Southern Cross Free Trappers

2007
June 9th 10th & 11th 3rd Annual Winter Rendezvous at Bernard’s Cache, Caveat.

John Couzens forwarded this magic photo of Kiwi friend – Ron Elliott. Our thanks to John.

A back-slapping welcome to this short edition of Around The Traps. This brief is primarily to advise you that we have now selected the new site for our Winter R’voo. Committee members initially discussed three entirely new sites, plus the possibility of returning to our previous spot if such suitable arrangements and permission could be obtained.

Our final choice was a beautiful creek bank setting known as Bernard’s Cache, and is just a short morning’s wagon ride from last year’s rendezvous. The location is blessed with a permanent source of clear fresh water, albeit a stream one can easily step over. An abundant supply of firewood is available for the cutting.

A tattered map, rough drawn with a blunted quill is attached to your newsletter. If not, it is because you have either not yet joined the Free Trappers, and or, have not yet indicated that you wish to attend this event. You can be assured that directions to a top secret Cache such as Bernard’s are not handed out indiscriminately.

This will be our “best ever” rondivoo, and the fun will continue regardless of weather!

Contributing articles most welcome. All correspondence and enquiries to John Fowler 252 Pini Lane, Mudgegonga 3737. Email chookster@vfowler.com Tel. 03 5753 4455.

Nota bien – This activity is on private land, therefore membership subscriptions and insurance fees must be paid, and current, prior to attending. There are a number of farm gates to negotiate and, as usual, these are to be left as found. All farm machinery and implements, equipment, parts or materials (regardless of age or apparent condition) remain the private property and a lifetime collection of our host, and are not to be tampered with.

Our usual R’voo signs will lead you across the wilderness. Signs will be in place on Friday morning 8th June, and camping may continue until Tuesday 12th June.

As previously, our invitation for Queen’s Birthday weekend is not to be construed in any way as an open invite to visit this property at any other times.

Challenges at Winter Rendezvous

Club President, Ian Convey has some great ideas to share with us all regarding activities and events for Saturday 9th. Ian will outline his plans on the morning, and the whole day’s activities will be evaluated progressively. Are you ready?

As mentioned last issue we will be conducting a Blanket Shoot, and all persons are requested to fetch along a suitable item to place on our blanket. A suggested nominal modern-day value of suitable items is $5 – $15. However, all items should be in the same spirit of Primitive Rendezvous and of Primitive trade blankets.

As said previously, this event has many winners – actually, Everybody is a Winner! Yes, everybody takes a prize back to his camp, perhaps even your own item if you like it so flaming much.

Ian is our elected Booshway for the day’s event and no amount of bribery will change his decisions, or so he says. (Hint – apple pie, apple pie)

2007 Free Trappers Calendar of Events

June – Sat 9th, Sun 10th & Mon 11th. 3rd Annual Winter Rendezvous.
Queen’s Birthday holiday weekend. Highlands – Vic Roads map 61, J3 & Map 62, A3 for general area.

June 30th – July 15th School mid year holidays, two full weeks Rendezvous (or just do the weekends), at Gunbower Ponds. Check Vic Roads map 21, G8 for general area.

(Note – There has been no response to conducting this rendezvous so close behind our Annual Winter Voo. We will review the running of this event at our Camp Meeting on Saturday 9th June. Keen to participate? – Notify any Committee member – promptly.)

September 22nd- October 7th School holidays, 2 full weeks (or just do the weekends), at Buff Bluff – Whorouly. (Take the Snow road from Glenrowan – Map 49, B2)

(Note also – We choose our event dates to align with the Victorian school holidays, therefore we cannot help it if these dates clash with other activities, either on any individual’s calendar of events or with other clubs programs.)

Mountain Man’s Apple Pie

This one is an old “Oregon” recipe for making cheap booze more palatable, especially useful when a Trapper was wooing one of those plenty women of Popo Agie fame. According to Ian Convey it works best if allowed to steep a day or two, so planning well ahead is recommended.

Start off with sufficient cheap booze for the task. This could be whiskey, rum, brandy or moonshine, whatever is preferred or that can be gotten. Pour half into a pannikin and mix together with some apple juice in a proportion depending upon taste, but not too heavy with the apples as to have a sobering effect.

Blend together 1/3 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/3 teaspoon cloves, and 1/3 teaspoon ground cinnamon and add this spice concoction to the juice/booze mixture. Shake or stir vigorously, then let stand for a day or two, strain and it’s ready to drink. Don’t forget the original plan requires you to share your apple pie.

The other half of the cheap booze should be squirreled away for a “hair of the dog” the following morning. If you were lucky you might have to share again, says Ian.

Diary Notes

During a lull at the quill and ink processor, one evening, I decided to knock up a batch of this Mountain Man’s Apple Pie. Now you’ve all just read how the main ingredient is cheap booze. There’s a problem already – where to get cheap booze? I immediately thought of Big Red’S Turps Werks, but Red’S distillery is tucked away in a mountain gully and a whole day’s ride away. Further more, Booshway Joe Walker said that he would drink plain ol’ crick water rather than Red’S turps. I eventually settled the dilemma with a not-so-cheap very commercial Trading Post store-bought brandy, but decided I would economise with a reduced batch size.

Followed the President’s instructions down to the 48 hour wait, too bad, there’s no one about now for the sharing. Oh, get on with it. Say, this isn’t too bad, I’ll just pour another wee dram, Hmmn, and I’d better test it properly so as to write a fair dinkum evaluation. Much later! Hey, look at me; I’m dressed for the day already, better mouthwash with a hair of the dog. Oh, what a beautiful morning!

Next issue – Where to get apple juice up on the beaver ponds? Plus – Dick Schwer has comments to add on preparing beef jerky and the like. And oh, have you sent your favourite picture to the editor? No need to be shy and ya’all get tired of me asking! Well, till then, remember – Happiness is sharing your apple pie, and a warm barrel!

Around the Traps Tattler

Seen on TV wearing some futuristic 21^stC “suit of clothes, with neck tie” – one Mountain Man known hereabouts as “Prickle”. Our Chris Thorne was one of three winners of this year’s Dame Phyllis Frost award. This award recognises an outstanding individual or group contribution to the principles of the Tidy Towns program, and is named after the Keep Australia Beautiful founder, Dame Phyllis Frost.

In a media release – “Chris is a Koori representative on the Benalla Indigenous Reference Group, and a key part of the Typo Station program as well as the Indigenous Gardens at Moira Reserve. He is passionate about preserving Aboriginal heritage and very keen to get young people involved in the process and have them take pride in their community.”

“Chris spends a day talking with the youths who attend the five-week course run at Typo Station. The program aims to give troubled young people the opportunity to build resilience, initiative and life skills for a positive future. Chris talks about indigenous culture including how to make and throw a boomerang.”

Our sincere congratulations on this award go to Prickle. Heard also that Prickle is currently exhibiting his artwork quite successfully, but let’s not steal all his thunder.

Out of the media limelight, ol’ Woodsy Runner told me that Bob “Wounded Knee” Ellis has done a grand job of sewing up two canvas “outhouses” for personal comforts at Rondyvoo. At last, somewhere private to sit and think! – All thanks to Bob.

Pictures with special memories – Richard and Shamrock

Welcome to our third edition of Around The Traps. As we hasten forward into the best months of the year for Rendezvous, it is pleasant to look back at what we have achieved, as well as to remember some of the former good times that have special memories. At a slower pace, we feature here Richard Snape and his donkey Shamrock. This photo, although taken quite a few years back, remains one of Richard’s favourite snaps. Thanks to Richard for sharing this treasured memory of a past Rendezvous.

It is now anticipated that we might run 4-5 editions of Around The Traps for the year. Richard suggested we have a section in each edition to feature more of those very special photos in our collections. If you agree, please check out your Rendezvous albums and forward your favourite pic with a short descriptive caption to the editor – via Email attachment is fine, or we will return any original photographs received.

Regrettably, we found it necessary to cancel our planned Easter rendezvous due to the severe drought conditions and continuing high fire danger days in the north-east. This disappointing set-back challenges us now to ensure that our third Winter Rendezvous, actually the first in the name of SCFT, is nothing short of the absolute best of all fun times – to be long remembered! Let’s do it!

The Committee hopes that you all had a pleasant Easter, and perhaps had opportunity to check over all your rendezvous equipment, or run a few round ball, even make or find some trade blanket goodies. Thank you to all who enthusiastically returned their membership applications and subscription monies in prompt order. We now have a humble bank account with the Hume Building Society, which means that Myrtle, our Treasurer, no longer risks pillage of that little deer skin pouch attached to her apron.

Our early vision of the group suggests that all subs, fees and accounting can be kept to very modest levels whilst servicing our needs and providing public liability insurance. Myrtle will present detailed financial reports to committee meetings, which are also planned to occur at rendezvous, when all members can be present.

Thank you also for the critiques on my efforts to explain the fee structures. Some of you were obviously Eastern Bankers before turning to a life of adventure and the hunt for beaver. At least no one complained at the low level of our fees, and not one Free Trapper need sell their prime plews at three dollars a piece just to pay subscriptions.

Reminder – Most of our activities will be on private land, therefore membership subscriptions and insurance fees must be paid, and current, prior to attending events.

2007 Free Trappers Winter Rendezvous

We expect quite a larger number of participants this year and providing an adequate area of camp sites and sufficient ablution facilities requires that you must advise the planning secretary in advance that you are attending.

As advised in the last Newsletter, our Queen’s Birthday long weekend Winter Rendezvous is planned for a new site. We now have several options to choose from and consideration will go to the most sheltered spot with good firewood. More on this later, mud maps to the exact site will be issued to those members who indicate an intention to rondevoo, again, much closer to the actual date.

Attendance is open only to SCFT members having the required Public Liability insurance, or by special written invitation from the Secretary. We do hope everyone will make a big effort to attend our 3rd Winter Rendezvous and at least one other event.

Our event dates have been selected to encourage young families to camp and any feed back on the number of rondevoos, dates and or general locations is welcomed by the secretary & committee.

June – Sat 9th, Sun 10th & Mon 11th. 3rd Annual Winter Rendezvous.
Queen’s Birthday holiday weekend (3 days) at Highlands, and it will be at a new location on a different property this year. Vic Roads map 61, J3 for general area.

Diary Notes and Letters

Griz & Le Reynard with 3 Blackies on last day of last season

Photo by L’enfant Savage

Cher cousin Jedediah

Le Reynard, L’Enfant Savage and I, decided to break the monotony of life working for our capitalist masters, we went off for a weekend at the end of the Duck season, with the intention of filling the larder with a few wild fowl.

A cold wind was blowing up from the south somewhere, which meant that we could wear our woollen weskits without the normal concerns of overheating. It also meant that our quarry was more likely to be wedged up hard against the face of a river bank, keeping out of the wind and less intent on keeping watch than usual.

We had the hounds with us, the two sight hunters Bryn and Bowie perhaps wasted on duck, but more than happy to flush out and chase the odd rabbit or hare. No, the two dogs who were going to earn their suppers today were Jake and Dixie, a good pair of retrievers, well lets face it, there was no way any of us two legged folk were jumping in the channel to get a downed duck! Not when it was this chilly!

After much hacking around and ducks sighted off in the distance, only to have disappeared when we arrived near to their location, we stumbled upon a few black duck, huddled up against the bank for protection from the wind. We snuck up on the critters from down wind, behind the opposite bank of the channel; this provided us with protection from their line of sight. We crawled up the opposite bank to near the summit, then, with thumbs on flinter cocks we popped up, for a second or two none of the Blackies moved, then suddenly, they were all airborne.

I let rip with the Indian trade musket and got a late moving bird just above the channel bank, Le Reynard let his old lady go and dropped his fellow onto the opposite channel bank. One bird, figuring it was safer not to go the same way as his fellows, flew straight towards us. Suddenly, upon seeing that going towards us was not going to be beneficial to his health, he did the darndest thing; he stopped in mid air and turned around to fly back the other way. L’Enfant Savage wasn’t going to let this kind of opportunity go to waste and peppered him good and proper.
Jake was sent into the channel for my bird and Dixie had launched herself off the bank and was across in the opposite field sniffing around for the fallen quarry. The dogs loved it. There’s nothing like the look on a dog’s face that is doing a job he was bred to do – they almost appear to be grinning.

Jake came up tail wagging, shook himself off and presented me with the duck at my feet. He turned around, sat down and was ready for more; his tail still thumping on the ground. Dixie, the young lady, had taken it in mind that she was hungry and as Le Reynard had forgotten to feed her the night before, she was therefore going to have a little duck snack. As the feathers started to fly, a few choice words of control from Le Reynard, reminding her that he was the boss dissuaded her from actually getting anything other than a mouth-full of feathers.

All in all, a rewarding little hunt. L’Enfant Savage baked those Blackies in a game pie with, if I remember correctly, wild goat, rabbit, field mushrooms, and some herbs from the garden and onions; with a light pastry top. Delicious, my mouth is watering just thinking about it. I’ll just have to console myself with a regular wee drinkie of Booths musket until the duck season comes around again.

Your ever affectionate cousin,
Griz

To the editor: Thank you for your latest issue. It is a good read and I hope to attend one of your functions one day with my flinter. Would you have a recipe for dried meat I can undertake here at home? I want some tasty, chewy dried meat to carry in my haversack. I have been purchasing some chilli flavoured stuff at the supermarket but $3.50 a pkt but I can eat it in 15mins, so it is expensive. Cheers, John, Lakes Entrance.

Many readers will have shared John’s dilemma, and happily we have just the recipe, and from our President, no less; so here we go………..

Jerky / Biltong

Use beef, venison, goat, or rabbit – any lean meat. Cut meat in strips 3/8” x 1” wide with the grain. Make a salt & water solution that will float an egg (5 cups water, 1 cup salt). Add 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (or whatever) and I teaspoon garlic salt (if you wish). Bring this to a rolling boil, drop about 5 or 6 strips of meat into solution.
When one piece comes to the top and floats, take it out and put it on a towel, and drop another piece in. The meat should be all grey, curled up and look like leather.
Towel dry and smoke for 6 to 8 hours, or put in oven at 175 – 200 F for about 6 hours with the oven door open about ½” at the top. Meat should be dry (no pink centre) but not brittle. Enjoy! Ian Convey

Convenience at Rendezvous

Bob “Wounded Knee” Ellis has managed to scrounge up some second-hand sails from one of the slave ships visiting the East. With the skills of his many years experience at working canvas magic, Bob is furnishing the Club with not one but two toilet tents for the convenience of all. We will still require energetic Trappers with digging tools to create those necessary long drops at each camp.

Perpetually Challenged

It is hard to imagine even one “programmed event” occurring at any pre – 1840 Rendezvous. Conversely, it is quite conceivable that after wetting the whistle and drowning the tonsils, imbibing some dubious brew, there arose many challenges to the prowess of the tall-story tellers around the camp-fires. Simple contests like arm wrestling most probably occurred at Rendezvous – Imagine two very thirsty trappers reaching for the one jug of whisky – and we have a challenge – easy to comprehend.

This competitive “spirit” could readily lead up to many a contest. A foot race, a horse race, knife and tomahawk throwing skills or a shooting match – the latter could be anything from one single shot to multiple lead throwing until a clear winner could be determined. The target could be a simple mark on a tree-stump, a rusty camp kettle, or any convenient item of no use or value that just happened to be in sight and range.

There almost certainly were no “Perpetual Trophy” shoots back then, no 10 ring targets, and no score cards or registers. However, winners have always needed recognition, a feather in the hat so to speak, and those coming second have generally had to part with something that the other might covet – another jar of whisky, a few hard-won prime beaver plews, or perhaps some other fur was wagered.

Today, our challenge shoots will most assuredly not be alcohol fuelled, but neither will they be events scored on paper targets with numbered circles. Paper punching shoots is not re-enacting Mountain Man pastimes. There is no bull’s eye 10 ring birthmark on any deer – except in Gary Larson’s cartoons. We’ll have old-fashioned fun, dispensing entirely with those indifferent scores added in fractions of 100.

Club President, Ian Convey, is advocating a genuine Blanket Shoot for our Winter Rendezvous. Everyone brings a suitable item (of a nominal value) and places it on the blanket, then, the most successful on the day take first pick from the plunder, then the next, and next, and everybody wins. Read that again – Everybody wins… I like that!

Blanket items must be in vogue with our themes and era, and it is desirable that they might also be hand-made if possible. You could start planning / making your blanket goodie today. Let’s make it a truly fun challenge shoot with some prime Possibles on the rug.

Meanwhile, the Primitive “Perpetual Challenge” is simply one to each of us, to firstly participate and have fun, and then to improve one’s own competence with knife, hawk, bow and gun, to hone camp-craft skills, and to constantly strive to improve our own portrayal of a Trapper / Mountain man, or other being, of our chosen field and era. And
you know, once again – Everybody wins!

Around the Traps Tattler

Woodsy Runner told me that Richard has retired from hospital supply and now enjoys time in pursuit of beaver. “Congratulations, and all best wishes” from all of us. Not much else this issue, I’ve already picked on paper targets and perpetual trophies. We don’t need either, so enough said on that for now! Oh, but I swear I’m gonna get that fella who persistently offers this departing advice Watch yer top not – what’s left of it!

2007 Rendezvous Calendar

June 9th, 10th, & 11th – Yes, it’s our special 3rd Annual Winter Rendezvous, Queen’s Birthday holiday weekend (3 days) at Highlands. Directions issued closer to the date. Contact the Secretary if you wish to attend. Note: – The fun will proceed regardless of the weather!

June 30th – July 15th School mid year holidays, two full weeks (or just do the weekends), at Gunbower Ponds. Please register your interest early to assist our arrangements. Check Vic Roads map 21, G8 for general area (well clear of protestors).

September 22nd- October 7th School holidays, 2 full weeks (or just do the weekends), at Buff Bluff – Whorouly. (Take the Snow road from Glenrowan – Map 49, B2)

Moose Milk

A patch lubricant, black powder solvent and gun cleaner.
1/3rd cup soluble oil; 1/3rd cup of liquid soap (shave velvet soap into water); 1/3rd cup warm water. Mix it all with one teaspoon of kerosene, shake up real good, and then add enough warm water to make a litre. Soak bullet and cleaning patches in this brew!

Moose Milk 2

A patch lubricant and bore cleaner etc. for black powder guns.
(An alternate recipe for those who don’t need to, can’t, or simply will not shave.)
15 parts distilled water, 3 parts soluble oil, 2 parts Melrose Castille liquid soap. Shake it well, and again before each use – makes 20 fluid ozs. Use as above – shoot all day!

Thanks to Richard Snape, Jeff Clarke and Ian Convey for photos, hunt stories and various recipe contributions for your information and reading pleasure.

Next issue – A recipe for a different lubricant – one guaranteed to get most folks vocal around the campfire at nights. Till then, remember – Happiness is a warm barrel!

Contributing articles most welcome. All correspondence and enquiries to John Fowler 252 Pini Lane, Mudgegonga 3737. Email chookster@vfowler.com Tel. 03 5753 4455

2007
April 6th – 15th Easter plus school holidays at Whorouly (cancelled due to drought & fire restrictions)

His trade blanket laid out with sundry goods, he finds time to reflect upon a fine winter’s morning.

Welcome to the second edition of Around The Traps. Your responses to our first edition of last November have been most encouraging. We are now in a position to accept your membership enrolments, together with joining fees and pro rata subscriptions.

Your Committee has assessed our anticipated operational costs, determining that the initial membership joining fees be struck at a low of $20 per family unit. Obviously we will need to review subscriptions and fees annually to cover our public liability insurance premiums and minimal incidental costs. All adult participants will be subject to the subscription thus gaining necessary public liability insurance cover.

To commence, the subscription will be pro rata, that is, for six months only, and carries us through to 30th June – the end of our fiscal year. This will also coincide with our public liability insurance coverage, and enable annual fees to be adjusted (if required) in line with those, or any other, necessary expenses. The current annual subscription rate would be $20 per participant; however this is halved to $10 for this half year period. There are no fees for underage dependant children!

As our main activities will be on privately owned land, all participants must complete membership forms, and pay the subscription / insurance fee – a firm requisite!

2007 Rendezvous’ Calendar

Wow, four rondevoos are suggested for this year, and we can choose from four new locations. Mind you, prevailing weather conditions may force some late changes, and accordingly, mud maps to the exact sites will be issued to those members who indicate an intention to rondevoo, much closer to the event dates. We hope everyone will make a big effort to attend our 3rd Winter Rendezvous and at least one other event.

We expect quite a larger number of participants this year and providing an adequate area of camp sites and sufficient ablution facilities requires that you must advise the planning secretary in advance that you are attending.

Attendance is open only to SCFT members having the required Public Liability insurance, or by special written invitation from the Secretary. The dates have been selected to encourage young families to camp and any feed back on the number of rondevoos, dates and or general locations is welcomed by the secretary & committee.

See our calendar of events.

Who were the Eastern Longhunters of the middle 1700’s?

(A short introduction by Jeff Clarke.)
Perhaps no group in history, who have contributed so much to the knowledge of the topography of North America, have been so completely by-passed by historians as have the colonial long hunters. In almost every instance, when the pioneer settler moved toward the extreme frontier, he had long since been preceded by the long hunter.

A hunter volunteered to be part of a larger party of hunters making an organised Long Hunt into Indian tribal hunting grounds; usually these expeditions were financed by entrepreneurs back east, wealthy landowners or former long hunters who had made large profits on previous long hunts.

On top of the privations of living in crude shelters through the freezing North American winters, exposure, the inherent dangers of hunting, the very real likelihood of being scalped by Indians for hunting on their tribal lands, or falling ill with a fatal disease; there was the added problem that the French and the British were also at war, in the same geographical location, during the period – 1689 to 1763. (After the Colonial Revolution, long hunts were no longer organised, so the end date of the long hunter was about 1776. The new Americans obviously kept on hunting, but there were no organised long hunts ever again.)

That said, a settler farmer lived a hard mundane life and could earn little in the way of extra money. Going on a successful long hunt could return in the region of 1600 dollars – a small fortune. As you can imagine, sums of money this large were a big incentive to a man who lived hand to mouth on a daily basis.

Sometimes, however, the promise of adventure could, in itself, be a prime motivator. Several of the well documented long hunters were actually wealthy educated men, they had no need to make money, yet there they were, risking life and limb on the frontier. Perhaps it was the lure of the hunt or the spirit of camaraderie found in tight knit groups of men with a common goal and focus. We can only theorise.

The long hunter usually travelled in groups of no more than three members; to least arouse the notice of the Indians, with a horse and perhaps two packhorses for his equipment and carriage of harvested hides and pelts. He then found a good area for hunting the game of choice and made a rudimentary camp, perhaps a lean-to type shelter to sleep in, with a fire pit, and then put in a stack of wood for the cooking and heating fires needed during the winter. He would then go out during the day and hunt, usually killing several animals a day and skinning them on the spot. He took the skin, retrieved the shot lead ball, if possible, and usually left the carcases to rot, a practice that didn’t ingratiate him with the Indians.

There is no doubt that it was cold hard work, the hunter would be covered in the dried remnants of blood, fat and animal hair from the manual processing of the skins. His clothes would also have smelled from lack of washing, the smell of sulphur from the burnt gun powder and of wood smoke from the cooking fire. Woollen garments would have needed repairing, so would moccasins and other leather work, it would have been a time of heavy wear and tear on a man’s equipment. No doubt his clothing and equipment would have looked like a patchwork quilt of repairs by the time he returned home in the spring. (Something we should bear in mind in an interpretation.)

At the end of the winter, the long hunters would have to avoid the wily Indians, who waited for them and their horses laden with the fruits of their winter labours. They would return home and sell their pelts and skins, pay off their financier(s) and hope to make a large profit. The plain truth is that, often, no one came back at all, with the whitened bones of the long hunter’s group being found, years later, by other long hunters on other hunting trips.

Duck Season

Black powder gunners please note – the Brack’s government has cancelled the Victorian duck season for 2007 “due to the drought”. Come to rondevoo instead!

That’ll curb them pesky rabbit varmints from their fornicating! Photo by Myrtle.

Persona and Authenticity

Several years ago, Jeff Clarke voiced his passions for developing a re-enacting persona, but, I suspect, few of us took a great deal of notice, and even less action! Now consider this – Unless we choose a persona, we are likely to get “Lost in Space” just as if we are in the movie-land time machine.

By persona, we do not necessarily mean a particular person, such as Liver Eatin’ Johnson, although anyone wishing to tackle that one would be quite fashionable. We can be Joe Blow nobodies, very ordinary people of our era, but we should choose a type of person, an approximate year, an occupation, and our family history or background.

Example. Joe Preacher, a god-botherer from the east, travelling with a group of trappers to the Green River, in the year 1838, intent on saving some poor lost souls. Think now, how would such a person be clothed? What accoutrements would he carry other than the good book? Example 2: Joe Merchant, how would he dress, and how much trade goods would he attempt to fetch along? He would require pack horses and or a wagon. But, “Ya can’t get wagons through the mountains!”

Looking more critically at my own past camps, and, if I can also pick on several very good friends, without intending hurt or embarrassment, I’ll just mention some obvious anomalies that may not have been so obvious until we start to think “Persona”.

Like – most Mountain Men and Longhunters did not have rust pitted, broken-down old traps; they purchased new traps, which soon acquired a well used, but appreciated, working patina. They did not carry a 20th century styled axe or spade with Trojan labelled handle. Neither did they wear a Hoss Cartwright movie star Ten-Gallon hat – a fashion/style not yet created. They certainly would not erect the British Union (Jack) flag (we’ve seen several) or a Southern Cross (Eureka) flag over their camp.

The latter is clearly out of our time frame, the former would have been unpopular in the extreme, due to recent wars with King George’s forces – unless the portrayal is of the very early Longhunters’ period; and even then would be unlikely except for military use and barracks and public halls. A poor Longhunter or lowly Trapper would be suspected of theft should he somehow acquire a flag and be brazen enough to fly it above his abode.

By choosing a persona, we can lock into a time frame so that our re-enactment becomes an authentic portrayal of our chosen era. When asked, we should be able to state just who we are, and the year, and the place that our camp and accoutrements represents. In the last edition of Around the Traps I wrote about Alfred Jacob Miller’s portrayals of the real Mountain Men. I can only recommend further study of Mister Miller’s art, and other similar works, should you be serious about your re-enacting.

Longhunters, Free Trappers, white women and whiskey, and an old black dog. Photo by Myrtle.

A little Trivia:

In the 1980 film The Mountain Men starring Charlton Heston in which scenes does the character “Jim Walker” played by Bill Lucking appear?

Your S.C.F.T. Committee

President – Ian Convey, phone (03) 5367 8450
Vice President – Bob Ellis, phone (03) 5796 2753
Secretary – John Fowler, phone (03) 5753 4455
Treasurer – Myrtle Barrett; phone (02) 6059 3951
Committee member – Justin Fletcher, phone (03) 9763 1080
Committee member – Robyn Norris, phone (03) 5753 4415

Around the Traps Tattler

Overheard – Several remarks as to how lucky we have been to have had two-in-a-row Winter Voos on Queen’s Birthday weekends in June and only feel a slight chill of evening when away from the campfires. Could we chance our luck for three in a row?.

Well, last October, on Saturday 28th, at the end of the second month of spring, with the whole State in the grip of a drought and dryer than a powder horn, suddenly a cold change blew up dumping two inches of snow on the hill at Highlands. Our good farmer, Andrew, commented that the swirling snow cut vision down to bare yards. He also confirmed the Queen’s Birthday weekend was generally more autumnal than wet and wintry. Now that’s encouraging! But I did feel regret that we were not camped there that particular weekend when the mountain was truly shining – just for the long-talked-about experience.

November 15th snow fell again in the high lands, and at Trafalgar, Gippsland and many other areas – now that’s late Spring, and only days apart from Total Fire Bans.

Really, just what is the problem with doing rendezvous’ on Queen’s Birthday in June?

Now, talk about flaming redheads! Tattler has a keen eye for little redheads, so how’s yer fire lightin’ kit? Well, better wait till after summer for practice with flint and steel.

A pertinent quotation

When a group of enthusiasts go to great lengths to research various region styles of longarm and accoutrements, the history of a people, and the clothing of a particular era, and make endeavour to learn the old ways and day to day skills of that era, seeking then an appropriate location to immerse in living history, they should not be encumbered by those who cannot depart from the tedious present.

Martin Parnham.

No hard case?

So yer’ve lost your spark! Is your Frizz hard enough? Jim “ghost who walks” Walker was not getting enough sparks from his firelock and discovered a local case-hardening joint in downtown Bayswater. Hill’s Heat Treatment, 7 Mc Clellan Street, Bayswater (phone 9762 6233) restored the hardening to Jim’s frizzen with no delay and at a very modest fee.

Contributing articles most welcome. All correspondence and enquiries to John Fowler 252 Pini Lane, Mudgegonga 3737. Email chookster@vfowler.com Tel. 03 5753 4455.