| Title: | McMahon Glynn, Patrick to Glynn, Ellen, 1885 |
|---|---|
| ID | 4386 |
| Collection | Patrick McMahon Glynn: Letters to his family (1874-1927) [Gerald Glynn O'Collins] |
| File | glynn/36 |
| Year | 1885 |
| Sender | McMahon Glynn, Patrick |
| Sender Gender | male |
| Sender Occupation | lawyer |
| Sender Religion | unknown |
| Origin | Kapunda, South Australia, Australia |
| Destination | Gort, Co. Galway, Ireland |
| Recipient | Glynn, Ellen |
| Recipient Gender | female |
| Relationship | son-mother |
| Source | |
| Archive | |
| Doc. No. | |
| Date | |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | |
| Log | unknown |
| Word Count | 998 |
| Genre | family, politics, work, decease, horse racing |
| Note | |
| Transcript | Kapunda Oct. 31st 1885. My dear Mother It is a considerable time since I wrote to you but you must have heard about me through James. Not often, indeed, do I hear from the other colonies, so that little news can be sent by me of my relations there. Fanny Glynn wrote last week, being apparently in the best of health and good spirits. Cecilia, Robert's daughter, is staying with her, and she and her sisters are friends, though not completely at one. If I can manage it I will run over at Xmas, but I don't care to be more than a week away, and that only gives me two days in Melbourne. Not that I care very much to go, except to see some friends there. This is the "Derby" day in Melbourne. The racing carnival commences today and is carried over Tuesday — the Cup day — Thursday — the Oaks — and Saturday, the Steeplechase. Racing has received a severe blow in South Australia by the Repeal of the Totalizator Act which used to permit of a Totalizator, or machine for gigantic sweep stake run by the Clubs who deducted 5% from the total investments, being used on the Course. It was certainly the simplest and fairest system of betting. You fancied your horse, put a £1 or so on, & the total invested on all the horses, less the Club's commission, was divided among those on the winner. But it became quite a rage, & as some of our legislators here are of a Wesleyan tinge, the Act was repealed. I expect, however, you get the Herald regularly, so that you must know something of our politics & my opinions as expressed in the leaders & criticisms on them. It will interest you to know that the Herald's articles are sometimes noticed flatteringly at home —that is, in England —- for we always hear speak of the old country as home—the last notice I heard of being by I. H. Dell, author of The Dawning Grey, a work you doubtless have seen noticed in the Nation & United Ireland. Dell is an excellent artist & no mean poet. His poem on "The Fate of Glenveith" just suits the land leaguers. Sometime ago when lecturing by request to the Adelaide Irish on "The Life & Times of A. M. Sullivan", I intended to have recited it; but felt rather weak from an exceptional derangement of the stomach, so cut the lecture Perhaps by the next post I will send you a book on South Australian Notabilities. The author writes saying: "The leading position which you occupy in the community together with the efforts you have made in the cause of Land Nationalization fully entitle you to a place in the national work etc." How he came to that conclusion I don't know, as my writings are never signed with my name, but nevertheless as there will be a short notice of me in it, the book will be of interest at home. Besides the Railway Commissioners Bill I have recently drafted two other Bills for the Government, relating to our County Courts, called Local Courts. In these latter I put the name of Mr. Varley, our local Local Court Judge, with mine, as he got instructions to consider what was required to be done in conjunction with me, & I did the drafting. It is hard, but would be remunerative work, if I could claim the proceeds myself, but the most I expect is a quarter the fee. We are in for another bad season this year, which, on the top of the existing depression, will be serious. No rain in the spring, so the average yield of wheat, our staple product, will not be 5 bushels to the acre. Low yield & prices. Johnny Wallsh is still in Adelaide in a good situation. The seductions of Hymen do not seem to have prevailed with him yet, nor does he seem to cast a matrimonial eye upon any one that I have heard of. We don't, however, meet often. I was very sorry to see by the Galway Indicator that Willie Simple died, especially as he left a wife and family. It is very sad for a young wife to have her hopes thus cut off so soon. In some cases indeed the wound soon closes, as our sensibilities are not all alike; but some can feel deeply. Today some welcome showers have fallen. For about a week we had a forestaste of summer — thick heat which knocks all energy out of some fellows here, though I neither mind nor like it, except in as much as the swell of the pulses increases with heat. Talking about races I might have mentioned that for the Caulfield Cup, run about a fortnight ago in Victoria, 43 or 44 horses were entered & I think about 37 started, perhaps more. About a half mile from home, when they were going at a terrific pace — one horse fell & 17 others came down in consequence just as if cannons had been discharged amongst them. The race was a flat race, so they were all close together, & the pace may be imagined when I say that the race was run in 1m. 40 seeds, for 11/2 Miles. One jockey rose for a moment all right after his fall, when a horse came dashing into him, killing him instantaneously & knocking his — the horse's — teeth down his throat from the collision. Some horses were killed and many injured, & several jockeys seriously injured. Seventeen horses & readers [sic] in a heap was rather exceptional. I noticed by the papers that the boys were successful at the Intermediate Examinations. You cannot send me too much news from home & I think I get all the papers you send me. I will write to Tuam next mail, so that with love to all I will now conclude Your affectionate Son P McM Glynn |
