A Relationship with the Car

While it is true that in my young days we were more often than not found in a horse drawn vehicle, we always had a car because of our isolation and farming activities.
My earliest memories are of a “Tin Lizzie” truck and an about 1926 Dodge sedan
My Dad had put in some magic liquid metal into the Ford truck while it was hot to rejuvenate the motor.
This worked well until one of my older brothers, Cyril, took half the weekly slaughtered sheep to our nearest neighbours, the Hargreaves, who lived only a mile away if you cut through the paddocks, anyway, the truck ran low on water and boiled and the motor was rattling worse than ever when they returned. Father David was less than impressed.
I must have been very young when my dad backed the truck out of the shed and the back tyre went over the calf of one of my legs, I remember crying and my dad getting out quite alarmed, rubbing my leg and I suspect, checking for a break. It must have given my leg a good squeeze as there were little spots of blood squeezed out through the pores of my skin. This is not an actual picture of the truck, but it was similar but not as flash. A bit of a cross between the one above and the one below. I remember my job, when it was raining, was to manually turn the windscreen wipers by turning a little handle back and forwards.



The about 1926 model Dodge picture, below, is genuine. I remember that my dad was under this car doing something or other, and my mother had told me to come inside and I had failed to respond. She appeared with the strap! I escaped her ire by getting under the car with my dad, she couldn’t quite reach me. My dad was in a confined state and was unable to take sides, fortunately.
He was in this car, making a necessary trip via a flooded route. Of course the roads were unmade. With chains on the tires these old cars would go just about anywhere. The small kids, my older brothers, were in the car with him and I believe, all asleep. He was trying to avoid the shire dam which he knew was on the edge of the road near by, but just where the edge of the road was, how could he tell? He felt the car sliding downwards and stopped, any endeavour to move made the car slide further. What to do? He got out of the car and waded over to a fence top, and removing the top barbed wire, he took the free end and tied it onto a rear wheel of the old Dodge. With the other end of the wire still attached to a post he put the car into reverse and slowly winched the car back from the slippery slope.
The barbed wire had not only wound itself around the tire, but also around the axle. He said he had a frightful job removing the barbed wire from the rear of the car, with the water still up over the running boards.
All I can say is, “These pioneering people were different”
Here is a photo of this car, my brothers Bill and Cyril in the foreground and Murray on the running board.
Through the car you will see my father in a familiar pose, hat, watch chain, soldier’s badge, and rolling a cigarette.



The next car was a 1928 model Dodge, his pride and joy for a while. My mother was coming home from Quambatook with a large bag of sugar on the back seat, and at the corner of what is now called Holt Road she took the corner too fast and slid into a huge corner post. I have heard him say the car was never the same afterwards. I remember a trip to Mildura in it with mum and dad; mum’s only brother, Cyril Ellis was dying, or had died. It was a long way and I can only remember four things about the trip, 1. sitting on the floor in the front listening to the engine sing, 2. Going through a place called Red cliffs. 3 people swimming in a public pool, lots of them, and 4. Auntie Florrie giving me a little Fox terrier.
When another car went by our place, which was not a regular occurrence, it was duly observed and considered. On one particular occasion, my dad saw this car go by and was galvanized into action. He ran to the Dodge and quickly started it up, (At this point I also was galvanized into action and also jumped in to the car) Out of our property we hurtled to catch up with this car; it took us a whole mile to do so.
I remember watching the drum type speedometer rocking back and forwards between 40 and 70 MPH.
The conclusion of this chase was not at all exciting as my dad and the man he overtook talked on the side of the road for what seemed to me to be about three hours. Groan.
As I lay in bed this morning another memory returned to me about this car, my dad was taking quite a lot of sheep into Quambatook, driving them along the road, he often had to leave the car and see them all along, and I suppose stop them from going down some little side access. He would then walk back to the car and drive it up behind the sheep then get out and repeat the performance. I don’t know how old I was, but I know that I was no where near old enough to drive. I thought to myself, He’s a long way ahead; perhaps I could start the car and bring it up for him. I had never driven anything but I had been a keen observer of how it was done, so I switched on the ignition, (though I didn’t know at the time that it was called that), pressed the starter motor button, and lo, the engine burst into life. I had some difficulty depressing the clutch due to the shortness of my legs, I selected a gear, it must have been a low one by chance, the car leaped forward with a few hops before settling into an even pace, I drove the car right up to where my father was, and right behind him, and stopped it by depressing the clutch again. He seemed more surprised than pleased, and I could not fail to notice that the next time he got out for his little ritual, he took the keys with him.
Here is a picture of a new 1928 Dodge 4 cylinders of course.



I can still remember the day when my dad rolled into the farm, up the track, right up to the garden fence, he was driving a beautiful bronze coloured car, gleaming and sleek; it was a 1935 model Hudson Terraplane, with a beautiful chrome swift on the bonnet. I only realize after all these years that the name must have meant “Land Plane”. It was no later than early 1937 because my mother was still alive and I was just 6 years of age.
I remember that my mother was still alive because she expressed her disquiet by asking, “How could you go buy a car like that ? His reply was that it was quite OK, and when he had worn that one out he would go and get a better one! Of course I mentally agreed with him wholeheartedly, it was a wonderful car, and it had a large oval speedometer screen that registered up to 120 MPH!. A 6 year old would have little idea of the complicated workings of an adult mind. I think the car cost 200 pounds (sounds a lot), and I have heard my older sister say that he spent mum’s money; (probably left to her by her father). That may have had nothing to do with the car, but as you get older, you wonder. People say life was simpler in those days; I don’t think so. However, for a few years this car became a vital part of our lives. I remember that my father went out to look for us as we were coming home from school in a horse and buggy when a severe hail storm came upon us, the hail was quite large, at least like golf balls. We had been smart enough to come home the long way, (no trees) for fear of lightning strike. He had gone looking for us on our normal route. The car has an insert of something like vinyl material in the roof, not unlike a sun roof, and the hail had gone right through it.
On another occasion we were going to Swan Hill, about 40 miles of dirt road which wound its way through mallee scrub. We were going along at about 40 MPH when one of the tie rods dropped off, the car lurched three or four times, right and left, before it could be stopped, and we did not even hit one tree.




This photo of the Terraplane was taken at Lake Merran with Rita Burgess in foreground. On one occasion, Mrs Burgess, Rita's mother in law, was in Quambatook and decided to wait in the car(The Terraplane) The Williamson's, John Williamson's ancestors also had a Terraplane, same model and colour. When they returned to their car, there was Mrs Burgess sitting in it! An embarrassing mistake!









This picture shows the roof.

As I am writing this I realize it is getting somewhat long, so I intend to continue in installments, please try to restrain yourself in the wait for the next issue!