By the end of 1789, Mr Johnson had drawn up a plan for ‘dame schools’ — small schools supplying a basic education — for the entire colony. He paid for the building of the colony’s first church himself, a wattle-and-daub chapel built at what is now the corner of Bligh and Hunter streets. With his wife, Mary, he used the church as a schoolroom during the week and taught over a hundred convicts and their children.
The effort broke his health. Illness left him partially deaf.
So why don’t we remember him as a hero?
‘History’ is created from the letters and documents left to us. Much of what there is to read about the early colony was written by people who resented Mr Johnson because he believed their profiting from starving convicts was morally wrong. Perhaps he made them feel guilty. (People who feel guilty often are angry with the person who makes them feel that way, instead of sorry for their own actions.) Maybe they were also worried that he would hurt their reputations back in England.
Even Elizabeth Macarthur, who left superb letters that vividly portray early colonial life, made it very clear she had no pleasure in the company of Mrs Johnson, a woman who spent her days teaching convicts, not at picnics and in flirtation. The Macarthurs were not just influential in their own time: Elizabeth’s letters are one of the chief sources of information about the early colony. Self-sacrifice and dedicated service to the poor and criminal, not to mention physical labour by the ‘high-born’, do not seem to be choices she valued.
Mr Johnson’s work was tolerated by Governor Arthur Phillip, the colony’s first governor, who, perhaps reasonably, thought building granaries to keep the colony fed was more important than the church Mr Johnson wanted, and who may have thought, as was common back then, that it was a waste of time teaching convicts how to read, write and do sums. The treatment of Mr Johnson grew far worse when Phillip returned to England, worn out by his work in the colony and the spear wound to his shoulder, which never healed properly. Now the officers of the New South Wales Corps (or ‘Rum Corps’) took command of the colony. Mr Johnson strongly disapproved of the behaviour of many of these officers, such as Major Grose and Captain Macarthur, Elizabeth’s husband, who granted themselves large estates and the right to buy and sell goods and rum. They in turn despised him.
It wasn’t until Governor Hunter was appointed that Mr Johnson was repaid for the expenses he incurred building the church. But even then, the Rum Corps encouraged convicts to taunt the chaplain in the street, though not the convicts from the First and Second Fleets, who loved him. The culprits were later arrivals, who had never had anything to do with him apart from compulsory (though not enforced) church services on Sundays. The services possibly brought the convicts little benefit, being hot in summer and cold when the south wind blew, and with Mr Johnson’s voice hard to hear over the noise of the wind or the cicadas. They would not even have known the hymns to join in singing.
The church Mr Johnson had built with so much dedication was burned down in 1798, possibly on purpose, even as revenge for his criticism of the corrupt Rum Corps officers. By then the increase in the population of the colony meant that Mr Johnson would have been a stranger to many, and his sacrifices and kindness unknown to them.
In 1800 Mr Johnson and the next governor, Mr King, set up an orphanage. The Johnsons sailed to England in October of that year. It is unclear whether he intended to come back to the colony. By then he was ill, partly from overwork and his struggles against the corruption of the colony, but also because he chose to help tend those who had infectious illnesses. His health seems to have remained frail, and he was offered only temporary, badly paid jobs until 1810, when friends helped get him a better position in London. He died in 1827. Mrs Johnson died in 1831. Milbah had died in 1804, only a few years after their return to England. A son was born two years after Milbah and was still alive after his parents’ deaths, but I have been unable to find out anything more about him.
Little is known about Birrung’s life after she left the Johnsons and I have been unable to find later references to her in any of the writings from the colony after the Johnsons left. She may possibly have been written about, but under a different version of her name. The last reference I have been able to find is in a letter written in 1795 by Mrs Johnson, saying that Abaroo . . . still visited them.
Indigenous Words in the Text
These are mostly taken from the records of those years made by Mr Dawes, with further references from the Macquarie Aboriginal Words: a dictionary of words from Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages (edited by Nick Thieberger and William McGregor, published 1994) and the notes of the language used in the Sydney region by Jakelin Troy, though all the Indigenous words in the text are ones I have come across in other contexts. However, as with Birrung’s name, there are many ways these words have been put into English letters. I hope that ‘Birrung’ and her people will accept a ‘tried to get it as right as I can’ instead of ‘I am sure that this is accurate’. Dictionaries of the eastern coastal languages are still being put together, from the words people remember, as well as written sources.
Names
BIRRUNG
The Birrung of this book was called Abaroo by the Johnsons and members of the colony, except for Lieutenant Dawes, who recorded the name as Booroong, and as Boo-ron, Birrung and Burrung. As mentioned above, the Cammeraygl and other languages that Birrung may have spoken use some sounds that are different from English, and difficult for English speakers to pronounce or even hear or repeat.
I chose the form Birrung because it is recorded as meaning ‘star’ in the languages of the Indigenous people of the Sydney region, and the Eora word for ‘star’ sounded like Booroong or Birrung. Her name might equally have been Burang, meaning ‘grass’, or Barang, meaning ‘stomach’. But as with Nanberry, Bennelong, Colbee and Barangaroo, we may never know what their names really were, either the short form, or the longer names they used more formally and that the colonists were unaware of.
MILBAH
I have been unable to find out what Milbah means, but there are many records of it being used as a girl’s name in New South Wales from about 1800 onwards — not commonly, but various different families did choose it for their daughters. The records don’t show any other Indigenous name being used in the English community, so perhaps the naming of daughters Milbah was a tribute to the Johnsons’ daughter, a gesture of love and thanks for her parents’ contributions. In 1816 a baby girl (probably of European, not Indigenous descent) born in the colony was given the name Milbah, according to the birth records, so the name was still being used in the community at that time. Possibly Milbah’s parents remembered the kindness of the Johnsons.
Growing Food
Those who have never grown their own food in Sydney or similar climates won’t know how fast crops grow, and what abundance can be grown in a small space in a short time. According to the diaries of the early colony, fruit trees were producing fruit within two years. Possibly they were advanced trees when transplanted, but well-watered trees do grow fast. They wouldn’t have produced much, but our trees here, in a colder climate, usually produce some fruit the first and second year after transplanting.
Colonists were hungry because they didn’t work their gardens, or gather food like oysters, wild spinach, mussels and other shellfish. Oysters were a common food for even the poor in England, so all in the colony would have known they were good to eat, and abundant enough to feed everyone. Those who did, or who had good gardeners, like Governor Phillip, ate well. No one starved even during the time of worst hardship, except for one man who saved his rations to escape to China, and another whose rations were taken as ‘rent’ to use someone else’s pannikin. Nor did Surgeon White record any pellagra from protein deficiency, just scurvy in newly landed colonists after a long voyage. White — who hated the colony, for the misery he had seen — even described it as the healthiest place on earth. But the colonists were terrified they might starve. They had landed with
three years of food supplies. By the time the Second Fleet arrived, their stores were almost gone. Many of the convicts and most of the officers refused to do any hard work, from growing food to gathering oysters. Gentlemen were not supposed to do manual work. Mr Johnson was one of the few in the colony who did. The colony wasn’t starving, but they were certainly terrified of starvation, ragged, mostly shoeless, scared they had been forgotten by England and that the colony might even vanish like the Roanoke colony had in North America. Many convicts believed the officers might sail off in the colony’s small ship and leave them stranded. All were probably afraid that once the stores ran out, both convicts and officers might steal or commandeer food from those who were growing it, rather than worked, and the colony might degenerate into civil war.
For those who wonder if you really can grow abundant fruit and vegetables, eggs and cheese in two years, even without hoses and a central water system — try it. It will not only give you deep satisfaction — and keep you fed while you begin a career like writing books — but give you the confidence that, with a few seeds and dead-looking sticks, you can keep yourself and your family fed. It is that security that the early colony lacked.
ELSIE’S SOUP
This is delicious, and very cheap to make. The flavour will change depending on what kind of cheese you use, and what you cook the onions in, and even on what kind of onions you use. Red onions give a sweeter soup, brown ones a stronger onion flavour. Cheap white sliced bread doesn’t add much taste at all, but a sourdough white or a French loaf or rye bread or a good multigrain will really make the soup richer. I sometimes use six tablespoons of strongly flavoured, freshly grated parmesan cheese, but gouda is a mild cheese that turns wonderfully stringy in this soup, and tastes good. Feta and cheddar also work, as will probably any cheese that you love best, though again the taste and texture when cooked will vary from cheese to cheese. You can also use stock instead of water, and that changes the flavour too. But every variation I have made has been very good indeed.
Basically this is a soup made from the most simple ingredients, but every one of those ingredients has to be good to make it a great soup, not just an OK one.
30 large onions, peeled and finely chopped (wear sunglasses to help stop the juice stinging your eyes)
12 tbsp chicken fat or olive oil or butter
6 thin slices of bread, lightly toasted, about half as thick as ordinary sliced bread, fresh or stale
About 12 tbsp finely grated cheese
8 cups water, or chicken, vegetable or beef stock
Place the fat, oil or butter in a pan with the chopped onions. Slowly cook the onions, stirring all the time, till they almost melt and are a pale gold colour. They must not be cooked too fast, or they will turn dark brown or black and be bitter. They also have to be stirred all the time, or they will catch on the bottom. This slow cooking changes the flavour of the onions, so they become less sulphur-like and sweeter and slightly caramelised. They will take at least twenty minutes to cook, and possibly much longer. Onions with ‘fat’ rings take longer to cook than ones with ‘thin’ rings. (Once you’ve cut up an onion, you’ll see what I mean.)
Now place a layer of cooked onions in an ovenproof pot. Elsie cooked hers on the side of a fire, but it’s easier these days to put the pot in an oven. Add a layer of toasted bread, scatter on cheese, then alternate layers of onions, bread and cheese till it is all used up. Finish with a scatter of cheese.
Pour on the stock or water. Place in the oven with no lid on. Cook at 200°C for two hours, or on a lower heat for longer. Serve very hot, scooping up layers of bread, cheese and oniony broth with each serving. It will look a mess but be delicious.
The Secret Histories
Barney Bean and Elsie have secrets, and so does history: there are many little-known events and people in our past. Each of The Secret Histories books will reveal another surprise in our heroes’ journeys, as well as something from Australia’s early years you may not have read about before.
Also by Jackie French
Historical
Somewhere Around the Corner • Dancing with Ben Hall
Daughter of the Regiment • Soldier on the Hill • Hitler’s Daughter
Lady Dance • How the Finnegans Saved the Ship
The White Ship • Valley of Gold • Tom Appleby, Convict Boy
They Came on Viking Ships • Macbeth and Son • Pharaoh
A Rose for the Anzac Boys • The Night They Stormed Eureka
Oracle • Nanberry: Black Brother White • Pennies for Hitler
I am Juliet • To Love a Sunburnt Country
Fiction
Rain Stones • Walking the Boundaries • The Secret Beach
Summerland • A Wombat Named Bosco • Beyond the Boundaries
The Warrior: The Story of a Wombat
The Book of Unicorns • Tajore Arkle
Missing You, Love Sara • Dark Wind Blowing
Ride the Wild Wind: The Golden Pony and Other Stories
Refuge • The Book of Horses and Unicorns
Non-Fiction
Seasons of Content • How the Aliens from Alpha Centauri
Invaded My Maths Class and Turned Me into a Writer
How to Guzzle Your Garden • The Book of Challenges
Stamp, Stomp, Whomp • The Fascinating History of Your Lunch
Big Burps, Bare Bums and Other Bad-Mannered Blunders
To the Moon and Back • Rocket Your Child into Reading
The Secret World of Wombats
How High Can a Kangaroo Hop? • A Year in the Valley
Let the Land Speak: How the Land Created Our Nation
I Spy a Great Reader
The Animal Stars Series
The Goat Who Sailed the World • The Dog Who Loved a Queen
The Camel Who Crossed Australia
The Donkey Who Carried the Wounded
The Horse Who Bit a Bushranger
Dingo: The Dog Who Conquered a Continent
The Matilda Saga
1. A Waltz for Matilda • 2. The Girl from Snowy River
3. The Road to Gundagai
The Secret Histories Series
Birrung the Secret Friend
Outlands Trilogy
In the Blood • Blood Moon • Flesh and Blood
School for Heroes Series
Lessons for a Werewolf Warrior • Dance of the Deadly Dinosaurs
Wacky Families Series
1. My Dog the Dinosaur • 2. My Mum the Pirate
3. My Dad the Dragon • 4. My Uncle Gus the Garden Gnome
5. My Uncle Wal the Werewolf • 6. My Gran the Gorilla
7. My Auntie Chook the Vampire Chicken • 8. My Pa the Polar Bear
Phredde Series
1. A Phaery Named Phredde
2. Phredde and a Frog Named Bruce
3. Phredde and the Zombie Librarian
4. Phredde and the Temple of Gloom
5. Phredde and the Leopard-Skin Librarian
6. Phredde and the Purple Pyramid
7. Phredde and the Vampire Footy Team
8. Phredde and the Ghostly Underpants
Picture Books
Diary of a Wombat (with Bruce Whatley)
Pete the Sheep (with Bruce Whatley)
Josephine Wants to Dance (with Bruce Whatley)
The Shaggy Gully Times (with Bruce Whatley)
Emily and the Big Bad Bunyip (with Bruce Whatley)
Baby Wombat’s Week (with Bruce Whatley)
The Tomorrow Book (with Sue deGennaro)
Queen Victoria’s Underpants (with Bruce Whatley)
Christmas Wombat (with Bruce Whatley)
A Day to Remember (with Mark Wilson)
Queen Victoria’s Christmas (with Bruce Whatley)
Dinosaurs Love Cheese (with Nina Rycroft)
Wombat Goes to School (with Bruce Whatley)
The Hairy-Nosed Wombats Find a New Home (with Sue deGennaro)
Good Dog Hank (with Nina Rycroft)
> The Beach They Called Gallipoli (with Bruce Whatley)
About the Author
Photo by Kelly Sturgiss
JACKIE FRENCH is an award-winning writer, wombat negotiator and the Australian Children’s Laureate for 2014–2015. She is regarded as one of Australia’s most popular children’s authors and writes across all genres — from picture books, history, fantasy, ecology and sci-fi to her much loved historical fiction. ‘Share a Story’ is the primary philosophy behind Jackie’s two-year term as Laureate.
You can visit Jackie’s website at: www.jackiefrench.com
Copyright
Angus&Robertson
An imprint of HarperCollinsChildren’sBooks, Australia
First published in Australia in 2015
by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
harpercollins.com.au
Text copyright © Jackie French 2015
Illustrations copyright © Mark Wilson 2015
The rights of Jackie French and Mark Wilson to be identified as the author and illustrator of this work have been asserted by them under the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
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