The record-union., 1893-03-06
MELBOURNE.
An Old-Time Scene in the Metropoli.
tan Mining City.

An Old-Time Scene in the Metropoli-
tan Mining City.
Written for the REcoRD-UNIoN by "Fon
Gramgg."l
We are on big Bourke street." Time
anywhere from '52 to '55. Hour of the
days A. NJ. We stroll down from the
corner of Elizabeth street and the old
Postoffice, toward the American Hotel
and Cobb's American Coaching Com
pany's offices. From this point start
coaches to all parts of the country, even
overland to the far distant city of Sydney,
New South Wales. From this office run
expresses and coaches to all the interior
dlgglngs. Even at this early hour a fever
lsh activity is noticed by the new conner
called New Chum." We stand in
front of Cobb d Co.'S" and look around
US. Directly opposite us is the old Bull
and Mouth" Hotel-anoUher great point
of arrival and departure of stages, wag-
ons and "busses."
Here came long line of OK teams. each
having four TO six yoke of splendid oxen.
the drivers OF which are armed with
long whlps fastened at the point of long
(sapllng) sticks cut from the forest. The
crack these whips make resembles a rifle
as their wlelderS sound the lash to hasten
the movements of their charges 1t is a
novel sight to the new arrival, The
vehicles these oxen draw are large two
wheeled drays, which are usually loaded
down with stores for interior mining cen-
ters. Occasionally one such team carries
whole family and ali its earthly goods
and chattels to some interior point or cat
tie or sheep 'Station''-(ranch1
While we are interestedly looking at
| the strange scenes around us, up comes a
splendidly horsed "Concord' express
coach, and it stops in front of cobb d
Co.'s" office. IT has six blooded, inn
patient, well fed and groomed horses in
1t. One attendant springs off the step,
rushes to the heads of the high-mettled
leaders and holds them: while the other
sits on the "boX" holding the ''lines' till
| the Jehu chief himself shall take charge.
On this finely appointed stage we read {:
Her Majesty's Royal Mail. Ballarat,
Bendigo, Forest Creek, Albury, Svd-
ney," etc. Presently there strolls out of
the stage office long-built specimen of
humanity, in overalls, a long blanket
overcoat with capacIous pockets, a
mutfler carelessly thrown around his
neck, apd the whole surmounted by a
stiff hat with broad brim and tapering
sides and crown. This is our American
Jehu-a fair type of an overgrown Ver-
monter or hentuckian-an artist sin
ribbons" and the autocrat of the road
in those days. kentuck looks around
him with critical air. lie pulls heavy
glove from the depths of his cavernous
pocket and puts it on. From another
pocket he extracts huge cigar-built on
the same generous type as his mammoth
coach and self. Now he takes q match in
hand, and, as he does so, releases from
some cavernous recess the command,
All aboard " Immediately the passen-
gers begin to tumble in" and ere the
great man has lit his huge port fire the
passengers have been seated, the mail
and baggage tastenings have been ex-
amined, and ''alPS SET" He looks il all
over. Now he steps up to his throne,
and, as the ribbons change hands
from the stableman to Jehu, the eager.
melted steeds attent, prance and strain
to get away. Kentuck pulls on his other
glove, unrolls the long lash of his whip,
casts one final look around and interog-
atively says, "All set?"
"All set," is the responsive echo to his
query. out swings the lash. ''Let 'em
CO." commands Kentuck, and with
yell, loud whip-crack and the stimuli
taneous striking OF twenty-four stell-clad
hoofs upon the hard metal road. away
springs and flashes one of the great OBJ
jects of attention of the early Victorian
mining center. Away through OK teams,
horse-teams and all the impedimenta of
such time of hurry and hustle and con-
fusion, sweeps the flying team, "H. NJ.
Royal MaiP' being the taIisman which
clears all distractions and makes our
Kentuck the autocrat of the road. We
walk down the same block at noon, and
now we meet one of almost every race
beneath the sun. Here's Pat, from the
devil. The 'canny Scot" from "the
land O. th' leal' and cakes" The Eng
lishman-a jovial tar-"full" of 'ale, in
his stomach land all in his head, and
still on the way to his beer (bier?). The
volatile Frenchman, phlegmatic Ger
man and ponderous Hollander The son
of sunny Italy, the punctilIous Spaniard.
the hebete Russ, the ''inexpressible''
Turk, the thick-lipped Moor, the grace
ful form and features of the Hindoo, the
quaint, turbaned figure of some Moslem,
or the still quainter figure ofsome Parsee
from Bombay or Madras. 4 representa-
tive of Siam, the long-tailed Mongolian,
the powerful copper-colored New Zea-
lander or Zulu from Zululand.
Each and every one of these might be
seen at this time on this block; and per-
haps there interjects itself into this motley
assembage another incongruous feature.
Here come an Australian native and his
"lubra" (or woman). On his head is an
old stovepipe hat and on his neck paper
collar. The remainder of his body is clad
in an old military coat, several sizes too
small for him; and an Old pair of pants
through which he seems to have thrust
his limbs too far, as the pants do not
much more than reach his knees.
His "lubra" has been ''rigged oup' in
a more fantastic shape. Her head bears
an old fancy bonnet of wire and crepe and
highly colored flowers, the worse for ex-
posure to the sun. Beside this, her only
attire is a large-sized crinoline which
sways and swings widely with her every
step, and over this crinoline very light
and fancyfowered poplin dress, of most
Transparent texture. No shoes protect
the feet of either of these children of the
forest" The lordly pas with which this
specimen of Austral manhood strides on
and the feminine pride with which his
partner widely swings her scantily ar
rayed self and crinoline, and reveals her
shapeless shins, would convulse with
laughter the soberest-minded saint in all
the catalogue and condemn him to
penance severe enough to cure him OF
such a weakness.
These and other scenes mark an era in
the life of one of the most remarkable
communities of this or any other century.
A HrfH