Pat Ritter. Books

[patritter]

'Click Go The Shears' - Page 43:

Joe waited to be examined by a doctor. At the doctor’s examination mention of shaving arose before photographs of each prisoner taken for a ‘Rogues Gallery’. His beard a mess, similar to his hair although salt water washed his clothes now stiff. After his examination by the prison doctor Joe was escorted to an exercise yard to mix with other prisoners. A prisoner standing beside Joe said, ‘you know the beard is gone as well as your hair,’ he told Joe.
Joe whispered, ‘I don’t want to be shaved. I want to keep my beard to fight the bastards’. Joe jeered.
‘I’d think about the consequences if I were you. Another prisoner didn’t want his beard shaved or his hair cut, they spread-eagled him, bound his hands and feet before the prison barber could do his job’ the prisoner whispered to Joe which made Joe think about the consequences of bucking authority.
Tom Hutcheson, a fellow prisoner sentenced with Joe walked up and whispered, ‘stick with me mate’, he joined Joe and the other prisoners in the exercise yard after being checked by the prison doctor.
Joe’s mind filled with fear, ‘I don’t know if I can do this,’ he whispered.
‘We’ll do it together. Don’t worry about anyone else,’ his companion whispered back. A flash of cord struck Tom across his back.
‘Enough whispering,’ a harsh voice yelled.
TO DOWNLOAD THIS BOOK CLICK ONTO THIS LINK: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/497192

[patritter]

'Click Go The Shears' - Page 44:

Tom whimpered under the blow from the prison guard. Nothing more was said between the two prisoners. This is how it’s going to be, Joe thought when his mind returned to what Judge Harding raised before passing sentence, ‘I sentence you to three years on each count’. Hearing the sentence Joe fainted and failed to hear the remainder of the judge’s comments. His next recollection of events was being dragged onto the Otter with his fellow prisoners.
Each prisoner took their turn at being shaved by the prison barber, shaved beards fell to the ground, and head hair joined the pile of beard hair. A fresh set of clothes provided by the prison with sugar and tobacco for a week’s rations handed to each prisoner.
An authoritative voice called to the prisoners standing in the exercise yard. ‘I’m the Superintendent of this prison. Each Saturday you will be issued with a clean suit and rations for the following week. First Sunday of each month there is a general muster when all prisoners will attend and stand at attention. I will inspect each prisoner and point out which ones need a haircut or similar attention. Is that clear?’ He commanded.
The Superintendent stood in front of Julian Stuart, a fellow prisoner sentenced with Joe who stood next to him. The Superintendent was shorter than Julian only coming to his shoulders. When the Superintendent yelled his command Julian gazed above the Superintendent’s head, ‘remove this prisoner to the punishment cell for treating me with contempt’. He starred at Julian. Guards escorted Julian to the punishment cell until sunset. Joe instantly realised this wasn’t going to be a walk in the park. Sorrow filled his heart for his fellow prisoner Julian but little he could do but obey the rules and do his time.
TO DOWNLOAD THIS BOOK CLICK ONTO THIS LINK: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/497192

[patritter]

'Click Go The Shears' - Page 45:

St Helena Island was cold, grey and miserable. Whilst the stockade housed cells, a high wall covered its perimeter. Enclosed within the walls, an exercise yard where prisoners walked and gathered, this opportunity gave these thirteen prisoners - leaders from ‘The Great Shearers Strike of 1891’ an opportunity to gather and discuss their future and plans for survival. Sunday morning being the right time to catch up with everyone.
Different prisoners went into ‘gangs’. Big Bill Hamilton, over six feet and weighed more than 15 stone went into the ‘housemaids’ gang. He needed to go down on his knees to pipeclay the steps and climb ladders to clean windows. He often complained about ‘housemaid knees’ which everyone ed at his comment.
Julian Stuart went to the pig pens to clean out the sties and make a granolithic floor for the high-class grunters. They were bred, feed and fattened there, but alas, the prisoners never tasted their hard work of caring for the pigs. Joe assigned to the vegetable gardens to tend the soil, sow the seeds to feed the prison. Initially he found the work different because he’d never grown anything in his life prior to being in prison. A prison guard carrying his rifle walked up and down the aisles to keep an eye on the work.
TO DOWNLOAD THIS BOOK CLICK ONTO THIS LINK: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/497192

[patritter]

'Click Go The Shears' - Page 46:

Joe tended to weeding using a hoe when he noticed a prisoner working next to him stare. ‘What are you staring at?’ Joe whispered across to the prisoner.
‘We've met before,’ he said and tended to his chore of planting vegetables.
‘Enough talk,’ yelled the guard, ‘get on with your job and keep quiet,’ he roared.
Joe went through a catalogue of faces in his mind to recognise the prisoner working next to him, ah, shit, Billy Wells, I recognise him from the Eulo pub the night Joe almost killed him. He thought. Best thing I can do is hope he doesn’t recognise me or know who I am. Joe kept weeding and ignored the stranger.
Days continued into weeks and weeks into months before Joe and the prisoner he recognised as Billy Wells stood side by side in the exercise yard on a Sunday morning at the prisoner’s gathering. ‘I remember who you are.’ The stranger said to Joe. Joe went to walk away, ‘how’s my horse and saddle?’ The stranger asked. Joe stood eye to eye with the prisoner.
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ Joe admitted, ‘you’ve got the wrong fellow.’
‘I remember your name, Joe Ryan. I stole your girlfriend’s necklace and ring at the stagecoach hold-up. You took it from me at the Eulo Hotel, remember.’ The stranger grinned showing a front tooth missing.
TO DOWNLOAD THIS BOOK CLICK ONTO THIS LINK: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/497192

[patritter]

'Click Go The Shears' - Page 47:

‘Sorry mate, like I told you. Never met you before today.’ Joe went to walk away to join his mates when the stranger took hold of his arm and stood face to face.
‘I know you’re Joe Ryan because I asked around, and I remember you and that constable escorting me to Cunnamulla after you punched me to the ground the night in the hotel. Here, have a look, I lost a bloody tooth because of you.’
What the hell am I going to do? If I admit to him I am the person he says I’m in deep trouble and if I admit to being Joe Gibson, I’m still in deep trouble. Joe took the bull by the horns, ‘yeah, I’m Joe Ryan and you are Billy Wells. I recognised you.’
‘Don’t beat around the bush. How’s my horse?’ Billy smiled and put his hand out to shake. ‘How’d you come to be here?’ Billy asked.
‘I got three years for rioting. Your horse is safe in Cunnamulla, my girlfriend Hannah takes care of it. You remember she’s the one you stole the ring and necklace from at the stagecoach hold-up.’ Joe looked Billy directly in his eyes.
‘I shouldn’t worry, you paid me five quid for the horse and saddle. What you did with them is your business. I’m interested what happened to the horse. I had him since a foal.’
TO DOWNLOAD THIS BOOK CLICK ONTO THIS LINK: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/497192

[patritter]

'Click Go The Shears' - Page 48:

‘Hannah will take good care of him.’ Joe explained. Why did I refer to Hannah as my girlfriend. Never met her. Her sweet voice stays in my mind since the police cells in Cunnamulla. When I get out of this mess I want to return to Cunnamulla. Her voice stayed in his head since the moment she told him how sorry she was about the mess Joe made for him. He remembered her saying he was brave for doing what he’s doing. So much for being brave, more like bloody stupid. ‘How much time did you get?’ Joe asked.
‘Twenty years. Probably life the way it’s going. I’ll be here til I die.’
Joe had no comeback but didn’t want to mix with Billy because he may recognise he’s not the real Joe Ryan. ‘Got to go; no doubt we’ll see one another around.’ Joe went to walk away.
‘Hang on a minute. Why you here? You didn’t hold up a stagecoach. Did you?’ Billy growled.
‘No, I wanted to help my fellow shearers get better wages and conditions. We went on strike and the authorities gathered us up and I’m sent here for three years but only one year, six months, two weeks and fourteen hours to go.’ Joe explained.
‘That was a stupid thing to do. Why’d you want to help someone else?’
‘Because shearers, roustabouts and other workers were receiving a pittance compared to the cocky, who should be in here instead of us, and they robbed us of our dignity and ability to do the job whilst they rode on the sheep’s back to riches.’
TO DOWNLOAD THIS BOOK CLICK ONTO THIS LINK: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/497192

[patritter]

'Click Go The Shears' - Page 49:

‘Bloody hell mate, I only held up a stagecoach and robbed people of their money and I got twenty years!’
‘Constable Fitzgerald told me you were here and I might bump into you.’
‘How is Constable Fitzgerald? You remember we stopped on the way into Cunnamulla that morning you and he escorted me. He boiled us a billy of tea and gave us his scones he’d baked that morning. He’s one of the good coppers, pity they aren’t all like him.’ Billy explained.
Joe thought back to his conversation he had with Constable Fitzgerald on their way to Charleville about the scones being his mother’s recipe, ‘he used his mother’s recipe’.
‘That’s right, I remember when you asked for it and he said it wouldn’t be a secret any longer if he told you. Good copper Constable Fitzgerald.’
Joe and Billy often spoke about their past when meeting each Sunday at the exercise yard. Should he tell Billy the truth about his identity, passed through his thoughts when he was about to be released. Joe never realised how quickly the time passed, three years appeared to go quicker than he thought. At their final meeting Joe said to Billy, ‘I’ll be getting out of this hole in a couple of days.’
TO DOWNLOAD THIS BOOK CLICK ONTO THIS LINK: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/497192