300 THE PASTORAL AGE IN AUSTRALASIA 



leading a spare horse or two. The practised stockman 

 cantered past with the easy carriage of the Gaucho — 

 a modern Centaur. The rail-sphtter or fencer and the 

 shearer, strong, bearded, and muscular, comfortably 

 clothed and often with a packhorse by his side, would 

 come in to squander the cheque he had just received 

 for months of labour. The old shepherd — he too with 

 his cheque — would ride slowly past on a quiet old nag, 

 himself clad in an old blue-serge shirt, dirty white 

 moleskin trousers, and wearing a pouch that contained 

 liis knife, lucifer-matches, and tobacco. 



Laden bullock-drays constantly came and went to 

 or from the busy little township, and lined the streets. 

 They were drawn by teams of ten or twelve bullocks — 

 but there might be as many as 30 or 40 on special 

 occasions. Their drivers were sunburnt, healthy-looking 

 men, wearing flannel-shirts, moleskin trousers, and 

 cabbage-tree hats. Or, if two or more teams travelled 

 together, the second and third might be driven by 

 blackboys, who were dressed like the other bullock- 

 drivers, but more gaudily. Clouds of dust rose in the 

 hot, dry streets as they passed, the air rent with the 

 shouting of bullocks' names and the cracking of the 

 formidable greenhide stockwhip. Or they would stop 

 at stores, and there unload their bales of wool and load 

 supplies for the stations. 



The public-houses were busy. Squatters, merchants, 

 and professionals transacted their business over the 

 bottle, while the stockmen, shearers, and shepherds 

 found pleasures and hquor inseparable. Incessant 

 treating, or " shouting," was the rule, for having a 

 drink all round was then " the great national pastime." 

 A refusal to drink evoked an outburst of mock indig- 

 nation. " Oh, you're too damned proud to drink with 

 a poor man ! " It was at least a less savage form of 

 intercourse in a state almost of nature than the fierce 

 outbreak of the Western cowboy who shot the refuser 

 in similar circumstances. " Good God ! Can I never 

 come into town without shooting somebody 1 " 



