Item 04: Memoirs of a Colonial Boy by Robert Joseph Stewart, ca. 1971 - Page 455
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[Page 455]
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They arrived in a state of near-exhaustion, and with terrific thirsts. Fortunately, I had brought a dozen of bottled beer with me, which had been kept icy in the kerosine refrigerator, with which I was able to resuscitate them very quickly. I imagine that for the rest of their lives these two city "slickers" thought that these couple of cold beers were the best drinks they had ever tasted.
During her 1937 visit to Sydney, from Wellington, Madge had invested the proceeds of the sale of the little house at Palmerston North, in converting her "studio" at Queenscliff (one big room with a garage beneath) into a two-storey, three-bedroom, villa at a cost of about £800. On completion it was named "San Marino", and before my transfer to Sydney it had been let indefinitely to a Mr. Souter, the N.S.W. Commissioner for Stamp Duties, at a weekly rental of two pounds, which he paid regularly by cash, not having a bank account because cheques would have to carry a duty stamp, he said.
As a consequence, we were unable to occupy it ourselves. However Madge's Aunt Mollie (Mrs Matthews) had recently transferred a rather jerry-built shabby cottage in Bungaloe Avenue, Balgowlah Heights, in consideration of being relieved of a big mortgage on it held by F.W. Gibson & Sons. The tenants left on a few weeks notice, and Madge and I prepared plans and specifications for additions, alterations and renovations, which passed the Manly Council. We then let a contract for about £550 to a reliable builder, borrowing the money from the Rural Bank on a table mortgage. We actually moved into the place and lived a few weeks in it while the builders were still working on the job. The finished result was a great success, and made the old house look like a new modern one.
One happy outcome of my changed situation was that I was now able to visit the two young daughters of my first marriage - Margaret, a lovely blue-eyed blonde with hair that matched a golden sovereign, and Jean the younger who, sadly, was born a partial spastic, which affected her legs but not her bright int-