Colonial Gardens. (By R. G. Crowley, Gardener, Ercildoune.) Excerpt – With so infinite a variety of colors and the fact of the herbaceous paeony being so perfectly hardy, and so absolutely easy to grow, it is a source of wonderment to me that these flowers are not grown more than they are in our colonial gardens…

Obituary. A very old colonist in Mrs. Peter McGinnis died at Northcote on July 28. She came to Australia with her husband in the ship Glenmore in 1840 and was 84 years old. The late Mr. Peter McGinnis was the first to take sheep into the Wimmera district from Ercildoune Station, then owned by the Messrs. Learmonth.

Personal. The death is announced of Mr. Thomas Livingstone-Learmonth, formerly a member of the Legislative Council of Victoria, and one of the earliest pioneers of that State. Mr. Learmonth and his brother, the late Mr. Somerville Livingstone-Learmonth, arrived in 1837, bringing with them three cargoes of sheep, and with these they occupied the country at Inverleigh, and afterwards at Buninyong. In January 1838, they explored the country from Mount Macedon by Mount Alexander, Forest Creek, and Bendigo, to the Mount Beckwith Ranges, on the western portion of which they finally settled, calling the hill “Ercildoun,” an ancient family name in Scotland. At Ercildoun they became so successful in the breeding of merino sheep that the name of their flock was regarded as amongst the highest in Australia. Mr. Learmonth and his brothers subsequently bought Groongal, a large property on the Murrumbidgee River, which some ten or twelve years ago was subdivided in three, that portion known as Bringagee falling to Mr. Learmonth’s lot. He retired in 1868 to the family property, Park Hall, Polmont, Scotland, where (says the Melbourne Argus) ‘he continued to reside till his death.’ He was born on May 2, 1818.

Great Subdivisional Sale Of Portion of the Well-known Ercildoune Estate at Craig’s Royal Hotel, Ballarat. Fisken Read and Co. (associated with S. G. Valentine and Co. and A. M. Greenfield and Co.) have received instructions from the executors of the late Sir Samuel Wilson to sell by auction, as above, About 8000 Acres Of the Famous Ercildoune Estate, Subdivided into Blocks of from 62 Acres to 318 Acres. The portion to be sold comprises some of the richest agricultural and dairying land in the Waubra and Burrumbeet Districts. The lands on the northern end of the state are all virgin soil, and are very rich, having had sheep running on the since the property was acquired by the Messrs. Learmonth, in 1837. Plans are now ready, and can be obtained on application to the agents, or the manager, on the estate.

A Large Estate. Late T. L. Learmonth. Probate Granted. Probate of the will of the late Thomas Livingstone Learmonth, Parkhall, Stirlingshire, Scotland, who died on October 28, 1903, has been granted to Frederick Valiant Cotton Livingstone Learmonth, of Newcastle.

Discovery of Ballarat. Early History. Excerpt – “First House on Ballarat was situated immediately opposite where Craig’s Hotel now stands.”

Werribee Park. (From the Australasian.) Excerpt – “A chief object of our visit was to see a notable specimen of a weeping cypress, which is growing on the lawn, near the house. It is about 20ft., in height, as many feet in width, of a pretty pale green colour, and as pendulous as a weeping willow. It is supposed to have come from the Ercildoun gardens. Its species cannot be definitely fixed by those who have seen it, but it may possibly be a form of Cupressus corneyana, the tree from which the willow pattern of the Chinese is taken.”

Tillage and Pasture. Large Estates Subdivision. Ercildoune. By J. L. Dow.
Excerpts – An interesting example of how steadily agriculture is working its way into the richest of the large pastoral estates of Victoria is Ercildoune, of which about 10,000 acres were two years ago cut up into farms varying from 60 to 320 acres in size. Ercildoune is one of the central properties of the country christened “Australia Felix,” by its discoverer, Major Mitchell, and described by that intrepid explorer, “the finest grazing country in the world.” The Messrs. Learmonth first took up this country as a squatting run in 1837. A picturesque craggy range that rises abruptly from the plain called Ercildoune Peak, which marks the centre of the estate, is a couple of hours’ drive north-westward from Ballarat. The portion of the estate now settled upon by the farmers abuts upon Waubra, a new name given to a station on a line that branches from the Ballarat to Maryborough railway. Waubra station is 21 miles from Ballarat, and Ballarat is 74 miles form Melbourne. This district has always been known as “The Springs,” and the alteration of the name to Waubra was not a happy one, because it has effaced the traditions belong to “The Springs” as one of the oldest established, richest and most prosperous agricultural districts of Victoria. The Springs, (or Waubra) district forms the north-western extension of that fertile area of farming country which is represented by such centres as Bungaree, Bullarook and Learmonth, where the Dividing Range of the State breaks into a group of low rounded volcanic hills, the soil of which, not only of the intervening flats, but also up the slopes, even to the tops of their flattened summits, has been proved for over 40 years’ cultivation, to be of extraordinary fertility. Owing to its inherent richness, together with the high class system of working under which it is treated, it is now producing as heavily as it did when first put under cultivation, now well on for half a century ago. The Springs farming district was originally started by a previous sale of a section of the station made by the Messrs. Learmonth before the Wilsons’ time, and one of the leading farmers of The Springs District, Mr. Trewin’s farm, which he purchased at that sale, and still occupies, formed one part of the first Ercildoune pre-emptive section, ad a few weeks ago he acquired the adjoining half (320 acres) at £27 an acre, preparatory to being joined by his brother from one of the agricultural counties in England.

A Pioneer Citizen of Ballarat. Close of a Successful Career. (From Our Own Correspondent.)
Excerpt – Mr. William Bailey, who has been in ill-health during the past month, died this morning. He was a very old identity, and was closely associated with nearly all the mining ventures in this district. He was 79 years of age, and a native of Wellington, Somersetshire. He came to Australia in 1848, and after following pastoral pursuits for some time he proceeded to the rush at Fryer’s Creek. He remained in Bendigo for some time, and eventually settled in Ballarat. After carrying on business with the Messrs. Wilson Bros., storekeepers, he left that firm and identified himself with the Staffordshire Reef Mining Co., as manager. He subsequently was appointed mining manager for the Egerton Mining Co. The late Mr. Bailey was a most fortunate investor, and his shrewdness and pluck enabled him to amass considerable wealth. It was from the deceased’s connection with the Egerton mine that the great historical mining suit of Learmonth v. Bailey and others arose, which lasted almost uninterrupted for four years, and which it was estimated must have cost each side at least £100,000. Deceased was at one time an enthusiastic patron of the turf, and was twice a Derby winner with Cocos and Suwarrow…

Death of Mr. W. Bailey. Excerpt. It is related that Mr. Learmonth died heart-broken as the result of the protracted legal wear and worry.

Death of Mr. George Clark. Mr. George Clark, of East Talgai, died this evening (our Allora correspondence wired on the 6th instant). The deceased was over 73 years of age and had been ailing for a considerable time. P. R. Gordon writes: – By the death of Mr. George Clark, late of East Talgai, Queenslanders will lament the loss of one who accomplished much, at a critical period of its history, in advancing the interests of the pastoral industry. Some forty years ago, when the wool-producing industry of Queensland was in a transitional state, the late Mr. Clark embarked on the business of sheep breeding. Having decided on growing fine merino wool, he selected some superior specimens of the fine lustrous woolled sheep from the Ercildoune flock of Messrs. Learmouth, of Western Victoria, as his ground work; but after a very short experience of them he informed the writer that “they went to pieces” in the Queensland climate. He found what he deemed his beau ideal of a merino sheep in the flock of Mr. Taylor, of Tasmania, and forthwith established his Talgai flock on that type.

Learmonth-lascelles. News was received by the last mail of the marriage of Mr. Maxwell Learmonth, third son of the late Mr. A. S. Livingston-Learmonth, Wyvern, N.S.W., and Hanford Dorset, England, with Miss Margaret Lascelles, daughter of the Hon. C. F. Lascelles, and niece of the Earl of Harwood. The wedding took place on April 18th, at All Saints’ Church, Ennismore Gardens, the ceremony being performed by the vicar, Dr. Inge, and the Rev. H. S. Huon, and the Archbishop of York pronounced the blessing. The bride (whose sister is Maid of Honor to Her Majesty the Queen) wore lovely old lace on her satin dress. Two little boys, the sons of Lady Joan Verney (cousin of the bride), and Lady Edith Trotter (cousin of the bridegroom), acted as pages, in willow-green court suits, and there were two little girls and four grown up brides-maids, who all carried bunches of daffodils, with white dresses embroidered with green and gold, and touches of willow-green in their hats. The bridegroom presented each with a green enamel pendant on a chain. Captain Leger Learmonth, R.H.A. attended his brother as best man. The Countess of Dwart (aunt of the bride) held a reception after the ceremony at her residence in Rutland Gardens.

Recollections of an Octogenarian. By James Smith.
No. XII. – Ballarat, Then and Now. “The transformation which the city of Melbourne and its suburbs, Victorian political, social and industrial life, and the aspect of the entire country have undergone during the last half century, have been so great and yet so gradual, and the stages of transition have melted so imperceptibly into one another, that it is difficult to select two points of time for the purposes of comparison and contrast, or to present a picture belonging to the early fifties which shall be accurate in all its details for juxtaposition, with one of the present date. It is only when you have been long absent from a city or country, which you knew in its infancy, and return to it after an interval during which its growth has been rapid and continuous, that you are enabled to measure its expansion and enlarge upon its magnitude. I will select Ballarat as a case in point. Excerpt…I passed it on my way to Ercildoune, whither I was driven by Mr Jams Oddie, where in lieu of Thomas the Rhymer, the laird who was beloved of the Queen of Elfland, I found Mr. Thomas Learmonth, a descendant of his, with a Highland welcome on his lips and in his eyes, installed a substantial mansion which might have been one of the “ancestral homes of England” or of Bonnie Scotland, surrounded by all the comforts and elegancies of a manor house in the old country, and in the midst of a pleasurance which recalled the flower gardens of the motherland, but with greater vividness of coloring. Ercildowne, or Ercildoune, as it is now called, remains unchanged. I believe, but what a transformation has Ballarat undergone since the year 1855!”

Viscount Portman has had himself much talked about in England as the result of an announcement that, although he is 79 years of age, he is shortly to be married to Mrs. Livingstone-Learmonth, of Hanford House, Blandford, Dorsetshire. She is the widow of Mr. A. J. Livingstone-Learmonth, of Hanford, Blandford… Viscount Portman is a well-known figure in the hunting field, having been master of the Portman Hunt for 50 years. He was recently presented with a testimonial by followers of the hunt in recognition of his jubilee in the field. Hanford House, where Mrs. Livingstone-Learmonth lives, is not far from Viscount Portman’s Dorsetshire seat. It is a fine mansion of stone in the Elizabethan style, and was erected in 1604.

Dear Worker, In respect to Mr. Horsfall’s opinion that a return to smooth-skinned sheep would lessen the density of the fleece, I would remark that I shore at Ercildoune for 35 years. There had never been a ‘wrinkle’ on the station. In thirteen years wrinkles were still absent, while the fleeces were as dense as ever. I would point out that the formation of most of the Western District flocks was accomplished without wrinkly sheep, and those which were crossed with Negretti or Rambouillet were only to correct the crossing with long wools in order to lengthen the staple. I have followed up wool shed work, pressing, and shearing for 52 years, and am certain that with careful culling and mating there is no danger of the wool of smooth skin sheep becoming too open. – John Laughton.

The Romance of the Borders. Jean Lang in “A Land of Romance” (Jack) gives a very readable popular account of the history of the Scottish Border from the building of the Roman Wall to the days of Sir Walter Scott. Saints, monks, wizards, Covenanters, Jacobites, and Resurrectionists in turn occupy the stage, and play their part in a strange eventful history. There is a good deal of authentic chronicle ready for the patient student, and poetry and romance in a fascinating picture. Arthur’s twelve great battles come into the story, and in the sixth century came Columba with his saints from Ireland, burning their boats behind them. Among the wizards, Merlin was left shut up by magic in the wood Caledon, and after him came the avesome Michael Scot and the baird of Ercildoune, and many another at whom the countryside has shivered. Border battles afford an inexhaustible field for popular treatment, and so do the innumerable adventures of Bonnie Prince Charlie. In later times gypsies and smugglers maintained the somewhat equivocal atmosphere of romance, and with them the author closes her interesting rambles along by-paths of history. There are several charming photogravures (a copper plate is coated with a light-sensitive gelatin tissue which has been exposed to a film positive, and then etched, resulting in a high quality intaglio print that can reproduce the detail and continuous tones of a photograph) from paintings by Tom Scott.

The Golden Fleece. Specially Contributed. The timbered ranges of Ballarat are skirted all along their southern slopes by the great rolling plain, stretching away as far as the eye can reach to the south-east and south-west, and dotted here and there by solitary volcanic peaks, which, rising abruptly from the homogenous flatness of the surrounding country, seem to keep a lonely guard. At some remote period in the geological history of the district these conical hills were smoking mountains, – belching forth flame and stone, and between them giving vent to a flow of lava which covered the land for over a hundred miles, and left it flat or gently undulating in places the overflow of rock has been more recent than in others. Along the old road from Geelong to Ararat, which passes through Leigh Road, Shelford, Rukewood, Pitfield, and Skipton, you pass at times through stony rises, where the igneous rocks have not yet decomposed. At other laces the age of the plains is clearly greater; and how extensive have been the changes in the physical features of the country was shown during the sinking of mines on the Pitfield Plains, where the remains of forest trees were discovered below extensive layers of basalt. If from Skipton you strike across to Streatham, and there turn to the left, travelling down through Lake Bolac, Wickliffe, Glenthompson, and Dunkeld, to Hamilton, very much the same class of country will be passed through. At times the plains are of hard ironstone, and here is the future of a vast wheat area. At other places there are stony rises, composed of little parallel hillocks twenty, thirty, or forty feet high, almost like the waves of the sea, and liberally scattered with honeycombed volcanic stones. The soil on the stony rises is very rich and porous, whilst the vegetation is sweet and varied. Such land is the best for securing high lambing averages in Australia, and for sheep breeding, its value is very high, though of course, it is not suitable for agriculture. The stony rises country seems to be peculiar to Australia. Precisely why the molten lava should originally have shaped itself in this fashion has not been definitely determined by geologists. Probably the most recent formation of the kind is about the base of Mount Napier, near Hamilton. Here the quantity of decomposed rock is small, and the soil is shallow. The stones, moreover, are so honeycombed as to be very light. In the older formations these light stones are not found to the same extent. The honeycombing was no doubt formed by bubbles in the rock in its liquid state. By pressure these were more scarce in the lower strata; so that when the layers of rock split and break into fragments, the lightest stones are at top. When decomposition through atmospheric and other influences takes place, the lighter stones consequently are the first to turn into soil. For these reasons the quantity of soil, and the proportion of undecomposed light stones we find in volcanically formed country give an indication of the time which has elapsed since the place was last overwhelmed by molten lava. One of the chief advantages of the western district form a wool-grower’s point of view, is its mixed nature; very many of the pastoral estates lying partly in the timbered hill country, and partly on the flat plains. The latter are of heavier carrying capacity than the ranges; and they grow bigger sheep, but they do not yield quite so high a quality of wool, whilst, except among the stony rises, they do not give such high percentages of lambs as the more sheltered land. Consequently such famous old sheep stations as Trawalla, Carngham, Eurambeen, Mawallock, Ercildoune, Langi Kal Kal, and many others are more valuable on account of being made up partly of hills and partly of plains. A rare merit of the Western Victorian plains from a sheepbreeder’s point of view is their soundness. Neither in the wettest nor the driest of season will flocks contract disease; and it is no uncommon experience for a mob of one or two thousand sheep to run in a paddock from shearing to shearing without a single death. A revolutionary transformation of industry is now taking place on the Western Victorian plains. However, that is the subject for another article. At present the predominant feature about these great grassy wilds is the very little the great bulk of them have been changed from a state of Nature. Starting at Shelford, you may ride over 40 miles, through Rokewood and Pitfield to Skipton, then 17 miles to Streatham, and 13 further on to Lake Bolac, and you will pass only a few straggled-looking blue-gum plantations and a little farming – merely patches. All round you there lies a rolling sea of waving grass, aparently limitless, glistening in the sun like the sea, and broken in its monotony only by such isolated volcanic peaks as Mount Elephant and Mount Emu, and now and again by the distant blue peaks of the far Pyrenees. When you draw westward, approaching Lake Bolac, however, the teeth-like summits of the Grampians rise from the horizon like the edge of some gigantic purple saw. As the sun drops to rest behind the serrated hills, which stretch from Mount William to Mount Abrupt across half the horizon, and the precipices stand our clear and black against a lurid sky, whilst deep shadows creep silently over the lonely plain, you feel that you have come to the end of one class of country, the geological boundary being so clear and formidable. And, in truth, the Grampians are a boundary in one direction of the high quality wool land. Range after range, they stretch away to the west, in rugged grandeur, till quite a different type of land and climate is reached. Twenty miles further down in a south-westerly direction you will find hills for many miles covered in sheoak, honeysuckle trees, and other light timber. Bushy Creek, Hopkins Hill, Brin Brie, and several other large properties are altogether or partly composed of such country. There is certainly no other class of land in Victoria, or Australia, able to grow a finer wool that comes from this immediate locality. Taking one year with another, I think the Bushy Creek clip holds about the pride of place in Victorian wools. This is no doubt a matter of opinion; but to me no other wool appears to have quite the same combination of character, elasticity, and lustre. The market records, moreover, show the great merit of this clip and also of that from Hopkins Hill and from some of the other properties in the immediate locality. On the Bushy Creek run there is a hill commanding one of the finest views of the Western District to be had from anywhere, not excepting even the top of Mount Abrupt. You look away to the east, the south, and north. The plains lie at your feet, stretching to the wooded hills that lie from Ararat to Beaufort. Mount Elephant rests like a knob in the west 80 miles distant. To the south, long belts of green timber intersperse the wide rolling plain; and everywhere you can see the country is luxuriantly clothed with a bright natural vegetation, which must in the hundreds of thousands of acres look like a panorama at your feet; and they nearly all are held in estates varying in extent from 10,000 to 50,000 acres. One of the most attractive parts of the western district is in the pastoral country about the little township of Beaufort, and lying some halfway on the railway line to Ararat. Here there is a considerable variety of country, and the timbered spurs of the Pyrenees run out on to the treeless plains in a dozen directions. Mount Cole, on an adjacent range, down the side of which a hundred streamlets murmur and sparkle through ferns and tangled undergrowth, giving rise in the Fiery Creek, once famous in the days of gold, and from which Lake Bolac is fed. From here come the well-known clips of Carngham, Eurambeen, Stoneleigh, Mawallock, and Trawalla; whilst closer to Ballarat like Langi Kal Kal, Ercildoune and Langi Willi.

The Pastoralists’ Review 15 August 1911
Groongal and Burra, New South Wales, and Corona and Silsoe, Queensland
The name of Learmonth has been intimately associated with the breeding of Merino sheep since the early part of the last century. In 1838, Messrs. Thomas and Somerville Learmonth settled down in Victoria, having taken up a tract of rich land in the vicinity of Ballarat, where they eventually established their home at Ercildoune, and formed with infinite care a stud of Merino sheep, the original of which were purchased from Mr. Kermode, of Tasmania. This flock laid down the foundation of many of the most valuable flocks of Victoria of the present day, and as time went on its rams were widely distributed throughout New South Wales. Early in 1865 the Messrs. Learmonth, together with their younger brother, Andrew, purchased Groongal from Messrs. Harvey ad Cockburn, and Bringagee, from Messrs. Harvey and Alleyne. These properties, situated on the northern banks of the Murrumbidgee, about midway between Narrandera and Hay, were (with Benerembah), originally taken up in the fifties by a Mr. O’Brien, of Yass, and consisted of about 35,000 acres of land held under lease from the Crown. The first manager of the property under the Learmonths was Mr. McLarty, the father of Mr. Donald McLarty, the present manager of Bundure. In 1870 Mr. George Mair was appointed manager, and remained in that position until the early nineties. Under Mr. Mair’s management, 310,000 acres of land were secured and made freehold in one solid block, and improvements were pushed on and the stock continually improved, large numbers of stud rams and stud ewes being sent up from Ercildoune. The country consists of rich plains, interspersed with sand ridges covered with Murray pine, and well sheltered with myall and kooba trees, and clumps of other timber, and has a long frontage to the River Murrumbidgee. Water is obtainable anywhere by means of wells, the water rising to a uniform depth of from 70 to 80 ft. from the surface, and in addition to wells there are a large number of tanks and dams. In 1889, Mr. Somerville Learmonth having died, his trustees resolved to withdraw his share from the partnership, and the then Learmonth Bros. decided to dissolve partnership, and Groongal was divided into three blocks, each of them having a frontage to the river and extending north about thirty miles. These three blocks were known as Groongal, Wyvern, and Bringagee. The partners then drew lots for them. Groongal fell to Somerville’s estate, Wyvern to Andrew’s, and Bringagee to Thomas. The latter property was sold only last year (1910) by Mr. Thomas Learmonth’s trustees to Mr. Albert Austin of Wanganella. Groongal remained the sole property of the estate of Mr. Somerville Learmonth until 1906, when the then owners, the children of the late Mr. Somerville Learmonth decided to join with Messrs. Mair and Learmonth in their Queensland and New South Wales properties, and the Groongal Pastoral Company Ltd. was formed, as the amalgamation of the two interests. The estate still bears out its original reputation as a sheep breeding country. Its stud flock was in the early eighties added to by the purchase of judiciously selected Tasmanian rams, and later by the purchase from Wanganella of a number of very fine stud rams. The sheep are large-framed and plain-bodied, carrying heavy fleeces of excellent quality, and the wool always realizes high prices. There is also a high-class herd of stud Shorthorns, which has been constantly kept up to the mark by the purchase of highest-class sires from the leading herds. Imported cattle were also included in the purchase of the estate in 1865. Groongal has long been well known for the excellence of its horse, Melbourne by Panic, Homer by Delhi – Poetess, Vengeur, by Chandos – First Lady and Vino by Haut Brion – Miss Westbourne (imp.), being amongst those that have been used. The draught horses are also a very excellent lot.

Corona, an area of some 600 odd square miles, one of the firm’s properties, is situated in the Mitchell district of Queensland, and was purchased by Messrs. George and James Muir in 1881 from the Peel River Land and Mineral Company, and two years later a one-third share was sold to Mr. S. R. Livingstone-Learmonth. At that time, that part of Queensland was quite undeveloped, almost the whole of the country being occupied by cattle. On the purchase of the property steps were immediately taken to dispose of the cattle and improve the country for sheep. In 1896, Silsoe, a property adjoining Corona, was purchased, and has since been worked in conjunction with Corona. A portion of Corona and Silsoe has been resumed by the Government, and is occupied by grazing farmers, but there still remains a solid block of 348,000 acres including about 62,000 acres purchased land, one of the best properties in the famous Mitchell district. Burra, which was purchased by Messrs. Mair and Learmonth, is also one of the firm’s properties, and is a fine estate situated on the highlands in the Tumbarumba district, N.S.W. When purchased some thirteen years ago it was in a very rough state, and a large sum of money has been spent in improving the place. It is now well improved, consisting of rich balsatic and granite lands, and, with about a 40 in. rainfall will no doubt become a great potato and dairying country.

Irrigation In The Early Days. (By A. S. Kenyon, C. E., in “Journal of Agriculture.”) Excerpt – Footnote by the Hon. Geo. Graham, M.L.A., Minister of Agriculture and Water Supply.) I do not think the name of Messrs. Learmonth Bros., of Ercildoune, should be omitted from any list of early irrigators in Victoria. As far back as 1860, Mr. Thomas Learmonth prepared a piece of land about 1½ acres in extent, and, after carefully grading the same, had it planted with lucerne. He watered it by gravitation from a large reservoir situated on a hill at the back of the station, and irrigated with a system of mitre drains about 9 feet apart. To my personal knowledge he supplied a daily ration of lucerne to over 200 pigs for five months in the year from this small plot. I saw the crop growing in February, 1861, when they were just preparing to take off the fourth cutting, and the lucerne was from 18 inches to 2 feet high. What Mr. Kenyon has stated with regard to Mr. Ricardo is perfectly correct, as I had the information from Mr Ricardo himself many years ago. Mr. Ricardo was a very advanced and enthusiastic agriculturist, and was one of the very first men who purchased land in the Ballarat district for farming purposes.

Supplement to “The Ballarat Star” 13 December 1912
Recollections of the First Introduction of Trout to the Ponds at “Ercildoune Estate.” Burrumbeet, Near Ballarat. Note – The following article is written specially for the Ballarat “Star” and “Stock and Station Annual,” by Mr Tom Fisher, of the Hatcheries at Sir Samuel Wilson’s Ercildoune Estate. Excerpt – “The first English trout were brought here by the Messrs. Learmonth, about 1872, before Sir Samuel Wilson became the owner of Ercildoune. They secured a hundred fry from the first trout ova successfully treated in Victoria, and liberated them in three dams at their Homestead. Just previous to this they also had Murray cod brought from the Murray and liberated in Lake Burrumbeet, and a few were kept on Ercildoune. Two men were employed in this undertaking, and started overland from the Murray with probably 100 young cod, less than a pound weight each; these were conveyed in iron tanks of water, which were kept fresh from supplies obtainable at different creeks en route. After a very slow journey they arrived at Ercildoune with 40 live fish. Thirty of these were liberated in Lake Burrumbeet, where they survived for many years…

Burrumbeet Light Horse Camp. The 17th Australian Light Horse Brigate finished their course of training at Burrumbeet on Thursday 19th ult. Four regiements of light horse were in camp, viz., the 17th, 19th, 20th and 29th, as well as various detachments of the Army Service Corps, Army Medical Corpts, Signallers and Engineers, a squad of the latter being attached to the brigade headquarters. It was originally intended to hold the camp at Trawalla, but Burrumbeet was substituted at the last moment…

Some narrative supplied by Mr G. Dobson, junr. Re Henry Dobson, a native of Northumberland. He landed in Adelaide in 1852, and immediately came out to Ballarat, where gold digging was the lure. Mr Dobson had considerable experience of mining, being engaged in coal mnes in the north country, and being early on the field was fairly successful. He had as a mate Dick Mitchell, who afterwards built the famous Mitchell’s buildings, in Sturt street, Ballarat, and now occupied by Snow, the draper. With bright prospects, Mr Dobson brought his wife and three children from Adelaide the following year. Mr Dobson was an unwilling witness of the famous fight, at the Eureka Stockade, for believing that the cause was hopeless, he refused to join the other miners when asked to do so and stayed in his tent during the night. So keenly was the fight contested that if he so much as struck a match bullets whistled through the tent. After this he worked in the gravel pits for three years, when he selected a block of land and left for Burrumbeet in 1856. Strikes were a well known feature in England even in those days and were mainly responsible for Mr Dobson immigrating to Australia.

Stock and Station Notes. By Hendleby. Ercildoune. Of all the interesting homes in Victoria, I do not know of one which can supass Ercildoune, not only by reason of the part played by those who settled here in the first instance, the Messrs. Learmonth, but also in consequence of all that was subsequently done here on behalf of the pastoral industry and of the State itself by the late Sir Samuel Wilson, and in their turn by his executors. Ercildoune may not longer control the destinies of other flocks, or supply the material upon which the wool industry of Victoria still continues to be built, but, nevertheless, it is still an honoured name in all that belongs to matters piscatorial… In 1873, the property having been purchased by Sir Samuel Wilson, the stud was placed under the control of the late Mr. Jonathan Shaw, and everything seemed to prosper until a few years after the introduction of American blood.

Paper Water Pipes. Sir, In “The Leader” of 4th May I read with interest a note by R. E. Luther, B.A., about an ancient piece of paper pipe unearthed on his ground. In early days I had seen many of these pipes used by Thomas Learmouth here on Ercildoune. They were known to us as “pitch and paper” pipes. The paper was held in place by pitch, each pipe was about 9 feet long and 4 inches in diameter. They were fastened together by a ferrule about 8 inches long, which had a hole in the side, through which hot cement was poured. This mixture was largely composed of sulphur, made up in flat grey bricks, and had to be melted very carefully over a fire in an iron pot, being inflammable and very sulphry when it happened to get alight. It made an excellent joint, quite as hard as Portland cement, and I believe, if my memory serves me right, was called bitumen, but I am not certain. My later father, who was blacksmith here for Messrs. Learmonth, laid many hundred of yards of these pipes, as it was the first method they had of conveying water to the old Homestead, which was over half a mile from a spring. As a boy I used to find great interest in watching the boiling mixture of cement, and also in melting the pitch to see it smoke. There was no doubt about the durability of these pipes, which also stood a fair amount of water pressure. Some twenty odd years after the first was laid they were taken up, and were quite as sound as when put down, the only defect being in those near the surface where they were liable to get overheated in summer if not in use with water. As far as I recollect, the Learmonths brought them from England, and I fancy they were made either in England or Holland. That would be probably some time in the year 1852 or earlier. I don’t imagine that they were imported from China. I clearly recall that the cement blocks had the name of some town in England stamped on them, and when the pipes were new they were each rolled in rope made of straw, and filled with loose straw. This, I suppose, was to keep them from softening while passing through the tropical heat in the old sailing ships then used. Trusting this may be of some slight interest. Yours, &c., Tom Fisher. “The Hatcheries, Ercildoune,” 24th June.

Dots and Dashes. (By “Nomad.”) The Chancellor of the British Exchequer is admittedly in financial difficulties, but England is nevertheless not going to be “mingy” with her war leaders. In accordance with established precedent from the day of Marlborough to that of Wellington, and even into those of Napier, Roberts, and Kitchener, peerages and Parliamentary grants to support them were being served round. Australians even are grumbling that General Birdwood is only getting a baronetcy, with a proportionate grant. They seem to overlook the fact that everybody does not hanker after a seat in the House of Lords, and that a peerage without a big estate is something like a tin kettle attached to a dog’s tail. It makes a good deal of clatter, but is a serious encumbrance. There are no Dukes in this deal; and even if Kitchener had survived, a dukedom to an elderly bachelor would have been a barren honour. But among the peerages, there is one which deserves special remembrance, in that it is a sort of fulfillment of the eight centuries old prediction of True Thomas Learmonth – Thomas the Rhymer of Ercildoune. Field Marshal Haig’s family is as old, historically, as the laird of Ercildoune, who was deprived of the privilege of lying during his seven-year sojourn in fairyland, and who thus prophesized:

Betide, betide, whate’er betide,
Haig shall be Haig of Bemerside.

The estate is in the family still and the Field Marshal is now Lord Haig of Bemerside.

Historic Ercildoune. Famous Estate Changes Ownership. Early Associations Recalled. By M. McCallum. Excerpts – The news briefly chronicled in “The Star” a few days ago that the famous Ercildoune Estate, near Burrumbeet, had passed from the control of the executors of the late Sir Samuel Wilson to the possession of Major H. Alan Currie, M.C., was learned with pleasure. It means that a citizen of a very fine type will be brought into the Ballarat district, and the fact that the homestead will be occupied by the Major and his family will mean a revival of social life on the estate that had long since become almost extinct, although Mr. Purcell, who had managed the estate for the executors, for many years, had proved a likeable host. Another pleasing feature of the change in ownership is the prospect of practically all the profits that will be derived from the Currie-owned portion of the estate remaining in Victoria, instead of going to absentee beneficiaries in the old country. There will be about 5000 acres cut up for soldier settlement, which is another desirable result of the sale of the property.

Probably no pastoral property has more interesting associations than Ercildoune, which was one of the earliest centres of habitation in Victoria. The early history of “old” Ercildoune is, to some extent, the early history of that portion of the State over which some of the pioneer explorers roamed 10 or 12 years before the discovery of gold attracted so many thousands to the district. The reference to the famous estate as ”old Ercildoune” should, perhaps be qualified. It would be more appropriate to describe it as “new Ercildoune,” for it is named after Ercildoune in Scotland, that old keep on the Scottish border with which the name of Thomas the Rhymer is associated. The rhymer was an ancestor of the borthers, Thomas Livingstone Learmonth and Somerville Livingstone Learmonth, who, were the earliest whites to inhabit the locality, and whose name is perpetuated by the township of earmonth, about half-way between Ercildoune and Ballarat. To the people of the district it is affectionately known as “Old Ercildoune,” because it was taken up by the Learmonths not long after the Hentys settled in Victoria…

Known to Sportsman. Ercildoune is in a beautiful situation and is favourably known by anglers, for the stream, which passes through the estate has been kept well stocked with fish for many years. The district was the home of a large tribe of aborigines, and many corroborees were held there. Sir Samuel Wilson spent most of his period, as owner of Ercildoune in England, attracted there no doubt by the glamour of high official and social life. He became M.P. for Portsmouth, and gained entry to the highest aristocratic circles. His eldest son, the late Colonel Gordon Chesney Wilson, married Lady Sarah Churchill, daughter of the seventh Duke of Marlborough, and aunt of the Right Hon. Winston Churchill…

Chirnsides of the Werribee. Story of Eighty Years By W. H. Lang. Excerpt – By 1837 land had already been taken up on the Barwon, as far as forty miles from Geelong, and its occupier was one Ricketts. Mr. George Russell settled on the Moorabool, within twelve miles of Corio Bay, as manager for the Clyde company, assisted by Mr. D. Fisher. Dr. Alexander Thompson, maternal grandfather of Mr. Alexander Thompson Creswick, of this city – and a good many other places – also secured land in the neighbourhood, at the falls on the Barwon, while Mr. Darke occupied a portion of the Boorabool Hills. The Manifolds took up some land near the Werribee, stretched away out west to Colac, and then spread themselves, with their flocks and herds to where they dwell to-day. Messrs. Reid, Learmonth, Anderson, and Yuille explored Buninyong and Burrumbeet, and while the Learmonths left an indelible monument to their name in Ercildoune, Yuille squatted at Buninyong. Bacchus, whose memory is kept alive by the exceedingly prosperous Bacchus Marsh, also appeared on the scene, and by 1841, so urgent was the thirst for land, that Thomas Chirnside had taken up a large area of country as far back as the Wannon, and was in possession at Mt. William, which he had reached by “running heel” on the tracks which Mitchell had left when traversing, “Australia Felix.”

The Ercildoune Lagoons. Within the last few weeks there have ben many references, both in “Bush Notes” of “The Australasian” and “Nature Notes” of “The Argus,” to the lakes and lagoons about Ercildoune, that famous estate pioneered by the Learmonth family, afterwards owned by Sir Samuel Wilson and his family, and now the home of Major Alan Currie. It is appropriate that these references to Ercildoune and its surroundings should have appeared in a column with Mr. Donald Macdonald’s name at the head of it, because his grand-father was the first white man to discover Ercildoune and to claim it for the Learmonths by putting sheep on it. Having been born on Ercildoune, and living the greater part of a lifetime there, I know something of the lakes and lagoons which surround it, from Burrumbeet out to Learmonth. I read with interest some recent notes by “Galtee More” on the movements of trout, perch, and eels in the little creek, which formerly linked up the Ercildoune lagoons with Burrumbeet. Since “Galtee More” saw it, some 15 years ago, this water-way has practically disappeared, owing to repeated breakaway in the dam which formed the Cockpit Lagoon, a favourite home of fish and fowl in former days. There was no finer haunt for waterfowl in all the west than the Cockpit, and it is rather a pity that the dams have not be repaired or renewed, because it might still be a wonderful wildfowl sanctuary and nesting-ground, apart from the practical pint, that it ensures a permanent water supply throughout the year for the soldier settlers, so many of whom are now established in the country round about it. The Cockpit was always a famous lagoon for fish, and perch especially seemed to do particularly well in it. While they dwarfed in other waters, there was always large fish in the Cockpit. Only a few years ago an angler could depend on bags of perch ranging in weight from 2lb. to 4lb., and few little fish were ever got in it. From 50 to 60 perch was an average catch for a few hours fishing. On one afternoon not so long ago we caught 80 perch in a few hours, using nothing but a heavy brass spinning minnow. With the recurrence of floods each winter, there was a regular overflow of these large perch from the Cockpit to the wide waters of Burrumbeet, which was being constantly restocked, to the great advantage of fishermen. Although great numbers of trout fry were liberated in this lagoon from the Ercildoune hatcheries every year, it was singular that very few of the fish were ever caught. Either the food supply was so abundant that they refused all baits, or the perch, as well as the cormorants and water rats which were particularly numerous may have taken heavy toll of them. About the time “Galtee More” mentions a heavy flood burst, one of the large dams some miles higher up amongst the foot-hills, and great number of large rainbow and brown trout were swept down over the valley, which would account for the 6½lb fish seen in the creek, which from that time onward was no longer a regular waterway. The Cockpit found a new outlet beyond Callender Hill, and through part of Langi-Kal-Kal station, to the western side of Burrumbeet. That older creek had always-fine perch fishing, for they worked up it in great numbers from Burrumbeet, only to be stopped at length by the high floodgates of the Cockpit. During the drought of 1914, Burrumbeet became practically a mud bed, in which vast numbers of fine trout and perch perished, the eels alone surviving until the rains of the following winter. Afterwards the lake refilled, was again stocked with perch from Ercildoune, but the fishing has never been quite as good since, though when you do happen upon a shoal, good bags are occasionally got. The lake has been constantly raided too by great numbers of cormorants and pelicans, which increased steadily in numbers during the years of the war. With his exaggerated bill – or fish scoop – the pelican out of the water looks a solemn and stupid bird, but there is method as well as intelligence in his ways of fishing of which the drive is the favourite plan. I have watched hundreds of pelicans at work in one of these drives, the birds forming themselves into a long crescent, and with splashing and flapping, driving the shoals of perch before them into the shallow margins and there catching them in great numbers. The cormorants work occasionally in somewhat similar formation, and are even more destructive. The great numbers of minnow which “Galtee More” mentioned have, to a great extent disappeared, not only from these waters, but also in all the waterways of the West, their numbers are greatly diminished. One reason why Burrumbeet is not so well stocked with fish as in former years, is that apart from the Ercildoune supply being practically cut off, the lake has few of those weed-beds which are the usual spawning place for perch. Both the ova and the young fry are exposed, and must be taken in great numbers by seagulls, which resort there in flocks during the months of October and November, as well as by herons and other waders and water-birds still fairly numerous. In marked contrast with Burrumbeet, is the condition of things at Lake Learmonth in the same region. This lake has never gone dry, and is well supplied both in water and fish from cold springs and dams connected with it, and has, in addition, a good spawning surface of its own. Its natural resources that way are so great indeed as to be a disadvantage. There are too many perch, far too many, in Learmonth, and as a result they have in late years so greatly shrunk in size as to be no longer worth catching. One may get a hundred in a day, and not one fish amongst them worth keeping. It is rather curious that these two lakes should offer just the same contrast with trout as with perch. The first English trout were liberated in Learmonth over 40 years ago, and my records for the Ercildoune hatchery show that during the 15 years ending 1919, I turned down over 60,000 trout fry, the greater proportion of which were rainbow, in its waters. The trout fishing has always been good in Learmonth; quite recently fine fish have been taken from it, all in the best condition. So that, while the perch dwarf in the struggle for existence, trout in the same waters keep their size – and not, I am convinced, by preying upon the redfins. One hears of the destruction of native fishes by trout, and it may happen indirectly in competition for the same food, but in a life’s experience in catching thousands of trout, and always examining the stomach contents as an indicator of their food and feeding habits, I have never found a single native fish in the stomach of even the largest trout, although frequently small fish of his own kind. In the period just mentioned, Burrumbeet had even a more liberal stocking, yet few good trout are taken there now by anglers.

It is a curious fact that although new waters had been formed for them, the eels never in all the years changed their route of penetration, even to artificial lagoons and dams, which originally may not have existed. They went down the little creek mentioned by Galtee More on the way to the sea, but never, as far as my thirty years of observation indicate, did the elvers, or eel fares come up that way. Ascending the Emu Creek they passed into the Horseshoe lagoon on Langi-Kal-Kal, thence by a little creek running behind Mount Misery up to a natural lagoon on a tableland of the divide, which was the limit of their northward movement. From this lagoon they found their way along a channel leading through the series of Ercildoune lagoons and artificial lakes, down to the Cockpit, Burrumbeet, and the Emu Creek again. One could see the gradual increase in size, which marked the progress of their life cycle and life circle from sea to sea by this regular roundabout route. Thus the largest eels of all – some of them running in my experience up to 11lb. in weight, were always got in the Cockpit lagoon, their last halting place before the impulse to spawn carried them off to the sea again. In reaching the high level lagoon they had to pass over difficult country, taking advantage no doubt of exceptionally wet seasons to do it. Latterly drainage and settlement has interfered considerably with their ancient waterway, and while eels are still fairly numerous in the lower waters between Trawalla and Ercildoune, not nearly so many of them, I think, now win a way through to the higher elevations. With trout stocking practically discontinued and the abolition of the old Ercildoune hatchery, the trout supply in lakes like Burrumbeet and Learmonth may be expected to diminish gradually, leaving these waters chiefly to eels and perch.

Mention of Mount Misery in connection with the Emu Creek eel routes reminds me that I have often heard some curiosity expressed as to why it should be considered miserable. It is just the consequence as so often happens of one uncomfortable night. A small part of pioneers composed of the two Learmonths, with John Aitken, A. Anderson, and W. C. Yuille, when out on one of their exploring excursions, spend a most unpleasant night under this highest peak of the Mount Beckwith ranges, and named it Mount Misery before they were fairly warm again next morning. “I cannot but regret,” wrote Thomas Learmonth long afterwards, “that the finest landmark thereabout should continue to bear a foolish name that originated in a thoughtless moment.” Far better named, for its association, is The Rhymer, the high hill overlooking Ercildoune, for it stands as a memorial to “Thomas the Rhymer”, one of the Learmonth ancestors well known in Scottish history.

Willows from St. Helena. To the Editor of the Argus. Sir, A correspondent some time ago asked whether it was true that many of the willows in Victoria came from cuttings of the willows around Napoleon’s grave in St. Helena. Years ago Mr. Thomas Learmonth, who founded Ercildoune Station, near Ballarat, told me that when the ship chartered by himself and his brothers, stopped for water at St. Helena they went to the tomb and cut “walking sticks” from the willows there, and these they kept alive and finally planted round the lake at Ercildoune, where the fine trees are still to be seen. I have always understood that cuttings from these trees were taken and planted along the banks of the Yarra. Mr. Learmonth arrived at Port Phillip on April 1, 1837. – Yours, &c., M. Malvern, Nov. 2.

The Australian Home Beautiful 1 February 1929
Some Notable Australian Homes. No. 1 – “Ercildoune,” the residence of Major and Mrs. Alan Currie. By Frank Walker. Ninety years ago the western half of Victoria was an unexplored field – a field ripe for adventure, full of promise for those gifted with the vision to foresee, and the hardiness to pursue, the magic lure of untold wealth lying in the folds of its hills, spread over its open plains, and hidden beneath the soil in its rich quartz veins. Adventures come to the adventurous, and the first of the pioneers may well have sought adventure for adventure’s sake. These hardy young men could scarcely have imagined the rapidity with which civilization was to come crowding upon their difficult and toilsome steps, and that in a few short years the discovery of gold was to turn a pastoral holding into an Eldorado such as their most sanguine dreams would never have foretold. Adventures they had in plenty, and they were coupled with hardships, which we of today, with our good roads and rapid transport, can scarcely conceive. Pioneers are of two types: Your restless adventurer whose vision lies always just over the hill, just beyond the horizon: who hears the call and feels the resistless urge to go on and on, blazing the trail, viewing the promised land, but never occupying it. And the other, the builder who follows the dreamer: who occupies the land, builds its habitation, and in time goes on establishes a home and an industry. When in 1836 Mr Livingstone Learmonth took possession of that stretch of country, which he named Ercildoune, he showed himself the possessor of wonderful knowledge of the possibilities of the place, and later manifested his genuine love of the country when those possibilities were put to such admirable use. From the very first, a wise discrimination was shown in the general layout of the property, the choosing of the site for the Homestead, the generous planting of trees, and the making of roads. So much so that as time went on and wants increased, none of the original work needed to be discarded, the continued improvements being rather an amplification of what had already served so well. The careful foresight proved of great value when the house came to be built. The situation is almost ideal. The house stands on a slight eminence overlooking the fertile valley to the south. To the north behind the building the ground rises first in gentle slopes covered with fine timber, then more abruptly to an imposing tor of granite, with its rugged outcrop of huge boulders towering aloft above the trees. On the east side a clear running stream has made possible the beautification of a garden, one feature of which is an extensive lake. This lake links up with a series of ponds, connected with the hatcheries from which so many of our trout streams have been stocked. To a lover of nature the trees of his homeland will ever make a great appeal. Some of our noblest avenues had their small beginnings in plants and seedlings carefully nurtured through the long voyage that lay between the old country and Australia in the early days. With the passion for planting shared by so many of his fellow countrymen, Mr Learmonth planted generously, and planted well. The truly magnificent avenue of cedar and pine trees, the Scotch firs and larches, the yews with their sombre stateliness, the cedars of Lebanon, the many towering pines, and branching oaks and elms, all set out in profusion about wide-spreading lawns, combine to make a surrounding to the house and garden arresting in its beauty. The inspiration of an artist must have suggested the retaining of the natural features of the place, and mingling them with the exotic to grow together in so happy a combination. The pittosporums, bunyahs, blackwoods, and acacias grow along with the trees of the old world. The fine old gum trees make a splendid foil and protection to their planted neighbours, and carry the garden out beyond all bounds into the open country. The boulders of granite, which give the hill its rugged outline have been hewn out and dressed into shape for building the house. With its thick walls and massive tower, its high pitched roofs, tall chimneys and battlemented parapets, it is reminiscent of Scotland’s feudal days; but the granite is from the nearby hills, the bricks and tiles are of Australian clay, and the water flows from the creek which is fed so freely from the hills beyond. A house never so truly belongs as when it is built of what lies about it, and the judicious use of local materials has been a considerable factor. The granite of which the house is built is of a warm grey and silver tone. The building stands out in sharp relief against a forest of pine and fir trees, and when a shaft of sunlight catches the walls they gleam like silver against their velvety green background. In front of the house are wide lawns set with gold elms, copper beeches, fine oak trees and venerable cedars and firs. The big flower-beds are gay with hollyhocks and lupins, delphiniums, phloxes, lilies and antirrhinums. The lake, starred with water lilies, is to the east of the lawn, and beyond this lies the rose garden. Towards the west is the croquet lawn, and here an interesting feature is an old well-head, which was excavated in Palestine and brought in perfect preservation to its new abode. It is the colour of desert sand, with a peculiar mottled surface and a texture like marble. The hand wrought iron hoist is of ecclesiastical design, and would have been quite at home in the garden of an old monastery. Around the croquet lawn are some stone figures, which might well have come from Holland with William and Mary. They are very quaint, and their old world air is in keeping with the formal treatment of this part of the garden. Beyond the Dutch garden a finely wrought iron gate gives access to the walled garden. Massive granite walls of great height make a perfect shelter for the growth of flowers. They bloom in profusion on every side. Great border of delphiniums and larkspur, floxgloves, hollyhocks. lilies, roses, antirrhinums, scabious and verbenas. Climbing roses, vines and fruit trees are trained against the stone-walls, from which their blossoms hand in countless beautiful sprays. This walled garden is divided into three parts by close-clipped cypress hedges. Wide arches cut in the hedge lead from one enclosure to another, and the vistas through the archways across the lawn with its stone sundial are very satisfying. When approaching the house it is interesting to notice over the porch the date 1838 carved in the keystone of the arch. The porch is tiled with black and white marble and leads directly into the entrance hall. The hall is well lighted and the oak parquetry floor is a good foil to the richly coloured Persian rugs. At the far end, a curtained archway leads to a lofty circular recess, with the balustrade of the upper landing showing around it. From the glass roof of the upper floor the light shines down upon a grouping of hothouse plants and flowers, and brings into prominence a bronze Chinese lantern of great size hanging under the dome. To the left access to the upper floor is by a staircase of a kind associated with old Georgian houses.

From Other Lands. The photograph conveys some idea of the interest that lies in the hall. On the walls are pictures and engravings of historic value. Paintings of Villiers-Bretonneux and Ypres are associated with events so recent as to have lost none of their tragic significance. Trophies of the Great War are assembled beneath Wylie’s vivid painting – simple memorials of a great sacrifice. Here is the head of a rhinoceros shot in Africa, and here a heavy twofold screen made from rhinoceros hide – the panels resembling petrified wood, are of such weight and rigidity that they stand along without support or frame. Through the glass doors under the staircase is a delightful vista into a courtyard framed in green. On the first landing are some tall marble vases and urns of uncommon merit, and from the long corridor above the bedrooms open. The drawing room is of good proportions, the dominant impression being of light and colour. The ceiling is ivory-coloured, and the walls are the mellow tint of vellum. A thick pile carpet of leaf-green covers the whole of the floor, and is in pleasing accord with the beautiful old watered silk green curtains at the windows. The embrasures of the windows and the sashes are painted white, and there are white blinds. This unusual treatment results in a soft radiation of light from the windows, which is extremely delicate in tone. Colour and life are introduced in the richly tinted furnishings and fabrics and the many beautiful objects the room contains. The sofas and chairs are covered with a rose-flowered chintz on a ground of ivory white. Bowls and vases of flowers shading from rich rose to pale pink are on every hand. A magnificent Chinese screen in a warm rose and copper and gold lacquer is a rare specimen of an almost extinct art. Gilded Chippendale mirrors, a Chippendale cabinet filled with the rarest of Chinese china, pieces of Royal Crown Derby china, exquisite ivories, miniatures, coloured prints, books and photographs are assembled in delightful profusion. Charm is an elusive quality, but it has certainly been captured in this room. In the dining room are the old rose silk brocade curtains, which have been there for many years, and the carpet of the same lovely colour. The walls have been papered in harmony, and this rosy interior forms an appropriate setting for fine pieces of Chippendale and Sheraton furniture. The mahogany regimental dining table is of unusual design, and the chairs are perfect specimens of the craftsman’s art. The silver sporting trophies have their stores to tell of hard-earned victories, and on the walls are paintings of horses of renown, among them Pyrrhus II, one of the earliest of Derby winners, painted by Barraud about 1848. The library is obviously the room of a busy man. It is designed primarily for work – also for the rest, which pleases so greatly after toil. The walls are lined with books housed in Sheraton cases of mahogany. A beautiful effect is produced by the orange light, across the green and clay coloured carpet, the whole room lighting up with a glow of warmth and colour.

Preserving the Traditions. Passing from room to room, one is impressed by the way in which the traditions of Ercildoune have been maintained. Its history is told in the pictures on the walls, the books and records in the library, the beautiful furnishings of the rooms – their different periods bearing witness to the many changes of style and fashion which have come about during the lifetime of the house – and in the glorious garden with its venerable trees and evidence of generations of loving care. The best of each period has been cherished with freshness, and a beauty of life and colour, which blends into an all-pervading atmosphere of serenity.

Early Associations. There is a great sentimental interest in the tour of Victorian and Tasmanian pastoral runs which is being undertaken by Mr. J. Livingstone Learmonth who has been spending some nights under the roof of the old Ercildoune near Ballarat, now governed by Major H. Alan Currie. This particular Learmonth, whose surname goes down to posterity through the nearby hamlet Learmonth, is a member of the Ballarat Learmonths who owned much of the land thereabouts before the gold-diggers rooted it up. Thus J. L. Learmonth must have had mixed feelings as he moved about the historic old Homestead, which with its bluestone façade and parapet, is a reminder of the feudal castles of the old world. The Learmonths trace their ancestry back to Thomas the Rhymer, described by Sir Walter Scott, who lived at Ercildoune, near the English border. The younger Learmonth is now in the Tasmanian haunts of his forebears, who helped to colonise Van Diemen’s Land before Tasman’s name was bestowed upon it. (*The author of this article didn’t realize that the building material used was granite, not bluestone!)

‘Ercildoune’ A Home That Breathes of Old England. Much has been heard of Ercildoune, the country home of Major and Mrs. H. Alan Currie, but it has been given to comparatively few to set eyes on the place, which occupies a secluded vale one and a quarter miles back from a lane into which merges the branch roads from Lakes Burrumbeet and Learmonth, and is about 17 miles from Ballarat. It was the ideal spot for the “quiet day in the country.” Ercildoune is tucked away at the foot of the rugged slopes of Mt. Ercildoune, so named by the original explorers and settlers, the Learmonth brothers, after their old keep on the Scottish side of the border, where an ancestor, Thomas the Rhymer, existed centuries ago. Its luxurious splendor, can only be imagined by the wayfarer. But as one nears the end of the long winding avenue Ercildoune takes shape. Its grey turrets are glimpsed through the fast yellowing treetops. One cannot but be inspired by the scene as it unfolds itself. It is a paradise on earth. An imposing castellated stone mansion rises in the heart of a garden that would make Toorak’s best look ridiculous. From the terrace one beholds a panoramic vista of leafy drives, winding about miniature lakelets, smothered by water lilies, of twisting, irregular fern-bordered ways and wide-sweeping verdant sward; a fern glade hiding behind a rustic bridge; a rose garden opening up by way of a picturesque path, along which stalks a proud peacock; a rose garden that would make Alister Clark envious only that this ardent rosarian helped to stock the beds; and a succession of walled gardens linked up with rustic arches set in high stone walls. Straightaway an English atmosphere is felt. Fig trees and vines alternate in a tenacious grip of the stone ramparts; roses and roses combine to produce a wealth of color within their domain; massed blooms of begonia and salvia bonfire vie with each other in a desire to run riot with colors in general; trails of wisteria ornament a sundial on the central lawn, and midget gentlemen of Old England, guarded in olden style, abound in counterfeit stone, surrounding a raised well made of the most ancient stone that the Holy Land has known.

Many notable people have sampled the hospitality of the Curries during their six years occupancy of Ercildoune. Vice-regal personages have been there several times. No doubt if testimonials were asked of them, the Earl and Countess of Stradbroke, Lord and Lady Forster and Lord and Lady Stonehaven would readily comply, and would say how greatly they enjoyed their stay at the ancient and stately home. Many lesser folk also have par-taken of the good things of Ercildoune. They all appraise highly the charming hospitality of the hostess. It is of Albert Miller that Mrs. Currie is second daughter, and her marriage with Major H. Alan Currie, M.C., linked her with another old Victorian family, one-time head of which was the late J. L. Currie, of Lara, a Camperdown pioneer, of whom Alan is one. The oldest Victorian Homestead could not have fallen into better hands.

Visit to Ercildoune. By Snowden. Excerpts – Rich in memories of the early days of Victorian pastoral and gold-mining development is the Ballarat district, and one of the most historic landmarks is Ercildoune, the home of Mr. H. Alan Currie. Ercildoune now covers about 8,000 acres, on which are run sheep, cattle, and thoroughbred horses. The original holding taken up by the Learmonth brothers comprised a very much larger area, but with the development of the then colony and now State, subdivision of the old pastoral holdings was a natural corollary. Last week I had the pleasure of a visit to Ercildoune, and as the motor-car was speeding through the long avenue, more than a mile in length, of great spreading pine trees from the outer gate to the entrance gates of the homestead proper, one’s mind irresitibily turned to throughts of what an interesting human story those old trees could tell had they but tongues. How many proud stepping horses have been ridden or drawn coaches, gigs, and other conveyances along that avenue in the last 70 years; and what conversations have taken place there in that span of a man’s lifetime. The period of the gold fever, when Ballarat (or is it not correctly Ballaarat) was a household or camphold word in the new land, and its mention, a magnet to many in the old world; the time of the “squatting” of the pastoralists; both industries giving rise to the activities of those misguided gentry the bushrangers. No doubt many others have veneration for old trees as much as I have. The wireless waves now beat through them, but some of them have been “hearing” the world for countless generations. The old pines are but youngsters to those ancient gum trees, which saw the coming of the Learmonths to Ercildoune. The Learmonths brought in pots the pines, planes, elms, and other now stalwart trees.

Ercildoune is a storehouse of historic treasures of the old days, and Mr. Currie showed me many relics of the old place, and also regaled me with stories, grave and gay, relating to it. Mr. Currie, by the way, is a cousin of the late Dr. Lang, whose love for the border country in the homeland is well known to the readers of “The Australasian.” The Learmonths, or at least their ancestors, were “Borderers.” Thomas, Andrew, and Somerville Learmonth were sons of a very early Tasmanian settler who came from India. The three Learmonth brothers came from Tasmania to Mount Buninyong (V.) in 1837, and established their homestead there. They then marked out the open country, which they saw from the top of the hill, and they marked a furrow around Lake Burrumbeet to the Beaufort ranges, thence to Mount Mitchell and back to Buninyong. In this area was included practically the whole of the now City of Ballarat. The tract of country taken up by the three brothers was about 400 square miles. After being at Buninyong for a year they decided to place their homestead in a more central situation, and moved to the present site in 1838 (which date is cared in the keystone of the doorway of Ercildoune), and called the place Ercildoune after the town in the border country of Scotland, where their ancestor, Thomas the Rhymer lived. When I approached the front of Ercildoune, I noticed on the right of the front of the main building an ivy-covered tower about 10ft. square. This tower is the replica of that belonging to Thomas the Rhymer. Andrew Learmonth built Ercildoune to his own plans, and the old ivy covered granite buildings has a peaceful old world charm of its own, peculiarly soothing and refreshing to the senses.

Curious Coincidence. In 1872 the Learmonths sold the property to Sir Samuel Wilson, and then they acquired large interests in the Argentine, and afterwards in New South Wales. They had several properties in New South Wales, the chief being Groongal, where they made a large fortune. In the Argentine they also accumulated much wealth. As Mr. Currie mentioned this date of the advent of Sir Samuel Wilson to Ercildoune, Melbourne Cup memores of peculiar coincidence drifted through my mind. Thoroughbreds have for generations been bred at Ercildoune, and, so far as the greatest of Australian races is concerned, the best remembered Ercildoune product is Wait-a-bit, who failed by a half a neck to defeat The Grafter for the Melbourne Cup in 1898. Wait-a-bit (by Malua) was bred at Ercildoune in 1893 by Sir Samuel Wilson, and was out of Lucina, bred in 188 by the same breeder… However, to get back to the story of Ercildoune. Owing to the country being infested with bushrangers at the time the building was being erected (the granite was obtained on the property) it was a hard matter to get money safely down to the coast. On one occasion the sovereigns were sewn in a belt on a then 13 year old lad (young Tom) in the expectation that the knights of the road would overlook such a hiding-place. The money reached its destination safely. This and many other incidents are related in letters in Mr. Currie’s possession. On another occasion Ercildoune was “stuck up” by a bushranger and rifled. The scamp then made off through the bush, and one of the Learmonths (Andrew, if my memory of the story has not tricked me) noticed that he was making for Mount Mitchell. Andrew saddled a horse and, taking the shortest route to Mount Mitchell advied the inmates of the probably unwelcome visit. About 1,500 sovereigns, which were in the house, were immediately concealed in a bag of flour. The bushranger duly arrived, but he did not find the money. A day or two later he was overtaken in the hills by some troopers and shot dead.

Ercildoune possesses many magnificent trees, and there is authentic evidence that the willows around the small lakes on the property are slips from some of the willows around Napoleon’s grave at St. Helena, and were brought out by the Learmonths. At the back of the house are two magnificent plane trees. Probably there are no more majestic specimens anywhere in Victoria. They were brought out in pots… I have forgotten to mention that though the Learmonths came from Mount Buninyong to Ercildoune in 1838, the present homestead was not bult until 1853, though its doorway bears the date of the taking up of the holding in 1838. The first dwelling used by them is still in existence. Mr. Currie came to Ercildoune in 1929, his fromer home having been Mount Elephant, in the Western District. Though my chief object in making my visit was to see the thoroughbreds, one fain must admit deriving as much pleasure in wandering about the beautiful old gardens. A perfect delight is an allotment of, I should guess, about an acre and a half surrounded by a sold grey stone wall about 8ft. in height. It is trisected by two splendid cypress lambertiana hedges, about 4ft. or 5ft. thick by about 12ft. in height. Piloted by Mrs Currie, I was charmed with the sight of a lovely rose garden in glorious bloom. Lady Hillingdons, M. Abel Chatenays, K. of K.’s, and a few others I was able to recognize, but Mrs. Currie, a keen flower lover, knew the lot….

Victoria’s Country Towns. Their Rise and Development. History of Ballarat. Excerpts – The first squatters arrived in 1838, and numbered in their front ranks the Learmonth Brothers, of Ercildoune; Wm. Yuille, who gave the names to Yuille’s Swamp, now Lake Wendouree; Winter, of the Bonshaw Estate; Russell of Carngham; Smythe of Smythe’s Creek; Creswick after Russell and Simson; and Darlot also held property there…

Pioneers of Buninyong. The pioneers of Buninyong were George Coleman and George Gab, and the latter’s wife had a favorite horse named Petrel, which she rode astride. T.L. and Somerville L. Learmonth formed a homestead on what came to be known as the Buninyong Gold Mining Co,’s ground in Buninyong…

The Learmonth brothers remained on their runs for many years, then let on a mining lease their pre-emptive property at Buninyong, ventured on mining at Egerton, and sold their Ercildoune run, famous for merino flocks, to Sir Samuel Wilson. In 1847, the Rev. Thomas Hastie, of the Presbyterian Church, and the first clergyman in the district, settled in Buninyong, and through the instrumentatlity of the Learmonths, established a church and school and boardinghouse for children of shepherds and other bush dwellers. The school was opened in 1848…

Ercildoune Stud. Home of the Historic Camden Merino Flock – After Many Wanderings in Two States, by C. J. Craig. “During a recent visit to Victoria, I was afforded the opportunity of visiting the Ercildoune Estate in the Ballarat district, which is now owned by Major Alan Currie. Some time ago, Major Currie purchased the historic Camden merino flock, and the following notes from date supplied by Mr. Rupert Greene, will doubtless be interesting to those engaged in sheep-raising. The history of the Camden merino stud the oldest in Australia, perhaps in the world, may be of interest so students of fine wool sheep breeding, in view of the fact that a bale of wool from the stud was sold by Strachan, Murray, and Shannon, Ltd., in Geelong, on January 26, at 31½d a lb., and that many merino studs trace their origin to this source. The sheep from which the wool referred to was shown are now at Ercildoune near Ballarat, and the breeding flock numbers 130.

Foundation of the Flock. The flock was founded from stock imported from the Cape of Good Hope in 1797; whither a small flock of merino sheep of pure Spanish descent was sent from Holland by the Dutch Government. The stock were brought to Sydney by Captain Waterhouse. Of these, five rams and three ewes became the property of Captain John Macarthur. In 1803, Captain Macarthur visited England, and from Lord Camden and the Government of the day, he received encouragement to pursue the cultivation of fine wool in New South Wales. In 1804 he purchased several ewes and rams at the annual sale of George III’s merino stud at Kew and it is certain from the statement of his son, Sir William Macarthur, in 1866, that there was never any other than the blood of these two lots of sheep in the stud flock at Camden Park. When about to embark for the colony with the sheep purchased from the flock of George III, Captain Macarthur saw a paragraph in the papers stating that it was contrary to law to export sheep from England that subjected any vessel carrying them to forfeiture, and the persons sending the sheep to a fine and other penalties, such as “branding on the hand.” All difficulties were eventually overcome by Lord Camden, however, and two sheep were put on Board.

First Trek to Victoria. The subsequent history of the stud, part of which came to Victoria as told in “Australian Merino Studs.” By “Bruni,” who for sometime before his death wrote pastoral notes in “The Australasian.” In 1846, Mr. William Campbell brought a portion of the Camden stud overland from New South Wales. The sheep numbered 150 ewes and, a few rams. He kept the sheep for a short time at Strathloddon, and afterwards at Towral, near Clunes, where he received a number of rams from the original Camden flock, these being the only sheep added to the stud since Mr. Campbell had obtained his sheep from the parent flock. In 1850, the sheep were moved from Towral back to Strathloddon, but, owing to the gold discovery in 1851, the run was destroyed for pastoral purposes, and the flock was moved to Mt. Hope, where it was under the management of Mr. McDonald, formerly employed at Camden Park. In 1857, Mr. Campbell sold Mt Hope and the stud to Messrs. Griffiths and Greene. Shortly afterwards Mr. McKnight purchased the stud and moved it to Dunmore near Port Fairy, where owing to the unsuitability of the property for merino sheep the stud suffered greatly from foot-rot. After a year or two, Messrs. Griffiths and Greene repurchased the stud, and moved it to Glenmore, near Bacchus Marsh, which was taken to Auchmore, on the Torrick Plains, north of Bendigo. Mr. Campbell repurchased the flock with the assurance that it had been kept pure and unmixed. After remaining at Auchmore for some years, the stud was removed to a place known as the Banko Station near Booligal, in New South Wales. A severe drought set in, and the flock, consisting of 3,000 sheep, dwindled to 135 ewes and 25 rams.

Flock Again Moved to Victoria. In July, 1900, Mr. Thomas Shaw purchased what remained of the sheep and moved them to Wooriwyrite. When this property was sold in 1923, the Camden stud was purchased by Major Alan Currie and it is now at Ercildoune.

Throughout all its changes it has been kept free from admixture of other blood, and has been bred from within itself from the time Mr. Campbell brought the sheep from New South Wales in 1846. It had suffered much from neglect, mismanagement, and drought, but after it came into the hands of Mr Shaw, it advanced steadily. Owing to the extreme fineness of the wool, the average weight of fleece will not compare with that of the merino flocks of to-day. There are characteristics in the breed, however, which are of great interest. In spite of inbreeding for more than 100 years, the flock to-day is hardy. It seems to be immune from disease, and the ewes rear their lambs and thrive on a minimum amount of pasture. The sheep are small framed, light in the bone and very wild. The quality of their wool, their soft silky faces, and uniformity, all indicate the pure bred flock bred within itself without any infusion of foreign blood, since the year in which the sheep arrived in Australia.

The condition of this historic flock, which has been kept pure for more than a century, affords ample justification for the contention that the characteristics of both sire and dam, or either can, when they are scientifically mated, be traced through a merino flock for generations. Samples of this wool may be viewed at the offices of the Pastoralists’ Association, St. Georges-terrace. A sample of the wool has been sent to us, which for fineness, uniform crimping and high quality generally would be hard to beat in any part of the world.

An Historical Family. Mr. A. S. Kenyon has submitted the following interesting facts concerning the Learmonth family, well known in the district for many years past.

Dr. John Learmonth, born 1812, arrived January, 1838, died 1871, aged 59 years (married Anne McWhirter). Moorabool. Geelong, licensed and purchased numerous sections around Geelong and Gheringhap. Sold Mt. Mitchell to Robertson and Skene in 1843; held ….. and Wycheproof, September 1818 to 1858. Thomas Livingstone- Learmonth, born (Tas.?) May 2, 1818, married 1857 Louisa Valliant, who died February 1878, married again February, 1879 to Jane Reid, M. L. C. 1866; J.P. in Scotland; died 28th October, 1902. Somerville Livingstone Learmonth, born (Tas.?) 28th November, 1819, married 1860, died 4th August, 1879. Andrew James Livingstone Learmonth, born Lawrence Park, Stirlingshire, 1825; died Handford Blandford, Dorsetshire, 1892. The above as John, Thomas and Somerville Learmonth, later in 1845, as T. and S. Learmonth, and later still as Learmonth Bros., first occupied Weatherboard and Native Creek in May, 1837, then shifted to an occupied Boninyong, February, 1838, and held until end of pastoral times. Borrumbeet (or Burrumbeet) was occupied in June, 1838, and also, held until end; included for part time was Maiden Hills, and for all time Ercildoune, but separate licences were not taken out. Andrew had a separate run in grant 1844-45. The above appear to be sons of Thomas Learmonth of Lawrence Pk. Stirlingshire, Scotland, who died at Parkhall, Stirling, in 1869. Thomas, either Junr. or Senr., was partner with George McKillop, Hobart in 1853…

Wool Industry. Progress in Australia. Capt. Macarthur’s Work. The story of the inauguration of the wool industry of Australia is a very fascinating one. Upon delving into past records it is found that sheep came to Australia, or rather New South Wales, with the first fleet in 1788, but there was no thought of their being used for the purpose of wool production, their presence being due solely to the need of fresh meat supplies. In May of that year there were in the infant colony 29 sheep; they did not, however, thrive on the rank grass; some died, some were killed by dogs and in September on one remained. Sheep for the food supply were replenished from the Cape and Bengal. The first sheep-breeding experiment in Australia was the crossing of Bengal ewes with Cape rams, the result being that “a lamb six weeks old was as big as one of the old ewes.” In 1790 Captain John Macarthur arrived in Sydney, and his flock was founded with 30 ewes; in 1795 he had a flock of 1000 head. The Rev. Samuel Marsden started his flock in 1796. In 1800 Macarthur sent to England in H.M.S. Buffalo eight sample fleeces for the inspection and report of Sir Joseph Banks, President of the Royal Society of England. The First fleece was declared to be of real Spanish breed, very good, and worth 4/ per lb. The fleece of a ram bred by Macarthur was stated to be “nearly as good as the King’s Spanish wool at Oaklands, quite free from hair, of excellent quality, and worth 5/ per lb. Could the colony produce such kinds of wool it would be a great acquisition to our manufactory in England.” Macarthur visited England in 1803 and delivered an address at the office of Lord Hobart, in which he dwelt on the suitability of the Australian pastures, showed the wonderful improvement in his flocks, and claimed to have produced wool superior to many of the wools of Spain. He asked for a grant of land sufficient for his increasing flocks, and received a grant of 5000 acres and was “indulged with the services of not less than 30 convicts.” Subsequently his grant was increased to 10,000 acres. From the Royal Stud at Kew, England, Macarthur bought at auction in 1804 eight sheep, at prices ranging from £8/15/ to 27 guineas, and they were placed in his flock at Camden. By this time, Macarthur had over 4000 sheep, and his operations were then on a larger scale than his contemporary pioneers. It is interesting to note the reason, which induced Captain Macarthur to choose Camden Park as the site of his sheep property. It appears that some cattle had ben lost in the days of Governor Hunter, and had strayed into the country away from Sydney. They were subsequently discovered at Mt. Taurus, and the place became known as “Cow Pastures.” Macarthur decided that he could not do better than select this as the site of his grant, as the cattle could naturally select the pastures best suited to them. The land proved to be rich and suitable for sheep, and the “Cow Pastures” became the cradle of the Australian wool industry. Macarthur died, and was buried at Camden Park in 1834; the property is still in the possession of his descendants, General Macarthur-Onslow having his home there.
Descendants of the Flock. It is a far cry from the early pioneering days of last century, but it is very interesting to know that two small flocks exist to-day, which are the purebred descendants of the Macarthur sheep. One of these is maintained by the family of the pioneer, at Camden Park, and the other is owned by Major Alan Currie, at Ercildoune, Ballarat, Victoria. It is interesting to note that wool from the former flock realized 24¾d per lb. in March 1928, whilst in January of that year the Ercildoune wool realized at Geelong sales up to 31d per lb. At the present time there are over 100,000,000 sheep in the Commonwealth, over half of that number being pastured in the State of New South Wales, which is generally regarded as possessing some of the finest flocks in the world. Sydney is the principal wool-selling centre, not only of Australia, but also of the world. The largest buyer of Australasian wool is the United Kingdom, with France, Germany, and Japan following in that order. Although wool prices have recently shown a tendency towards a lower level, it is hoped that the movement is but a temporary one, and that the new season’s clip, when offered for auction, will meet a steadier market – “Mutual Provident Messenger.”