"A Double Buggy at Lahey's Creek" is a short story by Australian writer and poet

Henry Lawson Henry Archibald Hertzberg Lawson (17 June 1867 – 2 September 1922) was an Australian writer and bush poet. Along with his contemporary Banjo Paterson, Lawson is among the best-known Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial period ...

, first published in 1901. It was Lawson's second story to include the character of

Joe Wilson Addison Graves "Joe" Wilson Sr. (born July 31, 1947) is an American politician and attorney serving as the U.S. representative for since 2001. A member of the Republican Party, his district stretches from Columbia to the Georgia–South Caro ...

; however, chronologically, it is fourth and final in the Joe Wilson series. The story recounts the events that befall Joe Wilson and his family, and which ultimately lead to his buying a double buggy for his wife, Mary.

Plot summary

The story begins with Joe's earlier, unsuccessful attempts to acquire a double buggy, and how Mary's suggestion to grow potatoes becomes a profitable venture. Following a string of good luck, Joe decides to buy a double buggy for Mary, to show his appreciation for all the sacrifices she has made over the years of their marriage. The surprise gift strengthens what had been a somewhat unstable marriage.

Publication

Lawson finished writing "A Double Buggy at Lahey's Creek" in August 1900.Paul Eggert (2013
''Biography of a Book: Henry Lawson's While the Billy Boils''
Sydney University Press: Sydney, NSW. p241. It was first published in ''

Blackwood's Magazine ''Blackwood's Magazine'' was a British magazine and miscellany printed between 1817 and 1980. It was founded by publisher William Blackwood and originally called the ''Edinburgh Monthly Magazine'', but quickly relaunched as ''Blackwood's Edinb ...

'' in February 1901, and it was later included in the following: * ''

Joe Wilson and His Mates ''Joe Wilson and His Mates'' (1901) is a collection of short stories by Australian poet and author Henry Lawson. It was released in hardback by William Blackwood in 1901 when Lawson was living in England, and features one of the author's better ...

'', 1901 * ''An Australian Story Book'' edited by

Nettie Palmer Janet Gertrude "Nettie" Palmer (née Higgins) (18 August 1885 – 19 October 1964) was an Australian poet, essayist and Australia's leading literary critic of her day. She corresponded with women writers and collated the ''Centenary Gift Book'' ...

, 1928 * ''Prose Passages'' edited by

Alec King Alexander Mercer King (1 June 1874 – 19 May 1954) was a Mayor of Ballarat and an Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian ...

and

Walter Murdoch Sir Walter Logie Forbes Murdoch, (17 September 187430 July 1970) was a prominent Australian academic and essayist famous for his intelligence and wit. He was a founding professor of English and former Chancellor of the University of Western A ...

, 1934 * ''Henry Lawson's Best Stories'' edited by Cecil Man, 1966 * ''The Bush Undertaker and Other Stories'' by Henry Lawson, edited by Colin Roderick, 1970 * ''Henry Lawson : Selected Stories'' edited by Brian Matthews, 1971 * ''The World of Henry Lawson'' edited by Walter W. Stone, 1974 * ''The Essential Henry Lawson : The Best Works of Australia's Greatest Writer'' edited by Brian Kiernan, 1982 * ''Prose Works of Henry Lawson'', 1982 * ''A Camp-Fire Yarn : Henry Lawson Compete Works 1885-1900'' edited by

Leonard Cronin Leonard John Cronin (16 November 1900 – 1 November 1976) was a New Zealand journalist, editor and founder of the ''Students' Digest,'' monthly political and economic journal. He was born in Aramoho, Wanganui, New Zealand on 16 November 1900. In ...

, 1984 * ''Henry Lawson Favourites'', 1984 * ''The Penguin Henry Lawson : Short Stories'' edited by John Barnes, 1986 * ''Henry Lawson's Mates : The Complete Stories of Henry Lawson'', 1987 * ''Classic Australian Short Stories'' edited by Maggie Pinkney, 2001 * ''Henry Lawson'' edited by

Geoffrey Blainey Geoffrey Norman Blainey, (born 11 March 1930) is an Australian historian, academic, best selling author and commentator. Blainey is noted for his authoritative texts on the economic and social history of Australia, including ''The Tyranny of ...

, 2002

Characters

*Joe Wilson **Narrator of the story. He is a typical Australian "battler," and experiences the ups and downs of late nineteenth century living. He cares greatly for his wife, though her opinion counts for little when it comes to making a living. He considers himself quite resourceful. *Mary Wilson **Joe Wilson's wife. She is quite an intelligent woman, and likes to have her opinion heard, to the point that Joe considers her to be obstinate. She rarely complains about her dull, lonely lifestyle. *Jim Wilson **The only child of Joe and Mary. His real name is John Henry Wilson, after an uncle godfather, but they'd called him Jim "from the first (and before it)." Though Jim plays a larger part in other Joe Wilson stories, particularly " Brighten's Sister-in-law," his role in this story is only marginal. *James Black **Mary's "young scamp of a brother." He keeps Mary and the family company when Joe is on the road. He helps out around the property. *Bill and Robert Galletly **Two brothers, the "biggest men in the district," who own a coach shop. They offer Joe a double buggy that he can pay off over time, whenever he can.

Notes

References

Short stories by Henry Lawson 1901 short stories {{1900s-story-stub