PULL UP YOUR SOCK DAD!

JOHN JOSEPH DIXON (L of Photo) around 1911
WITH HIS MOTHER        & ALBERT (R)
AND BABY BROTHER BILL WHOM DAD GREATLY ADMIRED

To-day ,Wednesday 11th May, 2016 is the Twenty Fourth Anniversary of my Father's death just three weeks short of his 85th Birthday. He survived the death of my Mother by almost 21 years .

Sent to work at age 11 years in a metal foundry, he had a pretty tough life.

HERE, IN 1927 DAD LOOKS LIKE THE TYPICAL YOUNG BANKER OR CIVIL SERVANT
WHICH HE WAS NOT, HE ALWAYS WORKED IN BLUE COLLAR OCCUPATIONS

His life experience together with his local social network, made him a lifelong Labor Party voter. He persevered in this even after he said he was convinced that the Labor Party was riddled with Communists whom he despised - he just could not bring himself to desert the "working class party". And in fact he did see the world and the nation in those Victorian era Class terms.

My Dad was born a Catholic and educated in a Convent School, but for long periods did not practise his religion. Yet when his "kind eyes"won the heart of Miss Elsie Georgina Beckmann a petite and beautiful,modest girl from a devout Evangelical Protestant family , he required that they be properly married in the Catholic Church. Miss Beckmann was instructed in the Faith and duly became a Catholic, and they were married in 1927.

To-day's cynicism might suggest that he was being hypocritical. But in those days people were honest about doing wrong  - he knew it was wrong not to practise his religion, but he also knew that there are absolutes of such importance that you don't abuse them : he would not betray his Religion, even if he did not practise it - that Truth was bound to him for life.

When I was born, Dad was 32 years old ,he was never unkind to me, but not outgoing or physically demonstrative of his love. ( The Poet James Macauley writes powerfully of his own Father's inability to physically express any affection.) He worked on the construction of the great Garden Island Graving Dock, for the Navy. This was a protected employment category, which stopped him being sent on labour battalions to Darwin when he received the call-up. He could not be in the regular forces because of faulty eyesight resulting from an accident at the Foundry when he was about 13 yrs old.

As I grew up, all my interests were largely alien to my Dad except Politics, and even then we were on opposite sides of the fence!Only after many years did  I hear that Dad was very proud of my progress in Banking  and in other areas and used to regale his regular drinking mates at the hotel in Lidcombe with my latest efforts. We almost never got to talk at any length on  any subject , conversation being limited to brief exchanges of statements never pressed too far lest the heavy crunch of disagreement should wreck things.

Dad worked hard all through his life, and for most of my life after the War, he worked in the hot dirty atmosphere of Potts Hill Water Pumping Station , which he rode to and from on a bicycle in light and dark ( for he was a shift worker) and in summer heat and driving rain.It was about a twenty minutes bike ride each way.

In my twenties and thirties , I could of course, perceive all my Father's faults with clinical efficiency, whilst making every allowance for any tendency  to deficiency on my own part. As the years went by my Dad evolved, particularly after he came to see the devastating effect on my Mum's fragile mental health following a Hysterectomy. He came to see in time how cruel was the effect of stubborn,sullen silences - sometimes lasting 3 days - over some exaggerated "offence", on someone so vulnerable. He was transformed.

He also returned to the practise of the Faith which was very pleasing to see and took great delight in his three grandchildren, Marianne, Justine and Matthew and never ceased urging me to look after my wife!

But still he could not freely and easily communicate either emotions or ideas.Whether or not this disability stemmed from the treatment he received from his brutish and drunkard Father, I cannot say for sure, but if I were a betting man......

Dad's later years were plagued by troubles with his heart - suffering from an "enlarged heart"which caused recurring build-ups of fluid around the heart, these required repeated hospitalisation to relieve them but there could be no cure.

In fact he had just successfully completed one such routine and was about to be released when he suffered a heart attack and died. The Catholic Chaplain to the Auburn Hospital where Dad died was quickly on the spot to minister to  his poor body and pray for his soul. His name was Father Stephen Swift and I was most impressed by the card he left endorsed with all that needed to be done to ensure a proper Catholic burial - for he knew nothing of the family.

We were living in Brisbane at the time and I received a call from my Brother Pat telling me of Dad's death and saying that the Hospital  wanted to perform an autopsy. I was on the first plane down next morning and went straight to see the Doctor in Charge -  a young Asian gent. He was prompt to offer condolences and almost as prompt to proffer a form authorising an autopsy for signature. When I objected that they clearly knew the cause of death, and that  this was unnecessary, the form quickly disappeared into the pocket of his white coat. I informed him that after the long periods of my Dad's health problems, I did not want his body used for training purposes. This is a matter which I believe the Hospital handled very badly to say the least.

1947 WITH MY DAD IN PITT STREET SYDNEY

So John Joseph "Jack"Dixon I love you dearly and hope we have the opportunity to understand each other far better in Paradise.My prayers for the repose of your soul and of Mum's are daily made, because time is irrelevant in eternity.

MOTHERS DAY AND A FATHER

ELSIE GEORGINA DIXON  My dear Mum who died in 1971 Aged 66yrs.

Here I am surrounded by a pictorial  bouquet of Mothers ! (I think "bouquet"is a suitable collective noun for a group of Mothers!) Each one  of them I have had the privilege and joy to share my life with, and each one has been a remarkable example of love and kindness in action, even in the gravest difficulty. 

 Obviously the first Mother I knew was my very own dear Mum,who led a life of self- sacrifice , love and loyalty in the most adverse circumstances.Her love was generous and kind, never in the least demanding. She was the ideal example of her Father's philosophy that love and respect go hand in hand : if you have not got love you will show no respect, if you show no respect, you have no love. 

Grandad hit the nail on the head, and my dear Mum had absorbed the lesson and lived it out.


 

GRANDMA DIXON  ( Nee Boyd) Who died in 1948 Aged  66yrs also.

Next I got to know my Grandma Dixon who lived on the next block one street behind us. Hers was also a tough life coping with a difficult husband.She gave herself to helping many human strays in the family orbit. She was very loving in her treatment of me and in early primary school days I used to walk home via Grandma's place, where she would always be seated on the verandah - waiting for me with a One Shilling piece( with its Merino Sheep Head image on it) clutched in her hand which she gave to me for treats. I can still recall its warmth from her hand, to-day.

GRANDMA BECKMANN Who died in 1965 Aged  79 Yrs.

My Mum's Mother, Grandma Beckmann, was a very special lady. She was more self - confident and outgoing within the family group than my Mum or Grandma Dixon and her love was open-hearted and generous, her hugs big and strong.

 She was totally devoted to her husband "Ted"Edward Beckmann and in the family circle she would refer to him as "Daddy"( they had 9 children!). When I knew him his health was failing, and though she would firmly proclaim that "Daddy and I are going to live on into the (Biblical) Millenium ", looking back ,I can see her anxiety that he was slipping away.

 She was a wonderful example of love and affection and that ,constant and reliable.She had had a tough life with never a lot of money around , and when some windfall occurred an adverse development would sweep it away. She suffered a lot for marrying a  "German" especially in World War I as did the older girls, reproached for being "Germans". I recall her unconditional love of me ,and those strong, generous hugs to-day. And, as she lay close to death in Hospital  , I can recall her calling out "Mummy" - my Grandmother, at the end of her life - calling out for Her Mother!
 

                                            My dear wife Robyn

                      Robyn with Marianne, Justine and Matthew at Mount Wilson


Then we come to the full colour Mums. My dear wife Robyn with our three beautiful children, what fun we had that day in the bracing air and rich autumn tones of Mount Wilson! 

What fun we have had over all the years - and how much of that is due to Robyn , loving loyal, devoted wife and Mother. I guess we have had more good times than all the predecessor Mothers and their families combined and yet we have had a ton of tough times, but Robyn has been a constant source of love and loyalty through thick and thin, and even thinner! No - one could ask for a better Wife or ,the children, a better Mother.

OUR SECOND DAUGHTER JUSTINE  THE MODEL OF A  MOTHER

Premature Daniel only days old 

Is now brilliant and vital Daniel  ,soon to be 7 yrs.

The latest Mother in the family blood line is our dear daughter Justine, Mother to Emily, Christopher and Daniel. Words nearly fail me ( nearly! I always have a few left!) As parents we could not be prouder of this thoroughly modern Mother. She is an exemplary model of love and devotion in effective action , handling even the strain of tiny Daniel's birth when this tiny literal handful of life seemed to us too fragile , she brought him to the fullness of healthy life with dedication and love, without skipping a beat in the care of Emily and Christopher and husband Paul.And like her paternal Grandmother she is a stalwart strength for her parents.








So Mothers of mine, I salute you and honour you , but most of all, I love you unfailingly.

And a Father....?

To-day, 8th May,2014 is Mothers'Day of course, but it is only a few days away from the 24th Anniversary of the death of my Dad John (Jack) Joseph Dixon, in 1992, just short of his June 85th Birthday. Requiescat in Pace

                                    My Dad Jack Dixon at about 6 or so.
                                      Within 5years at age 11 in 1918 he was working 
                                       in Newland's Iron Foundry near Central Station.

                    

                       Without Fathers there would be no Mothers!

DRESSING FOR SPEED IN DEUTSCHLAND

Dressing for Speed

In May 1936 a crossing gate guard on the important Berlin � Hamburg line was alerted by an almost unearthly but rapidly approaching howling. He likened it to a steam-powered siren. Before he could collect his thoughts, his humble crossing was host to the thunder and enormous speed of the streamlined locomotive 05 002 pulling four express coaches. With observers from the Reichsbahn on board, the thundering burgundy-colored machine recorded a speed of 200.4 km/h (124.52 mph). Paul Roth, from the Reichsbahn�s Berlin-Grunewald test facility, who was on board during the test run, likened the unearthly howl emanating from the smokestack of the BR 05 to its boiler working probably dangerously close to the edge of the envelope, as we like to say in today�s techno jargon.
Some time after Errol Kubicki and I had completed our article on tenders, I asked him if he had any ideas for other articles. After several e-mail exchanges, he asked what I knew about streamlined Dampfloks, specifically streamlined tank engines. Well, I never really paid much attention to them � tank or otherwise but that I�d be willing to do a little investigating. To urge me on, Errol lent me a copy of Modell Eisen Bahner featuring a fairly detailed article on the topic. So, here goes.
Much as we admire the sight of a steam locomotive with its jungle of pipes, valves, connecting rods, and much more of the external necessities that propel the machine, this beloved mechanical jungle does little to improve the efficiency of what is already a rather inefficient machine. By the 1930s, the major locomotive builders in Europe, specifically Germany, realized that, if they were to compete with lighter, more aerodynamic railcars such as "Der Fliegende Hamburg" and the up and coming electric locomotives like the E 18, they would have to take a closer look at clothing their Dampfloks in an aerodynamic shell.
While this well-known run set a record, Wolfgang Messerschmidt, the famous German railroad historian, thinks it is (was) not a record. Being quite familiar with American steam locomotive technology, he feels that some streamlined Alco steam locomotives achieved speeds as high as 230 km/h (142.9 mph). This, of course, also eclipses the run made by "Mallard" in England at 202.7 km/h (125.9 mph) but this latter figure is disputed since it was allegedly done on a slight down grade. Actually, some minor attempts to impart some windcheating form to locomotives go back to the early part of the 20^th century when cabs began to be enclosed and the front of the boiler was fabricated in a more conical shape. Take a look at the Bavarian S 3/6 locomotives.
The Beginning
Still, in Germany the effort to develop a more efficient streamlined steam locomotive was on and became more earnest in 1932. William Beil, the director of engineering at Borsig in Berlin (Hennigsdorf), recalls that they were looking at speeds in the 150 km/h (93 mph) range since that was already possible with lighter self-propelled railcars. Borsig conducted some windtunnel testing at its own expense and the Reichsbahn did similar work at the University of G�ttingen. The result was that Lok 03 154 was fitted with a more aerodynamic cab and a parabola shaped boiler door. The running gear and boiler were also enclosed with the enclosures featuring suitable access panels for maintenance. Steaming at 150 km/h (93 mph) it quickly became evident that the engine was able to pull more cars with less effort. This was attributed not only to the streamlining but also to the increased thermodynamic efficiency realized by the streamlining. At the time, William Beil calculated that the streamlining contributed an extra 290 hp at 120 km/h (75 mph). Further calculations for speeds of 160 km/h (100 mph) showed that additional tractive effort would result which would translate directly into hauling more passenger cars.
All of this success led directly to incorporating this technology into the BR 05. As this new project began to, pardon the pun, take shape, the DRG also asked Borsig to streamline
03 193. By then the DRG had also mandated that passenger locomotives capable of speeds exceeding 140 km/h (87 mph) would be equipped with streamlining. Affected were BR 01¹⁰, 03¹⁰, 05 and 06. While this speed demarcation was in effect at the Reichsbahn, this concept was basically ignored in other countries. In the mid-1930s it had become fashionable, especially in the United States, to streamline locomotives whether or not any performance benefit would be realized or not. Fashionable or not, the German locomotive builders also had to be increasingly concerned with the competition offered by the already mentioned lighter and more aerodynamic railcars and electric locomotives. Not only were these quite efficient but they were also very attractive from a marketing viewpoint.
The ubiquitous BR 01 and BR 03
At first sight the famous BR 01¹⁰ and BR 03¹⁰ look almost identical but the difference was more skin deep with the BR 01 being the heavier duty machine with greater axle loading. The lighter duty BR 03 and its BR 01 counterpart were both destined to be clothed with streamlining. Altogether, these types were the most widely built and used streamliners. Initially, the DRG wanted to order 205 of the BR 01¹⁰ but the war reduced this by nearly 75 percent. Most survived those years and in 1949 they were overhauled but their streamlining was removed. Similarly, the original order for 140 of the BR 03¹⁰ streamliners was reduced to 60 at the start of the war. After the conflict, the DB and DR overhauled them but also had their streamlining removed.
The BR 05 in two versions
"In the BR 05 German steam engine development had reached its highest point." Those were the words of the editors of "M+F Journal" 25 years ago. That this is unarguable was proven in May 1936 when 05 002 broke the 200 km/h (124 mph) barrier. Three streamlined BR 05s were built by Borsig under the direction of Richard Paul Wagner at the DRG - two conventional (05 001 and 05 002) and one cab forward (05 003). All were 2�C2� (4-6-4) three-cylinder machines with five axle tenders. (Author�s note: This is the Wagner whose name is applied to the large smoke deflectors)
The conventional BR 05s were delivered in March and May 1935. Both entered revenue service in 1936 on the Berlin � Hamburg line. During the May 1936 record run, 05 002 developed over 3,400 hp (2,535 kW). With advent of the war, both were sidelined since high speed passenger service was deemed superfluous. They survived the war and in 1950, Krauss-Maffei dismantled the streamlining and reduced the boiler pressure to 16 bar. They then entered regular service in 1951 and were retired in July 1958. Engine 05 001 was installed in the N�rnberg Transportation Museum complete with its original streamlining. Together with 05 001, the two Loks regularly reached speeds of 150 km/h (93 mph) and 175 km/h (108 mph) on some stretches.
The cab forward design was radical by any measure. The engine was delivered in the fall of 1937. Unlike the Southern Pacific cab forward engines, the design of the 05 003 was intended primarily to provide better visibility for the crew at the anticipated high speeds. The obvious impossibility of trying to shovel coal into the boiler resulted in use of a stoker system that moved coal dust through a 14 m (46-ft) long pipeline. Even the use of coal dust proved difficult. Test results with two types of coal (brown and hard) were less than satisfactory. In 1944, 05 003 was rebuilt into a conventional locomotive but without streamlining. Its livery was wartime camouflage paint complete with strategically located armor plate to protect vital parts. After surviving the war, Krauss-Maffei overhauled this engine in 1950 and it joined the other 05s in revenue service. The ideal fuel would have been oil but this was not considered since it would have meant use of a very strategic material. Besides, the DRG had only very limited experience with oil-firing.
The Mammoth BR 06
The BR 06 was developed in 1933. It was necessary to have a high-performance locomotive for more mountainous areas and the all-important Berlin � Frankfurt/Main and Berlin � Munich lines. The new prototype engine had to be able to pull 650 ton trains at 120 km/h (75 mph) and on more severe grades at 60 km/h (37 mph). But, it was not until April 1939 that Krupp delivered the prototype three-cylinder BR 06 (06 001), a 2�D2� (4-8-4) design. It and its mate 06 002 were then the largest steam locomotives built in Germany. Their impressive size was further enhanced by their huge partially exposed drivers. Alas, the machines disappointed. There were boiler problems but perhaps potentially more serious was their inability to negotiate radii of 140 m (460 feet) without the possibility of derailing. Some railroaders also cast doubt on the machines� inability to safely negotiate some of the very complex turnout systems in place at that time. One of the driven axles was even flangeless. These limitations and the advent of more efficient electric locomotives on the Berlin � Frankfurt and Berlin � Munich lines doomed the BR 06. It never entered series production. Engine 06 001 was taken out of service in 1951 and 06 002 was hit by a bomb and destroyed during the war.
BR 61 and Henschel - Wegmann
Enter the locomotive builder Henschel & Sohn and the car builder Wegmann & Co. This team designed and developed a streamlined locomotive and suitable passenger cars to compete with the railcars. It was to be a relatively light train based on a 2�B1� (4-4-2) tank engine and passenger cars featuring Jacobs trucks. The DRG, however, wanted the design to make greater use of existing standard designs for both the locomotive and cars. What emerged was a streamlined BR 61 (61 001) and matching passenger cars painted in attractive aluminum and violet colors.
The train made its debut in May 1935 on the Berlin � Dresden route. In acceleration and top speed it matched "Der Fliegende Hamburg." Top speed was 185 km/h (115 mph), but at 150 km/h (93 mph), the locomotive�s running characteristics were not nearly as stable as those of other streamliners, notably the BR 05. Nevertheless, the new train did the 176 km (109 mile) Berlin to Dresden route in 100 minutes, a speed of 64 mph (103.5 km/h). The limited water capacity of the BR 61 was also an issue. Still, the train entered service. At war�s end, it was stationed in Braunschweig. It was then outfitted for service between Hannover and Bielefeld. An accident in 1952 led to its retirement.
To overcome these objections, in 1939 Henschel delivered a larger three-cylinder BR 61 (61 002) with the unusual axle configuration of 2�C3� (4-6-6). To accommodate the increased coal and water capacity, Henschel chose the three-axle trailing truck and too keep axle loading at the 18.5 tons dictated by the Reichsbahn. The new machine performed very well but scheduled service between Berlin and Dresden did not materialize and by 1943 both 61 001 and 61 002 gave up their attractive paint scheme and reverted to dreary wartime gray. But, the story of 61 002 did not end here, and as the immortal Monty Python gang often said, "and, now for something completely different."
After World War 2, 61 002 remained in the Soviet occupied zone of Germany. The servicing facility in Dresden had little use for the one-off locomotive other than to use it for various general purpose tasks. For a while, the engine was used for the personal train of the transportation minister but even while serving this dutiful bureaucrat, the machine exhibited all sorts of ills. As it turned out, the railway development center in Halle needed locomotives capable of at least 160 km/h (100 mph) to test high speed passenger cars then under development. The overhaul facility in Meiningen was given the job to convert 61 002 to a conventional tender locomotive of 2�C1� (4-6-2) configuration capable of 180 km/h (112 mph). The tender was from a BR 44 (44 468). The outside cylinders were from H 45 024, an experimental coal dust fired Lok with a condensing tender. (The less than elegant H 45 024, in turn, was derived from a conventional BR 45.) The reborn engine, now oil-fired, was designated 18 201 and in honor of the first German Pacific, a Badische IVf in 1907. This Lok used the 18 201 number in 1925. To some extent the new, green 18 201 looked like the Bundesbahn�s BR 10 of 1956.
The little BR 60
Though not intended to break or even approach high speeds, the private L�beck � B�chener Eisenbahn (LBE) ordered two streamlined BR 60s from Henschel. The two modest two-cylinder locomotives (60 001 and 60 002) were delivered in 1936. The LBE combined these with two-level coaches. The two trains were used in pull-push service on the Hamburg � L�beck � Travem�nde line. The little tank engines were capable of 120 km/h (75 mph). The LBE ordered a third slightly more powerful BR 60 streamliner (60 003) in 1937.
With the start of the war, the DRG de-emphasized high speed passenger traffic and relegated the BR 60s to heater service but eventually only 60 001 was used for that. In 1945, 60 002 and 60 003 went to the East German DR. Engine 60 002 was in service in the Berlin suburbs until 1958 and the third machine served until 1962 near Stralsund.
The Unconventional BR 19
Yet another but the last attempt to build another aerodynamic steam engine was Henschel�s design for the BR 19. In its outward appearance, the 19 1001 was very similar to the BR 01 and BR 03 streamliners. It was a decidedly unconventional machine of 1�Do1� (2-8-2) configuration. Four two-cylinder steam engines were used. On the right side, two engines powered the first and third driven axle and on the left side a similar arrangement powered the second and fourth driven axles. It was delivered to the DRG on June 13, 1941 and after solving some teething problems, the BR 19 showed stable and quiet running characteristics. Trials on a dynamometer at the DRG�s Grunewald (Berlin) test facility showed that speeds of up to 200 km/h (124 mph) should be easily possible. A promising start, indeed.
In tests on the Berlin � Hamburg line the machine reached 186 km/h (115 mph), a speed that was not only attributed to its unconventional propulsion system but also to the well designed streamlining. While the potential was clearly there, the times did not permit further development. In May 1943, the engine was transferred to Bw Altona (near Hamburg) and used in revenue service. A bomb hit in early in 1944 damaged 19 1001 but she was repaired only to be hit again in August 1944, but this time more severely that was followed by sidelining. In April 1945, the unusual machine was discovered by the advancing American troops, taken into custody and then shipped to Fort Monroe in Virginia in October of that year. Industry engineers and others examined the Lok but did not run it. As a matter of fact, the machine never ran again under its own power. The advent of dieselization by the American railroads quickly obsoleted steam power. By 1952, the engine was scrapped.
The BR 10
No doubt the last gasp in search of a more streamlined steam engine was the BR 10. It was a very advanced three-cylinder 2�C1� (4-6-2) and, according to Wolfgang Messerschmidt, it was really a pseudo-streamliner. Krupp built the only two of these prototypes in 1956, which were intended to replace the BR 01¹⁰ and BR 03¹⁰. The first, 10 001, was coal-fired and its mate, 10 002, was oil fired. The machine�s axle loading of 22 tons imposed restrictions on many lines and, in addition, not all lines permitted its service speed of 140 km/h (87 mph). With times and technology changing rapidly, the end of steam was clearly in sight. Both were retired in 1967.
The End of an Era
As we saw, those streamliners that survived the war were stripped of their elegant windcheating exteriors. Soon the groundbreaking V200 came on the scene as did the E18 before the war. Both were clearly more efficient and faster but even they are retired now. Today�s passengers on the ICE will probably never have heard of the mighty 05 002�s record run. The longest lived streamliner was no doubt 01 1102 delivered in the summer of 1940 and served until 1974. It is now restored and still operating much to the delight of Europe�s steam enthusiasts.
Streamliner Summary

Type	Service Class	No. built	Service Years
BR 0110	S 36.20	55	1939 - 1953
BR 0310	S 36.18	60	1939 - 1959
BR 05	S 37.19	2	1935 - 58
BR 05*	S 37.19	1	1937 - 1939; 1950 - 1958
BR 06	S 48.18/20	2	1939 - 1945
BR 10	S 36.22	2	1956 - 1967
BR 19	S 46.18	1	1941 - 1944
BR 60	St 24.18/19	3	1936 - 1962
BR 61	St 38.18	2	1935 - 1956
18 201**	S 36.20	1	1961 - ??
* cab forward
** ex 61 002

Acknowledgements:
The author appreciates the assistance provided by Kevin Brady and Heinz Brockmann.
Sources:
"50 Jahre Einheitslokomotiven", Alfred B. Gottwaldt, ISBN 3-440-04253-7, 1975.
"Das Grosse Typenbuch Deutscher Lokomotiven", Weisbrod, B�zold,, Obermayer, ISBN 3-334-70751-5, 1995.
"Die Dampfmotor Lokomotive 19 1001", M�rklin Magazin, 2/74, pp. 28 � 30.
"Baureihe 05 � Die schnellsten deutschen Dampflokomotiven", M+F Journal, 1/1975, pp. 10 �12.
"Die Entwicklung der Stromlinien Lokomotiven der Deutschen Reichsbahn", M+F Journal,1/1977, pp. 47 � 49.
"Ganz in Schale", Franz Rittig, Modell Eisen Bahner, Nr. 12/1996, pp. 12 � 19.

"Jimmos starke Herren", Eisenbahn Magazin, 12/98, pp. 41 � 46.

*SEA VOYAGE TO TASMANIA 1962/63

1962/63 "WOULD ROLL ON WET GRASS"' = H.M.A.S. WAGGA

H.M.A.S. WAGGA in 1943
the gun was removed for R.A.N.R. purposes.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, H.M.A.S. WAGGA was assigned to the Royal Australian Naval Reserve for training purposes.I have already recounted how we worked to make her properly ready for our use. 

60 of these 1,025 Tons Corvettes were built in Australia during World War II, 5 were lost during the War.They had a normal crew of 85 and they had a Maximum Speed of 15 Knots.It was said of them that they "would roll on wet grass".

After we had WAGGA ready for service,   plans were made for  her first two week Training Cruise   . This took us North to Brisbane and a little beyond. It proved largely uneventful, except that on the approach to Moreton Bay we saw the Whaling Fleet in action. This activity ceased in 1962 so that tends to date the Cruise to some extent. 

Aerial view of part of Moreton Bay

On a subsequent occasion we took WAGGA on a rather more memorable Cruise to Tasmania,more precisely to Launceston. Several factors made the Cruise memorable. First was the adverse weather on the way South. A gale blew up when we were well on our way, it was quite powerful and caused our dear old WAGGA to commence "pile driving", that is to say, her Bow was repeatedly coming out of the water at the crest of a wave and crashing back down , sending a shudder along the length of the keel.Our  hammocks were swinging wildly and numerous of us were being seasick. I had taken the precaution of taking Dramamine which someone had recommended, but I knew that if I stayed there the stench would make me ill So I rolled out of the hammock with difficulty and struggled against the motion of the Ship out onto the Main Deck then back up the ladder to my work station in the Ship's tiny Office  and slept - as best I could on the deck curled up tight in misery.At least there was no shortage of fresh air!!

Lt.Cdr. DENOVAN RANVR
The very model of a Ship's Captain

Next morning, the Storm had passed, the wind and sea  were abating, and our crew of mostly amateurs struggled to get themselves and the Ship "shipshape and Bristol fashion ". We had an outstanding example in our Captain Lieutenant Commander Denovan R.A.N.V.R. who was a Second World War veteran and ramrod straight as he came down the steep ladders facing forward - which was no easy feat even in Harbour, let alone when the old girl was corkscrewing her way through the aftermath of a gale! But there he was, clean shaven, Uniform and Cap impeccable! We all felt scruffy, and vile - a situation not helped when the desalination plant went on the blink while many were having their showers!

When we had brief breaks  to ourselves, groups of us would gather on the quarterdeck and stare out at the Ship's wake , which at her slow speed , would tend to look slightly wobbly at times. The main noise, apart from the wind would be the occasional whirrr of the steering engine as the course was adjusted.

WILSON'S PROMONTORY

We were told that during that nightmare passage we were the only ship on the Coast. Early in the morning we rounded Wilson's Promontory the Southernmost tip of Australia (EXCEPT FOR TASMANIA!!!) and it was quite impressive. Then we headed into Port Phillip Bay and up to Williamstown where we were to take on oil. This exercise went very well, including the arrival bit which involved bringing or little ship about and docking Starboard side to, in order to simplify our departure. That was the intention in any case.

When the fuelling was  completed, we were all still in our No1 Uniforms for manning the side as we had done coming in. I happened to have my position in the line on the Starboard side in the Waist. Now, when it comes to getting away from a berth at a wharf, a Ship firstly singles up all her lines, then lets go fore and aft until she is held by what is called a Spring - a line running diagonally from the wharf to the ship. The idea is that , depending on the current, if any,  steady turns on the propeller at low speed will bring the Ship's Bow away from the Wharf and an increase in speed will send her away from the Wharf altogether. That is the theory. Well, what actually happened was that Wagga came off the wharf, and the Spring was brought aboard, but,perhaps on account of tide or some chance of the current,she came to run parallel to the wharf about half a metre away from it! This was exceedingly dangerous and risked a collision with it. Suddenly the Officer of the deck barked the Order : "OK you lot onto the wharf and push her off!"

The effect on me at least, was as if he had ordered us to drag the Sun down to Earth! It sounded ridiculous! There was some hesitation on our part....but then one , two ,three and all ten of us were up over the side and onto the Wharf and running along beside the Ship and pushing her off the Wharf . To my utter surprise she began to move away from the Wharf and then came the next order "Ok Jump back aboard!"We did not hesitate, fearing to be left behind. I have no idea how we , more especially me, managed it.Because I have never excelled at matters athletic! My Guardian Angel deserves all the credit!

The picturesque City of Launceston,  nestled in the Tamar Valley

Here we were on our way to Launceston! The often troublesome Bass Strait lay before us, but on this occasion provided no great difficulty.

We sailed up the the Tamar River and moored at Launceston for our visit. Apart  from the pleasantness of the City of Launceston, two things stay firmly in my memory,I shall mention the more formal first, in order to let you finish the paragraph with a smile. We had to attend a memorial service at at a War Memorial in a Park. Was it Anzac Day? Armistice Day? I don't recall. What I do recall is that we all sang the Navy Hymn : "Eternal Father strong to save, Whose arm doth bind the restless wave...."it is always moving...at least I find it so. But never so much as on this occasion  and particularly the lines:
 "O Holy Spirit Who didst brood ,
upon the waters dark and rude, 
Who badst its angry tumult cease 
and gave for wild confusion , Peace..
Oh Hear us when we cry to Thee 
for those in peril on the sea!"  

After our voyage down I understood what the Hymn so well recognises.

The following day some of us had invitations to lunch with Launceston families. I was the guest of Mr & Mrs Eastaugh and their children and very kind and generous hosts they were, their hospitality was splendid. However in the course of making conversation, I managed the ultimate faux pas in Tasmania and, at least in my view, I did not succeed in redeeming the situation. 

In the course of furthering a comment on some subject, while making a response to something that had been said, I came out with "Oh well, back in Australia...the air froze......"I instantly realised what I had said. That made it worse. The desperate search for a formula of words to get me out of the hole my mouth had dug. The failure to find it. Their kind attempt to cover the hurt...It still causes me pain. I would gladly meet them again if I thought I could recover the situation. But Alas! What can you say to people whose home State is occasionally left off the map! 

Really after all that , the voyage home was quite routine .It had been in several respects memorable, but I did not mind coming home. 

That was my last Cruise aboard WAGGA, though not the last time I boarded her for various routine work sessions.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

"CORE OF MY HEART, MY COUNTRY" AUSTRALIA DAY

LOVE OF MY COUNTRY - AUSTRALIA DAY

AUSTRALIA

"CORE OF MY HEART, MY COUNTRY"

                                      " And freedom’s sons the banner bear,

                            No shackled slave can breathe the air,"

To-day is Australia Day! I thank God for bringing me to Conception and Birth in this remarkable Country.

Not the most beautiful country in the world, not the strongest country in the world, not the leading country in the world. You can have all that.

My Country is a place of real freedom, of real peace, of frank and trustworthy folk, whose friendship isn't feigned. An open, generally trusting people who are nevertheless not too easily fooled. They abhor pretension and if they have a fault it is a desire to ensure that no-one rises too high - it is called the "tall poppy syndrome" - tall poppies get cut down to size!

AUSTRALIANS GATHERED AT ANZAC COVE GALLIPOLI  -   LEST WE FORGET

Australians are a pragmatic people, no doubt a product of the sometimes harsh extremes of weather, and the lack of almost everything except land in early colonial days. As a result public discourse is not big on principles, but more on what will work. Our political system and legal system are born out of our English colonial origins. Our independence was sought and given, rather than fought for and won. We remain a constitutional monarchy, with the British Monarch as our Head of State, but our pragmatic nature makes the majority of Australians see that we are really and factually independent; and advocates of a Republic have been unable to gain traction. The system works, the pragmatists don't need to fix it.

AUSTRALIAN ICONS

Politically, we are fairly evenly divided between political Conservatives and a Labor based group. The latter have lost a fragile balance of power in the Federal sphere at present,and were rolled out of office at the  last  election. There is an underlying small "c" conservatism in the Australian psyche, which, combined with pragmatism, kills off such ideas as a Republic, identity cards, or anything that excites modern radicals.

One of the best summaries of Australia, the land, is contained in Dorothea Mackellar's 1904 poem "My Country”. It is a fine piece of work, addressed to many of the British citizens of Australia who, at the time it was written, would still speak of "home" and mean England! So it begins:

"The love of field and coppice,

Of green and shaded lanes,

Of ordered woods and gardens,

Is running in your veins.......................

I know, but cannot share it,

My love is otherwise.

I love a sunburnt country,

A land of sweeping plains,

Of ragged mountain ranges,

Of droughts and flooding rains............

Her beauty and her terror,

The wide brown land for me!

AYERS ROCK

An opal - hearted country,

A willful lavish land -

All you who have not loved her,

You will not understand,

Though Earth holds many splendors,

Wherever I may die,

I know to what brown country

My homing thoughts will fly!

AMEN to that!

Yet another lady, this time English - born Caroline Carleton, wrote in 1859 the Song of Australia which was set to music by the German Carl Linger. It won a competition sponsored by the South Australian Gawler Institute for a patriotic song. It also has things to say, which merit attention, despite some of the flourishes of its time. It begins:

"There is a land where summer skies

  Are gleaming with a thousand dyes,

  Blending in witching harmonies, in harmonies;

  And grassy knoll, and forest height,

  Are flushing in the rosy light,

  And all above in azure bright-

  Australia!

BOUNTEOUS CROP IN WAKE OF DROUGHT BREAKING RAIN

........

  On hill and plain the clust'ring vine

  Is gushing out with purple wine,

  And cups are quaffed to thee and thine-

  Australia!                

  .........

  There is a land, where floating free,

  From mountain top to girdling sea,

  A proud flag waves exultingly,

  And freedom’s sons the banner bear,

  No shackled slave can breathe the air,

   Fairest of Britain's daughters fair,

   Australia!

I love it!  - Australia, Yes - But the Song of Australia too! Oh, I know it's more than a little over the top! But it has the spirit of my country. And any lady who can write about "gushing out with purple wine and cups are quaffed to thee and thine" has got my vote!

There is another patriotic song by Father Maurice Reilly C.M. Which is more subtle and substantive, which I also love, and which I first heard in First Class at my Convent School in 1946:

AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL HYMN

God bless our lovely morning land!

God keep her with enfolding hand

Close to His side.

While booms the distant battle's roar

From out some rude, barbaric shore.

In blessed peace forever more,

There to abide.

............

Land of the dawning! Lo! At last,

The shadows of the night are past;

Across the sea,

Is spreading far the purple light,

The lonely mountain peaks are bright,

And visions crowd upon the sight,

Of days to be.

"THE WARM OF HEART AND STOUT OF HAND"
CREW OF HMAS PERTH - LOST IN THE BATTLE OF SUNDA STRAIT
DEFENDING AUSTRALIA FROM THE EMPIRE OF JAPAN

The future is thine own, loved land,

The warm of heart, the stout of hand,

The noble mind,

Shall build a Nation truly great,

With Christ for King; where love not hate,

Shall be the charter of the State

To all mankind.

There is much more, all warm with faith in God and belief in Australia's promise.

PATRONISING  ENGLISH VIEW AT THE TIME OF FEDERATION !
THE AUSTRALIAN COMMENTS MIGHT HAVE SURPRISED THE CARTOONIST AND EDITOR

In fact, at the time of Federation there was a widespread confidence in Australia's unique character and mission to show the world a new way of true freedom and peace and justice for all. It was a heady idealism, which sadly seemed to be overwhelmed by the tragedy of the First World War, the Great Depression, and the crusade of the Second World War. It still survives in wisps of spirit which are caught here and there. But is largely lost to the national consciousness.

Let's not get too analytical - it is a day for Fair Dinkum CELEBRATION. With a very great deal to celebrate! We can save the “cerebration" for another day!