by Susan Toscan
While offering them her services, Elsie was also learning from the Wiradjuri people. She was very interested in their bush medicines and had recognised the value of these treatments and the importance of maintaining this practice. She made sure that she understood the many uses for such medicines and learned as much as she could from the elders, who were happy to share their knowledge.
Elsie and Joe would often take Agnes and Betty to picnic by the river. Even though the girls were very confident in the water, their parents kept a watchful eye on them. Joe taught the girls to respect the Murrumbidgee and its environment. In particular, they learned to always be on the lookout for snakes. Joe advised them to make a lot of noise as they walked through the bush: “Snakes will hear you before you see them, and they will get out of your way. Always watch where you are walking.”
He would also remind his daughters of the children who had lost their lives in that vast and unforgiving river. He did not want to upset them; rather, he wanted them to have a healthy respect not only for the beauty of the waterway and its surrounding bushland but also for the fact that it could be a dangerous place.
Elsie knew that it would not be long before her family would have to move into the larger town of Griffith for the girls’ schooling, and she did not look forward to leaving Darlington Point and the peaceful lifestyle it provided. She had developed strong friendships in the town as well as among several women of her own age on the mission, and she loved living surrounded by such beautiful country. But as well as being very aware of the schooling needs of both Agnes and Betty, she wanted to follow up on some study herself. Medical techniques were being improved, and she needed the contact with the larger hospital and medical community to keep up.
The girls continued to grow up strong and independent. In Darlington Point, they had learned to respect the ways of the Indigenous Australian people as well as to live within white society. But Agnes and Betty knew that they would soon have to go to school, and that meant moving into Griffith.
Having always lived in such a small country township, the thought of living permanently in Griffith was a little intimidating for them. They did not often go to the bigger town as it involved a lot of travelling, but when they did visit, they always enjoyed being there and meeting lots of interesting people. They especially loved all the shops in Griffith and enjoyed meeting up with their friends at the markets. It was very busy there, with lots of activity—more exciting than the small village of Darlington Point. Even though Elsie had been giving the girls lessons at home, they looked forward to going to a real school with other children.
They had made several trips to Griffith to find a house for the family to live in. Joe’s boss had recently purchased a farm close to the town, and he wanted Joe to manage it for him. It was 1924 when Joe and Elsie decided that they would move. Agnes had already turned six years old, and Betty would start school the year after her sister.
Where the brown land
meets the clear blue sky
Since 1916—when it was first proclaimed a town and named after Arthur Griffith, the New South Wales Minister for Public Works—Griffith had evolved to become a busy country centre. Walter Burley Griffin, the same architect who had designed Australia’s capital city, Canberra, a few years earlier, had designed Griffith’s town plan.
Griffith was part of the New South Wales State Government’s Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area project, which was located within the Riverina district. Irrigation provided by the Murrumbidgee River had turned this previously dry and desolate environment into an oasis for farmers. The water was channelled through a weir near the town of Leeton and flowed into a large canal that fed many smaller canals.
The region thrived after the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Scheme was completed, with citrus- and grape-growing developing particularly well. In later years, these enterprises also brought in businesses such as canneries for the fruit, packing houses and juice-making factories as well as wineries. The sheep and cattle industries also thrived but mostly in the area outside the irrigation scheme.
Rice farms were established in the Griffith/Leeton region in 1924, planted with seed sourced from California. There had previously been several attempts to establish rice crops in Australia, initially in the 1850s by Chinese workers who had come to the Australian gold fields. By 1928, rice was being grown for domestic use as well as for export. This provided a lot of employment opportunities, and the town grew quickly, as did the various businesses that supported the farming enterprises that were so quickly developing. By 1935, the area would have a well-established farming and business community.
During the developing years, travel by road was long and arduous and a very expensive way of moving goods around. The rail system still had its problems, but it was reasonably reliable and the most economical choice for both passenger and goods transport. It was generally affordable, and when people travelled by rail, they tended to make the journey a social event, dressing up for the occasion and taking along food supplies for the journey.
At the time Joe and Elsie and their family arrived, Griffith was still mainly a farming community. The centre had only recently started to grow, and although it was larger than Darlington Point, it was still very much a small country town, with dirt roads and quite limited facilities.
The town’s shops were dotted along the main street, Banna Avenue, in a neat row. There was a fruit and vegetable market and a small convenience store at the top end of the street. A picture theatre and a department store were located further down Banna Avenue.
Although the roads were dirt, leafy oriental plane trees had been planted along the centre of the main street, dividing it into two lanes. This feature provided the opportunity to create a lawn median strip that afforded much-needed shade in the hot summer months.
The outdoor theatre located on Yambil Street, near the canal, was very popular, especially on hot summer nights. Young people brought picnic rugs and food and relaxed as they watched the screening. It usually took a long time for a small country town to obtain the most recent movies, and it was not unusual for the locals to see the same film more than once.
Scenic Hill overlooked the town of Griffith, and from there, onlookers could see for miles out to the horizon where the brown land met the clear blue sky. The flat landscape spreads out before the onlooker, red-brown dirt areas surrounded by a patchwork of green farms, fruit orchards and vineyards. And beyond the irrigated country lie the dry area farms.
It was rumoured that an old hermit lived in one of the caves at the lookout and that he had perhaps been a refugee who’d come to Australia from Europe after the Great War. There was evidence of a garden that he had planted there, and the local people liked to speculate about what he was hiding from up in the caves.
Breaking down the barriers
On their most recent visit to Griffith, Elsie and Joe had noticed that a fresh fruit and vegetable market had been set up at the end of the main street. This was wonderful—evidence that the area was becoming self-sufficient—and it was obvious that the farmers were benefiting from being able to sell their produce locally.
Elsie saw that there were a few migrant families running some of the stalls. She had found out from other locals that these families had come to Griffith from northern Italy a couple of years before, wanting to get away from a country that had been devastated by the Great War and escape from all the horrific memories of that time.
Elsie was fascinated by the sound of their language as they talked to one another, and she smiled as she moved among the stalls. The friendly people sounded busy, and she guessed that instructions were being passed around. As she was inspecting some of the fruit, one woman about her age made an attempt to ask if she needed help. Elsie was rather shocked to realise that this woman knew only very limited English. She made her purchase, thanked the woman and went on with her shopping.
Later, as they made their way out of town, Elsie told Joe of her experience at the market. “Joe, I don’t think tha
t the Italians can speak English very well. It must be so hard for them.”
Joe smiled at his wife, who was always looking out for others. “I believe that the Italian families all live in a community out towards Bilbul, just a few miles out of town. Because they have each other to communicate with, they probably don’t have the opportunity to learn English.”
Elsie thought about this for a while. “Would it be rude of me to ask that lady who I met today if she would like to learn English?”
“You can always ask, my love—they seem to be very kind people. They certainly have come a long way from their homeland, and I’m sure they won’t be returning anytime soon. God, they must have been through such an awful time to come so far.”
Elsie patted her husband’s shoulder. He was a softie; he really felt for people who had it tough. Together she and Joe had supported many people who had been down on their luck. “I’ll talk to her when we come back in a couple of weeks’ time,” Elsie said.
In the early 1920s, just after the Great War, many Italian migrant families had come to the town of Griffith and surrounding areas as part of a government migration scheme, bringing with them a new culture as well as their farming skills. Their homeland had been devastated by the war. By November 1918, Italy had lost over 400,000 soldiers. The period between the two World Wars was fraught with political unrest, which left the general population of Italy frustrated and unhappy. At this time, many Italians chose to migrate to other countries. Australia was the country of choice for a large percentage of Italian migrants, although in 1928, restrictions were placed on the number of them allowed into Australia.
Elsie did not know a lot about Italy’s culture or language, but she knew what it was like to be alone in a strange place, and she wanted to help these young families if she could. She remembered when she and Joe had first arrived in Darlington Point as a young married couple. They did not know anyone, and as they were living out on the station, it was very hard for her to meet people. She knew all too well that feeling of isolation and realised that if you added language difficulties to the mix, it would be a very difficult situation indeed.
On her family’s next visit to Griffith, Elsie was on a mission. Joe cautioned her to take her time in getting to know these people. “My love, you have the best of intentions, but just give them time to understand that you want to help them. Your enthusiasm can be a little overwhelming sometimes.”
“Oh, Joe, for goodness’ sake, I know what I am doing.” Elsie gave her husband an exasperated look.
When they reached the market, Elsie, Joe and their girls approached the stall where the Italian couple worked. Elsie noticed that there were two little girls playing nearby. She made the introductions. “Hello! I was here last week and I wanted to introduce my husband and daughters to you.”
The woman in charge of the stall responded by holding out her hand and saying, “Maria and Frank Messera. English not good. Our daughters, Lucia and Renata.”
Maria and her husband looked to be a hard-working couple. Maria was slightly built, with a lovely, friendly face and light brown hair, which she wore pulled into a bun at the back of her head.
Frank had a darker complexion, with dark hair that was greying at the temples. He had a solid frame, and his hands were calloused and work-worn. His eyes were kind, and he had a beautiful smile.
Agnes and Betty had joined in, playing with the two little girls. The older girl, who was about the same age as Agnes, was called Lucia. She was able to speak English quite well, and she translated for her parents. Elsie was able to let Maria and Frank know that she wanted to help them to learn English, and they seemed keen to do this.
Elsie visited the Italian couple at the market on several occasions over the next week. She and the girls stayed in Griffith with a cousin of Elsie’s while Joe dealt with the details of moving his family and job to the town.
It was agreed that Elsie would go to the Messera home for further lessons. It was much nicer to sit and talk quietly in private than at the busy, noisy market. Elsie found Maria warm and friendly, and even though Frank seemed a bit self-conscious at first, he was certainly welcoming and interested in speaking more fluent English. Maria caught on very quickly, and her English improved. With the help of her daughters, she tried very hard to communicate with her teacher, and slowly Elsie started to understand why the Italians had made the decision to move so far from their homeland. Maria explained in broken English, with Lucia filling in the gaps.
Frank had been working on his father’s farm in their hometown of Cavaso in northern Italy, but the war had devastated the small village—as well as the whole of Europe—and there was no longer enough work there. Frank and Maria did not want to stay in a country that seemed to offer them no future, and they wanted a better life for their children. It had been extremely difficult to leave their parents and extended families behind, but they believed that they had made the right decision.
“I worry all the time about the family still living in Italy,” Maria added. “The older people could not make the big move across the world at their ages, but they were keen to see us go to a better life in Australia. Frank’s brother Renzo has a large family, and we would have loved them to come with us. There is one of the nephews in particular that Frank is very fond. He has been encouraging his brother to let Alessandro come out and live with us. Frank’s hope would be to give him better opportunities for his future. It is hard for the boy. Italy’s future does not look positive for young people.”
Maria excused herself from the room and returned with an envelope. “I have a letter from Italy that only arrived last week, Elsie. I would like to read it for you.”
Elsie was a little unsure about being included in private family mail, but it was obvious that Maria wanted to share the news with her.
Maria and Lucia translated the letter:
Dearest Frank and Maria,
We hope this letter finds you and the girls well. Thank you for your last letter. It is good that life in Australia is going well for you and your family. You did well to leave when you did. Things are getting harder here. There are so many homeless people who are now making their way out of the cities to the more remote areas looking for work on the farms. There is hardly enough work for me and my sons. The older boys are looking for work anywhere they can find it. The coalmine near Bassano is employing men, and the boys will be most likely going there to work soon.
So many of the men who did survive the war have such injuries that they will never be able to resume the work they did before the war. It will be up to the young men to fill the gap. We can no longer produce enough basic necessities for our own country, let alone being able to feed ourselves. The recession has hit hard, and there is no end in sight.
I worry for our children. I have discussed your proposal with Alessandro, but he will not consider leaving until he is sure that our family will be all right. He wants to go out to work on the farm with his brothers, but he is still too young. However, he certainly does all he can at home. He is such a good boy, and he works so hard. He misses you very much, and he said to tell you that one day he will come to live in Australia.
Your loving brother, Renzo
Reading the letter was obviously upsetting for Maria, and Elsie reached out and took the hand of her new friend as a sign of comfort.
“Oh, Elsie, it is so hard to be a young person in our village,” Maria said tearfully. “Frank worries for Alessandro. He hardly goes to school as there is so much to do at home with his father and older brothers out working on the farm. He is a gentle boy, and he tends to be pushed around by his brothers. It is hard in those big families. As he is the youngest, he often finds life a bit lonely, especially because his mother is not a well woman and can’t watch out for him. We really wanted to bring him with us.”
“Let’s hope that he will come to join you sometime in the future, Maria,” Elsie said, but she was lost for the right words to make Maria feel better. These brave people had endur
ed so many changes in their lives that it was hard for her to comprehend what it had cost them to leave their homeland.
Maria asked Elsie how she felt about leaving the little village of Darlington Point to live in Griffith. Elsie laughed. “After what you and your family have done, Maria, I can hardly complain about moving 20 miles. I do have some good friends who I will miss terribly, but I will visit them often. There is a lovely Aboriginal woman, Sharon, who I befriended when I first arrived in the area. My nursing training gave me the opportunity to work with the Aboriginal community, and I really enjoyed that. I especially liked helping the young women deliver their babies, and Sharon was one of them. The experience created a special bond between us.”
“You are lucky to have good friends you can visit,” Maria said. “Please tell me a bit more about Sharon; she sounds like an interesting person.”
“Yes, Sharon certainly is an interesting person. Life had always been tough for her people, but she showed such an interest in wanting to make a difference that I could not help but be impressed by her. She was one of the young mothers who had a difficult birth, and I assisted in saving her baby. After she had the baby, she was a bit shy around me at first, but it was obvious that she was very concerned about her child’s health, and finally she asked me for advice. She made it obvious that she wanted to learn better skills to improve things like hygiene and diet so that she could pass the information on to other young mothers.” Elsie took a break and tried one of Maria’s biscotti. She smiled at Maria, who was listening intently.
“The most rewarding thing in teaching Sharon was that she could then pass on the skills she was learning in a way that did not threaten the Aboriginal culture. It was good to see the improvements in the children’s general health—and a big improvement in the young women’s self-confidence.”
Since she had left Italy for Australia, Maria’s world was much smaller than Elsie’s, revolving around her home, her family, the Italian community at Bilbul and the market stall. She had never met anyone from the Aboriginal community or visited any of the remote areas beyond the town of Griffith.
