give every support to the wa.r effort a.nd production, a.nd is trying to get into active work. Some of its merJ.bers are now engaged in collecting food a.nd clothes into depots for tho victims of the a.ir raids. A Youth Drive ha.s also been pla.nned. The Pu.rlianent a.lways n:?Plies to the Gove rm:1en t in power for the imp+CJ;wn ta.tion of the a.cts pa.ssed by it(The Youth Parliament). The meoting discussed the Youth Pc1.rlirunent a.t some len,::;th. i'Jc:.l Roots could not see how the Youth Pctrlio.ment could further the objects of the Club. He t!l.ought tha.t o.ll our effo·r·ts might be needed for keeping the Club together, and tha.t the Club might defer the question of a.ffili·-.._tion till a.fter the wa.r. :Rn.y Ilirkby pointed out tha. t a.mongst a.ll the Bills debated therC.J vvere none which directly concerned the Club. The main idea. of the Youth Pa.rlio.raont wa.s to cor.- sidcr sociul conditions. It would be ha.rd to avoid ha.ving to further the . objects of some p0litica.l ~0a.rtyo Our delegn.tes might, however publicise the work of the Bush 1::a.lking ooveoent, Ha.rie Byles wa.s in favour of sending delega.tes. She hoped tha.t the movement night develop nlong the lines of the Europea.n Youth Movea.;;nts. \'Ja.lking and cam1Jing wa.s an essentia.l part of the ncti vi ties of these movenents a.nd they were reS}')Onsible for bringing la.rge numbers of people to nn a.pprecia.tion of the outdoors. The question wa.s, not “wha.t could the Youth Pc:.rlia.ment_do for us?” but 11Wha.t could we do for the Youth Po.rlia.ment1” .fl.lex. Colley so..id tha.t the P.2rlin.mcnt had a. distinct politico..l bia.s, nnd tha.t the cause of conservntion could be better furthered by nn independent body. Other bodies, such a.s the N.R.M.~. a.nd Pa.rks a.nd Playground movement had found the sru~e. The delega.tes time could be better spent working through the Federa.tion. Cha.rlcs Jones, the mover of tho motion to se~·:.c1 dele gates, thought it wa.s extremely importu.nt to put the conserva.tion v~ .YvVJ?Oint to youth. He pointed out tho.t the Parlia.mcmt wa.s an excellent means of doing this. We night .o ·–_ 3_~– u.lso gain members by this mea.ns. He thougl;l.t we should be; o.shm:1od of oursGlves if we could not, u.s ho.d boon suggested, find four delegates to give u:1· th:~ir Ec..ster trip o.nd o.ttend the Pa.rlio.mcnt. The motion wns then put to the meeting nnd co.rried. FEDER.ll.TION. NOTES In ro:)ly to a. Fcdcro.tion letter re the co.rrytng of guns in the Kosciusko a.rco., the-Chief Secretary sa.id tha.t there wa.s o.lrca.dy dra.ft legisla.tion for the morerigid control of shooting in so.nctuo.rios. If it could be proved tha.t there were few noxious birds or unimo.ls in the !(osciusko ll.lpine Reserve, the ca.se for prohibiting shooting in the a.rea. would be strengthened. In reply. to a. Federation protest re dD.tl.'lSC to tre~s c.t the junction of U:j.ooloo D.nd Ka.ngo.roo Creeks the Superintcnd'-'l~t of Na.tiono.l Po.rk sa.id “The spot in question is o.wa.y in the gullie.s, a.nd not often visited by the Pa.rk sto.ff. 11 It wo.s resolved tha.t a.ny wo.lker ma.king a. mo.~ should submit n copy to the Federa.tion before ma.king it public. The Fcd;.;ration a.dol:>ted the report of the Comr.:ti tt(;~ on the Marking of Tracks. This report will be mo.de a.va.ila.ble to a.ll clubs a.nd sent to the Depo.rtment of La.nds, P<:crk Trusts. a.nd other bmdies. It is a. v..:ory well reetsoncd U.i.J.d. concise report a.nd the “Sydney Bushvv::.tlker11 intcmds to publish Gxtr~;.cts from it in the next issue. 44 adults and 1~ children were present at the Bouddi Natural Park working bee. 20 cypress trees were planted, 6 fire::~laces erected, a 5 ft. well sunk, fe:nces repaired, lantana cleared and a hut cleaned out. The President, ltir. Oliver-\rVyndharn, re1:>orted that, in response to the efforts of the Bushwalkers Emergency Cor,m.ittee 1a reconnaisance and guides corps is being formed by the V .D. c. The Bushv,ralkers are to be allotted the Sydney area, which extends from Newcastle to Nowra and inland .to Bathurst. 31 walkers have either promised to join the V.D.C. or work as auxiliaries. The work will be purely reconnaisance work. Groups of walkers will be allocated to particular areas, ap.d vvill be. required to. get to know the district ” well enough to be able to guide men either at night or day without the sli_ghtest difficulty. Girls will be able to help, but not officially. Rail warrants will be provided. · - -·—- ————– l_q_! _ CONSERVATION '• (1) How Timber-Cutti~ destroys For~~· By ABORES AUSTRALIS. If in the course of our bushvJalldng we see a lovely group of j;rees, blue-gums, for instance, and hear that ti~ber-oillers are going to cut it, we probably get very indignant and do our best to stop the desecration, From a scenic point of view we can probably judge better than most people. But from the forestry point of view nost of us are pretty poor judges, What determines whether k tree ought or ought not to be cut if the forest wealth of the country is to be cons,:-rved and dev~loped? Obviously if a tree is tall and straight and has reached the full limit of its grovvth, it is a pro1)er .troe for the sawmill, and both the forester and the sawmiller will be ~g~ed. The trouble is that the sawmiller very often wants to cut trees that have n0t reached the full limit of their growth. These lovely tall trees with another 15 or 20 years of rapid growth are the very al)J?le of his eye. They are also the apple of the eye of tha forester, and under no circumstances should they be cut unless they are growing too closely together, and of this tho forester is the only judge. Among the younger trees a certain nUJ:lber ~ust usually be cut to allow the others to reach full growth. But ar.1ong the very young treJs or saplings the thinning must be done with very great care, for if the~/ are to grow tall, straicht and branchless, the forester's ideal, they must grow clos·c togethc:r. If too rJany are removed th-.:: renaind”'r 1idll develop branches and so become useless as future timber. Tall, straight and branchless, fully grown and porf~ctly sound ~ that is the ty)e of troo that nakcs good tinbor, Hovr..::ver r.mch from a scenic or soil-erosian point of vicm VJG think othe;r t:r:e..::s ought to be conserved, fron tho point of view of com.1.::rcial tir2ber -oroduction, they arc of little or no use. Are tho bushvJalkors' and th..; for-:stors 1 views th'-'r0fore liahlo to be in conflict? Possibly! But rrith u littlo give and take on each side thoro is no reason why they should, for forostry is dofined to includo:Com. 1ercial tinb.:;r-production, soil consc.rvc::.tion and erosion control, devclopncnt and consorvation of scenic values, recreation values, shooting, gaLle prosorvation, fishing, flora consorvation, prcs0rvation of wooded lands for the sake of having wooded lands in d~sirable proportion to other lands. It is true that in our State, wh.:::r.:; funds for forestry are SQ linitod, tho first plays thG largest part in the Forestry Departnent 1s plans, but its officers assort that tho others are not lost sight of. (Next month: aHow bush firos destroy our tiuber resources“). 0 ? ·————-··——————- 11. -·——· ·— by CANDPUS • . . There arc quite a few people who arc not sure which is the Southern Cross, and nany more who do not kno1i-r vrhcro to look for it. During the year the Cross nal:es a con::_Jlcte clockwise circle in tho s'k<J.,as, in f<J.ct, do all the other stars. The circle it describes touchos the South.::rn horizon and coues to a point nearly overhead, The centro of this ci:cclc is known as the South Celestial Pole. This is a. point of smJ.c significance to Bush 1_',Jalkers because it is alvvays in exactly the Sc'..l:le place in the sky and is diroctly south. To find this point dravJ an inaginary line fro1:1 the head to thc foot of the Cross and project it three and a half times its own length. At present the Cross is n~arly overhead in tho c~rly evening. It is sot in the Milky Way, and lying against it to the East is a p;:;ar shaped black space known as the “Coal So.ck11 • This is not a sort of bL:ck hole in tho sky, buta large mass of gas which obscuras tho stars beyond it. To the East of the Cross are the two pointers. The brighter of those, Alpha Contauri, is the second nearest star to th-:: ~o.rth. It is 4.2 light years away from us. To the ancients, boforo a Cross had any significance for mankind, tho two pointers and the two stars of the Cross nearly L1. lino vJi th them, woro imagined as th ..: : four feet of the Ccnto..ur, Chiron, who instructed Jason and the heroes in tho arts of peace and war. It ~~s soon on the horizon at Jerusalem at th-.: time of the Crucifixion, l:n~“c t!o.s not knovm as a separate constellation until at least the fifto0nth c'”':1tury. - - - - - - - - - - N 0 T E (l~D TO BE NOTED) ALL YE WHO PRIDE YOURSELVES IN THE POSSESSION OF 11 THOSE GOOD PICTURES” BRING THEM INTO THE LIJY[ELIGHT OF THE FORTHCOMING EXHIBITION - 11 THE S. B. rT. Sl\..LON11 , - THL':..T OTHERS },1li.Y ALSO ENJOY THEIR R':..RE BEAUTY. IF THEY ARE ONLY IN TB:E NEGATIVE STATE, BESTIR YOURSELVES TO ACTiuN AND PRO!JUCE THOSE DELIGHTFUL PRINTS THAT THEY lflAY HOLD PLACE IN THAT ANNUAL AND TntiE-HONOURGD :GXHIDITION - TO MiUill IT NOT OHLY .SUCCESSFUL, BUT THE BEST AND GREATEST YET. EXHIBITION DATE JUNE 26th 1942. FOR ANY PARTICULARS, COWPACT:- JOHN NOBill REG ALDER ROLEY COTTER BILL BURKE: 25-3-42. – - 12. .. —————.——– —- -· ——– -L-E-T-T-::G·-T·IS- –F-R-O-l-:I 4T··H-E- -L-A–D-S- • From the Middle East. Life over here has been very quiet of late. Horl: 1 which used to ke8j_) us uoving, has fallen off considerably, in fact the business is ?ractically in the bankruptcy stage, and all guard duties, with the exce~tion of the lines ·picquet, have bean taken off our hands by an infantry batallion, which has moved in, so our future in the Holy Land is r.mch brighter. The only fly in the ointment is our c.o•s. rather definite ideas on how the troops should occupy their time. He beliav~s in leaving us with practically no tine vvith w~1icll to get into nischief. NORRIE 1-:iACDONALD. From iTew Guinea. ThGJ”-J are some excell~nt walks about 28..:-h-42. UlJthis way also marvellous scenary, of course punctuated by native villages and the smell attached th0roto. There is little that I can say but th~ life has its moments and dog fights~aro quite exciting in the distanc·3 but not so hot when directly UlJ stairs. As for bombs, v:ell I hav0 b..;~:n close enough for my liking although you get used to thi.El and only curse them for p~rhaps making you dive for a tr~nch, and unlike Sydney it rains well up here and off tim.as the trench is half full of dirty water but who iJinds; many the times I have hugged mothor earth while she is enshrouded with about 611 of water not so hot. GEORGE LODER 7-3-42. From Ottav1a, Canada. I a1:1 nov1 in the final phase of my training, Astra-navigation, and have only a fevi weeks to go. HLife11 is a very widely circulated magazine over herli: and you may remember we entertained one of its camcrru1en at a Federation s. & R. week-end on the Ne:_1ean in the SUJ:~m.er 1940/41. I recentl;y saw an issue containing tho fruits of Hank's (that was. his name) sojourn in Australia and he had not entirely ov..;rlooked tho Federation, the pictures including one of a beautiful blonde S .D.ri. all complete v;ith rucksack. REC~~~~~T-~~ New Guinea. I have just net Arthur Austin who has returned 5-5-LJ-2. frou ovorseas, he showL:d ~e a couple of photo sheats that he had received and I was very interested, especially as I ~ecognised uost of the members. It brought back old memories especially when I saw Rene Browne vri th the outside in mugs. Tell Rene that we sure appreciate our ~ugs of tea up here and what nugs- 11Mugs as big as di?p0rs11 • (Ho.c.has sent a very vivid and interesting description of th~ country and life in New Guinea for publication in tho S.B.W. Magazine, so look out for it.) By the way, Hec is now back in Australia. Gunner Anderson is also back from Malaya via Pal<3t.1bang and Java. 1:2_. LETTERS AND NE'aS FROM THE ~DS: Bob Savage turned up at the beginning of last month._ He looked very well and fit, and a ring of interested listeners gathered around hin–to. ::·hear his descriDtions of the real thing on the other side, A lot of th1.ngs went off around .. hir.1 but he was lucky enough not to stop any of them. At present Bob is giving so1::1.e of the troops at home the benefit of his experiences, so as to avoid casualties when th:;y go into·.action, Irving Calnan came back from car::1p for a we;;k end. He relaxed by going on the week-end teqt walk and caught the l a.n. train back on Sunday norning. He cxpecte;d to get a good rest the next day, by r:wans which r.lUst rer.1ain a milit~ry secret. INTO THE PURPLE .::;…–'-:..–~“'—- We led you astray in the last issuc 1 b;y saying that Mrs. Dick Jackson, was formerly “Cora” Henderson. Personally we like the nane Cora, but it seens we can't wish it on to anyone-, and no doubt Mrs. Jackson would prefer her own naL1e which is Paula, so we apologise • . The Stork had a cross country trip to Orange a short while ago, with ~a heavy pack, Delivered the goods to Mrs. Hundt, whom we rene1:1ber as~wen Clarke. The baby, a daughter, is everything a baby should be, we hear. ResembJke-e Gw~n a e;rGat doal, :j..s naking good progress and will soon be: tu.lk:i ng. A neober was heard the othor night, wishing rathor wistfully, that aftor the War, he r1ight have· a Tank so that we could do some of the really rough country, that country which strangely enough appeals to so nany of our Walker~. We have qu~etcr ·.anbi tions for after the War, inclining rather to the idea of a Sa.L1pnn”trip down the Shoalhaven with a few honourable soul nat.;s. ——· We thought the high price of vegetables would have killed off our pet vegetarians and vvere therefore surpris.;d at the nUlJ.ber of them in the Club roon recently, looking so w.;ll that we sus~-~ct thew of paying surreptitious visits to the butcher. Six ne1:1bers, including thr.ee Col:J.oittec neobers, and two prospcctives went on Doreen Hclorich 1s test walk down th0 Grose, One of the prospectives brought a quarter pound of coffee which he brewed for supper and norning tea. The other :prospectiV'e served the coffee to the party. A g0od tine was had ·by alL 1~. ——————–~—·- …. '—— WHAT D 0 y 0 u THINK? Ginger Pu;p wants to know::.. Is anyone able to tell me why certain ridges on the mountains are called 11The Dogsn? New Member moans:– I h~ve noticed that many of the older memb~rs of the club do not turn up on Officin.l Walks, cspecin.lly Test Walks, n.nd-n.s f<.1r as I can tell they sim1)ly go for short saunters along comfortal;lle tracks VJ'i th their friends. I understand tha.t ours is a. wa.lking club and th.::roforo suggest that throe Test walks every yea.r shou*d be made compulsory. BL:t.ck Billy wri tcs: 1Ne 110ld UNs 11 loved our camp fires, loved the music we hQd thereat, Ballads of yJstor year, Gilbert & Sullivan, Schubert n.nd other tuneful mcmoric:s, .:tnd tho old c_lub songs which now seom o.lmost to have passed into th0 limbo of forgotten things. Do tho new folk h:tve simil.:“.r tastes? Do they t:non tho melodies wo lovod so well, and which blond so with the night song of the bush? For the c.:tmp fires are not quite v1ho.t they were, it seems to me. Wherein lies the change? Or am I out of step? F.:;d-U;p: Being a. keen walker my tvvo cl;.ildren ho..ve b0cn no obstacle on trips. I carry one in my arms etnd one on my back, although I hc..vo weak ankles. The arrival of tho third is disheo.rtening. 1_'1horo can I ptit it? Gln.d of any advice. COME PEOPLE ARE S 0 HELPFUL! A letter for thQ correspondence page – or is it? Dear Clare, In reply to yours of Tuesday n.nd returning to the subject of whether I should write the 11Social Gossip” page, or the 11Nature Notes“ for the Bush walker – I n.m still somevvha t in the dark QS to what you meant when you s:A.:i.d. thnt no.t.11re wns n morG suit2..ble topic for-me to ha.ndle. I think you s~id tha.t a. Social Gossip writer ho.s to write rather scando.lously to ma.ke a success of it - yes you did – you must remember; I w.::ts just stepping out of my bath or ra.ther your b.::tth :tnd a.s you handed me the towel - the perfect hostess alwnys - you poked me in the ribs and s.::tid 11You 111 never be able to write scandal A - you ha.ve ha.d too quiet a. life to have ever come across any” and I sn.id “Phooey to you my dea.r, I ma.y be an elder member but Itm not ::..s prim as all that.” You see Clare, I could tell thn.t story about B. and her plutonic friendship with s. which G.told me on (' .-, Sundny night· ns I wus da.rnp_setting her hnir after a. walk a.nd then she quoted Menoken a.s hn.ving written thnt 11Plo..tonic Friendship wa.s merely sitting on the fence waiting to see which wa.y the ca.t jumped“, o.nd we laughed so much tha.t she. fell off the cha.ir n.nd I ha.d such a. job picking her up tAat vhen I told you, you sa.id, 111.'!ell tha. t just goes to show”, 2..nd I so.id 1'1.'1ha.t does it go to show? 11 n.nd you sa.id “It goes to show that Sundn.y evenings in Sydney a.ren't ns dull n.s some Americn.n soldiers nia.kc out. 11 · By thu wc.:y Cln.re, you ha.d better n.lter my nom-de-plume from 11 Clubma.n11 to 11 Clubwomn.n 11 - it might S<..'..Ve some silly idl.::~ cha.tter, · Then my dear you go on n.nd contradict yourself by sn.ying that if the gossip is .too sca.nda.lous, the people mentioned such ns “G” might object - but don't y0u see Cla.re, there is more tha.n one 11G11 in th.;; club, so no one would be quite .sure which one I referred to a.nd the one whom it wa.s wquld lie low or she'd give herself a.wa.y, nnd I think the oth~r one wouldn't sa.y it couldn't be her for fca.r people would think nothing 13Ver ha.ppened to her. It might be tnking n risk but. you co.n usunlly count on the duplicity of most women c.nd in some cnsos even triplicity. Then thoro's my idee. for a. list of forthcoming mn.rringes or impendi:n,g •.•-. Gl'Vents,– did I toll you whnt C so..id about some of those on tho list a.s hn.ving been iJ?pending for o.. terrible lone; time, nnd the husbands being n long t'i.me · forthcoming. I s.:i.id I thought thc,t she- wns ra.ther ca.tty for one so long in the tooth herself, a.nd she retorted thnt I couldn't be n.ccused of getting long in the tooth myself 1cnuse my dentures were wea.ring shorter if a.nything a.fter neo..rly two deca.des of const:;.nt use )–nice sort ·Of peo1Jle we meet in the club don 1 t we? On second t:·10ught:;; c~nre dea.r,I think you ma.y be right, I -re~lly don't knovv much gossip a.nd certc:inly noth;Lng scCl.ndn.lous, so I' 11 k·,ve a. try a.t the Nnture Study pa.ge insba.d. Here o..re. o.. few i.10tes for the first —– MONTH 1 S NA':rURE NOTES———by GLO\CJORl\1. The Species Hill us Bill;y ll.ntipodeus, unlilce its llmerica.n counterpa.rt is miga.tory in ha.bit a.nd offers a. fertile.field of resea.rch for Na.ture Lovers. It r s fa.vouri te haunts nre hills·, :more hills and occa.siona.lly bosky dells, At least once o. year o..nd usu:t.lly in the month of Ma.rch it swa.rms in la.rge num- . bers in lovely Sl')Ots in the bush a.nd perfort1S stra.nge. rites a.round the newly chosen queen, much o.s ho.ppens in the life cycle of bees. Such n. lSW<lrming wa.s seen this Ma.rch down Heathcote Creek, by one observer • It is omni verous, compa. table, O.nd· us~.:clly spotlessly clean in its ha.bi ts, while its song is “sometimes” very svreat o.nd free from ha.litosis. The mating sea.son extends from Ja.nua.ry until Xmas. During the rest of the yea.r - a. metter of five or six da.ys - it takes flight to its fa.vourite eyrie, sometimes spelt Era. o..nd there it t::.kas stock of its yea.rts efforts a.nd brea.th for the next. 16. N”lELBOURNE STARTS A “MIXED BUSH WALKING CLUB” Extrccts from n letter frpm Dot English: One Perce VJoodman, whom you mo.y h~W·8 met wo.lking with t:qe S .B.V>Jt s on occasion (he wns nt the Federation Reunion nnd ho.s been in nt the Club on a few occo.sions) ho.s started a. club here which is co.lled the Melbourne Bushwalkers. It's constitution is bn.sed on thn.t of the s.B.VJis, and Perce grows lyrical whenever he speaks of the S.B.Vl's n.nd their friendliness and good sense, etc. I nn throwing in my weight behind this Club, and mn.ybe the happy future will sec a. Club in Melbourne where boys and girls can walk and cn.mp together vvi th– out their world taking seven blue fits o.bout it. I went out visiting— o.nd — lending lights of the Melbo,urne Mens YJo..lking Club n.nd Melbourne VI omens r VJn.lking Club respectively. Of course when they wn.lk at week-ends they do not do trips together. I ventured to express the view that I t~ought it wo.s a. poisonous ideo. to segregate the sexes in a..prudish Mid-Victoria.n fo..shion, o.nd run afraid that tho one called·— took it ns n. personal slight. However' ona must be honest. I ho..d been warned not to venture my_disnpprova.l on the monn.stic system of tho llielbourne Wn.lking Clubs, but o.lns I couldn 1 t keep r.1y tongue still when the honour of the Bushwo.lkers was n.t stake. Forwo.rd the Lig:1t Brign.del n.nd other hunting ~xpressions! I co.n see o. lot of fun o..heo.d in tho futuro, 1.'Je n.rc toying with the idea of getting hold of o. Club room for regulo..r meetings, o.nd of st~rting n. monthly ma.gn.zine 1 botp of which I think nre ve~y strong factors in holding a club togcthur. - - - - - - - - 1.'Jho..t I miss most here :in Hew Orle.a.ns is the le'..ck of fo..cilities for outdoor exercise. New Orleo..ns is built on tho Mississippi delta. and there is nothing but swn.nps all o..round - you cannot vJo.lk a.t ·nll. Then the f'1cilities for swimming nrc VGry poor - a lukewarm nnd dirty lo..kc a.nd tv10 city pools o.nd tho.t is n.ll. No nic0 clco..n occo..n with white, s~ndy benches to sunbake ?n• . rJith SUJ:lmei_' co~ing pn in this moist, sub-tropicq..l climate you can ~ma.g~nc how I sho.l:). s~gh for our Sydney boo..ches, They say tha.t it is hot a.nd stcc.my and novor lets up nig·ht or do.y for vwcks on ei1d. Tho Gulf is a. hundrJd ::1ilcs a.vm .. y. only with

The tr0~ which moves some to tea.r& of joy,, is in the eyes of others a gree.n thing that s'tunds in the wa.y.- B~.;~.t to tho eyes of the ma.n inagina.tion n.ntur~· :Ls· Imag:in~t:i..Qn. i.t~lf. As n. .no.n is, so be sees.~~ –~—- )· ,. ———————————·— ——– —–_ J.:J_! OYEZ! OYEZ1 '0YEZl ·J:HE Uil.LKS SECR8TARY CRll.VES ATTEI~I_cgH In the spir:l t of “the Club :-Just carry on” n::tny me1:1bors ho.ve ~- . c volunteered to le::td walks, though in some co.ses.they ure o.tto.ched to b sonc orgo.niso.tion such o.s N.E.S., Red Cross etc. which·mco.ns tho.t they mo.y r r. be prevented at the last moment from le~ding th~ir wo.lks. This makes it imperative that those desirous of joining walk give reasonable notice to leo.der. If the le::tder tells you tLe na.y not be a.vo.il::tble, phone 1'Ja.lks Sccrct~ry (F.X.7019) during tho week. He.will tell you whether the walk is still on, or name the substitute leader. ANJ:IJ“-UAL PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITION ————·——— on Friday, 26th Jun~ Ho.ve you planned your exhibit yet? If” You haven't, let Tony Goodr;w.n o.dvise you. nega..tivos n.long, o.nd vm will. to.lk thea over. fine job of the onJ.argcl:lents. You know ………. TONY GOODI'Ii!J-J. GOODNiA.tiJ BROS. 20 Hunter Street, Sydney ( oppoei te nynya.rd) Bring your —————————–.,.—-·–·–·–·—-~_§_._ PANIC BUYING The Bushwo.lking fra. tcrni ty (through long con tc:.ct vd th the bush) is fur too lcvcl-hea.dcd to indulge in any such antisocial activity us Pn.nic Buying, but Pn.ddy wCillts the S .B.1.“!. to be avon core sclf-sa.crificing. He appeals to all good walkers to J:J.a.kc their procious ccu:1:2ing gear spin out to the utnost. Ma.terio.ls o.rc sco.rco o.ild likely to be sco..rcer; they n.rc reserved for n6cessitics o.nd conforts for the Forc~s n.nd Public Sa.fety bodies. Th~refore, if you ca.n make your old pnck or tent lo..st out n little longer, do so; Po.ddy will be plonsod to rop~ir it. Ncwconers to ':Jo.lking can still be: assured of getting nost of vhnt they require und the:y are wolcoue. 1PHONE: B.310l. PADDY Pii.LLIN, 327 GEORGZ S'J:REET, SYDNEY.