Chapter 21

Returning in time to the war period, John has claimed Harriet and feels, more importantly, that he has regained his link to the station. This link to the land, as with the Indigenous relationship to country, is never directly compared for true ownership by McGahan but simply placed for the audience’s consideration.

John is at the logging camp where there is a fire in the hills. Oliver arrives, announcing that Harriet is pregnant. He is furious and argues with John. As they argue, the fire bursts through and they are in peril. Oliver runs but is trapped and John sees him but hesitates. Oliver dies but John never tells Harriet that Oliver was so furious or that he hesitated when Oliver needed help. As Oliver is engulfed in flames, he feels the land itself solved his problems; one of many fires that symbolically changes the events of the novel. John marries Harriet and the inheritance of one third of Oliver’s estate is enough to buy a wheat farm. Dudley returns from the war.

Chapter 21 Quotes

He had claimed Harriet now, irrevocably, But far more, he had regained purpose to his life. To think, he had almost abandoned his dreams for Kuran Station. His childhood disappointments had blinded him. The Whites. His father. All along he should have realised that none of them mattered – only his profound link with the property itself. (John McIvor) Chapter 21

The instant of hesitation seemed to last forever. And then John saw a monster step out of the smoke. (John looking at a stranded Oliver Fisher) Chapter 21

Chapter 22

William waits for the rally for the Independence League that his uncle champions. There is a childlike quality to his waiting, looking forward to company and camping more than the cause itself, which of course he is too young to fully understand. William’s ear aches and continues to worsen but he doesn’t mention it regularly, as the doctor and his mother seem to be consumed by their own lives and indicate that an earache is not a big deal.

William hears discussion about Mabo on the television and it seems to contradict his uncle’s position. William’s mother immediately shuts down any discussion about land rights, she seems to see it as a burden or a threat to their future. The next day uncle John shows William the place where he intends to hold the meeting at the rally. It is an obvious sacred site; a chance for John to spite the Indigenous history and, in a way, attempt to rewrite over the top of it.

Chapter 22 Quotes

Amidst all this excitement, William’s only concern was his ear. The ache was never acute, but it was ever present, a throb that seemed to penetrate deep within his skull. Chapter 22

‘… then the High Court led the way with the Mabo judgment. It recognised finally that terra nullius was always a lie, and now the government is responding to historical reality with the Native Title legislation. This country was Aboriginal land and it was stolen from them without compensation. That was unfair.’ (Television report William hears) Chapter 22

‘William, not now! Whatever your uncle says, that’s fine with me. Just keep on his good side. All right?’ (William’s mother shuts down any discussion about land rights) Chapter 22

‘But even so, this is a special place. A meeting place. I think people have held meetings here for centuries.’
‘What people?’
‘You know what people.’ (John and William at the meeting site) Chapter 22

Fire … a fire burning amidst the stones. A memory chilled William, from months ago. Chapter 22

Knowledge, William decided, that was the issue. Knowledge was the essence of ownership. The black men, it seemed, had held the knowledge when they had owned the land. His uncle held it now. And when William had the knowledge, when he knew everything about the station there was to know, he too would be ready to be own it in his turn. Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Four members of the league’s committee arrive at Kuran house, among them Dr Moffat. William doesn’t mention his ear as he wants to be a apart of the rally. William stands at the door like a sentry and feels important, even giving and receiving salutes to the older men while wearing the police hat. The men who joke with him are Terry Butterworth, Dr Moffat, Harold Lasseter, a tour guide, and Kevin Goodwin, the accountant. William attends the meeting but is lost in the adult conversation and drifts off to sleep, a timely reminder to the reader that he is still a child.

The meeting agenda drifts toward the use of force and protests. The idea of a militia army is raised but uncle John tries to keep the meeting non-racially driven, and says that maybe down the track they can become more militant but for now he wanted a peaceful, political movement. The others want blood and only thinly veil their racism, if at all.

Chapter 23 Quotes

Terry Butterworth shifted his bulk and sat forward. ‘Direct action is what we need. Protests, blockades.’ Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Bridging the gap between the past and the present John’s backstory continues in Chapter 24. He has had mixed success as a wheat farmer despite the post war boom when the area booms financially. Frost, rot and other setbacks hamper his progress. He struggles but above all he wants to avoid relying on bank loans to expand. Harriet has a series of miscarriages leaving him without a male heir and Ruth, the firstborn, remains his only child. He loves Ruth and relinquishes his need for a male heir, hoping to provide for her and get Kuran before she grows up as a legacy for her. This mirrors his own father’s dreams for him.

Dudley is back from the war and falls into a bad way, drinking and neglecting himself. After finding him in a state, John takes him home and they ‘simply don’t take him back’. Harriet and John look after him. Ruth captures Dudley’s heart and seems to bring him peace. He brings documents over and these give John power over his farm. He also leaves the farm to John in his will. This spurs John on to make more of the farm than he was already minding for Dudley. He is encouraged but finds something in his conscience, resulting in dreams.

Chapter 24 Quotes

It was a penance, both John and Harriet knew. There was no question of sending him to an institution for care by strangers. (Looking after Dudley Green) Chapter 24

So it was a source of immense dissatisfaction to him that he couldn’t rise to the level which that blood demanded. In the darker moments of the night he would lie in bed next to his sleeping wife, gazing bitterly into a future that might see him die there on his little farm, amongst his inferiors. The same as them, in fact. Chapter 24

For a time John even dared to believe that Kuran Station was not so impossibly far away after all.
Strange, then, that it was around this time that the dreams began. Chapter 24

Chapter 25

It is a sense of belonging that appeals to William at the rally. He delights in having more father figures taking an interest in him rather than the politics. He is having fun camping, a chance at a childhood. Cars arrive, trucks too, then motorcycles carrying Vietnam veterans. The rally begins in fun, there are sports events and races. The children are playing and families are setting up camp sites. William’s ear is hurting and he smells something rotting, it is getting worse.

The national anthem is announced but ‘Waltzing Matilda’ plays. William is confused when an old man tells William the story is true, and also talks about government oppression. William wonders if men who had given up like the jolly swagman might be in the billabong on this property too like the ghost from the lyrics of Waltzing Matilda.

The men take turns firing guns and all join in with a sense of unity quickly developing.

Chapter 25 Quotes

The two men had adopted William in turn, addressing him as ‘Captain Bill’ because of his hat, and including him in everything they did. They had even found a little nylon tent for him, and set it up next to theirs … (Terry and Henry with William at the rally) Chapter 25

His only worry was that his ear was still aching. And he’d become aware of a bad smell. It was fleeting amidst the smoke of campfires and barbecues, but it came and went persistently throughout the day. (William) Chapter 25

Chapter 26

William is unwell and his vision is hazy. He lies down before the rally starts. Uncle John starts the rally saying the site used to be a sacred site but now it is their site. The crowd clap and then Terry Butterworth and Kevin Goodwin speak. When they speak the rhetoric becomes volatile, firstly against Indigenous Australians and then against migrants. It is clear the crowd are moving away from John’s vision for the group. He tries to intervene by saying ‘lets not stray too far’ and ‘this is not what we are about’ . William has a spell and leaves the fire area. He is disoriented but sees a group of men in hoods hoist a burning cross. The rally has become a racist KKK style gathering. Uncle John is pushed aside and has lost control of the group and the meeting.

Chapter 26 Quotes

Now, we’re going to be hearing a lot about Aboriginal history and sacred sites in the coming years, and it might seem strange that we, of all people, should gather at one of their special places. But there’s a message in this. The Aborigines are gone. And that’s the point. This is my property now.’ (John McIvor) Chapter 26

‘… black and white always got along out here, everyone knew their place, but now the blacks are getting cocky, they think they’re gonna end up owning everything …’ (Unknown speaker at rally) Chapter 26

‘… it’s open house, it’s Asians and Arabs and God knows who else, and it’s a proven fact, those people bring all their old problems with them … ‘ (Unknown speaker at rally) Chapter 26

… passing from shadow to shadow between the trunks, a flame that flickered and flared. It appeared to be some distance off, and it wasn’t moving quickly. It was as if someone was carrying a fire as they walked, unhurried, picking their way alongside the dry bed of the water channel. But the flame was unearthly too. (William’s vision) Chapter 26

And then the flame shifted slightly, and resolved into a shape, and finally, irrevocably, he saw. It wasn’t a man carrying a fire, as he’d first thought – it was a man on fire. (William’s vision) Chapter 26

‘I don’t care what you saw!’
‘There was a man on fire!’ William wailed.
John McIvor stared down at his nephew then, and for an instant William saw a stunned recognition in the old man’s eyes. Chapter 26

Chapter 27

In Chapter 27, John’s past is re-explored and in particular, the dreams he had. This links directly to William’s vision in the night at the rally. He dreamed of a man on fire, a hand reaching out to him. It related to Oliver and seeing him die in the fire and it relates to William’s own loss of his father, to the fire as well as past atrocities that are yet to be revealed. It is like a curse following the family.

Woken from one of these dreams, John discovers Dudley has entered Ruth’s room and is raping his twelve year old daughter. He drags Dudley off and takes him from the property, leaving him in the night on the road off the property. He returns to the house and finds Ruth has finally fallen asleep. He talks to Harriet about what to do with Dudley. If they put him in an institution they will lose access and rights over his land. John is concerned by this thought. He frames his idea to Harriet as if he is caring for Dudley but shows his hand when he refers to the property. They send Ruth off to boarding school as the solution. Harriet begins to resent John from then on. Ruth also changes as she loses her love for her father when she is sent away by him and uncle Dudley gets to stay at the house. She is bitter as she seems punished although she had done nothing wrong.

Chapter 27 Quotes

In the past it had just been dancing images of flames, and a creeping sense of dread. But tonight he had actually seen it – a hand reaching out, wreathed in fire, and then a human shape, all ablaze, and yet standing motionless as it burned. (John dreams in the past) Chapter 27

It had seemed a cold and clinical thought then, and he had tried to suppress it, but there was no denying it now, as he stared out over the paddocks of Dudley’s farm. If they did send Dudley away to an institution, what would happy to his property? Chapter 27

Harriet was content where she was, and that far from wanting the House, she was repelled by it. And for her part, Harriet was appalled to discover what really lay at the core of her husband. Chapter 27

She began to hate him then. Chapter 27

Chapter 28

William wakes to find his uncle is in hospital after a heart attack, no doubt brought on from the tragedy of the rally night. John’s dream for an Independence league had disintegrated into a wild racist protest. William had passed out and missed the end of the commotion. William’s mother is angry, not at the heart attack but about not securing the property first. The Uncle returns five days later. Mrs Griffith calls Ruth, John’s daughter. She believes that this will be a victory for her, that Ruth will ask William and his mother to leave.

Chapter 28 Quotes

William suddenly understood why his mother was upset. And it wasn’t because of the chaos at the rally, or because her son had been sick.
‘He might still die yet’. She was biting at one of her fingers as her eyes flicked back and forth. ‘And what happens to us then?’ Chapter 28

William felt a coldness inside. ‘I’ve tried to make him like me …’
She glared at him. ‘Not enough to make it official.’ Chapter 28

Chapter 29

William feels that the presence of Ruth having been kept from him was bad and that nothing good can be found in deception. William is called upstairs where he realises that the tension will bring on more of his mother’s headaches; he wished he could help. William’s uncle says it wasn’t his idea that Mrs Griffith called Ruth and that they hadn’t spoken for ten years. He wants to hear about the man on fire, he says they share the same ghosts. He warns William about the ladies in the house and that his mother would sell the property, that Mrs Griffith would be angry and that Ruth will be the most difficult. When William questions his uncle about whether he had seen the man on fire, Uncle John changes the subject and dismisses everyone.

Chapter 29 Quotes

The old man turned cold. ‘There won’t be any more newsletters. I’m through with all that.’ (John McIvor) Chapter 29

He passed his hand before William’s face, and William felt a dizziness as his eyes followed the long bony fingers waving back and forth. ‘But we’re blood, you and me. We must be. We share the same ghosts.’ (John McIvor) Chapter 29

‘Don’t forget it, Will. Two women in this House, and neither of them is on your side. And now there’s a third one on her way. The worst of the lot.’ (John McIvor) Chapter 29

Chapter 30

As a link to the upcoming arrival of Ruth, her back story is explored. After being sent away she rarely came home from boarding school. When she came home, Dudley was moved back to his farm but Ruth still could smell him in the place. John thinks Ruth will come around if he finally gets Kuran station. He uses Dudley to purchase further farm lots then Dudley dies. Although the will is challenged by Dudley’s Aunty, John wins and claims the property but has lost the last of the public’s respect, following in his father’s footsteps. Harriet takes this hard and they remain together but estranged.

Ruth gets married and the gap between her and her father widens. He is sweeping the plains looking for the burning man of his dreams with a telescope, the one William will see in his room.

Chapter 30 Quotes

The eager girl John remembered was gone, replaced by a reserved young women, a stranger. She ignored the farm and spent most of her time in her room, buried in books. Chapter 30

Harriet, however, did not find things so simple. She had hoped that Dudley’s passing would allow her to engage with the world again, but the rumours and innuendo that spread about town, and amongst her neighbours, humiliated her profoundly. Chapter 30