South of the Netting Fence

A few weeks back, my editor Emily and I fronted up at the Wimmera Writers' Festival in Horsham to launch my book, Wayback.

Gerard Dean at Horsham Library

It was great, and we met wonderful people, one of which I must tell you about.

His name is Ron Dodds, and he told us he, too, had launched his book several weeks previously at the same venue. His book, South of the Netting Fence, is set in the northern Wimmera around the township of Nhill, traditional rivals of the Dimboola footy team for many years. After the launch, Emily and I visited the Horsham Newsagency and purchased Ron's book.

South of the Netting Fence by Ron Dodds

Well, I finally got around to reading South of the Netting Fence and am still smiling. It is very different in style from Wayback, which is a collection of short vignettes and glimpses of my early life. Ron's book, on the other hand, is comprehensive, full of facts about farming and the weather and business, but also awash with heartwarming stories of his brothers and sisters, family and friends.

For me, it was an emotional ride because it mentioned many of the same things I saw in Murra Warra.

The Morse Code Chart: Both books have a Morse Code Chart to explain how farmers in the area knew when to answer the phone - we were Youngvale S or Short Short Short.

The Number 67: There it was on page 138 - '...the '67 drought...' As an eleven-year-old having to shoot sheep stuck in our dry dam, I realised half a century later that north of us, Ron Dodds was facing the same test.

Footy Teams: Ron played for Netherby-Lorquon, and I played for Dimboola. The photo still stands on my mantlepiece half a century later.

The Railway Yard: The photo of the truck tipping wheat into the silo elevator took me back to when I worked at the Dimboola silo and railway yards. One farmer left his sheep dog in the cabin when the wheat truck was weighed, then took the dog out for a walk when the empty truck was weighed. He gained a dog's weight of wheat every load until our boss told him off.

Speaking of dogs, as you know, my book is titled Wayback, which you would think refers to wayback in time in a memoir. Well, the main reason for the title is explained in South of the Netting Fence when Ron describes the sheep handling skills of their sheep dog, Sniffy. When out rounding up the sheep, Ron and his dad would yell for Sniffy to 'Go Right Back,' which was the command to make him round up the sheep into a single mob. Unfortunately, Sniffy was just like our sheep dog, Jack; he often rounded up half the mob and then the sheep started running every which way. By now, you will have worked out the command our dad yelled at Jack to round up the sheep:

'Wayback, Jack, Wayback.'

Thanks, Ron!

Gerard

Wayback by Gerard Dean