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VAST HOLDINGS ON THE STATIONS RUN
. Up north, from Cairns to Thursday Island, over
the peninsula, and across to the Gulf of Carpentaria,
there's a legend that if you eat the fruit of the nonda
tree you will return to the place where you feasted.
Story and pictures by
SCOTT POLKINGHORNE
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C4PTA1N BOB JACKSON. A.N.A. pilot, is greeted at "Dunbar" station by Mr. and Mrs.
John McRae and their son, nine-year-old Ainslie. John McRae manages "Dunbar" station
of 3777 square miles for J. S. Love Estates. The property is on the stations run.
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LOOY i NU at picture» in a copy oj The Aus
tralian Women's Weekly is a favorite form
of entertainment for children of the Mit-
chell River Mission. Bob Jackson dites
some over-'^e-shavlder chat about the city.
FIVE years ago, A.N.A.
pilot Bob Jackson ate
the fruit. He was then fly-
ing the stations run.
Jackson transferred south,
but recently found time to
go back to the nonda tree
country, adding weight to
the legend.
An A.N.A. plane runs a
weekly service called the
stations run from Cairns
to "Abingdon Downs" station,
"Croydon," "Normanton,"
"Miranda," "Vanrook," "Dun-
bar," "Koolatah," "Rutland
Plains," "Mitchell River,"
"Galbraith," and "Delta
Downs."
1 went with Jackson to see
this enchanting land, to meet
the people, and take pictures.
It was an aerial whirlabout
that took in wallaby shooting,
cattle mustering, wild - pig
hunting, and corroborées.
Nearly everyone on the
Gulf knows Jackson. He flew
the A.N.A. plane for four
years, acting as pi'ot, mail-
man, radio mechanic, midwife,
singing teacher, and shop
assistant.
We arrived at the
Mitchell River Mis-
sion - which is not
on the Mitchell
River-at lunchtime.
Mission superintendent
"Wiffy" Currington (no one
calls him Wilfred) and the
natives were lined up by the
oil-drums, and as the plane
pulled up they let fly with
"The Camptown Races," a
song which Jackson had
taught them many years ago.
Mitchell River Mission is a
collection of cabbage - tree
palm huts, the school, the
hospital, several cottages, and
a great bush-timber, palm
thatched church.
The settlement is spread
over an area of about a square
mile, and is home for some
three hundred to four hun-
dred natives. Many go to
adjoining cattle stations to
work.
At Mitchell River there are
natives of three tribes, all
living happily together. Many
of them have intermarried.
The three tribes are the
Kokopera, Kokomunjana, and
Kunjen.
The natives still hold cor-
roborées and staged a "big
fella dance" for our enter-
tainment.
Instead of the didgeridoo
and hollow-log orchestra they
use a kerosene tin as a drum.
The "caller" sits cros^ed
legged on the ground and
whacks the tin lightly with a
pencil-thin stick about 18
inches long.
His monotonous chant calls
the dancers in for all sorts
of story-telling movements.
For us they did a cor-
roboree in which they
imitated our A.N.A. plane
landing. The main dancer
careered about with his arms
outstretched, circled around
and around, and finally settled
down in the dust.
We asked if we could see
some of the boys throwing
spears. Six of them gave us
a demonstration. They are
amazingly accurate. One of
them threw a spear 130 yards.
The natives take their
spears with them nearly every-
where they go. ~i hev hunt
wallabies, emus, and plain
turkeys for food, although
most of the mission-born
young ones prefer white man's
tucker.
A special treat is the
famous barramundi, the fish
which are so plentiful in
Northern waters. The boys
showed us how to spear them.
They use seven-foot spears
with multiple wire points.
They stand motionless on the
banks or on an overhanging
log, poised ready to throw. As
soon as the fish swim to within
reasonable range, say, a foot
under the water 10 yards
away, they let fly.
Mitchell River is operated
as a cattle station as well as
a missior* It carries about
4000 head of cattle on 900
square miles.
Big Jim Grogan, who looks
powerful enough to break
bullock in two with his bat
hands, came over from the
adjoining station, "Rutland
Plains," and picked us up (rn
visit to this 950-square-mile j
property, which he manag< -
for Kidman Angliss Estates
"Rutland" was originally
owned by Frank Macarthur
Bowman, who was speared bv ¡
the blacks in 1910. It is alleged j
that he shot some 300 natives I
in his private war with then
We helped Grogan dip
some 300 cattle and nearl.
choked with dust as we put j
them through.
Gordon Hammil, head
stockman on "Rutland Plains,"
is a typical Gulf countr
stockman. The strong leather i
belt which he wears, complete
with pouches for m^tche\
pocket-knife, etc., the higl
heeled riding-boots, and tl
narrow pants are almost a uni- j
form in that country.
He drove us over the &
odd miles to "Dunbar
station.
"Dunbar" is a huge station :
of 3777 square miles ?
(that is 2,417,281 ?
acres!), ft is owned I
by the J. S. Love Es I
tates and is manage< I
by John McRae. It- I
profits go to charity.
Twenty-odd thousand head
of cattle roam this mighu
holding which is as flat as a
bad sponge cake. There isn't
a hill for'500 miles.
We got on the A.N.A. plan
for the home run a week after
we had arrived down at Mit-
chell River.
On the plane was one o
the passengers who had come
up with us, a man whi
objected to having to do up ]
this "damn surcingle" ever
time the "fasten safety belts"
sign came on.
He was Colin Marmadnk
(call me Duke) Curr, owner
of two mighty stations, "Tal-
dora" and "Inkerman."
Duke was doing his annual
inspection of "inkerman."
We returned to Cairns, bi
not before I ate the fruit
the nonda tree.
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AFTER A FOOTBALL GAME, youtn,m
admirers of Bob Jackson walk along one
of the mission streets (right). Bob, who is
secretary of the Victorian Rugby League,
initiated the boy: into the: l«ogue game.
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MISSION SINGERS. Schoolboys and schoolgirls al the Mitchell River Mission cluster
around Bob Jackson while he teaches them a song. With his ukulele Bob taught the chil-
dren songs when on the stations run. Favorites are "Clementine" and "Camptown Races."

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BABY CHRISTINE is nursed by her
mother. Doreen Michael, in the Mitchell
firer Mission Hospital (above). A mission
"islet is treating the baby. The natives at
the mission receive expert medical care.

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NATIVE GIRL Dori» Gilben pote» with a
red hibiscus in her hair for the approval
of "60s* pilot" Bob Jackton (right). Dori»
i» a member of the Kokopera tribe, which
comet from the Gilbert River country.

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