Pat Ritter. Books

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'His Life Worth Living' - Page 5:

About twelve or thirteen years old I did my share of housework, clean floors, make the fire in the kitchen and later, occasionally cook the Sunday roast and vegetables for dinner. A big range, which is a stove, both the range and the hot water system used a lot of coal. When I was fifteen years old I played Santa Claus and went around the beds filling the Christmas stockings with nuts, lollies and a toy.
My brothers were taken to a Navy School. None of them wrote to me and as I had no addresses I couldn't write to them. I remember my eldest brother Bert my other brothers, Fred and Charlie, from photographs. John, I met when Eva and I went to England in 1959. Fred, on my next trip to England, but, they were complete strangers and I had nothing in common with them.
I liked school and learned to like sport especially running. 1923 or 1924 I went with a party of other boys to the Wembley Exhibitions in London. The School Master asked if I had any money. I told him four shillings. He gave me a strange look. I thought I was a millionaire. Obviously he thought differently. The Board of Guardian under the Poor Law Act gave me this money.
At Beechwood one of the many cross roads of my life happened. I won a place at Hatherleigh School, twenty boys and twenty girls to a class. I was in 3B. Nothing memorable academically with my ability but I was good at sport reaching the finals in soccer with a gold and silver medal. The football grounds at Newport were in the country, about one mile away. We won the match. I was on a high. No celebrations afterwards only a mile walk back home telling everyone we won. Oh yes. That was all. I was on a high for about three hours. After all these years the indifference still hurts.
I was first in high jump, also first in throwing the cricket ball. This is one of the things which happened often. On this day I was sent out onto the grounds with a message from the Headmaster to the Master of Sports who was training a squad in throwing. I did not think much of their efforts so I asked for a throw. The others threw forty to fifty yards. My first and only throw seventy yards. In the finals I threw over eighty yards.
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'His Life Worth Living' - Page 6:

At the end of my school days at Hatherleigh, I realised a change of attitude in my outlook on life. Not physical as much as mental. From nobody I was now somebody, accepted by my schoolmates and no longer a loner. The Headmaster, a remarkable man who instilled confidence in those he spoke with.
The morning started with everyone in the forecourt and morning prayers. The Headmaster would say, ‘fall out those who may’. Religion was not forced upon anyone. Those who did were of other faiths, or those not inclined. A hymn was sung followed by the Lords Prayer, and finally, the following ‘the day returns and brings us the petty round of irritating concerns and duties. Help us to perform them with ter and kind faces. Give us to go blithely on our business all this day. Bring us to our resting place weary and content and under honoured, and in the end the gift of sleep. Amen.’
I remained at school to continue for an extra year and curriculum. In that year of freedom I found loyalty. I became George Burtenshaw and not a ‘poor low home boy’. The Headmaster asked me what I intended to do when I left. During my schooling at Hatherleigh I attended night school doing bookkeeping, shorthand and maths. I learned but hated them all and although I was supposed to go to an office job my choice was outdoors. I applied through Church Of England, Council Of Empire Settlement to go to Canada. For whatever reason, I ended up in Australia.
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'His Life Worth Living' - Page 7:

I left Newport with no tears. The railway station not packed with friends or relatives to wish me goodbye. A lone representative to farewell me, to an unknown future. I looked forward to a new life. Alone to seek out a new life in a new country. Reliant on no one but myself. The Board founded me with clothes and boots, two sports coats, two shirts, underclothes, hat and a long warm overcoat, my books, a box I made at school and some extras. In all, my possessions filled a fair size metal trunk and a large suitcase.
My train left Newport to London and thence to Tilbury dock where I boarded the ship R.M.S “ORAMA”. The ship looked immense. I was shown to my cabin, which I shared with five other boys – young men. They were similar in age to myself. The ship sailed on 21st of July 1928. With my new cabin friends we proceeded to explore parts of the ship, which we were allowed. As is usual 1st, 2nd, and 3rd class passengers. Our cabin on the ground floor, the bottom of the ship. Six bunks, three sets of two, the ground floor bare concrete and hot. Not too bad when we were travelling, the air being forced through tunnels and air ducts all through the ship. The toilets, baths and washbasins communal sufficient for about twenty. The trunk went into the ship’s hold and my suitcase stowed away in my cabin. Males in one section and females in another. Many steps to climb before we got above water level, long way down in the ship.
An Italian party on the ship led by a Catholic Priest from the Vatican named Cardinal Cirette who came to Queensland to meet with Archbishop Duhig on matters relating to propose Cathedral in Brisbane, which had already had some of the foundations and walls built. When the Cardinal left, work stopped and never started again. This became a mystery why the building never completed.
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'His Life Worth Living' - Page 8:

Sometime after I arrived in Australia I wrote to the Headmaster of Hatherleigh School, my account of the voyage to Australia and the article taken from the Old Pupil’s section of the school magazine is set out here in full. A naïve account of the voyage by a youth straight from school and now on reading the article again especially in the first few days is really a geography lesson of the various points on the map of the ports and points on a map which we sailed past. Gibraltar we were in foreign parts. Remember I was just out of school, just out into the world and as I said previously very naïve indeed.

To Australia On The R.M.S. “ORAMA”:

The Royal Mail steamer “Orama”, on which I was a passenger, sailed from Tilbury Docks on the 21st July 1928.
We sailed very close to Dover, the harbour, castle and the white cliffs very distinctly, and the last of England on Sunday morning, when we dropped the pilot at Torbay, but I had no qualms or misgivings about my future.
Later on in the day the coast of France loomed into sight, and early next morning the ship entered the Bay, but instead of being rough, very calm indeed.
On the 23rd July we passed Cape Finisterre, and the ship ran into a fog. Being in dangerous waters, we had to go dead slow, and the foghorn sounded continuously. We were all glad when the fog cleared, the coast of Portugal in the distance.
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'His Life Worth Living' - Page 9:

On the 25th July we sailed into the harbour of Gibraltar, and for the charge of 2s we were allowed to go ashore. Admiralty Docks, where several gunboats were at anchor. The Welfare Officer told the party of boys who were migrating that the Rock contained many gun galleries, which were really hidden roads containing the British guns.
From the top of the Alameda Gardens, which are situated on the hillside, a bird’s eye view of the harbour may be had, and faintly, across the Straits, Africa. When we got on the ship again, I was told that the Rock had been besieged fourteen times, and now is almost impregnable. More than 1200 years ago, the Rock was of naval importance, but now its importance cannot be over-estimated.
In the next two days the ship crossed the Gulf of Lyons, arriving at Toulon on the 27th July. For such an important town, not so impressive as should be. The streets very dirty, and narrow in most places, but in the Boulevard Strasburg some fine shops, buildings and statues. We went into the Cathedral, which was very beautiful, and the large dockyard. Most of us had the new experience of changing English money into French at the rate of five francs for a shilling.
On the voyage from Toulon to Naples, the northern part of Corsica, where Napoleon was born, and later on Elba, where he spent his last days. We reached Naples on Sunday, the 29th July, and instead of anchoring in the harbour, as we did in other ports, we went right alongside the quay, so we were able to go ashore as we pleased.
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'His Life Worth Living' - Page 10:

I went through the dirty, narrow streets, being Sunday, most of the shops closed. Many beautiful buildings, the best being the Museum, but the streets were in a terribly dirty state. When we got back to the ship Vesuvius stood out very plainly. The steam and smoke very interesting; sometimes rose to the heavens in spiral wreaths, and sometimes in clouds, but would never be the same for a minute. In daytime, the glare of the volcano, but ten hours later the glare of Stromboli, and later in the night Etna visible.
On Monday the ship passed through the Straits of Messina, and on the last day of July we passed the island of Crete. Next day we sailed into the harbour of Port Said, and the first thing the Statue of M. de Lesseps, the Frenchman who was in charge of the construction of the Suez Canal. Whilst a slow journey through the Canal, very interesting, by day and night, for at night lit up by buoys and the ship’s searchlight. I was told that the southern part of the Canal was closely associated with the Scriptures.
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'His Life Worth Living' - Page 11:

On the 6th of August, the island Perim, and later, the ship entered the Gulf of Aden. After a few days uninteresting sailing through the Persian Gulf, we ran into South-West Monsoon, experiencing rough weather. The sky as blue as blue, sun shining quite strong, but the waves huge, and the wind (I was afterwards told) blew at about 200 miles an hour. Most of the passengers were sick, and very few were present at meal-times. Early on the morning of the 11th of August we found ourselves in Colombo Harbour, and we made a party to go for a trip to Mount Lavinia and to have tea ashore.
The drive to the Mount very pretty, and when we reached our distination a native walked up a coconut palm. Instead of the Mount being a mountain, as I thought, a beautiful beach, miles long, fringed with coconut palms. We were driven back to town by a native in a rattling old Ford car, through the cinnamon gardens and along the Galte Face Promenade. After tea, as was our custom in every port of call, we went through the native quarters. In the streets many strong odours, the chief being fish and incense.
We sailed from Colombo at 10 p.m. the same night, and next day we crossed the Equator at 10 a.m. The fun which is usually associated with the crossing of the line was absent from the “Orama”. We did not sight land after leaving Colombo for nine days, until we reached Fremantle, the most important port in Western Australia. Very quiet for a port, but its importance is due to its nearness to Perth, the capital, which is only 12 miles away, on the Swan River, this making excellent for shipping.
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