Summary

THE DIARIES: A LIFE IN THE NORTH

After first hearing Arthur's voice in his childhood essays, it is nearly fifty years before we hear from him again in the diaries. Now married to Chrissie for nearly twenty years, his own family is growing towards adulthood on the property 'Uralla', outside Mossman.

Arthur's decade of diaries recount a daily life of almost unremitting hard work which not infrequently left him "done in" and which, at times, must have been tedious beyond words; the almost daily process of producing cattle feed from minced cane tops (chop chop) was one chore as monotonous as it was essential.

Yet we also find a world where neighbours became friends, providing welcome company and helping hands when needed and in which the remote little town of Mossman offered Arthur's gregarious family a busy social life. Visits to or from friends often extended into long evenings playing cards; weddings, birthdays or fund-raising dances helped build and bind the community. Even Arthur sometimes found time for a trip to the beach or to that major 20th century innovation, the cinema. (In May 1931 he reported on the town's first 'talkie' picture show). There were also adventures. In 1925 Arthur rode for five days over the range to visit a cousin's farm at Redlynch. A few years later, in his late sixties, he made the "strenuous climb" up Mt Demi (Manjal Dimbi), the impressive peak that rises steeply west of the town.

During the 1930s all four of Arthur and Chrissie's children married and grandchildren began to arrive but, as Arthur aged, there were also more difficult times. Working through oppressive summer heat took its toll; at times it seems he lacked the energy to write more than a couple of words. When floods isolated the property, income was lost and from time to time bouts of illness landed both him, and sometimes Chrissie, in hospital. It must have brought relief when their daughter Esther, and her new husband, took over the running of the farm in 1934.

If life was sometimes a struggle, it was a struggle he met with resourcefulness, good humour and a dogged determination to do the best that he could for his family. His reward was a lasting marriage, children ready to take their place in a world entering a period of rapid change and the affection and respect of his community. At his passing in 1940, the Cairns Post remembered him as a "kindly old gentleman . . . affectionately known to his many friends as 'Dad' Atherton".

If Arthur lacked the boldness and flamboyance of his better-known uncle, John Atherton, his story reminds us of the stoical character and steadfast values that enabled individuals and communities to build lives and futures in the challenging environment of north Queensland – come what may.

Liz Downes
2024