Henry Lawson Poetry: ‘The Song of the Darling River’

 

You can read The Song of the Darling by Henry Lawson Here.

 

 

from Henry Lawson’s collection, Verses Popular and Humorous (1900)

 

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About John Harms

JTH is a writer, publisher, speaker, historian. He is publisher and contributing editor of The Footy Almanac and footyalmanac.com.au. He has written columns and features for numerous publications. His books include Confessions of a Thirteenth Man, Memoirs of a Mug Punter, Loose Men Everywhere, Play On, The Pearl: Steve Renouf's Story and Life As I Know It (with Michelle Payne). He appears (appeared?) on ABCTV's Offsiders. He can be contacted [email protected] He is married to The Handicapper and has three school-age kids - Theo, Anna, Evie. He might not be the worst putter in the world but he's in the worst four. His ambition was to lunch for Australia but it clashed with his other ambition - to shoot his age.

Comments

  1. Rain and heat have come and gone through history, but putting aside climate change, the theft of our inland water by cotton irrigators (aided and abetted by political cronies of all stripes) is a bitter scandal.
    I recall a conversation in the 90’s with an indigenous leader who grew up on the Darling. I asked what changed in those outback NSW towns. She said mum was a nurse and dad a cleaner at the local hospital. “Us kids just played and swam all day in the river and looked our for each other. You didn’t just steal our water – you stole the childhoods from future generations of kids.”

  2. Cracking bit of verse this. Australia is a tough country with its own rhythm. What arrogance if we think we can tame it.

  3. DBalassone says

    Great poem. I thought of two things while reading it: a novel by Anson Cameron and a song by Jimmy Barnes…

    Pushin’ ever westward, across the great divide.
    Beyond the darling river,
    Towards the outback sky.

    The lawless and the brave, searching for a dream.
    When all they found was sand and stone,
    Where rivers once had been.

  4. I find it strange that more has not been made of the prescient nature of Anson Cameron’s funny and insightful novel The Last Pulse.

    Yes, I am with you DB.

    And yes, Dips. Interesting that when I visited the Mallee to write a story I found resilient people,accepting of the realities of weather, and in no way shying away from the fact that they made the decision to be there. They certainly understood they had no control. The identity of some people is deeply entrenched in the place – and if that means rainfall of 12 inches a year, so be it. They are dry country people. I loved doing that story.

  5. There’s no way I’m going fishing in the Darling the way it is these days.

  6. A cracking piece of verse, this. But he had many, didn’t he?

    Anson’s column in the Age on Australia Day was at once serious and sad – and he made reference to his fine book.

    Yep, this Darling River issue is a scandal of generational proportions

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