childers

By the late 19th century, Australia had already spent a century dispossessing its first inhabitants, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who had been here for over 65,000 years. It also controlled every aspect of their lives: where to live, whom to marry, and most importantly, where to work. Dispossession created a workforce that could be exploited for the pitiful price of cheap rations: flour, salt, and sugar. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were placed in work camps and were sent out to labour for the “new owners” of their traditional lands. They were legally prohibited from receiving their pay in hand; instead, their employers paid it to the government to hold it on trust. By the second half of the 19th century, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were increasingly reluctant to work for colonisers under the harsh terms on offer, and began to rebel against this system. In 1863, Robert Towns, a British merchant wishing to start a cotton plantation, needed cheap labour. There were men “willing” to work as indentured labour for a pittance, he was told, in the South Sea Islands to the east, including the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Easter Island and Gilbert Islands. Towns brought his first shipment of South Sea Island indentured labourers – the “sugar slaves” – to Queensland in 1863. Source: afsee.atlanticfellows.org/blog/2018/amanda-young-australi...

:D/ Very cool

Pipe smoking is the practice of tasting (or, less commonly, inhaling) the smoke produced by burning a substance, most commonly tobacco, in a pipe. It is the oldest traditional form of smoking. Although it has declined in popularity it is still widely practiced and remains common in some parts of Scandinavia. Regular pipe smoking is known to carry serious health risks including increased danger of various forms of cancer as well as pulmonary and cardiovascular illnesses. Albert Einstein (1879-1955), German scientist. He was known for smoking a pipe and once said, "I believe that pipe smoking contributes to a somewhat calm and objective judgment in all human affairs." Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pipe_smoking

Carpet python Morelia spilota Carpet python Photo: Queensland Government Carpet python Photo credit: Queensland Government Non-venomous The carpet python has many colour variations ranging from pale to darker greyish-green or brown. It has black-edged pale blotches enclosing pale yellow spots and markings. The belly is cream or yellow, variegated with dark grey scales. The scales on top of the head are granular (there are no large head shields between the eyes). It is often found in trees, sometimes living in another animals' burrow. These pythons are often encountered on the road on warm spring and summer nights in all habitat types within their range. They are mainly active at night, feeding on mammals, reptiles, birds and frogs. They grow to an average length of 2m (specimens are known to exceed 4m). This species is found throughout Brisbane and has even been found in the centre of the city. Source: environment.des.qld.gov.au/wildlife/animals/living-with/s...