New Horizons

By Dawn Pitts

New Horizons is book seven in the series of historical fiction that has followed the lives of Levi and Isabelle Whittaker and their life-long friends, Samuel and Millie Murphy’s descendants from 1833 when they met on the shore of Cockburn Sound.
In this book, Ambrose Whittaker builds a cottage on the house block to allow Benjamin, and his wife Patricia to start their married life in the larger building after they returned to Chadora from Northam where Patricia was teaching and Benjamin managed a farming property.
With the Korean War in progress Charles and Connie Morgan’s son, Godfrey, is killed in action and as the family was coming to terms with this tragedy, a second struck them. As a result the Morgan family decided to move to Sydney where their daughter, Winnie now lived with her husband.
Connie’s brother, Ronald, his wife Maxine, with their son, Kenneth, sold their orchard in Donnybrook and move to Bunbury where they start a new chapter of their lives.
Ambrose and Benjamin remain on the farm and their lives revolve around the seasonal changes and Patricia’s teaching.
As they move through the early 1950s, we follow the history of their time and how they move with the era they are now living in and both sets of families move to New Horizons.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dawn Pitts
• Release date: Aug 7, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370591138

Dawn Pitts

My writing career began in 1999 when I was led to write a children's book. A few years earlier I was working as a Library Assistant in a high school and soon discovered that a number of young teenagers had reading difficulties and that there was no suitable material for them to read. This was the seed that grew a few years later when I was walking regularly in an effort to lose weight when I heard a voice tell me to write a children's book. My reaction was, "No way. I'm not good at that sort of thing and where would I start." Feeling smug I continued home and tried to put the idea out of my mind. A few days later the Reader's Digest arrived in the letterbox and in it was a course for Writing for Children. I almost died."Over the next six months I completed the course and then had the confidence to join a local writing group. Since then I've have had success entering both local and national competitions. I now teach classes as a volunteer and enjoy passing the knowledge on to other authors.I have three adult children and five adult grandchildren.

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Tribute To Pioneers

(Early Settlement of Western Australia)

Australia was settled by people, who had dreams to fulfil. Men women and children who, through sheer stubbornness and hard work tamed and developed the land. They too, like today’s folk on the land, fought against flood, drought and raging bushfires. This series of books depicts the fight that two pioneer families made to tame their land. Fictional characters are entwined with the historical facts of the time in which the books are set.

Dedication

I wish to dedicate this book to those who have assisted me by prof-reading and re-reading these words that paint a picture of a life once lived by real people in this great land Australia.

An author is not alone for it is a team effort to produce a novel. It is something that takes time, effort, and sometimes tears, to bring to life a story so that the reader is transferred to another place, another time, and become connected emotionally to the characters that live out the story. Thank you to those who purchase the book, and to my family members who have encouraged me along the way.

NEW HORIZONS

PROLOGUE

You’re pensive, darling, Winton Andrews stated, joining his fiancé beneath the flowering wisteria on the south side of the house she inherited from her grandfather.

Am I? I suppose I am, Eleanor Roberts stated, correcting her thoughts. I’ve been studying the lives of my early descendants and I can’t begin to imagine how I would have survived the harshness of the bush when they arrived. I’m surprised that this nation grew and became what it is today, when I consider the many disasters that befell them.

We may live in a more luxurious prosperous land now to what they arrived in, but despite that fact many folk live with hardship...

You mean the fires and floods that destroy or damage cities, towns, farms and yet fill the inland with life-giving water that attracts millions of birds and other wildlife? Eleanor interrupted.

Something like that. The English farmers had no understanding of the land and pretty much clear-felled their lands for cropping. That may have worked in England, but it does much damage to our sandy soils, causing erosion.

Mm, your right, Winton. Grandad often told me that they always kept the creek banks vegetated to prevent flood damage and erosion. The rock causeway near the old house in Pinjarra was testament to that and one of the first major projects was to build a bridge across the creek that ran through the land where the Everett and Murphy families decided to settle.

I notice you are going over the early history of the families when Levi and Isabelle Everett arrived at Cockburn Sound in the spring of 1833 and Isabelle took ill.

Not so much ill, Winton, as shock. It was then that she realised that she was ‘with child’, as a pregnancy was referred to in those days. It was the shock of that knowledge that caused her to faint, or have the ‘vapours’ as they once called it. I bet their maid, Millie Harwood was reprimanded over that. Isabelle was a woman who expected the world to rotate around her and coming to Australia was not what she wanted to do at all...

Is that when my early ancestor, Samuel Murphy, came to their rescue. Eleanor?

Yes, he really saved their lives. It was his knowledge and connections to the Aboriginal people that taught the Everett’s how to survive on this harsh land of ours. It was soon after their meeting that the men rode into the forest in search of suitable land to purchase and it was here at Chadora that the next generation settled. Then tragedy struck a few months after their arrival in Australia when Isabelle gave birth to a daughter and died a few days later before they took up their land between the North and South Dandalup Rivers.

Samuel Murphy a former whaler of that time fell in love with Millie and they married several months before Levi, met his wife’s cousin, Abigail Farley, and they married and started a second family.

I still can’t believe that we come from those original settlers...it’s as though we’ve joined a circle that until recently had been broken. We only have glimpses of the children to the second marriage as they moved away, married and lost regular contact.

That is quite normal, Eleanor. It appears to be common today with the industry of our lives and the effects of the wars in the 1900s on the small Australian population. Don’t forget that our ancestors watched the states grow and form a nation at the beginning of the last century.

"Then the horror of war tore families apart in ‘the Great War’ 1914 to 1918. Will we ever learn, Winton?

I don’t know, Eleanor. I would like to think so, but as we know the Great Depression followed the Great War and then in the 1939, the terror began a second time and, the children of the combined families were caught up in it.

Granddad’s brother flew for the United States Army Air Corps and he never returned to live in Western Australia. He married an American, Evelyn Chadwick, and lived in the States. Granddad couldn’t join up because he was a farmer and was what they called ‘man-powered’ and his help was imperative as his father had lost his leg in the early 1920s...

About that same time, my grandad was killed in a shooting accident near Pinjarra, Winton reminded her.

"Yes, and it was Aunty Elizabeth who made the connection between our two families in the early 1940s when she met Ron and Maxine Murphy when their son Kenneth was born. It was before she met and married Connor Beck and began their family. They still live in the same house in Bunbury that they did then.

I remember Aunty Connie and Uncle Charles Morgan, telling me how amazing it was to find the Murphy family living in Donnybrook. It was before they established their accounting business in Perth. I do believe they were living in Kalgoorlie at the time. It was how they managed to survive the depression and the war. Accountants were losing their jobs in the hundreds during the Great Depression and many left their families or committed suicide from the hopelessness of the situation they suddenly found themselves in, Winton explained.

There were many changes taking place during the war years and immediately after. Men were returning home. Women who were once working and independent lost their jobs in favour of the men and for many it was a disaster that ended marriages. It was an era of change that some folk couldn’t cope with, Winton. It was during this time that grandfather, Benjamin Whittiker, met grandma, Patricia Webster. They fell in love and planned to marry but grandma met with an accident and became blind for many months. It was and still is referred to as hysterical blindness and can be triggered by an emotional trauma following an accident as it was in her case. It is extremely rare and no matter the cause of the condition the blindness is genuine.

How terrible!

It must have been, Winton, and most families were affected by the war and the changes after it. Aunty Elizabeth’s dearest friend, Winnie Morgan met an accountant after the war while she was nursing and his family was in Sydney. I believe that is where they are now, but I haven’t come to that section of history that is stored in the trunks in the barn.

Oh! I was hoping you knew as you certainly have aroused my curiosity concerning the two families we belong to. Shall we find them and together we can continue our family’s history?

What a wonderful idea, Eleanor replied and together they collected the trunks, then, returning to the house, began their search.

CHAPTER ONE

"Oh, those poor Aboriginal parents! Elizabeth exclaimed as her husband, Connor and their son, Edward, walked across the backyard towards her.

Is something amiss, Elizabeth?

Yes and no, Connor.

You are confused, my dear. Then seeing the paper on the table nearby, read the headlines staring up at him. WHOOPING COUGH CLAIMS 21 LIVES! Terrible, it’s just terrible. Isn’t there a drug like penicillin to cure such diseases?

Sadly not in remote areas. Maybe in years to come, but now? No!

When I was in Darwin on one of the times we went through there during the war, the Aboriginal kids were so carefree and happy. Their parents worked on one of the stations and they were lovely people. Twenty-one families must be heartbroken. How would we feel if it was Edward?

I can’t begin to imagine their grief, she told him, looking at their eighteen-month-old son.

Nor can I, he answered, seeing her gently ruffle Edward’s curly, brown hair.

When Merle had the measles all we could do was wash our hands every time we were with her and mum drummed into us, ‘don’t touch your mouth, nose, or eyes, until you wash your hands.

Anyone home?

Don’t you look a picture of happiness, Patricia, Conner stated, standing to greet his wife’s future sister-in-law.

I am. Benjamin phoned earlier today and he and dad are calling on you on their way to visit Ronald and Maxine Murphy in Donnybrook. They telephoned you, but no one was home.

I was at the clothesline. I ran towards the house but it stopped ringing before I could reach it. Did they say when we could expect them, Patricia?

Only that it will be mid-afternoon.

Do sit down; would you like a cold drink?

No thank you. I can only stay for a few moments. The doctors have suggested that I stay out of the sun as much as I can for a few months. My eyes are still sensitive to glare and I’ve been assured it will improve with time, Patricia informed her, tying her hat ribbon firmly beneath her chin; she kissed them both farewell before swinging Edward around several times. Oh, that wasn’t such a good idea, she said grinning, and grabbed the back of a chair for support.

Would you like me to walk home with you, Connor asked, seeing her predicament.

Would you?

Of course. Would you like to come for a walk with daddy, Edward?

I expect that’s your answer, Connor, Elizabeth replied with a chuckle as their son ran towards his pusher near the steps leading to the back verandah.

Devastating isn’t it, Patricia stated, seeing the paper. When I was in hospital the nurses and doctors kept saying, ‘I’ll just wash my hands then I’ll attend to you.

That’s what we were told as children as well. We rarely became sick and it was second nature when working at the hospital. We never spread sickness from one patient to the other. So it must be more important than we thought. As kids we were annoyed at the constant reminder.

Ready?

Weddy? Edward echoed.

Thank you, Connor. I feel a little silly, but I don’t want to fall.

Walkie, walkie. Bye, bye, Mummy, Edward called as they moved towards the footpath.

Bye. I’ll get lunch while you’re away, Elizabeth told them, and standing she folded the paper and carried it into the house.

Patricia are you ill?

No, Mum. I swung Edward around a couple of times and became giddy. Connor offered to walk me home just in case I tripped.

Thank you, Connor, she replied, her fear palpable.

Now, Mum, we agreed. I have to take risks and behave normally. You must stop fussing so!

Sorry, love. I can’t help myself. While you were ill I was treating you like a child and I’m finding it hard to stop, her mother explained.

"I know, Mum. It’s hard for me as well. Thank you, Connor. I feel much better now. Doctor Drummond did tell me that my ears will take time to settle down because of the severity of the infection.

My pleasure, Patricia, he told her and then turning to his son added, Time to go home, Edward. Mummy will have lunch ready.

Hungy, the toddler informed them. Bye, bye, he said, and waving goodbye, Connor pushed him home.

It was mid-afternoon when Ambrose and Benjamin arrived at Elizabeth’s house. Gangpa! Gangpa! Edward called excitedly.

Perfect timing, Dad, Elizabeth greeted, as the men followed her into the kitchen.

Just what I need, her father said, sipping his tea, shortly after.

Will Patricia be going with you? When she was here earlier I forgot to ask.

No, Connor, Benjamin answered. She was warned to keep out of the sun’s glare for a few weeks. If you don’t mind I’ll finish my tea and run to see her before we continue. Dad and I would like to be at Ronald’s place before dark. The roos can be pretty active at that time of day...

And we don’t want an accident, his father interrupted.

Of course not, Dad, Connor agreed.

After walking several blocks, Benjamin opened the front gate and hurried towards the house. He was about to knock when the door opened.

Hello, my darling, Patricia said, kissing his cheek. Taking his hand, they entered the house to join her parents in the lounge room.

This room holds such memories, Benjamin stated, looking around him.

Good and bad ones I’m afraid, Darling, and I was the cause of them all.

Ah, but all of them echoed your deep love for me and...

Your love for me as well, Patricia confirmed.

Have you time for a cuppa, Benjamin? Cynthia Webster, Patricia’s mother asked.

No thank you, Mum. Dad and I hope to miss the roos by arriving at Ronald’s farm in Donnybrook before dark. I’ve just popped in to say hello to you all for a few minutes before we leave. Thank you for relaying our message to Elizabeth this morning.

Then turning to Patricia he asked, How are you feeling now? Connor told me you were suffering some giddiness and he and Edward walked you home.

I’m fine. I never gave my balance a thought when I swung Edward around in the air and was caught off guard so to speak. I haven’t felt so well for months and I’m ready to start work again when school starts. I have been told I’ll have my posting in the mail this week sometime.

Let’s hope it is closer to home this time, Benjamin declared, remembering the trauma they endured when Albany was her country appointment for 1948 and then her accident early in 1949 that led to her blindness and its associated problems.

I’ll phone you as soon as I hear from the Education Department, and let’s hope it isn’t Derby!

You’re joking aren’t you?

No. We can be assigned to any school in Western Australia...

We can’t have that Patricia. We must ask God to intervene in our lives and have you closer to home. Where would you like to be sent?

I’ve given it some thought and have been praying for Donnybrook Primary School. I will be close to home and to you. Yet, still have my independence, setting mum and dad free of ‘nursing’ duties. They’ve done enough of that.

Donnybrook it is then. On that cheery note, I’d best say goodbye and join dad, he said, taking Patricia’s hands, he pulled her to her feet. After kissing his future mother-in-law on the cheek and shaking her husband, Bill’s hand, he and Patricia walked to the front gate. Benjamin whispered, "I love you my darling Patricia, and giving her a hug he softly caressed her lips with his as he held her close, then left her side and hurried towards his sister’s home.

After bidding their family goodbye, they drove away, waving as they went then with a few toots of the horn, they were out of sight.

The sun was sinking behind the hills at the rear of Ronald and Maxine Murphy’s house, when they arrived later in the day.

It’s so good to see you! Ronald greeted, bounding down the steps, his hand out in welcome.

They’re here, Mummy, Kenneth called, hurrying into the kitchen with the billycan of eggs he had collected.

Be careful, young man. We don’t want them on the floor, his mother warned reaching for them.

Your timing is perfect, tea is ready and all the chores are done, Maxine said, hugging both Ambrose and Benjamin in turn. I’ve put fresh towels on your beds in readiness. Would you like to wash before we eat? It’s been such a hot day, she commented.

Thank you, they answered in unison, before following Ronald and Kenneth down the passage towards the spare bedrooms at the rear of the house.

It was after the evening meal before the adults could speak of their concerns about the happenings in North Korea they were hearing over the radio and from Charles’ brief notes included in Connie’s, his wife’s frequent letters to Ronald and Maxine.

Uncle Charles told me that Godfrey is signing up, Ambrose.

Goodness, Ronald, why?

Apparently he feels that if he doesn’t he’ll be called up and this way he expects to be away from the front line working as a surveyor, out of harm’s way. If only the army thought along those lines all would be well and I could agree with him...in part any way. His heart’s in the right place as he wants to help the South Korean people, but war is war and a soldier, no matter what he desires, is expected to follow orders, Ronald lamented.

How does Aunty Connie feel about his plans? Benjamin asked.

Aunty Connie’s not at all happy. In fact she told him to think of what he is doing! He has a wife, and baby to worry about.

It is a difficult situation for all of them. I can see both sides of it. I was torn between my desire to join up and the responsibilities I had on the farm. The most alarming time was when ‘white feathers’ were placed beneath the doormat. I never did find out who the culprit was, but the emotional pain they caused was hard to bear and only by talking to dad about it was I able to overcome the fear of ‘letting the nation down’ in some way I couldn’t comprehend. I expect that Godfrey has the same fears, Benjamin explained.

As with all visits with great friends, the weekend passed into history as they were told by Charlotte, Ambrose’s wife, who died suddenly eight years earlier.

Elizabeth turned off the petrol iron she had been using and stood it on the kitchen bench out of Edward’s reach and began to put the clothes away as she listened to the radio a few days later.

This is the news, came the familiar announcement: Mr J G Crawford the Director of the Commonwealth Bureau of Agricultural Economics told the Summer School in Political Science in Canberra that the rabbit population is eating an amount of fodder equal to the feeding of 43% of the nation’s sheep.

This causes the pastoralists a huge expense in the eradication of the pest that was introduced by the early settlers to cover the sporting interests of the country gentlemen of that time. In 1859, Thomas Austin, imported twenty-four wild rabbits, 72 partridges and five hares, to Victoria. Since that time the rabbit population has increased to plague proportions.

Daddy home, Edward told his mother on entering the kitchen.

Hello, Darling, Connor greeted, kissing his wife and then lifting Edward, swung him into the air.

The announcer continued reading and could hardly contain his excitement as he read the cricket results

Under the searing South African sun at Durban, Australia has won the series by five wickets. Neil Harvey, just twenty-one years old hit an unbeaten 151. With seven wickets in hand and two hundred and fifty-six runs behind, the cracked pitch, along with the outstanding performance of South Africa’s Hugh Tayfield and ‘Tufty’ Mann, things look extremely grim when play commenced this morning,

Yes! Elizabeth exclaimed, clapping her hands in jubilation.

Ah, the cricket. It looked hopeless this morning, Elizabeth, Connor stated, eager to hear the sporting results from his wife as the news concluded and the gentle sounds of Mona Lisa, filled the room.

CHAPTER TWO

Ah, some good news at last, Dad, Benjamin declared as the evening news ended several weeks later.

It certainly is. I can hardly remember the freedom of pulling up to the petrol pump and filling the glass to the amount of petrol I wanted without having to hunt around for sufficient ration coupons. Amazing. I wonder how long the date 8th February 1950 will be remembered for this occasion, he declared, his eyes twinkling with pleasure at the simple things of life.

Not long, Dad. I can’t remember when the other rations ended, can you?

No.

Patricia, should be in Donnybrook, now. She has accommodation in the boarding house not far from the school. She has a few days to settle in before teaching commences for the term. Our letter writing has begun once more.

The train journey will not be as arduous as the Albany sleeper trip was and phone calls can be easier to make as well. The times are changing rapidly. I’m sure the next couple of years will show many changes in our lives.

Not too many I hope, Dad. I like life just as it is.

We can’t stop progress, Benjamin.

Mm, I expect that’s right, but so many improvements sound good but fail to be so.

I agree with you. However, it is not the invention but the way man uses it that is the problem.

If only all people were completely honest with their fellow man...

That is one thing that I can tell you will not happen. It hasn’t in all the centuries since the beginning of time, so it won’t happen now.

How true. On that cheery note I’m calling it a night. Will you be long turning in, Dad?

No.

That being the case, would you like me to turn off the generator? The battery lights are great now, Dad. Being able to switch them on immediately we stop the generator."

Thank you. I’ll see you in the morning and let’s hope it’s cooler. Anything less than 104º would be a cool change.

A cold winter’s day sounds quite pleasant, Benjamin commented, with a grin and hurrying down the back steps, he turned off the power plant, and returned in bright moonlight.

Dad, there’s mail, Benjamin called a few days later as he returned to the house.

I’m in the barn, his father answered, gasping for air.

What on earth are you doing?

After checking the water in the trough near the barn, I noticed wood dust and found the white ants in the lower weatherboards. I dragged the wagon out from the wall and thought I’d dig about to see what is going on. Strewth, the ground’s like cement.

I’m not surprised. When was the barn built?

My dad said it was here when he purchased the land from his cousin decades ago.

That being the case, Dad, it can wait until we’ve had a cuppa and read the mail. You look all in. I’ve one from Patricia, while yours are from Aunty Connie and Elizabeth.

"Elizabeth! That’s unusual, she usually phones these days.

I’ll make a cuppa while you wash up. I’ll meet you under the shade of the wisteria. It’s already hot so we are in for another scorcher.

You’re right. The barometer is falling and that only tells us rain is in the air. A cyclone up north I expect, as there is static on the radio today.

I’ll put the mail on the table under the trellis, Benjamin told his father, as they went their different ways.

Oh, I can just see it, Ambrose muttered, between his uncontrollable laughter. Oh, Charles!

What tickled your fancy?

"Charles. He is such an Englishman even after all this time. His upper-class inheritance shines through and he doesn’t know it. His dry humour gets me every time.

He is a rare human being, Dad.

Of course Charles hasn’t mentioned the incident, but Connie couldn’t help herself. Apparently they were about to entertain prospective clients when Charles remembered some detail he’d left out of his briefcase while part way through dressing. He didn’t bother tucking his shirt in and plastering hair cream on his head as he went intending to complete his preparations when the front door bell rang. Charles being Charles, opened the door to his guests, then disappeared into the nearby bedroom only to find he’d put Connie’s expensive face crème on his hair. Joining his guests several minutes later, he graciously shook their hands, offered them a glass of refreshments and complained, I’ll not be buying that hair cream again...it’s too highly perfumed, before leading them into the dining room for their evening meal.

Poor Uncle Charles. I do feel for him. I wonder how the evening went?

Quite successfully I expect. In his note he wrote that his ‘new client’ is an influential businessman importing men’s toiletries.

You’re having a lend of me!

I am not. Would I do that?

Yes. It’s been known to happen, Dad.

Read your mail. You’ll see I’m not having a lend of you when you read Connie’s letter, he declared in mock horror at the notion. Still chuckling, Ambrose continued reading as Benjamin returned to his mail.

My darling Benjamin,

Here I am again with the first of my letters to you for the year. My class is a mixture of confident and shy children and I’m trying to remember each one’s name and their parents. The first few weeks are challenging as we are ‘strangers’ not understanding each other and fearful of making mistakes.

Now that I’m closer to home I will travel home for Easter and if you can visit while I’m home it would be wonderful. If the milking is in full swing, I’ll stay at Chadora at the end of term, if it’s no bother to you both.

‘Bother, my darling Patricia. How could it be a bother? You’re always thinking of others and their convenience and not of your own desires. Just you try and keep me away from visiting you. We could go to a picture show while you’re home.’ He thought.

I was walking across the playground the other day when I found a young girl in tears as she didn’t know how to write her name and ‘everyone else did’. I told her that it was not true. I picked up a stick and wrote her name in the sand, Theresa Italiano, in large printing. What a pretty name, I told her.

"Yuck! she spat out. Should be like yours

Feeling her pain I asked, Why?

The tears ran down her flushed cheeks. Kids call me dago, she whispered, clearly distressed. Poor little kid. How I felt for her. I spoke to her mother about it and she said she is called Tess at home and we can do the same at school. As for the surname, there is little that can be done. I will be aware of any teasing from now on.

‘I’m sure you will my darling,’ he thought and shuddered as he remembered the pain Patricia endured from overhearing a thoughtless conversation while she was unconscious during those first weeks after the accident. The pain of those hurtful words was the