Lead in Literature

Fishing in the Styx

"The brothers struck West into the drought country, boarding a train illegally to do so.

"We were the greenest pair of rattle jumpers in the business", wrote D’Arcy. "We travelled down to Port Pirie in a truck of lead-ore concentrate. We were so frozen we couldn’t get out of the truck when the guard saw us. But he was a lovely fella. First he kicked our backsides and then he brought along a billy of hot tea. We looked like red-headed Fijians with the rust and the dust."

["Fishing in the Styx" by Ruth Park, published by Penguin Books Australia Ltd. Reprinted with kind permission]. Sent in by Warwick Mosman, Ourimbah.

Unreliable Memoirs "Toys were scarce. A few crude lead soldiers were still produced so that children could go on poisoning themselves, but otherwise there was almost nothing"  

["Unreliable Memoirs" by Clive James, published by Pan Books.] Sent in by Noela Whitton, Glebe.

Body-Centered Psychotherapy "Nobel laureate George Wald said during the Vietnam War, we can evaluate our actions simply by asking "Is it good for children?" Is the war good for children? Are atomic weapons good for children?"

[pp 21-2, "Body-Centered Psychotherapy" by Ron Kurtz, published by Life Rhythm. Reprinted with kind permission.] Sent in by Adrian Hill, Petersham.

The Herbal Bed "(He goes to the dispensary and returns with a polished chest, the size of a deep pistol case and very heavy. He places it on the bench.) JOHN: And this?
JACK: The lead box.
(HALL takes out two sheets of lead from the top of the box. They are slightly shaped to the profile of the lower back area of a patient and have numerous perforations.)
JOHN: Lead...perforated...used in this form for what?
JACK: That we cannot mention, doctor.
JOHN: Mention it we have to ...
JACK: The Italian disease. Señor Gonorrhoea.
JOHN: And?
(JACK thinks)
JACK: Strangury...ulcer in the bladder...women with the whites...pissing blood...
JOHN: To the reins...kidneys...so it takes out the heat.
JOHN: And the perforations?
JACK: To let the air through.
JOHN: What is the sign of gonorrhoea?
JACK: Yellow puss...
JOHN: What potion shall the patient have?
JACK: Venetian turpentine.
JOHN: What else?
JACK: Er...erm...sarsaparilla...bark of guaiacum ... and...
JOHN: Yes?
JACK: A lead pipe up your yard for as long as you can stand it.

[Pp 23-4, "The Herbal Bed" by Peter Whelan, published by Warner Chappell Plays Ltd, London in 1966. Reprinted by kind permission. All performance rights are strictly reserved.]. Sent in by Geoff Ward, Osteopath, Annandale.