South Australia - Flora and Fauna

Camels

Under the heading "The Camel" the Southern Australian of 2 March 1841, page 2d carries an advertisement:

[We] are instructed by H.W. Phillips, Esq, to offer for public competition... a fine young camel (with saddle, etc) in excellent condition, recently imported from Teneriffe.

Information on the importation of camels is in the Register,
2 January 1929, page 8h.

"First Use of Camels in SA" is in the Register,
26 November 1890, page 5d.
"First Camel in SA" is in the Chronicle,
30 March 1895, page 2f.

The importation of camels into South Australia is reported in the Register,
19 February 1845, page 3b; also see
South Australian,
5 February 1847, page 7a and
Register,
8, 14 and 19 May 1858, pages 3a, 3f and 2f,
2 June 1858, page 3h, 6 July 1858, page 2h,
6 July 1858, page 2h,
2 and 17 September 1858, pages 2e and 2h,
5 and 14 October 1858, pages 2d and 3g,
28 February 1862, page 2g,
13 March 1862, page 2d,
24 April 1862, page 2h,
4 March 1865, page 2h,
Advertiser,
20 May 1865, page 2g,
Chronicle,
27 May 1865, page 1e (supp.),
15 July 1865, page 2e.

A proposed Camel Carrying Company is discussed in the Register,
7 and 17 September 1858, pages 2f and 2h,
5 and 14 October 1858, pages 2d and 3g.

Thomas Elder's camels are discussed in the Advertiser,
11 January 1866, page 2d.

Also see Register,
17 July 1865, page 2f,
17 February 1866, page 2e,
Advertiser,
11 January 1866, page 2d.

Also see Register,
4 March 1865, page 2h,
12, 15 and 17 January 1866, pages 2f, 2c and 2e,
3 March 1866, page 2e,
14 April 1866, page 2g,
Observer,
29 February 1868, page 5f,
Chronicle,
14 November 1868, page 8c,
Register,
30 January 1869, page 2h,
5 October 1869, page 2h,
Express,
26 February 1869, page 3e,
Advertiser,
15 and 23 August 1934, pages 16i and 11b,
31 July 1936, page 23a.

"The Camels and the Express Service" is in the Register,
5 August 1872, page 4f.

"Six Months on a Camel in Central Australia" is in the Observer,
5 and 12 January 1884, pages 41c and 41c.
"Camels in the Far North" is in the Advertiser,
8 November 1884, page 6b.

A history of camels in South Australia is in the Register,
28 February 1870, page 6b; also see
15 July 1884, page 5d,
24 September 1884, page 7b,
25 April 1885, page 5b,
26 November 1890, page 5d,
29 April 1891, page 3g,
Chronicle,
14 March 1891, page 4g,
Register,
1 May 1918, page 6d.

"About Camels and Their Afghan Masters" is in the Register,
19 November 1904, page 4a.
Further information on their introduction is in the Register,
2 January 1929, page 8h.
Also see Place Names - Holowilena Creek.

The Register of 26 August 1869, page 2f has a report on several Afghans being brought before the Blinman Court by Mr John Ross of Umberatana station on a charge of "disobeying the orders of their employer"; they were discharged; Jemadar, the leader, then "applied to prefer a charge against an overseer, in the same employ, for having wilfully and maliciously poisoned their sheep dogs"; this charge was dismissed and, not to be outdone, Mr Ross laid a further complaint against the Afghans for "misconduct and absenting themselves from his service without just cause".

Running true to form the magistrate found the defendants "not guilty"! See Register,
7 October 1869, page 2h and
10 February 1870, page 5c.

The Register of 7 December 1871, page 5b says in respect of the Afghans:

... These swarthy gentlemen [are] being shipped to their native land in the Exonia... we learn from [them] that Mr Elder has about 300 camels, old and young, in a paddock on Beltana Station...

The role of camels in the construction of the Overland Telegraph Line is reported upon in the Register, 5 August 1872, page 4f.

"Camels for the Interior" is in the Observer,
28 June 1884, page 30a,
27 September 1884, page 33e,
Register,
24 September 1884, page 7b,
11 October 1884, page 5f,
"Camels in the Far North" in the Chronicle,
15 November 1884, page 9e.
Sketches are in the Pictorial Australian in
June 1883, page 89,
Frearson's Weekly,
9 June 1883, page 359; also see
Observer,
6 October 1883, page 41d,
2 May 1885, page 38d,
21 November 1885, page 30a,
Express,
9 September 1886, page 2d.

A camel's saddle is reported upon in the Observer,
23 January 1886, page 30b.

"On Camel Back" is in the Register,
22 October 1889, page 6c.

"On Camel Back in the Interior" is in the Register,
25 October 1890, page 5g.
Observer,
1 and 8 November 1890, pages 41d and 41c.

"Sir Thomas Elder and the Camels" is in the Register,
29 April 1891, page 3g.

A camel quarantine station is described on
9 January 1895, page 5e and
a lecture on the animal by Mr N.E. Phillipson of Beltana station appears on
4 November 1895, page 6e (includes a history of the animal in SA).

"Camel Quarantine Ground" is in the Register,
24 March 1893, page 5a,
Observer,
25 March 1893, page 29e.

"Afghans and Camels" is in the Advertiser,
24 March 1893, page 5g,
1 April 1893, page 5f,
"The Camel - And its Characteristics" in the Register on
18 October 1921, page 8g.
"The Truth About Afghans" is in the Register,
1 May 1893, page 7h; also see
19 June 1893, page 5b.

"A Thousand Miles on Camels" is in the Advertiser,
2 May 1891, page 6a,
"The South Australian Camel - By an Ex-Proprietor" on
4 and 5 October 1905, pages 9f and 6e; also see
Observer,
16 November 1895, page 43c.

"Camel Caravans - A 1,000 Mile Journey" is in the Chronicle,
28 July 1894, page 9b.

"From Oodnadatta to Coolgardie With Camels" is in the Observer,
6 and 27 March 1897, pages 33b and 34c.

An obituary of H.W. Phillips, who claimed to be the first to import camels in 1840, is in the Observer,
8 January 1898, page 16e.

"The Camel Drivers' Dispute" is in the Express,
3 July 1899, page 3g.

"About Camels and Their Afghan Masters" is in the Observer,
31 December 1904, page 40d,
"Among the Camels" on
19 August 1905, page 40a.

"The South Australian Camel" is in the Chronicle,
14 October 1905, page 10b,
4 November 1905, page 9d.
Photographs appear on
27 October 1906, page 30,
12 October 1907, page 31,
Observer,
7 September 1918, page 24,
28 May 1921, page 24,
12 December 1925, page 2 (supp.).

"Camels and Donkey Teams" is in the Register,
2 April 1907, page 4f,
Observer,
6 April 1907, page 46e; also see
13 April 1907, page 29.
"Donkey Catching in the Far North" is in the Chronicle,
19 October 1907, page 45c;
photographs are in the Observer,
29 July 1911, page 30.

The reminiscences of J.W. Kingsmill are in the Chronicle,
22 February 1908, page 9d,
of Joseph Harding in the Observer,
5 September 1925, page 47b.

"A Camel Fight - One of the Sights of a Lifetime" is in the Advertiser,
4 February 1910, page 8f,
"By Camel Across Central Australia" on
1 August 1910, page 6f.

The export of camels to Western Australia is reported upon in the Register,
5 April 1911, page 6g.

"Camels - At the Head of the Line" is in the Observer,
27 December 1913, page 44b.

"About the Camel" is in the Observer,
31 January 1914, page 51a,
"Some Ways of the Camel" on
11 May 1915, page 12e.

"By Camel Mail" is in the Observer,
4 October 1924, page 47a.

"500 Miles on Camels" is in the Register,
9, 15, 27 and 31 December 1924, pages 11g, 10g, 8a and 11c,
5, 16, 17 and 27 January 1925, pages 11f, 12e, 13f and 8e,
6 and 7 February 1925, pages 11f and 3g,
"The Tragic Camel" on
18 December 1926, page 8e.

"Value of Camel Transport" is in The Mail,
27 June 1925, page 17a.

"The Old Camel's Story" is in the Observer,
26 December 1925, page 30a.

"A Warning to Camel-Owners" is in the Advertiser,
15 January 1926, page 13a.

"The Tragic Camel" is in the Register,
18 December 1926, page 8e.

"The Despised Camel" is in the Observer,
5 January 1929, page 45a.

"Link With Explorers - Camel Driver for Party in Adelaide" is in The Mail,
6 June 1936, page 2b.

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Cruelty to Animals

A letter in respect of this subject appears in the Register, 22 March 1859, page 3c:

Let public opinion speak out in execution of cruelty to animals, and it can no longer be openly practised. It is for the press to create and set in motion that mighty power.

The inhuman manner in which horses [are treated], especially those employed in public conveyances, [is disgraceful]. They are half-fed, over-worked and unmercifully punished.
(Observer,
26 March 1859, page 7f; also see
Register,
22 April 1859, page 3d,
Express,
6 February 1864, page 3b,
4 April 1867, page 2b,
Register,
1 April 1867, page 2d,
Observer,
13 April 1867, page 6g.)

"Destruction of Wild Animals" is in the Register,
21 September 1865, page 2g.

"Kangaroo Hunting in the South" is in the Register,
19 June 1866, page 2h.

"Kangaroos and Dingoes for the Adelaide Hunt Club" is in the Register,
8 July 1869, page 2f.

"Cruelty to Animals" is in the Express,
22 January 1872, page 2d,
Observer,
20 February 1875, page 13c,
1 January 1876, page 8a.

Instances of cruelty to animals are in the Register,
4 May 1881 (supp.), page 1c,
30 June 1881, page 6f,
5 August 1896, page 4f; also see
6 April 1886, page 3g under "Our Noble Sports".

A Degenerate 'Entertainment'.

(Taken from Geoffrey H. Manning's A Colonial Experience)

I confess to the conclusion that, at times, the inhumanity of man appals me. On a pleasant autumn day in 1886 I was walking down a Norwood street when I saw several persons looking through the chinks of a hoarding that enclosed some vacant ground where circuses were held from time to time. My curiosity being aroused, I stopped to get a peep at what was taking place on the other side of the fence.

On looking through a small opening I was surprised to see a few yards distant, a rope stretched across as a type of handrail, behind which about fifty individuals appeared to be more than interested in the movements of two dogs held on leashes. They were yelping and whining with excitement, with eyes fixed intently on a rough wooden box.

Some twenty yards away stood a man in a tall hat boldly holding in each hand a silk handkerchief, coloured blue and red respectively. Soon one of the assemblage put his hand in his pocket and withdrew a kangaroo rat and set it at liberty. The poor thing, bewildered no doubt at its sudden release, but only too glad to be free, at once made off, followed after a moment or two by the dogs.

From the first the race was a hopeless one for the marsupial, which was soon overtaken by its enemies, who fiercely caught and tore hold of it. Both dogs competed savagely for mastery over its poor writhing and bleeding carcass which, between them, they shook and champed over it.

At this juncture, when the dogs had wrought their worst on the poor animal, one of the members of this gallant gathering ran forward and rescued the mangled rat from its tormentors, tossing its mutilated remains into another box already occupied with previous victims of this cruel and inhuman 'sport'.

While this was going on, the individual in the tall hat held one of the handkerchiefs aloft, doubtless intending by this gesture to symbolise the glorious victory of the dogs. Without doubt a more brutal, cowardly or unmanly pastime could scarcely be found than that which I witnessed. At the time I reflected that we had little cause to congratulate ourselves on our nineteenth century refinements, while blood sport of that brutalising and debasing character was included in the repertoire of our people's amusements.

An editorial on "Cruelty to Animals" is in the Register,
17 February 1875, pages 4g-5f,
Advertiser,
2 October 1900, page 4e,
24 December 1903, page 4d,
15 April 1904, page 4d.

Also see Register,
4 and 10 February 1903, pages 4c and 3g,
15 and 16 April 1904, pages 4e and 10d,
Chronicle,
23 April 1904, page 33a,
Register,
23 and 24 May 1905, pages 4d and 7c,
28 May 1906, page 6b,
27 and 28 June 1906, pages 4c-7c and 6e,
Advertiser,
23 August 1906, page 6b,
Register,
27 May 1907, page 6d,
Advertiser,
9 January 1908, page 9f,
20 August 1908, page 6d,
Register,
26 August 1908, pages 6d-9f

A complaint about the needless slaughtering of seals is in the Register,
14 March 1877, page 5g; also see
21 April 1877, page 6d and
Advertiser,
9 July 1886, page 3g.
The protection of seals is discussed on,
2 July 1886, page 3g.

"Our Seals - Are They Doomed" is in the Register,
23 August 1918, page 5a,
Advertiser,
3 September 1918, page 6g,
"Protection of Seals and Cape Barren Geese" in the Register,
8 March 1921, page 4g,
"How to Train Seals" on
18 October 1922, page 4g.

"A Plea for the Horses" is in the Advertiser,
4 February 1908, page 9c.
"Spare the Horses" is in the Register,
6 April 1912, page 12f.
Instances of cruelty to horses are in the Register,
29 May 1911, pages 6d-7h,
30 May 1914, page 17c,
1 June 1914, page 8c,
1 June 1921, page 3f.
"Some More Old Horses" is in the Register,
24 June 1919, page 4e.

A meeting of the society is reported in the Register,
30 May 1911, page 7h.

"Protection of Sea Lions" is in the Register,
31 January 1912, page 6e.

"Cruelty to Animals" is in the Register,
9 May 1912, pages 4e-6d.

"Treatment of Mail Horses" is the cause for complaint in the Advertiser,
11 June 1912, page 8h.

"A Magna Charta for Animals" is in the Register,
18 November 1912, page 6c.

"Animals and Easter" is in the Register,
22 March 1913, page 12f.

"Worn-Out Horses - Sidelights on Shocking Traffic" is in the Advertiser,
1 July 1913, page 9b.

"Miserable 'Quacks' - Unqualified Veterinary Surgeons Criticised" is in the Register,
13 January 1921, page 7g.

"Hunting Kangaroos" is in the Register,
2 August 1924, page 11b.

"Care for Animals - New Legislative Proposal" is in the Advertiser,
5 June 1925, page 14f.

"A Plea for Animals" is made in the Register,
7 December 1925, page 5b; also see
The News,
1 June 1927, page 6e,
15 June 1928, page 8c,
Advertiser,
23 June 1932, page 6e.

"Mustering Wild Horses" is in the Register,
7 July 1928, page 10a.

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