1 00:00:01,080 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:04,320 --> 00:00:13,800 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot Com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,840 --> 00:00:16,680 Speaker 1: I'm Holly Fry and I'm Tracy V. Wilson, and we 4 00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:20,079 Speaker 1: are going to visit Australia again today at the time 5 00:00:20,120 --> 00:00:22,800 Speaker 1: of the late eighteen hundred's early nineteen hundred. It's been 6 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:25,200 Speaker 1: a common theme in the podcast lately. Yeah, it's a 7 00:00:25,200 --> 00:00:27,720 Speaker 1: busy time in history because of the Industrial Revolution and 8 00:00:27,720 --> 00:00:30,600 Speaker 1: a lot of things happening on the worldwide political stage. 9 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:32,960 Speaker 1: But today we're gonna kind of hang out in a 10 00:00:33,040 --> 00:00:36,199 Speaker 1: quiet little spot in the middle of nowhere. Uh, and 11 00:00:36,200 --> 00:00:38,680 Speaker 1: we're gonna talk about George Aston and the Malca Store. 12 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:42,959 Speaker 1: And for a little bit of background on who Aston was. Uh. 13 00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:46,480 Speaker 1: He was born on October eleventh, eighteen seventy nine, in Burnside, 14 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:50,160 Speaker 1: South Australia, and his parents were a blacksmith named James 15 00:00:50,159 --> 00:00:54,200 Speaker 1: Albert Aston and James's wife, Rebecca. Rebecca passed away when 16 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:57,120 Speaker 1: George was still an infant. Uh and his father remarried, 17 00:00:57,160 --> 00:01:00,320 Speaker 1: but George and his stepmother were never very close. When 18 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:03,240 Speaker 1: he was eleven, George left school, but he really liked 19 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:06,480 Speaker 1: to learn and he continued to read and study outside 20 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:10,560 Speaker 1: of the formal school environment. When he was eighteen, George 21 00:01:10,640 --> 00:01:13,319 Speaker 1: joined the South Australian Military Forces, so that was in 22 00:01:13,440 --> 00:01:17,200 Speaker 1: eight seven and he started as an orderly in the 23 00:01:17,280 --> 00:01:21,000 Speaker 1: Chief Secretary's Office and then in eighteen nine he joined 24 00:01:21,040 --> 00:01:24,040 Speaker 1: the first South Australian Contingent, which was a mounted rifle 25 00:01:24,080 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 1: squad consisting of five officers and a hundred and twenty 26 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:30,360 Speaker 1: one men, and he served in the South African War, 27 00:01:30,760 --> 00:01:33,160 Speaker 1: which was fought between the British Empire and the Boer 28 00:01:33,280 --> 00:01:36,080 Speaker 1: South African Republic as well as its Orange Free State 29 00:01:36,160 --> 00:01:39,440 Speaker 1: ally and while he was in South Africa, George collected 30 00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:42,880 Speaker 1: weapons and curios. He, like we mentioned, was always a 31 00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:45,600 Speaker 1: lifelong learner and he would send these back to his father, 32 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:48,639 Speaker 1: who then had them displayed at the Adelaide Pantheon Theater. 33 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:54,760 Speaker 1: George had what was described as an imposing physical presence 34 00:01:54,960 --> 00:01:57,560 Speaker 1: and after the war he served as a constable in 35 00:01:57,640 --> 00:02:01,080 Speaker 1: the South Australian Mounted Police from nineteen o one to 36 00:02:01,160 --> 00:02:04,240 Speaker 1: nineteen o three. He was posted at various points around 37 00:02:04,280 --> 00:02:07,600 Speaker 1: South Australia's Spencer Gulf and Gulf St. Vincent and some 38 00:02:07,720 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 1: of the outlying areas including Yorktown, Port, Germaine, and Karna. 39 00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:15,840 Speaker 1: While in Port Germaine, George had his first contact with 40 00:02:15,880 --> 00:02:18,920 Speaker 1: Aboriginal people, and in later life he said he was 41 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:21,560 Speaker 1: curious about the similarities they might have shared with some 42 00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:24,080 Speaker 1: of the African people he had encountered during the war. 43 00:02:25,040 --> 00:02:28,440 Speaker 1: In nineteen o four, Easton began a five year assignment 44 00:02:28,480 --> 00:02:31,520 Speaker 1: and he was during that time patrolling the Gawler Ranges 45 00:02:31,680 --> 00:02:34,920 Speaker 1: and Nulabore Plaine, and his station points were at Tarkula 46 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:38,600 Speaker 1: and Tumby Bay, and those two points are about five 47 00:02:38,680 --> 00:02:41,880 Speaker 1: hundred and sixty kilometers apart from each other north to south, 48 00:02:42,200 --> 00:02:45,400 Speaker 1: and the area he was patrolling is roughly eight hundred 49 00:02:45,400 --> 00:02:48,640 Speaker 1: and fifty kilometers wide, so it's a big space. And 50 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:51,600 Speaker 1: he had a lot of time while he was out 51 00:02:51,639 --> 00:02:55,639 Speaker 1: on horseback and camel patrolling, and during those long periods 52 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:59,360 Speaker 1: he slowly worked on developing an amicable relationship with the 53 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:03,240 Speaker 1: area's original population, and he would write regular reports to 54 00:03:03,320 --> 00:03:05,919 Speaker 1: his superiors in which he urged them to let at 55 00:03:05,960 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 1: the Aboriginal people's work out their issues and solve their 56 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:12,600 Speaker 1: own problems using their own laws and ways, rather than 57 00:03:12,720 --> 00:03:15,880 Speaker 1: encouraging the government to step in. Uh And he's also 58 00:03:15,919 --> 00:03:18,400 Speaker 1: said to have never carried a gun during his patrols, 59 00:03:18,440 --> 00:03:22,440 Speaker 1: so he kind of made himself a very friendly, easy 60 00:03:22,480 --> 00:03:25,239 Speaker 1: to approach and easy to work with figure for the 61 00:03:25,280 --> 00:03:28,600 Speaker 1: Australian government in working with the Aboriginal peoples of the area. 62 00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:32,720 Speaker 1: During this period, George also got married. On April twelfth 63 00:03:32,760 --> 00:03:35,640 Speaker 1: of nineteen o five, he married a governess named Mabel 64 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:39,520 Speaker 1: Agnes maud Mary White. In nineteen twelve, he started a 65 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:43,480 Speaker 1: nine year appointment at the Birdsville Track outpost. The Birdsville 66 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:47,680 Speaker 1: Track is a five seventeen kilometer dirt road that runs 67 00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:51,800 Speaker 1: from Mauri in South Australia north to Birdsville in Queensland. 68 00:03:52,520 --> 00:03:55,040 Speaker 1: Roughly in the middle is munger Annie, which is the 69 00:03:55,040 --> 00:03:59,360 Speaker 1: side of the outpost. Incidentally, this is allegedly an Aboriginal 70 00:03:59,400 --> 00:04:02,400 Speaker 1: word meaning big ugly face, and we would love to 71 00:04:02,440 --> 00:04:06,280 Speaker 1: hear from anyone who can confirm that from Australia because 72 00:04:06,320 --> 00:04:10,720 Speaker 1: CNN says that's what it means, but you know that's CNN. 73 00:04:10,840 --> 00:04:15,840 Speaker 1: We always like corroboration. Yes, primary sources are awesome. The 74 00:04:15,880 --> 00:04:20,239 Speaker 1: track passes over sandhills, dried up riverbed called Cooper Creek 75 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:25,480 Speaker 1: which sometimes floods, and the start don't stony desert during 76 00:04:25,480 --> 00:04:28,880 Speaker 1: the near decade that Aston was stationed on the Birdsville Track, 77 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:32,359 Speaker 1: handling day to day business as a policeman, which included 78 00:04:32,400 --> 00:04:35,320 Speaker 1: patrolling the area on camelback. He acted as a coroner. 79 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:38,400 Speaker 1: He had to make repairs to the police station is needed. 80 00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:42,279 Speaker 1: He was also studying the Aboriginal population and he served 81 00:04:42,279 --> 00:04:46,400 Speaker 1: as their sub protector and as subprotector he photographed and 82 00:04:46,440 --> 00:04:50,000 Speaker 1: documented the lives of the Aboriginal population, particularly the Wank 83 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:53,520 Speaker 1: and Guru of eastern Lake Ire, and he reported annually 84 00:04:53,600 --> 00:04:58,280 Speaker 1: on their population to his superiors. He also distributed rations 85 00:04:58,320 --> 00:05:01,200 Speaker 1: to people who are in need, and his station at 86 00:05:01,240 --> 00:05:03,839 Speaker 1: munger Annie is said to have become a camping place 87 00:05:03,960 --> 00:05:08,120 Speaker 1: for displaced Aboriginal people. He also crusaded for the fair 88 00:05:08,160 --> 00:05:11,680 Speaker 1: treatment of the Aboriginal population and there was an incident 89 00:05:11,760 --> 00:05:14,680 Speaker 1: where a European had been killed and a policeman from 90 00:05:14,680 --> 00:05:18,279 Speaker 1: Central Australia was leading a pretty brutal charge against the 91 00:05:18,320 --> 00:05:21,920 Speaker 1: Aboriginal population and Aston wrote a letter to his Melbourne 92 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:25,520 Speaker 1: correspondent about it, and in it he said, I would 93 00:05:25,560 --> 00:05:28,000 Speaker 1: like to be on one of these commissions into the 94 00:05:28,040 --> 00:05:31,040 Speaker 1: way the Blacks are being treated. There is no need 95 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:34,000 Speaker 1: for it. It is just brutal cowardice on the part 96 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:37,240 Speaker 1: of the people who do the shooting. I am prepared 97 00:05:37,279 --> 00:05:40,719 Speaker 1: to go anywhere in Australia unarmed among the blacks, and 98 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:42,760 Speaker 1: I am sure I would be better treated by the 99 00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:45,240 Speaker 1: blacks than I would be by the whites. I never 100 00:05:45,320 --> 00:05:48,520 Speaker 1: had need to chastise a blackfellow even in my police days, 101 00:05:48,960 --> 00:05:51,680 Speaker 1: and the blacks out to the northwest of Tarkula were 102 00:05:51,720 --> 00:05:54,680 Speaker 1: deemed the worst in Australia. Twenty years ago. I went 103 00:05:54,680 --> 00:05:57,320 Speaker 1: out among them and all I can remember receiving at 104 00:05:57,320 --> 00:06:00,240 Speaker 1: their hands was courtesy and kindness and all the help 105 00:06:00,279 --> 00:06:04,960 Speaker 1: they could give me. So throughout the years Aston had 106 00:06:04,960 --> 00:06:08,680 Speaker 1: really become something of a scholar regarding Aboriginal culture. He 107 00:06:08,720 --> 00:06:11,800 Speaker 1: had been corresponding throughout his police work with academics and 108 00:06:11,839 --> 00:06:15,239 Speaker 1: experts throughout the world, and he even lectured on occasion 109 00:06:15,279 --> 00:06:18,400 Speaker 1: at the University of Melbourne on the topic of ethnography. 110 00:06:18,760 --> 00:06:21,760 Speaker 1: UH Starting during his nineteen o four appointment at Tarkula 111 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:24,640 Speaker 1: and Tumby Bay, he had also begun to collect and 112 00:06:24,720 --> 00:06:28,400 Speaker 1: document stone tools, and as he continued his relationships with 113 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:32,640 Speaker 1: various tribes throughout the years, he continued to collect samples 114 00:06:33,160 --> 00:06:38,320 Speaker 1: um spears, boomerangs, magical pointing bones which were used for 115 00:06:38,480 --> 00:06:42,640 Speaker 1: hexes and and spell work and art pieces, as well 116 00:06:42,680 --> 00:06:45,559 Speaker 1: as fossil records from the areas, and all the while 117 00:06:45,680 --> 00:06:50,120 Speaker 1: he was kind of assembling these as part of an 118 00:06:50,160 --> 00:06:53,159 Speaker 1: ethnographic evidence he was working on that stone tools of 119 00:06:53,200 --> 00:06:57,120 Speaker 1: the Aboriginal people's had developed indigenously. They had not been 120 00:06:57,160 --> 00:07:00,400 Speaker 1: imported in from anywhere and adopted. They were actually part 121 00:07:00,400 --> 00:07:04,400 Speaker 1: of their natural um development as a culture. Incidentally, there 122 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:07,720 Speaker 1: are some accounts that suggest that he was actually instrumental 123 00:07:07,920 --> 00:07:13,080 Speaker 1: in the abandonment of using the practice of using pointing bones. Allegedly, 124 00:07:13,160 --> 00:07:16,000 Speaker 1: he let members of the tribes use the bones, which 125 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:19,080 Speaker 1: were normally used for curses, to point at him and 126 00:07:19,120 --> 00:07:22,200 Speaker 1: see that nothing happened as a result. Yeah, it should 127 00:07:22,280 --> 00:07:26,120 Speaker 1: be kind of interesting. Look see, I'm fine. Uh. And 128 00:07:26,240 --> 00:07:29,080 Speaker 1: in the nine twenty, as his appointment on the Birdsville 129 00:07:29,120 --> 00:07:32,560 Speaker 1: track was coming to a close, Easton contacted an art 130 00:07:32,560 --> 00:07:36,040 Speaker 1: dealer in Melbourne and then he also talked to anthropologists 131 00:07:36,040 --> 00:07:40,160 Speaker 1: and archaeologists to share his findings and samples. He eventually 132 00:07:40,200 --> 00:07:43,960 Speaker 1: co wrote a book entitled Savage Life in Central Australia 133 00:07:44,560 --> 00:07:48,720 Speaker 1: with archaeologist Dr George Horne, and because Easton had also 134 00:07:48,800 --> 00:07:52,040 Speaker 1: been practicing and honing his photography skills throughout the years. 135 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:55,600 Speaker 1: It's his images that make up the book's photoplates. He 136 00:07:55,640 --> 00:07:59,280 Speaker 1: also published numerous articles throughout the years about the Aboriginal 137 00:07:59,320 --> 00:08:02,239 Speaker 1: people and our tools and their culture. So he really 138 00:08:02,280 --> 00:08:04,640 Speaker 1: was kind of educating the world in many ways about 139 00:08:05,400 --> 00:08:07,160 Speaker 1: the people he was living with and getting to know, 140 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:11,120 Speaker 1: and probably providing a much more balanced bit of information 141 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:14,760 Speaker 1: than anybody else had done before. In nine three, he 142 00:08:14,840 --> 00:08:18,040 Speaker 1: resigned from the police force. Rather than take an assignment 143 00:08:18,040 --> 00:08:20,360 Speaker 1: that was going to move him away from the area 144 00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:23,920 Speaker 1: he had started to really love, he leased some land 145 00:08:24,080 --> 00:08:26,920 Speaker 1: and bought the then tiny Malcha Store. It was a 146 00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:29,680 Speaker 1: little store in the middle of nowhere, just twenty five 147 00:08:29,720 --> 00:08:33,119 Speaker 1: miles which is about forty kilometers south of munger Anny 148 00:08:33,160 --> 00:08:36,599 Speaker 1: on the Birdsville Track. The store was a hundred and 149 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:40,160 Speaker 1: fifty miles or about two one kilometers from the nearest town, 150 00:08:40,679 --> 00:08:44,800 Speaker 1: and it had no natural water source. Around nineteen hundred 151 00:08:44,920 --> 00:08:47,800 Speaker 1: bore holes had been sunk into the Great Artesian Basin 152 00:08:48,480 --> 00:08:52,760 Speaker 1: UH five thousand feet down, and the Great Artesian Basin 153 00:08:53,080 --> 00:08:55,520 Speaker 1: is one of the largest underground water sources in the world, 154 00:08:55,760 --> 00:09:00,680 Speaker 1: and it actually underlies about of the Australian continent. When 155 00:09:00,679 --> 00:09:03,400 Speaker 1: he set up the store, he leased one of these 156 00:09:03,440 --> 00:09:05,840 Speaker 1: boars so that he could sell water for a penny 157 00:09:05,840 --> 00:09:09,840 Speaker 1: of drink. Initially, these boarholes were meant to draw water 158 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:13,640 Speaker 1: for livestock. The Australian government was hoping to develop the 159 00:09:13,640 --> 00:09:16,640 Speaker 1: Birds Litill Track as a cattle driving route. Roughly forty 160 00:09:17,040 --> 00:09:19,640 Speaker 1: head of cattle passed through the multi boar area each 161 00:09:19,720 --> 00:09:23,520 Speaker 1: year before corrosion and the pipes damaged the water flow. Yes, 162 00:09:23,600 --> 00:09:25,640 Speaker 1: so he was initially able to charge a penny per 163 00:09:25,720 --> 00:09:28,720 Speaker 1: drink for the animals, I see the people, So it 164 00:09:28,760 --> 00:09:31,520 Speaker 1: really was pretty a pretty lucrative set up in that regard. 165 00:09:32,360 --> 00:09:35,040 Speaker 1: Uh And to stock his store in the middle of nowhere, 166 00:09:35,120 --> 00:09:37,560 Speaker 1: Aston depended on the mail service to bring goods from 167 00:09:37,600 --> 00:09:40,559 Speaker 1: all corners of the earth, and he stalked a really 168 00:09:40,559 --> 00:09:43,480 Speaker 1: odd assortment of things that it's hard to imagine someone 169 00:09:43,559 --> 00:09:46,480 Speaker 1: needing in the outback. He some of them were obvious, 170 00:09:46,480 --> 00:09:51,160 Speaker 1: like horseshoes and bridles, but he would also stock ribbons, medicine, flour, 171 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:55,400 Speaker 1: sugar round cheeses, which I've heard too referred to kind 172 00:09:55,440 --> 00:09:57,199 Speaker 1: of as the fast food of the era because you 173 00:09:57,240 --> 00:10:00,000 Speaker 1: could take it and go and eat in your hand. Uh. 174 00:10:00,240 --> 00:10:03,160 Speaker 1: And he also had on display his collection of medieval 175 00:10:03,240 --> 00:10:06,360 Speaker 1: armor and dueling pistols. So if you could just imagine 176 00:10:06,360 --> 00:10:09,199 Speaker 1: this fully stocked sort of general store, but then with 177 00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:12,880 Speaker 1: medieval armor on the walls and dueling pistols on display, 178 00:10:13,520 --> 00:10:17,400 Speaker 1: just sort of this odd little curio shop, I'm imagining 179 00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:21,160 Speaker 1: some kind of weird cross between medieval times and cracker barrel. 180 00:10:23,000 --> 00:10:26,560 Speaker 1: I've seen one picture of it, and it looked much 181 00:10:26,559 --> 00:10:29,760 Speaker 1: more organized than that. You know, it didn't have that 182 00:10:29,840 --> 00:10:33,280 Speaker 1: sort of like It was very quaint, but it wasn't 183 00:10:33,320 --> 00:10:35,520 Speaker 1: like a homie like, come on in, We've put some 184 00:10:35,600 --> 00:10:38,080 Speaker 1: things around. Everything really seemed like it had a place. 185 00:10:38,960 --> 00:10:41,360 Speaker 1: Part of the reason he kept this wide range of 186 00:10:41,400 --> 00:10:44,360 Speaker 1: items in stock was because his was the only shop 187 00:10:44,440 --> 00:10:47,480 Speaker 1: for miles and miles, so he kind of wanted anything 188 00:10:47,520 --> 00:10:50,160 Speaker 1: that a customer might happen to need. Most of his 189 00:10:50,280 --> 00:10:54,360 Speaker 1: customers were escorting cattle or owned the various cattle stands 190 00:10:54,360 --> 00:10:58,000 Speaker 1: along the track, and Potty, as he came to be 191 00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:01,800 Speaker 1: called by friends, also did any blacksmith or taxman's work 192 00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:04,240 Speaker 1: is needed, So if their horses needed shoes, he was 193 00:11:04,280 --> 00:11:07,400 Speaker 1: on it. Uh, you know, he would take care of 194 00:11:07,440 --> 00:11:10,319 Speaker 1: the search of little necessary things that you need, and 195 00:11:10,360 --> 00:11:12,440 Speaker 1: there wasn't a blacksmith around either, so he kind of 196 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:14,720 Speaker 1: took up that as his second job, and he had 197 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:17,280 Speaker 1: kind of a third job in doing construction work on 198 00:11:17,320 --> 00:11:20,600 Speaker 1: the store to expand the store itself and the attached 199 00:11:20,679 --> 00:11:25,480 Speaker 1: living quarters. And then in having had several years of 200 00:11:25,520 --> 00:11:28,280 Speaker 1: success running the store because again, even though it's in 201 00:11:28,280 --> 00:11:32,079 Speaker 1: a little of nowhere, lots of cattle driving happening and 202 00:11:32,760 --> 00:11:36,280 Speaker 1: people stopping for water and food and their needs. But 203 00:11:36,360 --> 00:11:39,360 Speaker 1: then he also added a gas station because car traffic 204 00:11:39,440 --> 00:11:42,559 Speaker 1: was starting to surpass horses and camels on this dirt track. 205 00:11:43,760 --> 00:11:47,520 Speaker 1: But unfortunately a drought was on the way. From nine 206 00:11:48,400 --> 00:11:51,520 Speaker 1: to nineteen thirty four, our record drought took a huge 207 00:11:51,640 --> 00:11:55,079 Speaker 1: toll on the outback and everyone and everything that lived there. 208 00:11:55,600 --> 00:11:58,600 Speaker 1: The cattle stations along the birds Will tracks shut down, 209 00:11:59,000 --> 00:12:02,320 Speaker 1: and that pretty much took all of his livelihood with them. 210 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:05,760 Speaker 1: During the drought, he traveled to two different exhibitions in 211 00:12:05,840 --> 00:12:09,120 Speaker 1: Melbourne to give talks about the Aboriginal art and culture 212 00:12:09,160 --> 00:12:11,719 Speaker 1: that he had come to know so much about, and 213 00:12:11,760 --> 00:12:15,360 Speaker 1: in both occasions he was accompanied by tribesmen who demonstrated 214 00:12:15,400 --> 00:12:19,640 Speaker 1: their skills and ceremonies. Despite all the hardship of the drought, 215 00:12:20,120 --> 00:12:22,920 Speaker 1: the Aston stuck it out at the Mulcha store. They 216 00:12:22,960 --> 00:12:25,640 Speaker 1: recognized that the lack of business was gonna pretty much 217 00:12:25,720 --> 00:12:29,640 Speaker 1: take away their retirement plan, uh, and they just continued working. 218 00:12:29,840 --> 00:12:31,520 Speaker 1: So for the next nine years. They were like, well, 219 00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:33,880 Speaker 1: we're just gonna keep going and we won't be able 220 00:12:33,880 --> 00:12:36,920 Speaker 1: to retire in style early, but we're gonna keep this 221 00:12:36,960 --> 00:12:42,640 Speaker 1: store happening. Sadly, he died in September of after a 222 00:12:42,640 --> 00:12:47,040 Speaker 1: battle with cancer, but even after Potty had passed away, 223 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:50,679 Speaker 1: his store did not close. Even without her husband, Mabel 224 00:12:50,720 --> 00:12:52,840 Speaker 1: continued to run the store, and she actually did so 225 00:12:52,920 --> 00:12:56,040 Speaker 1: for eight more years, and during that time business started 226 00:12:56,040 --> 00:12:58,920 Speaker 1: to pick up. The drought had ended, and tourism actually 227 00:12:58,920 --> 00:13:01,760 Speaker 1: started to bring traffic back to the Birdsville track, So 228 00:13:01,840 --> 00:13:03,920 Speaker 1: even though the cattle were not passing through any more, 229 00:13:04,040 --> 00:13:07,240 Speaker 1: new kinds of travelers were. And she was actually pretty 230 00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:10,200 Speaker 1: reluctant to retire because she was so attached to the land, 231 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:14,080 Speaker 1: but she did eventually do so in she was in 232 00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:17,960 Speaker 1: her seventies at the time. In nineteen fifty three, Mabel 233 00:13:18,040 --> 00:13:22,880 Speaker 1: donated potties aboriginal artifacts the medieval armor and the Gun Collection, 234 00:13:23,280 --> 00:13:25,720 Speaker 1: along with other pieces that had been housed in the 235 00:13:25,760 --> 00:13:29,400 Speaker 1: store to the South Australian Museum. A lot of his 236 00:13:29,440 --> 00:13:33,720 Speaker 1: photographs also eventually joined the collection, and the National Museum 237 00:13:33,800 --> 00:13:37,400 Speaker 1: of Australia at Canberra, the Mitchell Library at Sydney, and 238 00:13:37,480 --> 00:13:41,120 Speaker 1: the South Australian Museum all have various pieces of Aston's 239 00:13:41,120 --> 00:13:45,120 Speaker 1: correspondents and research papers in their collections. The story that 240 00:13:45,200 --> 00:13:47,280 Speaker 1: emerges when you look at his life is one of 241 00:13:47,280 --> 00:13:51,520 Speaker 1: a pretty remarkable man. He was smart, resourceful and independent 242 00:13:51,640 --> 00:13:56,160 Speaker 1: and able to bridge this cultural gap between the white 243 00:13:56,160 --> 00:13:59,120 Speaker 1: people who were settling in Australia and their Aboriginal people's 244 00:13:59,160 --> 00:14:03,480 Speaker 1: who already lived there. His photographs, particularly his landscapes, are 245 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:06,160 Speaker 1: also quite striking. You can find some of them in 246 00:14:06,200 --> 00:14:10,480 Speaker 1: the book Images of the Interior seven Central Australian Photographers, 247 00:14:10,679 --> 00:14:13,040 Speaker 1: and if you actually google that title you will pull 248 00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:17,480 Speaker 1: up some images from various places and they are just beautiful. Uh. 249 00:14:17,559 --> 00:14:20,920 Speaker 1: And it's There's an interesting note also regarding a stance 250 00:14:20,960 --> 00:14:25,160 Speaker 1: collection of his Aboriginal implements. He never took any of them. 251 00:14:25,240 --> 00:14:27,320 Speaker 1: He always bought or bartered for them, and he would 252 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:30,960 Speaker 1: only make deals for items which Aboriginal people's were offering. 253 00:14:31,320 --> 00:14:34,120 Speaker 1: He never tried to cajole any of the tribes that 254 00:14:34,160 --> 00:14:37,080 Speaker 1: he befriended into parting with anything that they weren't sort 255 00:14:37,120 --> 00:14:39,680 Speaker 1: of willing to freely offer him in a trade, which 256 00:14:39,720 --> 00:14:43,000 Speaker 1: is pretty cool. Uh. You know, he was in a position, 257 00:14:43,120 --> 00:14:46,120 Speaker 1: especially as a policeman, that he probably could have just 258 00:14:46,160 --> 00:14:48,360 Speaker 1: taken anything of theirs that he wanted, but he never did. 259 00:14:48,440 --> 00:14:51,960 Speaker 1: He always made it a fair trait. His book, Savage 260 00:14:52,000 --> 00:14:54,720 Speaker 1: Life in Central Australia is now regarded as one of 261 00:14:54,760 --> 00:14:57,520 Speaker 1: the few accounts of the ceremonies in life of the 262 00:14:57,560 --> 00:15:00,760 Speaker 1: Aboriginal tribes he could become so familiar and friendly with, 263 00:15:01,640 --> 00:15:05,280 Speaker 1: and as the Aboriginal culture in the area collapsed, there 264 00:15:05,360 --> 00:15:09,320 Speaker 1: wasn't really much else left behind in the cultural record. Yeah, 265 00:15:09,360 --> 00:15:12,800 Speaker 1: there weren't books prepared by the Aboriginal people, so we 266 00:15:12,920 --> 00:15:15,600 Speaker 1: didn't you know, they didn't really leave us a library 267 00:15:15,640 --> 00:15:19,120 Speaker 1: behind as as their culture kind of fell in on itself. 268 00:15:19,280 --> 00:15:22,600 Speaker 1: So thankfully we have this account of someone that at 269 00:15:22,640 --> 00:15:25,200 Speaker 1: least was a first hand witness, even if not an 270 00:15:25,200 --> 00:15:29,600 Speaker 1: actual participant. It's pretty neat. So, yeah, the Mulka Store, 271 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:32,640 Speaker 1: it's so amazing to think about choosing to live this 272 00:15:32,760 --> 00:15:34,920 Speaker 1: life out in the middle of nowhere and having this 273 00:15:35,400 --> 00:15:40,920 Speaker 1: very unique relationship with the indigenous peoples and just you 274 00:15:40,960 --> 00:15:43,040 Speaker 1: have to have such an independent spirit. It's so like 275 00:15:43,040 --> 00:15:45,080 Speaker 1: what you would think of when you think of people 276 00:15:45,080 --> 00:15:49,040 Speaker 1: in the outback of Australia. But he was the real deal. Yeah. 277 00:15:50,080 --> 00:15:52,600 Speaker 1: I really like that that all of this, this collection 278 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:55,320 Speaker 1: that he built was built of things that were really 279 00:15:55,320 --> 00:15:59,480 Speaker 1: given and that things that were taken, because that unfortunately 280 00:15:59,520 --> 00:16:02,360 Speaker 1: the other the other way is the way that is 281 00:16:02,440 --> 00:16:05,720 Speaker 1: how many museums have acquired their stuff, right, And that's 282 00:16:05,760 --> 00:16:08,200 Speaker 1: one of those things that kind of bothers me sometimes 283 00:16:08,240 --> 00:16:10,720 Speaker 1: when I'm in a museum seeing artifacts and kind of 284 00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:13,920 Speaker 1: wondering how they got there. Yeah, it's a little bit tricky. 285 00:16:14,040 --> 00:16:17,640 Speaker 1: It's a tricky bit of morality to work with something. 286 00:16:18,200 --> 00:16:20,280 Speaker 1: But not if you're looking at any of his collections 287 00:16:20,280 --> 00:16:23,000 Speaker 1: which are still on display. Do you have some listener 288 00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:26,440 Speaker 1: mail too? I just might. This particular piece of mail 289 00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:28,720 Speaker 1: comes from our listener, Josh, and he says, Hi, Tracy 290 00:16:28,800 --> 00:16:31,200 Speaker 1: and Holly, I was listening to your podcast on the 291 00:16:31,200 --> 00:16:34,040 Speaker 1: Phoenician ab Jet alphabet, and notice your reference to the 292 00:16:34,080 --> 00:16:37,120 Speaker 1: purple die that the Phoenicians traded that reminded me of 293 00:16:37,120 --> 00:16:40,280 Speaker 1: Biblical references to dies, and that Phoenician die known as 294 00:16:40,280 --> 00:16:43,520 Speaker 1: Tyrian purple is known in the Bible as Argamon, which 295 00:16:43,560 --> 00:16:46,760 Speaker 1: I hope I'm pronouncing correctly. It is cited in Exodus 296 00:16:48,040 --> 00:16:50,440 Speaker 1: as one of the dies used in the priestly vestiments, 297 00:16:50,600 --> 00:16:53,479 Speaker 1: and I did look it up, and it's often associated 298 00:16:53,480 --> 00:16:56,880 Speaker 1: with like more of a crimson shade of purple. Interesting uh. 299 00:16:56,920 --> 00:16:59,520 Speaker 1: Paul Friedlander found in nineteen o nine that this guy 300 00:16:59,640 --> 00:17:03,359 Speaker 1: was ex acted from the snail your ex Brendaris. Interestingly, 301 00:17:03,520 --> 00:17:08,040 Speaker 1: a decade later, in nineteen nineteen, Rabbi Itsak Kalevi Herzog, 302 00:17:08,480 --> 00:17:11,840 Speaker 1: which I'm also hoping I pronounced correct correctly, was also 303 00:17:11,920 --> 00:17:14,520 Speaker 1: an amateur chemist and would later serve as the Chief 304 00:17:14,600 --> 00:17:18,080 Speaker 1: Rabbi of British Mandate Palestine and the first Chief Rabbi 305 00:17:18,359 --> 00:17:20,840 Speaker 1: of the State of Israel. He earned his doctorate in 306 00:17:20,880 --> 00:17:24,000 Speaker 1: literature from the University of London for discovering the source 307 00:17:24,040 --> 00:17:27,040 Speaker 1: of a related die, tackle It from a related snail 308 00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:29,959 Speaker 1: Hexaplex trunculus, which I just love to say those two 309 00:17:30,000 --> 00:17:33,800 Speaker 1: words together is my interjection. Techol It, which is related 310 00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:36,440 Speaker 1: in appearance to indigo, has an interesting history of its 311 00:17:36,480 --> 00:17:39,520 Speaker 1: own being used not only in the same priestly vestiments 312 00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:42,080 Speaker 1: as Argamon, but also in the daily garments of the 313 00:17:42,119 --> 00:17:46,280 Speaker 1: people in the blue thread of the fringes or this 314 00:17:46,359 --> 00:17:48,960 Speaker 1: Die was so important that it continues to be referred 315 00:17:48,960 --> 00:17:51,960 Speaker 1: to twice a day by observant Jews in the recitation 316 00:17:52,040 --> 00:17:55,159 Speaker 1: of the Schma Vox. Tablet, the podcast to the Jewish 317 00:17:55,160 --> 00:17:58,040 Speaker 1: culture website. Tablet mag has a dedicated episode on the 318 00:17:58,080 --> 00:18:01,439 Speaker 1: history and rebirth of techl it manufacturer called the Search 319 00:18:01,480 --> 00:18:03,359 Speaker 1: for an Ancient Blue which I am now going to 320 00:18:03,359 --> 00:18:05,040 Speaker 1: seek out and listen to you because that sounds really 321 00:18:05,040 --> 00:18:07,280 Speaker 1: cool to me, So thank you Josh for letting us 322 00:18:07,280 --> 00:18:10,160 Speaker 1: know about that. It's I am so kind of into 323 00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:14,520 Speaker 1: textile and that the whole world that to me, this 324 00:18:14,560 --> 00:18:17,080 Speaker 1: sounds like the most exciting podcast I could ever listen to. 325 00:18:17,600 --> 00:18:20,680 Speaker 1: Do it. I love it Die and call her a fabrite. Hello, 326 00:18:21,280 --> 00:18:23,640 Speaker 1: I'm all over it in the big name. Uh. If 327 00:18:23,640 --> 00:18:25,159 Speaker 1: you would like to write to us, you can do 328 00:18:25,200 --> 00:18:28,199 Speaker 1: so at History Podcast at Discovery dot com. You can 329 00:18:28,240 --> 00:18:31,520 Speaker 1: connect with us on Twitter at missed in History at 330 00:18:31,520 --> 00:18:35,560 Speaker 1: Facebook dot com, slash History class Stuff, and uh missed 331 00:18:35,600 --> 00:18:38,400 Speaker 1: in History dot tumbler dot com. We're also on Pinterest. 332 00:18:38,960 --> 00:18:41,719 Speaker 1: If you want to have a fun little read about Australia, 333 00:18:41,800 --> 00:18:43,080 Speaker 1: you can go to our website and type in the 334 00:18:43,080 --> 00:18:45,400 Speaker 1: word boomerang and you will get a fun article called 335 00:18:45,400 --> 00:18:47,840 Speaker 1: how boomerangs work. You will know all about the physics 336 00:18:47,840 --> 00:18:51,240 Speaker 1: of their flight. It's some awesome physics. 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