Australians Much Like Folks ;
Back Home, Americans Discover.
Servicemen Mingle
With Aussies in Fun,
Sports and Worship
By ELLIOTT PINE
Released by Western Newspaper Union.
About the time the James
town settlers were setting sail
for Virginia, a Spanish navi
gator was exploring the strait
bearing his name that sepa
rates New Guinea from Aus
tralia. The sea captain was
Torres, and the year 1606.
This was the beginning of
definite knowledge of the
great island known as Austra
lia. In 1942 this strange land
was “rediscovered” by men
stemming from those James
town colonists—an expedition
ary force of the U. S. army.
Until the war with Japan broke.
Americans knew little and probably
cared less about Australia. As one
writer put it, “A vast bond of ig
norance united Americans and Aus
tralians.” But war has changed all
that Now many thousands of sol
diers from "the States” have met
thousands of Australians, have eaten
at their tables, drunk in their public
houses, danced and played in their
“Comforts” (USO to us), and wor
shiped in their churches. The "Aus
sies" turned out to be very much
like the folks back home.’
This is not remarkable, after all,
for Australians are largely of Brit
ish stock—English, Scotch, Irish,
Welsh, with smaller numbers of oth
er peoples represented. They are
generally tall, sturdy, independent
people—much like Americans of the
Western states, with much of the
same forthrightness and friendliness
characteristic of a people close to
pioneer days. While most of the
7,000.000 Australians live in cities
on the coasts, they are a rugged,
outdoorsy folk. F’or instance, in
their army training camps there are
no cots provided for enlisted men—
they sleep on the ground! "Roughing
it” is a sort of fetish—partly making
a virtue of necessity, partly an in
heritance from tougher days, when
survival depended on endurance.
Appear Old-Fashioned.
While Australian cities like Mel
bourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Ade
laide are modem enough, smaller
places appear a bit old-fashioned to
American eyes—the architecture be
longs to a generation or more ago.
Such comforts as central heating
plants and electric refrigerators are
£iot so common as in the States.
Because the climate is mild, they
get along without much heating, but
the summers are warmer too, so the
absence of refrigeration is surpris
ing, considering that the Australians
•re a mechanically minded and prac
tical people. At all events, the fur
nishings and equipment of the homes
look pretty crude to Americans.
But the Australian tells himself, and
probably the nearest Yank, that
he just can't be bothered with too
much comfort.
The Aussies were amazed, and
perhaps a bit envious when they
•aw the army equipment that came
with the U. S. first contingent—all
A baby wallaby, which Is a small
species of kangaroo. Is the pet of
Pvt. Albert Mlnarlk of Milwaukee,
Wls. He calls it “Jasperoo Demp
sey.”
the gadgets from kitchen mixing
machines to movie projectors for an
army on war duty. If this is what
an American army in the held takes
along, what must the civilians at
home have, reflected the natives.
The farms “Down under” don’t
measure up so well beside American
standards either. Barns and other
buildings have a patchy, ramshackle
appearance, in sorry contrast to the
trim handsome appearance of ev
erything on many American farms.
All this is explained, perhaps not
too convincingly, by the statement
that Australians have had only about
half as long to conquer their country
as we have had here. Besides that,
the soil and climate are harder to
contend with than in most of the
United States.
An Arid Country.
Most of the big island is desert
and poor scrubby grazing land. Out
of 3.000,000 square miles (almost ex
actly the size of continental United
States), over a million miles is real
desert—stone and sand and salt flat
that is entirely out of the question
for any purpose at present. Anoth
er million miles grows scanty vege
tation sufficient to support the hardy
sheep for which the nation is fa
mous. The really good farm land
comprises an area about the size of
the three states of the Pacific coast,
Oregon, Washington and California.
Only one region in the south is tropi
cal enough to grow bananas, pine
apples and such exotic plants.
Early settlers found that their
wheat dried out and died in the
heavy reddish soil, but a new hard
variety called "Federation” is re
sistant to drouth and rust, and is
yielding well. The acreage of wheat
“Roughing It" seems to bc*a lark
for these two American army
nurses, who are stationed some
where in Australia. Lieut. Frances
Cox is getting a shampoo from a
bucket of cold water, with the as
sistance of Lieut. Lliy Fuccl.
has been almost doubled by the in
vention of the "Stumpjump" plow,
adapted U» the rough bush country.
The manpower shortage is even
more severe on Australian than
American farms, since 913,000 men
are in the armed forces, and drain
on the male population equivalent to
an American military mobilization of
17,000.000 (ours is actually about 11,
000,000 now). Another 600,000 men
are working in factories, as are
many thousands of women. To make
matters worse, Australian farms are
not as highly mechanized as are
American, so manpower does not
go as far. For these reasons food
is a bit scanty. Vegetables that re
quire a lot of hand cultivation are
scarce. Even potatoes are hard to
get, and are largely requisitioned for
troops. Oranges are another thing
civilians rarely see. Jams and jel
lies are real luxuries, too.
uive innr Means 10 i aims.
As part of the reciprocal lend
lease program, Australia is trying to
provide food for American troops,
and is doing a successful job at it,
but the home folks have to pull in
their belts a bit. In meat, for in
stance, civilians have had to reduce
their consumption by two thirds.
(They used to eat 124 pounds a
year: U. S. consumption is 95
pounds.) Since Australia is a meat
exporting country in normal times,
it can be inferred how much of a
pinch the war is putting on the live
stock industry. Added to their oth
er difficulties was a "beef” from
the Americans that they were get
ting too much mutton and not enough
beef. So the Australian home folks
had to forego their steaks almost
entirely, and turn them over to the
Yanks.
The equivalent of Victory gardens
are "Austerity gardens" in Austra
lia. These are not only small plots
in. vacant land, but window boxes
and tubs. The need for small vege
tables is real enough for many truck
farms are not in production this
year. Canned goods have disap
peared from the markets. “Austeri
ty" is the name for getting along
without a lot of things, like spices,
tea, malted milk, chocolate candy
and so on. The gasoline allowance
is four gallons a month. Cigarettes
are limited to a pack a day (10
in a pack). Matches are very
scarce. Laundry and dry cleaning
services are available only once in
two weeks. Traveling is restricted;
horse-racing is closed down; liquor
is scarce. Clothes have to be made
over, repaired, and made to last.
With the war right at their back
doors, the Australians are taking
I these privations in stride without
1 much complaint. They’re a tough
breed, after all.
On the social side, the Americans
and Australians get along pretty
well, considering the self-esteem and
pugnacity on both sides. After the
Yanks and Aussies had fought to
gether a few times, the bond of bat
tles shared united the comrades in
arms. Americans were instructed
beforehand in getting along andatoe
having nicely, and it appears that
most of them are doing so. The Aus
tralians, who are grateful for the
timely succor, are acting as hosts
and allies should.
There is of course some grum
bling among the Aussies about the
Yanks snatching away their girls.
The famous American “line” goes
over pretty well too, and the cer
tain awe that most foreigners feel
toward Americans helps to make
an impression. Then the higher pay
scale of the U. S. army gives our
men more spending money, and they
probably show the girls a better
time than the native boys do. Aus
tralian girls say that Americans
treat them as equals and are more
courteous than their own men folks
who are following traditional beha
vior that is “out of date’’ in Amer
ica.
In New Zealand, where the situa
tion parallels that in Australia pretty
closely, a member of the parliament
introduced a resolution asking the
U. S. army to reduce the pay of our
soldiers, because the local chappies
were being put to shame when it
came to free spending. Nothing
came of it, but it shows how some
of them feel.
Love Comes to U. 8. Soldiers.
Many Americans have found ro
mance in the big island. Only lately
900 Australian women, brides and
finances of American soldiers, land
ed in San Francisco, and began to
adjust themselves to their new home
land. Many other brides are staying
over there until the war ends. Some
soldiers plan to remain in Australia.
Prime Minister Curtin recently stat
ed that he wished that as many as
200,000 Americans would settle in
his country. It is not reported how
the average Australian fellow feels
about this proposition. Until lately
Australia, like all frontier countries,
had a large preponderance of males.
How kindly the Aussies take to addi
tional competition for their women
and their jobs is not revealed.
Australian girls are rather bigger
than American girls, our soldiers
say. They are athletic and healthy
and interested in sports such as
swimming and tennis. Their endur
ance on the dance floor is a marvel
to husky Americans, who are often
hard put to keep up. They want to
learn the latest American steps.
They enjoy American slang.
On the other hand, there is con
sidrable British conservatism in so
cial life throughout Australia. Many
forms of amusements are closed on
Sunday. The churches exert more
influence there than many Ameri
can communities. Only a few
months ago, for instance, clergy
men of all denominations were pro
testing against hasty marriages be
tween Americans and Australian
girls. The remonstrance carried
considerable weight.
While Australians play our brand
of baseball, they do so only to keep
in condition for football in the off
season. And football to them is a
special game of their own, unlike
American football or English rugby,
It is a fast game with much kick
ing, leaping and running. Eighteen
men play on each side.
Cricket is the national game as in
other British countries. Americans
found it is not as slow as they had
been led to believe. Tennis and
golf are popular. Horse racing used
to be a national passion, but war
time stringencies have closed most
tracks.
The Future.
How much greater Australia can
become depends on many factors.
The great areas of desert and semi
arid land is unfavorable to exten
sion of agriculture without great ir
rigation projects. Forest resources
are inadequate for much lumber
ing or paper-making. The mineral
resources have not been exploited
very much yet, and offer considera
ble promise. There is a good deal of
manufacturing, but the heavy indus
tries need further development.
Unless the population increases
considerably, the commonwealth
cannot expect to become a great na
tion. Postwar years may see con
siderable migration to this country,
still a frontier land with real oppor
tunities. Perhaps many Europeans
will try their luck there. Enough
American soldiers may decide to
settle there to set the pace, and to
attract other Americans in years to
come. On the other hand, Australia
may not be much more interesting
to most people after the war than it
was before.
As might be expected, many
American servicemen found their
heart's desire in Australia. One sol*
dier was married two weeks after
he landed—to a girl he met on the
docks.
Somewhat more formal was this
wedding in Our Lady of Lourdes
church in Armadale, Australia, in
which Chief Petty Officer Lowell
Rudy and Miss Alice. Drew were
edited. Attendants are Petty Offl
> r Waldo Gustafson, also of the
t . S. navy, and Miss Lila Drew,
bridesmaid.
HOUSEHOLD
Memos.../,
! _ _ *
Jrorch Suppers
Furnish Tonic
For Appetites
Serve the family quickly prepared
cool drinks made with flavored pow
ders. They’re economical and can
be made in a flash by any member
of the family.
Save Used Fats!
Wise homemakers will plan porch
suppers for warm evenings. Not
omy win me iam
ily enjoy the gay
informality of the
porch but the
changing of meal
time locale just
naturally will pep
up lagging of ap
petites that warm
weather brings.
Checked cloths in bright colors
will carry out the simplicity of
theme that is customary when you
"rough it” on the porch, or if you
have them, fringed cloths or bric-a
brac edged ones will do fine.
Centerpieces of fruit from the or
chard or big bowls of colorful vege
tables will dress up the table. F-at
candles in squatty glasses will add
a homey touch to supper, and the
family will- love to linger over the
table just chatting until the last can
dle burns low. All this promotes a
nice social atmosphere which we call
home, and that you'll agree is im
portant!
Keep to the simple and sensible
with food and try to have foods com
bined on one platter so there aren’t
too many trips to the kitchen. Meat
and vegetables can go on one plat
ter, salad in a bowl, rolls in a basket
and dessert on one plate, everyone
dishing out for himself in “help your
self’ style.
Barbecued chicken is an appetite
bracer and so colorfully golden
brown it will make an immediate
bid for attention at the porch sup
per:
Barbecued Chicken.
54 cup catsup
2 tablespoons vinegar
54 cup salad oil
1 large onion, grated
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons salt
54 teaspoon pepper
Dash of cayenne
Pinch of thyme
Chicken, cut in pieces
Combine ingredients in order giv
en, stirring until salt is dissolved.
Let stand several hours or overnight.
Brush over chicken just before broil
ing. Broil in a hot oven 20 to 30
minutes, turning frequently, and
basting agaip with sauce, until
chicken is cooked thoroughly. If
sauce is kept for more than over
night, remove garlic clove.
•Veal on Skewers.
Cut boneless veal in pieces 154
inches square by about % inch thick.
Place on wooden
skewers, alternat
ing meat with
. slightly smaller
* chunks of peeled
potato, carrot and
whole, small on
ions. Lay skew
ers in roasung pan wiui i cup noi
water and salt to taste. Cover and
bake in a hot oven 1 to 1H hours
Lynn Chambers’ Point-Saving
Menu
•Veal on Skewers
•Beet Greens with Diced Beets
Whole Wheat Biscuits Butter
Raspberry Drink
•Strawberry Meringue Pie
•Recipes given.
until meat is tender. Garnish with
broiled bacon.
Save Used Fats!
For a quick supper dish you might
try this meat pie, flavor-rich and
economy-wise:
Hamburger Noodle Pie.
♦Serves 6)
1 Vi pounds hamburger
Ya cup milk
H cup fine, soft bread crumbs
2 tablespoons onion, minced
1 egg, slightly bea(en
Salt and pepper to taste
Hot buttered noodles
Combine all ingredients except
noodles and pat mixture into bottom
and sides of pie plate. Bake in a
moderate oven (350 degrees) 45 min
utes. To serve, fill center with hot,
buttered noodles and dust with pap
rika.
Don’t forget the lovely spring
greens when it comes to adding col
or to the table and vitamins to your
diet.
Wilted Greens.
1 small onion, chopped
Ya cup bacon fat
Yt cup mild vinegar
Greens
Cook onion in bacon fat until yel
low, then add vinegar. When heated
through, add greens and cook until
just wilted. Season with salt and
pepper and serve hot.
Mixed Spring Greens
(Serves 6)
W pound beet greens
Yt pound dandelion greens
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Yi teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
Ya pound chicken livers, sau
teed and cut fine
Cook and drain greens. Add lem
on juice and salt. Pack into buttered
mold or loar pan
and place in oven
to keep warm. In
the meantime, ^
melt butter, blend J
in flour and add \
milk. Stir while
cooking u n t i 1 *
smooth and thick. Add chicken liv
ers. Turn mold onto platter and
pour sauce over them.
*Beet Greens With Diced Beets.
(Serves 6)
1 pound beet greens
IM cups cooked beets, cubed
Ya cup melted butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Cook greens until tender and
drain. Add beets, butter, salt and
pepper, mixing until blended. Serve
piping hot.
This veal wheel will turn a new
trick for your porch suppers. Pieces
of veal, carrots, potatoes and onions
all go on wooden skewers to make up
the colorful platter and adds new de
sign to menus.
You’ll want desserts that aren’t
too rich and are easy to prepare.
Berries are good and in season now:
•Strawberry Meringue Pie.
2 cups milk
1 package vanilla pndding
2 beaten egg yolks
H teaspoon vanilla extract
1 9-inch baked pastry shell
1 cnp strawberries
Gradually add milk to pudding,
stirring constantly. Cook over low
heat until thick. Add part of hot
pudding to egg yolks; stir in remain
ing hot pudding. Cool slightly; add
vanilla. Pour into shell. Place straw
berries on top of filling. Pile on
meringue.
For Meringue:
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
2 tablespoons cold water
2 egg whites
% cup confectioners’ sugar
1 cup crushed strawberries
1 teaspoon lemon Juice
Soften gelatin in cold water; dis
solve over hot water. Combine re
maining ingredients. Beat until
thick; add gelatin. Continue beat
ing until mixture forms peaks.
Save Used Fats!
Get the most from your meat! Gel
your meat roasting chart from Miss
Lynn Chambers by writing to her in
care of H'estern Newspaper Union, 210
South Desplaines Street, Chicago 6, III.
Please send a stamped, self-addressed
envelope for your reply.
Released by Western Newspaper Union.
Lynn Say*
Spring Vegetable Tips: Cut
string beans with scissors. It
saves time and fingers.
Carrots peel easily if blanched
in boiling water for two or three
minutes.
To retain the red color of beet*,
always cook them with about two
inches of their stem left on when
boiling.
Old coffee percolators are ex
cellent for cooking asparagus.
Stand asparagus in percolator,
add boiling water, adjust cover
and cook. The tips steam beauti
fully while the stems are cooked
to perfect tenderness.
To wash spinach, use warm wa
ter rather than cold. It loosens
the sand from the leaves.
1
SEWING CIRCLE
8615-C
2-6 yr*.
IM8
Double Duty
A SUN-AND-AIR beauty which
is top-notch in comfort for
sportswear and a flattering street
costume when the short and snap
py little bolero is donned! Make it
of pastel piques, smart ginghams,
or seersuckers.
* e •
Pattern No. 8643 is in sizes 11, 12, 13 14.
15, 16 and 18. Size 12, dress, require# 3%
yards of 39-inch material; bolero, l1/*
yards; 4 yards ric rac trim.
WOOL
BRLNU OR SHIP IT TO US,
ANT QOANTITT
We buy outright the lots running under
1000 lbs. each, and mulce Immediate pay
ment. Lets of over 1000 lbs. we handle on
consignment In accord with the govern
ment rules, we obtain for you full ceil
ing value, make liberal advance payments
pow, and final payment promptly when
the CCC make the settlement to us.
LINCOLN HIDE & FUR CO.
728 Q St. Lincoln, Nebr.
BEAUTY SCHOOL
DON’T BE A SLACKER
Be Independent while the men folks are In
the service. Enroll In Nebraska's oldest
beauty school. Graduates now earning
from 115 to $75 weekly. Write
CALIFORNIA BKAIITT SCHOOL
Omaha, Nebraska
Ocean Is Wash Tub
Because little rain falls and the
landscape is parched, native wom
en of Curacao, off the coast of
Venezuela, do their washing in the
ocean and hang the clothes to dry
on cactus plants or reef prongs
nearby.
Pattern No. 8615C is in sizes 1, 3, 4, 1
.and 8 years. Size 3 requires 3 yards of 33
inch material; 8 yards ric rac for trim.
Pattern No. 8615 is in sizes 11. 13, 15, IT
and 19. Size 13 requires 33,» yards of 39
inch material; 11 yards ric rac for trim.
Due to an unusually large demand and
current war conditions, slightly more time
is required in filling orders for a few of
the most popular pattern numbers.
Send your order to;
: r
YOUR looks better groomed with
M or olin© Hair Tonic. Keeps
HAIR unruly hair in place.
• ■ Ufa we Gives lustre. Big bottle^
ALWAYS only 25c. Sold everywhere^
Shoulder a Gun— ,_A_
Or the Cost of One
☆ ☆ BUY WAR BONDS
STOP
OH GO
Til comity qoiz—
stirrint
THURSDAY NIGHTS
10:30 P.M. E.W.T.
on the entire BLUE netwoik
CONSULT YOUR
LOCAL NEWSPAPER
McKesson & bobbins, inc
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CLABBER GIRL goes
the best of everything, for baking
'133
i.