Harry Oswald (HO, Ossie)
Following are comments about his early childhood, as written by Ossie.
My school days commenced in 1882, about five years after the school was opened. The teacher was Mr. Alfred Goldsbury, and Brookside was a half-time school. Mr Goldsbury taught one week there and then one week at Kariotahi. The older scholars went to West Mauku for the alternate weeks, and some, I think, to Waitangi. Mr. Goldsbury was the fourth teacher, Mrs Dromgool, Miss O'Connor and Miss Wily having come and gone. All pupils in our day walked to school from Browns Gully in the north from the Needles in the west from Waitangi Bay in the south-east, and from as far east as the Glenbrook station. Cross-country tracks were the rule, and no one objected to trespassers. The roads were mud in winter and dust in summer, but the school attendance was good. Of course we had no 'flu' in those days. We had no cricket except for home-made bats, a rubber ball and a few ti-tree sticks for wickets. We cut our hockey sticks in the bush, and a supplejack root or jam tin for a ball. We had no knowledge of soccer, and stranger still we had never seen a rugby ball. Yet we all enjoyed our paper chases, which meant at least a two-mile run during the dinner hour. We had an earthquake in 26th June 1891. The pupils of all the surrounding schools rushed out the doors, and it was said in most cases the teachers went out the windows. Our teacher Miss Escott, remarked, "That's an earthquake, go on with your work", and we did. We planted the trees around the old school ground on the first Arbor Day, 1891 or 1892 (I think). They are still alive I see. [The school site has five magnificent pururi trees, did H.O. plant one of them all those years ago?] We had in those days two visits from the School Inspectors, they travelled many miles on horseback over atrocious roads. The school was the social centre in the earlier days. A church service one Sunday each month and Sunday school on the alternate Sunday was held.
Dancing occasionally, and a concert now and then, and, by the way I have seen at a dance in the school in pre half time days dancers from as
far off as Te Toro Point. They travelled in those pre-car days up the Mauku creek by launch and walked three or four miles to the school.
The Weekly News was the only paper in regular circulation, and of course no radio or telephone was to be heard. Spring carts or drays were the chief means of conveyance and were an advancement from the bullock drays of the eighteen fifties. Not until about 1890 did the first sulky appear in Glenbrook. Of course, most families had at least one hack, but legs and feet were fully developed and much used, referred to as "shanks pony". In the eighties before the export of farm produce began, before fertilizing by top dressing was thought of, about half of Glenbrook was uncultivated and to a large extend unoccupied. All the Pakington (Glenbrook) area was ti-tree and bracken, kept short by occasional fire of the gum-digger. And the same applied to all that now prosperous area stretching to the Glenbrook Beach.
Farming in the eighties and early nineties last century (1880-1890) in Glenbrook was a succession of cropping, laying down in pasture, then after three to five years ploughing up again, then cropping etc. again, an everlasting 'vicious circle'. Our implements, a Wallace mole plough,
a set of triangle harrows, and later discs, and here and there a wooden roller which would be lent to others or perhaps owned by two or three
neighbours. These roller made at home out of a Mati or Rimu log 8ft in circumference were heavy. One went over me once so I ought to
know. I just had time to throw my arm over my head otherwise some one else might have to be writing these notes. Our only power was horse
power, animal not mechanical as now. Our horses had to be hard feed if working in summer and during the winter always. Outside, travelling machines came in to drill our crops, to cut our oats, wheat and to do our threshing and chaff-cutting. When the age of the portable steam engine came, eight to ten of the best draught horses were assembled to haul this portable from farm to farm, then another trip for the combine, and a couple of good draughts (Horses) for the chaff cutter. The man operating the portables day of threshing or chaff-cutting commenced at 8 am and finished at 10pm or later, then move on to be ready for 8 am next morning. The first method of filling chaff bags was a round hole in the ground slightly larger than a sack, over which was placed a frame with iron rings to keep the mouth of the sack open. A worker tramped the chaff tight till he had his bag full then lifted it out to the bag sewer. Tramping was a heavy job and a dirty, dusty job, and all were glad when the steam tractor and its twin bagging a chaff cutter came along with a clock to register the number of bags filled. All goods in those days were, of course, brought
to Waiuku and Glenbrook by steamer, and by steamer we travelled to Onehunga, Epsom, and by horse tram the rest of the way to Queen street. We could land at the Needles in the first years I remember. Then Woodwards wharf was built, with a bad approach by steamer and an impossible one by land. Once, when I was 17 years of age, we had five tons of bonedust landed on this wharf and I carried it to the top of the wharf cutting on my back, a bag at a time, 80 1 1/4 bags about two chain up a grade of It took me about four hours, and I hated the sight and site of Woodwards. All movements of cattle from Waiuku to other districts went through Glenbrook, then beef from the sandhills and Awhitu and store bullocks, some five to seven year olds, from the Te Akau Station over the river were encountered regularly before the fattening lands of the Otaua and Aka Aka were opened up. Fortunately the cattle were usually road wise by the time they reached Glenbrook.
No account of the early days of Glenbrook would be complete without a mention of our annual picnics, later to become picnic and sports. The
first was held in Reid's Bush in January 1894, and they were held annually for a long while. Memories crowd into my mind of picnics, surprise parties, an occasional riding party to the West Coast; town visitors who all wanted to ride our hacks and did, although unable to sit down for a week afterwards. One, a relieving teacher hung on with his spurs while "Old Darby' bolted some miles. The school stool was no use to him for the fortnight he remained with us.
In the almost 50 years our family lived at Glenbrook we never had a lock on the outside door. We had the periodic visit from the swaggers of those years. We had regular visits from "Bob Socks" otherwise G. C. Smith, and others of his ilk selling us clothing requirements.
Yes, Glenbrook, life was good in those days. The times produced the people and the people suited the times.
Further notes that are memories and thoughts recorded by Ossie found amongst his papers after his death in 1963. The text relates mainly to the Waikato river and Waikato Heads area:-
I did not know the Waikato in its really historical days, only by repute, by reading of Maunsell and his early work, by hearing my parents talk and by long conversations in evenings and weekend at the turn of the century in the whare's and houses of the some forty natives who lived at the Heads and a casual acquaintance with the (Te) Kohanga Maori and those up the river along the bridle track from the Heads to Tuakau. The Kukatais. Clarks, Tauas and many other names I have forgotten from up the river and the Thomsons, William Howhiti, Piripi. John Martin and his
family, conservative old Puna and many others at the Port Waikato end. From the two later I gained most of what Maori history I gathered and
what a store of Maori information I could have accumulated were I then as keen on the past as I have been in later years. At Port Waikato when I
first knew the inhabitants Marshall who settled there about 1830 had died about 1892, his second wife who married Hallyburton Johnstone in 1898 and dear old Emmy Johnstone, Hally's Mother, a daughter of Major James Speedy lived in the Marshall home on the hill while Alf and Willie Cabourne and Ted Spargo, their brother in law living near the wharf were the only permanent pakeha residents. The huge Te Akau Station 80,000 acres I think, stretched from Port Waikato to the Raglan Harbour. Managed then by Arthur Rickys for Loan & Mercantile Agency, who in turn controlled it for the Assetts Realisation Board and employed many stock men and Maori, but they mostly lived miles from the Port at various homesteads centres. Mr Alf Cobourne, (whose daughters still live at Port Waikato and have inherited their fathers property,) I always think Was more responsible for the development of the farming properties, as sheep and cattle runs that turn off and so much stock today, than any one else Cobourne with his gangs of Maori workers, was overseer, contractor, manager and generally responsible for very much of the rapid
improvement work that was done and if the work was a Cobourne job it was well and faithfully done with absolutely no need of supervision.
Willie Cobourne led a more retired life and Spargo kept the Post Office and Store, and later he bought a launch and punts with which he
crossed the cattle from the Station to the Waiuku side, punting stone to the Otaua and ran occasional excursions on the river. The old courthouse still stood when I first knew these parts and was let as a beach holiday house but showed its age. The old slip logs on which the keels were set in
the Army boat building days, were there and tramlines ran from the wharf into the old military wharf shed which was on the hillside of the road
the and butted onto the wharf as at present. Of course the only roads were bridle tracks and if you wanted a day at the ocean beach, Sunset
beach I think is called now, it meant a long walk over loose sand. I heard one weary fencer describe this walk as 3 miles (6 kms) out and ten
miles back (20 kms). Regular drafts of cattle were swum over the river, rushed in by the very competent stockmen guided across by numerous Maori in boats and canoes, mostly canoes. Men women and children made the trip over, for the crossing money was equally divided amongst the participants, independent of their age or ability to help. On a couple of occasions that we were asked to bring our own boat and help, it was not for the doubtful assistance we might give in herding the swimming bullocks, but to carry over the women and children so that all might get
their share of the payout. The mob of cattle were divided into two or three crossing drafts and the qualification to share was one trip over,
the one year old equally sharing with the 90 year old! We were duly offered our share, but the experience and novelty of the day were ample
reward to us together with the evening feast, usually held after a days crossing.
These stockman were from the Te Akau Station now quite a disappearing race, were truly good and some of their feats of horsemanship were
with the charging bullocks were the best I have ever seen in work, rodeo, or show ground. The Maoris living at the Waikato Heads in those
days, late 1809s to 1902 were generally a very good lot, great at bush felling and fencing, good sports and keen horsemen, with few exceptions.
On the older side we had Tamihana or Thomson, their blind chief, a grand type of the older very honourable Maori Puna, no lover of the pakeha,
until he recognized us as sons of an early friend and then communicative and generous to a degree refusing payment for kumara etc,
willingly supplied but welcoming gifts in return. John Martin, always willing to discuss Maori words, aims and customs and with a great fund
of knowledge (What opportunities we missed). Then there was William Howhiti a Mormon Elder who spoke beautiful English and a wonderful example in honesty to the younger Maoris. Ngakihi a gay (not the interpretation of word as known to-day) fine young Maori of those days died lately at Port Waikato, a venerable and much venerated tohunga. On the other side there was K. extremely clever actor who could cry with apparent genuine sorrow when trying to get money from the wife of a settler to enable him to so he said get a doctor down to his seriously ill
daughter but when his ruse was unsuccessful and he had partaken of a cup of tea, replied to the query' re said daughter's health. "Oh I think she
all right now". Maunsells house was gone in these days only the chimney remaining. One of the houses of the Mission Station is where the Children's Health Camp is now has remained and was the headquarters of the Chief, but only a few plants and trees marked the spot.
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On leaving school Ossie took up farming first at Maioro from about 1910, and later purchased part of his brothers Lionel's farm at Otaua. It was
after this that he moved to Waiuku where he had various business interest, land agency, milk vending round, livery stables and coal and
firewood. Ossie may have decided to have a change in occupation as he was not to know whether in time he would be called up for WWI he had enrolled and was a second reservist even though he had four children. There was always a desire to return to farming and in 1919 he purchased 400 acres at Te Toro — Awhitu Peninsula, where over the next few years he felled bush and grassed part of it all by hand or, with the use of horses. He also had a small farm in Tuakau, and that was where his first wife Daisy died in 1926. Ossie had by this stage sold part of the Te Toro
farm, with his three sons farming the remaining portion. Some years later with his new wife, Florence, he moved to Colville on the Coromandel Peninsula, an isolated coastal property at the end of the peninsula road. The beach below the house became known as Mellsops beach, with scows coming across from Auckland to collect shingle. The bridge across the creek, once the road progressed further north also was named the Mellsop Bridge. The farm land although coastal was, not unlike the Te Toro property, difficult to farm, which eventuated in Ossie and
Jimmy moving to Auckland, where once again he became involved in Public Affairs.
He was an elected member of the 1st Waiuku Town Board, later known as the Franklin County Council, a long serving President of the Auckland Provincial District of Federated Farmers, and a Justice of the Peace. At the 1928 General Elections he stood for the Franklin Electorate as a "Country Party" representative (a Douglas Social Credit Party). He was narrowly defeated in the election by Mr J. N. Massey (son of the former Prime Minister) representing the Reform Party, by a mere 130 votes. Ossie was also a permanent member of the South Auckland Land Sales committee which was established at the end of WWII.
Ossie Mellsop's dates:
Born 27 June 1877
Died 6 June 1963 aged 85 in Onehunga