President Jim Hood welcomed Patrick Morgan, who represents twenty-two Gippsland
Historical Societies at the Royal Historical Society of Victoria. A resident of Gippsland, he
is the author of 'The Settlement of Gippsland', 'Shadow and Shine' and
'Folie a Deux'.
In the period 1877-1900, Australia was not yet a nation, and there were many
opinions and
attitudes towards federation.
Opposites: England v. Australia
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England:
Formal
Class Distinction
Wealth held by few
Religious
Political divisions |
Australia:
lnformal
No Class system
Egalitarian Society
Secular
No political divisions
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Paradise in the South Seas: Europeans had long believed that there must be Paradise
somewhere. Australia was the last unknown, and Eden must be there. It would be a
superior place, where fruit would just drop off trees, and there would be plenty for all.
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Freedom: Australians would all be equal and
could do as they liked. There would be a
fresh start - this would be a new, unique and better country.
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Unity: If the colonies united, the people
would be whole, undivided, with no sectarian
squabbling.
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Land: As there was boundless land, people could just squat on the plains and farm.
Farming, nature and myths were of the land. However, these were not the beliefs of
many city people.
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Sunshine: This was a golden place with clear light and greenness. It was a virginal
continent with great natural beauty.
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Dawn: There were images of dawn and the dawning of
the world. Australia had been
sleeping, and had waited for centuries to be discovered. Many thousands of years of
occupation by the aboriginal people were ignored.
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A Great Empire: The mighty empires of Egypt, Rome and France rose and declined.
Australia will be a Great Empire.
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Separation: Australia was separated from all other countries by the oceans, which
enclosed the land and protected the people.
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Self-sufficient and Self-sustaining:
People believed that Australia would be better -
their children would be taller, and each subsequent generation would be wealthier. We
would be able to produce everything we needed, and be beholden to nobody.
Patrick then read to us many of the poems written during this period. They illustrated the
themes outlined above.
Some excerpts from quoted below show the themes recurring again and again.
'The Dominion of Australia: A Forecast' by James Brunton
Stephens 1877
At Wisdom's voice shall leap to light,
And hide our barren feuds in bloom,
Till, all our sundering lies with love o'ergrown,
Our bounds shall be the girdling seas alone.
Stephens was a Queensland poet, who was looking to the future, where there will be a new
start, with no feuds or divisions. We will wait for the sun-kiss of Federation and the
Constitution.
'Australia' by John Farrell 1889
O land of widest hope, of promise boundless!
Why wert thou left upon a dark, strange sea,
To wait through ages, fruitless, scentless, soundless,
Till from thy slumber men should waken thee?
There are some rather odd ideas here of a past where trees have no fruit, flowers are without
scent, and birds do not sing!
'A Song of the Republic' by Henry Lawson 1888
Sons of the South, awake! Arise!
Suns of the South, and do
Banish from under your bonny skies
Those old-world errors and wrongs and lies,
Making a hell in a Paradise
That beIongs to your sons and you.
.....
Sons of the South, aroused at last!
Sons of the South are few !
But your ranks grow longer and deeper fast,
And ye shall swell to an army vast,
And free from the wrongs of the North and Past
The land that beIongs to you.
Henry Lawson wrote 'A Song of the Republic' when he was twenty-one. It was published in
the 'Bulletini', which shaped public opinion with the slogan "Australia for the Australians".
It encouraged the beginnings of an indigenous Australian literature. There was a strong
Republican movement leading up to Federation, but "God, Queen and Empire" predominated. Lawson says that we
should free ourselves from the wrongs, greed and errors
of England, and that we should reject their beliefs and worn-out customs. The
quintessentially Australian element is "The Land".
'Australian Federation' by William Gay
From all division let our land be free
For God has made her one; complete she lies
Within the unbroken circle of the skies,
And round her indivisible the sea
Breaks on her single shore;....
This is a religious, different king of poem: Gay wants unity, freedom and one people with
no divisions.
'Advance Australia
Fair' by Peter Dodds McCormack
CLICK HERE to listen to Advance Ausralia
Fair
Australians all let us rejoice,
For we are young and free,
We've golden soil and wealth for toil,
Our home is girt by sea.
Our land abounds in Nature's gifts
Of beauty rich and rare,
In history's page, let every stage
Advance Australia Fair.
After reading verse two of this poem, Patrick asked if anyone knew verse three. Our
webmaster, Walter Pickering, sang it for us in a delightful tenor voice. This was followed by
spontaneous applause !
'Federation' by Nellie Clarke
(From 'Song of the Gippsland Forest')
Britannia's sons, prove now your worth,
Fulfil your glorious destiny.
Arise, unite, show all creation
Your great and glorious Federation .....
Nellie Clarke was born in England. She wrote this poem in Korumburra, and it was published
in the 'Mirboo North Times'. She would have liked a replica of the British Empire - an
Imperial nation that would dominate Asia. Australia would have to be the policeman of Asia,
guarding 'the freedom of the main' - referring to the British Navy which controlled the
oceans.
Unfortunately, these are only excerpts from a few of the poems we heard, but we all enjoyed
Patrick's address, The poets reflect the passionate and wide-ranging views of our
grandparents and great grandparents as they considered the union of six widely dispersed
and isolated communities.
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