2011 - Theses - Flinders University

I presume you know that the applicant’s mother is a white woman who came fromEngland and married a full blooded aborigine, and, as a result of the marriage, certain halfcastechildren were born. 213In the end, Geary writes his own reference for Jack Forbes.Re the application of John Tilcha Forbes for an exemption. My Wife knows the Forbeswell and knew their mother when she was on Yandama Station. She, my Wife, hasinformed me that they were well brought up.My own knowledge of Forbes is as follows. He has been in this District, to my knowledgefor at least one year. There has never been trouble of any sort with this man. He may havea drink but I have never known him to have one. I have never heard of him having a drink.He is a very clever man with cars and I believe he worked in a garage for six years. He hasa wife and three children. These children and the wife are all clean and healthy. They livein a tent at the Talc Mine and I visit them every month as I do to each Aboriginal in thisDistrict. Their tent is always clean and also the surroundings.I have never heard ill spoken of him and have always found him decent and reasonablyintelligent. I wish a lot of others, including white men, were the same in this district.I can do nothing but strongly recommend his application for an exemption and if heobtains same I will take care that his good behaviour does not deteriorate. 214Mr Penhall adds to the recommendation to the Board: ‘Applicants mother is a whitewoman born in England but now of widowed status, living at Nepabunna. Her husband was afull blood aborigine.’ 215MC Geary serves the response on John Forbes, telling him he has been granted ‘a limiteddeclaration of exemption,’ and reminding him that ‘He must not, of course, associate withAborigines.’ 216John takes the papers from Geary, with a nod. He knows he will need a permit now to visithis old mum, the white woman living at the Aboriginal mission, and he smiles, thinking howhe’s gonna visit in the middle of the night, make that old missionary have to get up and checkthese silly white man papers. And maybe he’d be too sleepy to check for anything else! 217149