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Chapter 2 – Friendship and Joe’s arrival

Following the preparations, but many days before the big day of the funeral, Alfred had gone to greet other people from further a field, many of whom had arrived on trains using the new railway in Adelaide. Victoria was a go ahead state, as it had been the first area of Australia to have a railway of any sort. It was based on the English gauge, and the engines and wagons had been imported from Britain. When other states introduced their trains, they all used different gauges for their rails, consequently the trains from other areas, were unable to be used on all the routes.

At the station, Alfred suddenly saw his lifelong friend who he had not been expecting. “Hi, Joe, Joe, over here, Joe I’m here” shouted an exasperated Alfred, but it is doubtful whether Joe even heard him, due of the noise of all the other people arriving at the same time. They were a noisy crowd, excited at the idea of the event they were going to be involved with, meeting up, like him, with the people they had not seen for some time.

It took them all quite a while to pick out the person or persons they wanted to meet, before leaving the station. People were shouting out names in the hope the person they wanted would hear their name even if they could not be seen. There were men with top hats, tall ones, short ones all according to fashion, except that fashion did not change very rapidly in outlying British Colonies.

The suits were posh, even if a bit suburban, but this was Australia and it takes ages to catch up with fashion. Women’s fashion was easier as magazines with dress patterns were shown on the pages, although one often had to adapt the pattern to be used from the illustration in the magazines.

Fabric could now be imported and there was a wide choice including from other parts of Asia. Britons would be envious if they could have seen some of them. Bright coloured and wide brimmed hats, had been replaced by black hats of all shapes and sizes.

Eventually a tall slim man, looking very self-confident but tired, strode toward Alfred. Joseph Todhunter was considered a sufficiently important, to have his name published in the local paper, informing everyone of his arrival on the ship, which had just docked. At last Joe and Alfred had met one another, and unexpectedly too.

“How wonderful to see you again”, Alfred said, “you too” replied Joe. Until a couple of years ago, they had not met for eleven years. Joe had turned up in Melbourne, a stop over on his way from Ceylon, just to meet his sister and aunt, who were waiting to change ships, on their way home from New Zealand to England.

“What was your journey like?” enquired Alfred. “Long and tedious, but not too bad really” said the experienced traveller.

“Joe you are wearing the identical gloves we both wore in London, but they are not suitable out here with my lifestyle”, and they both burst out laughing.

Joe was in his comfort zone, he was a seasoned traveller, used to travelling around the globe on business, so he took such things in his stride.

“I am so pleased to have you around while I have to get through all this publicity. You know how I hate it. How long will you be staying, because we have so much to talk about, and much I would like to show you”.

Joe didn’t have a lot to say. “Sorry you have not got the letters you should have done¸ but I have been so preoccupied, letters to you could wait, others had to be done then and now, communications in relation to work and family. I’ll explain later. When I saw you before, it was not the right environment for me to see and discuss what I hope to see and hear from you this time”.

“Well I would have been up country, so they would have been very late being received.” was Alfred’s reply.

Joe’s sister Annie was going to marry a man they all knew from London, Alex Montgomery, who was currently working in New Zealand. Annie felt as she was going to live in New Zealand, she should marry out there, although nothing had been agreed was said to at this stage. Joe felt he might have to call in there before he returned to England. He did not elaborate.

“Come on, we will go and see Uncle Godfrey, when we get to Melbourne. He is putting me up once again. I often wonder what I would have done all these years, without him to fall back on when times were hard for me. I expect he will lend you a horse for the length of your stay too”.

When Alfred had brought the bodies of Burke and Wills back to Melbourne, he had to undertake the journey for a second time. On the first journey he had found Wills, dead, but sitting dutifully, at the burial place of Burke. This was something Burke had requested of Wills, should he die. It demonstrated the loyalty Mr. Wills senior had told Burke he could rely on when in trouble.

Alfred had buried Wills near by, but on his return to Melbourne, he was told they wanted the bodies for a State funeral.

“Why hadn’t they said so before I went out to look for them. This is typical of their muddled thinking,” he had thought.

So he had to return, to this very hot, dry and un-hospitable area, to dig up the bodies, which would have decayed rapidly in the heat, especially if originally the ground had been wet. Alfred had successfully carried out his orders, and it was because of his part in retrieving the bodies, that he now found himself in the current position.

During the period of preparation, there were parties, receptions etc. to which he was invited. These were the times he kept saying to himself, “have I really got to go, or is there a feasible excuse?”

Alfred and Joe had gone to dances and similar things in London. Joe had continued with this style of life in London, and other cities around the world, which he had visited. Alfred enjoyed them when he went, but he felt the whole atmosphere in Australia to be artificial, that he was reluctant to go, especially as it had been over ten years since he attended a big function.

Wealthy and highly respected Australians held their own private dances, and he had only gone when he felt he ought to, at least these were places where he could possibly find a prospective bride. These functions were going to be different, with politicians and ruling members of society, not Alfred’s cup of tea at all.

Howitt family’s tour routes 1851-1854