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Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Tue Jul 25, 2017 10:21 pm

'The Drover' - Page 31:

The tall gent walked to where Harry was seated, ‘I’m Ted Henderson, Eric the stock and station agent told me you might want a hand to take some sheep to Bourke’.
So this is Rose’s old man, Harry thought. ‘Five thousand head.’ Harry muttered.
‘I’ve never taken that many before. The last trip we went to Bourke was a thousand head. I have a family to help me. I think you’ve already met my daughter Rose.’
‘Yeah…yeah,’ what am I going to say to this fellow, Harry thought. I’ll treat him like anyone else until I know any different. He felt nervous and didn’t want to blow any chance he had with getting to better know Rose.
‘Do you know much about droving sheep…do you want a beer Ted?’ Harry said.
‘I don’t drink beer only rum.’ Ted remarked.
Harry ordered a beer and two rums.
‘No - only one rum for me thanks Harry.’ Ted replied.
‘I’m having a rum chaser.’ Harry replied.
‘What’s that?’ Ted wanted to know.
‘I’ll show you when the rums arrive.’ Harry replied in delight. The barman served two nips of rum and a glass of beer and placed them in front of Harry and Ted.
‘Take it out of my money thanks.’ Harry said. He scooped the glass of beer up in his right hand and swallowed half the contents. He replaced the glass on the bar and took the glass of rum and drew the contents to his lips and swallowed in one gulp. ‘That’s better.’ Harry mused, ‘I’ve certainly missed that.’
Ted and Harry drank into the night. Harry felt a little tipsy; Ted stood upright and didn’t appear to have had a drink. He looked sober. They spoke about the upcoming trip to Bourke with the sheep and Harry took the bit between his teeth and told Ted he was the Boss Drover and everything was under his control.
‘I’ll give you credit where credits due, Harry, you’re the Boss Drover because what I know about drover isn’t much to write home about.’ He was feeling a little tipsy but still held his own with Harry, ‘what about you come home to meet the family.’ Ted offered. Harry wasn’t sure if he wanted to meet the family in his present condition. In the end agreed.
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Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Wed Jul 26, 2017 10:47 pm

'The Drover' - Page 32:

It was a short walk from the hotel to Ted’s home, ‘we’re home mother,’ Ted yelled inviting Harry into his home, ‘we have a guest for dinner – Rose, where are you?’
Harry couldn’t believe his eyes when a dark haired gorgeous woman walked into the room, ‘we meet again,’ she said looking directly at Harry with love in her eyes. Although Harry thought he was sober, he was drunk with love to see Rose.
‘Dinner’s ready,’ a female voice called from the kitchen. Mrs Henderson had prepared a baked dinner. Harry thought he’d died and gone to heaven when he sat beside Rose at the dinner table. A sweet smell of rose perfume emitted from her body, she was beautiful and the more he looked at her the more he thought how lucky he was to be sitting beside her.
His table manners weren’t up to scratch because in the bush he sat on the nearest log and ate from an enamel plate scooping food as quickly as he could because of the flies or mosquitoes.
‘Do you know Rose is engaged to be married?’ Mrs Henderson said.
Harry was about to put food into his mouth when it dropped and fell onto the table, his eyes directed toward Rose who sat to his left. The fork he was holding drooped in his mouth waiting for the message to enter his mind. She’s engaged to be married, he thought – well, that puts me out of the picture, doesn’t it.
‘He’s a lovely fellow is Roger, he’s the State Champion in Show Jumping.’ She said with a proud tone of pride. Harry thought of asking Rose how long she has been engaged but thought better not to do so. What a shame – he’d need to fight harder now. He wanted to marry this girl – she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever met.
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Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Thu Jul 27, 2017 10:54 pm

'The Drover' - Page 33:

‘Oh mother, Roger hasn’t asked me to marry him, he’s never mentioned it since we’ve moved here – he’s probably found someone else by now.’ Rose answered in a seductive voice.
‘It doesn’t matter, he’ll ask – you were keen on him in Brisbane.’ She answered in a harsh voice.
‘Harry doesn’t want to hear of Rose’s business – we’re taking five thousand sheep to Bourke next week and I don’t want any problems about whose engaged to be married or any of that rot.’ Ted spat.
Harry sat in silence trying to finish his meal and escape. Actually he felt embarrassed because he’d never had a girlfriend or been with a woman – he always wanted to wait for the right one to come along and Rose was the one. He placed his knife and fork beside his plate and said, ‘this is a lovely meal, Mrs Henderson; please excuse me because I’ve got an early start tomorrow morning to plan the trip.’
‘See what you’ve done, mother, you’ve chased him away. Harry stay and have dessert before you leave – its bread and butter custard – you’d like it?’ Ted said in a kind voice to coax Harry to stay. If his eyes were daggers, the look he gave to his wife would have laid her flat on the floor.
‘Thanks Ted but really I have a lot to do – I’ll catch up with you tomorrow and work out what we need to do.’
He rose from his chair to leave when Rose put her hand on his forearm and said, ‘please Harry, mother didn’t mean to stir up trouble as she always does – stay and have dessert, please.’ She said in a seductive voice which caused Harry’s heart to almost melt.
He propped against his chair and looked down to Rose’s face – she was beautiful and his heart melted, ‘alright thanks Mrs Henderson I’d love to stay for dessert – I love bread and butter custard – we don’t get anything like it on the road.’ He again sat beside Rose.
PURCHASE THIS BOOK CLICK HERE: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/95766
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Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Fri Jul 28, 2017 11:06 pm

'The Drover' - Page 34:

Mrs Henderson left and shortly returned with dessert. She dished it up and placed one in front of Harry, ‘here Harry, I hope you enjoy it.’
Harry ate the dessert; it was the best he’d ever tasted, the flavour in the chunks of bread, sweet thick custard held the bread together with a firm hold until it melted in his mouth.
‘You’ll have to teach my camp cook Henry how to cook this Mrs Henderson.’
‘Won’t I be the cook on the trip?’ She said in a tone of authority.
‘I’ve already got a camp cook – Henry Shillington, he’s been with me for years.’ Harry didn’t want to cause any trouble for he knew Henry would be the camp cook; Henry knew what had to be done.
‘Isn’t he aborigine?’ Mrs Henderson asked.
‘Yes, he is, but that doesn’t change anything – he’s a great cook and knows what to do and how to set the camp up. He dose things my way.’
‘Harry is the Boss Drover mother, if he wants Henry as cook than he has Henry as cook – you may have to help somewhere else.’ Ted reasoned.
‘I’ll stay home if I’m not the cook.’ Mrs Henderson commanded.
‘If that’s the case mother, you stay home.’ Ted answered firmly.
‘I’m coming Pa, I want to be on the trip.’ Rose belted out in a loud voice not wanting to be left out. Harry definitely wanted Rose on the drove to find out more about Roger.
‘What do you think Harry – do you want Rose on the trip, she can ride a horse and could be useful.’ Ted asked.
‘Can you do what you’re told?’ Harry directed the question to Rose.
‘Yes, yes, yes please – I’ll do whatever you want me to do.’ She flashed her eye lashers and replied in an excited voice, almost pleading to be allowed to go.
‘Alright you’re included – I’m sorry about the camp cook position Mrs Henderson but Henry has been my cook for a long time and it’s too hard to train someone else.’ Harry explained.
‘It won’t hurt me to stay at home, I’m not really into droving, and I’d rather sleep in my own bed at night.’ She said feeling defeated by the male dominated team.
‘Phew.’ Rose breathed a sigh of relief and thought thank goodness her mother wasn’t coming – she would explain everything to Harry about Roger.
Harry thanked everyone and excused himself and said to Mrs Henderson, ‘can you still teach Henry how to bake the bread and butter custard?’ He pleaded.
‘Send him around before you leave and I’ll show him.’ Her voice kinder than before, Harry thought he may have cracked the hard shell to soften her a little. He never thought she would be a friend because one of his abilities was to sum people up the moment he first met them and his opinion of Rose’s mother didn’t please him.
Harry floated on cloud nine when he walked home and his thoughts were only of Rose – she was beautiful and right for him.
Visions of her beauty remained in his thoughts when he arrived at his sister’s home. The moment he laid his head on the pillow of his bed his dreams were of Rose. His smile told how happy and excited he was to have her on the droving trip.
PURCHASE THIS BOOK CLICK HERE: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/95766
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Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Sat Jul 29, 2017 11:01 pm

'The Drover' - Page 35:

Chapter 5

The next morning Harry sauntered into the kitchen Anna said, ‘you looked like the cat that swallowed the canary with that grin on your face – you met someone, have you?’
‘Is it so obvious, I’ve never felt happier in my life?’ Harry told his sister, his mind full of visions of Rose.
‘Come on, tell your sister who she is – I’ll have to check her out if you’re this serious about her.’ Anna said.
‘You don’t know her, she lives around the corner on the Charleville Road; her father is helping me on the next trip to Bourke.’
‘Is she going?’
‘Yes…only as a worker.’
‘Does she know what to do?’
‘She knows how to ride a horse – if that’s what you mean.’
‘Can she roll the wire netting out for the sheep at night?’
‘I don’t know – she’ll have to learn – if not she’s not much use.’
It was at this moment Harry thought about his sister’s interrogation and began to wonder if Rose would be good enough to be on his team. If she is going to be his wife then she will need to learn about droving because that’s all he knew and this would be a test of character to learn the craft.
‘You’ll work her out – here sit down and have breakfast.’
Harry ate bacon and eggs his sister prepared while thinking about her comments. He seldom was wrong about his first instinct of people and knew Rose wouldn’t let him down. He was certain of her father being able to cope because he’d driven one thousand sheep to Bourke a couple of weeks before; he must know something about droving.
His job now to prepare and plan the trip, five thousand wethers needed a Boss Drover; two ringers and a camp cook; three horses; three sheep dogs; truck; rolls of ring lock wire; and sufficient tucker for four people to last a month. The total pay for the trip was five hundred pounds.
Sheep travelled six miles per day from water hole to water hole; it always took a month to travel from Cunnamulla to Tancred’s Meatworks on the outskirts of Bourke. He’d done the trip many times and knew each watering hole like the back of his hand.
PURCHASE THIS BOOK CLICK HERE: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/95766
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Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Sun Jul 30, 2017 10:58 pm

'The Drover' - Page 36:

The aged Bedford Truck needed a service before the trip; his horses needed shoes; and saddles repaired. This was a trip he wanted everything to be perfect, not because he wanted to impress Rose, but to show he was capable of organising and droving this amount of sheep. To date it was his greatest challenge to organise and complete this trip. Along the way he would get to know Ted and get another chance to know Rose better.
All was prepared, horses shod, truck filled with fuel, gear checked a hundred times, and a permit and waybill to move five thousand sheep from Cunnamulla to Bourke.

‘Head em out,’ roared Harry at the top of his voice whistling one of his dogs to ‘get around’. The scene was from a John Wayne movie with the leading star sitting high in the saddle riding a chestnut horse with four white socks.
Harry loved John Wayne movies and wanted to copy his favourite film star whenever he could. This wasn’t the wild west of America but the outback of southwest Queensland.
Daybreak shined across the horizon, the smell of bluebush seeped through Harry’s nostrils, he hated the smell – it was musky. He loved this time of the morning when the kookaburras’ laughed; a fresh breeze broke across the soft air, life couldn’t be better.
‘Move em out Rose,’ he called in a commanding voice to show he was Boss Drover. She sits a horse well, brushed through his mind.
Henry left earlier in the truck to set camp up at six mile on the Warrego River. His day was to sight a good campsite near the river, unload swags; dress a killer, one sheep per week was allowed for meat to the drover and his camp, gather firewood; set out camp ovens and make a holding pen for the sheep. Six miles was on the southern boundary of the town common.
PURCHASE THIS BOOK CLICK HERE: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/95766
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Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Mon Jul 31, 2017 11:07 pm

'The Drover' - Page 37:

Leaving the sheep yards, they spread across the open plain to follow the stock route which at parts stretched half a kilometre across, either side was local property owners.
One of the roles of Boss Drover is to contact the property owners to advise them if they crossed through their property to have the owner or worker escort them. Harry knew most of the owners and it wasn’t necessary to accompany Harry because they knew he did the right thing and not mix his stock with theirs; also ensure all gates were closed after entering or leaving each property.
By mid-morning the stock were nearing the main highway from Cunnamulla to Bourke. To cross the main highway, the police were called to stop traffic, five thousand sheep were a large number and to save any from being injured, the local Sergeant made certain they all crossed the highway and were on their way to Bourke.
At this stage everything was going well, thought Harry, Ted knows what he’s doing and doesn’t have to be told. Rose possesses knowledge of patience and tails the sheep using a sheep dog, the dog ran up and down at the back of the mob to keep them together.
Once they crossed the highway it was free going, the sheep panned out across the open plain and nibbled on the short grasses – slow as we go, thought Harry, he was happy with the drove so far. The sheep settled.
It was early morning and time to stop to have morning smoko and a break, perhaps a couple of hours particularly with the sun high in the sky.
He stepped from his horse under the shade of a huge gum tree, swung the reins across the neck of the horse, unbuckled the saddle; unfastened the bridle, strapped on a pair of dinner camp hobbles on the fore legs and let the horse loose to graze.
‘Have a break’, he called to Ted and Rose waving his arm to join him. He collected small sticks to make a fire. Before they dismounted Harry had his quart pot filled with water heating near the fire’s edge, ‘let em graze and settle,’ he told the others. After letting their horses loose they joined Harry at the fire.
PURCHASE THIS BOOK CLICK HERE: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/95766
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