Power

We didn’t have electricity here on the farm till the mid sixties.  All we had in the early days ws the kerosene lights, lamps and candles.  Candles played a very important part in the whole thing.  They were placed in a candle holder and we used the old kerosene lanterns.  We never even possessed torches.  It seemed to be a lot better on your eyes –  it was a soft light.  It might not have shown enough light especially when the glass got a bit smokey.  The old kerosene lamps, you had to clean them every now and again to get a better brightness.  They always sat on the kitchen table.  In those days there was no such thing as lounges.  Once you warmed the kitchen up in the morning with the fire it went all day.  Well after you had tea you just sat around in the kitchen.  Everybody did the same thing.  If you wanted to go to bed there was always a little candle there which you took with you.  (the kerosene pump lamp was later used.  It was started by putting a metho burner underneath the mantel.  The first refrigerators were kerosene operated.  Evestons got one before Kane’s  They made the walls dirty with smoke.  Before the kerosene refrigerator the safe was used which was a small box like structure with wire mesh to air it.  Wet towels were place around it to produce evaporation to cool milk etc.)  It was only this lack of modern equipment I suppose when you look back now with all your fridges and deep freezes all the other things there.  Press button things.  Good God, people have got it easy now with your radiators for your heat but I still reckon we had better eyesight with those soft lights rather than the fluorescent lights in particular.

We had the electricity connected a lot earlier that others because  the  old boss in Hamilton was one of the hardest men to get on with.  Everybody seemed to hate him.  Of course Keith Brown was the area boss here appointed by the SEC.  He did the erecting of poles on the private properties.  They held meetings in the Hilgay and Tarrenlea area with the idea of extending the SEC from the main areas from the towns and all that out around the farms.  They held a meeting over in Stuart Pitches which I never even bothered to go to.  But when the time was right I drove into Hamilton after I rang first.  I made an appointment with old fella – the Chief manager of the SEC in all this area – I can’t remember his name.  I went in and sat down  and I said “I’m aware now that the SEC is being extended to the outlying areas.