Whistle at the Bridge

Here, by one who lived them, are tales of Tullah in the 1920's - a very different Tullah from the one we know today.

Then, there was only the gelana mine, and no road; the only link to the outside was the 2 foot gauge steam loco Wee Georgie Wood.

They are tales of isolation; of the struggle to rear a family and get higher education for the children; of loneliness, and the lack of facilities (no doctor, no dentist), of the shortage of work after the Great War had stopped the export of metals to Germany.

We learn how people alleviated their lot - with pigeon racing, wood chopping, cards, billiards, football, dancing, movies and music.

And we find that even in such a small community there existed a definite social pecking order; mine manager, teacher, bush nurse, parson, tradesmen, miners, timber, workers.

But they are more than simple outback tales; through them we share the struggles and feelings of the characters - their grief at the loss of loved ones; their pride in achievements for the children through stubborn effort and self sacrifice; their fight for better pay and conditions at the mine.

And too, we share with them what the author calls 'the simple pleasures in a unique community now gone forever'.