Items relating to 'Trooper Bluegum' - Oliver Hogue

« Prev Item Next Item »

1916

Overview

A group of items relating to Oliver Hogue AKA 'Trooper Bluegum' including a book, paper clipping of a poem, and a Christmas card sent by him in 1916.

The book is entitled 'Love letters of an ANZAC' with this being the Second Edition published in March 1916. On the inside cover is the name of the former owner, dated May 11 1916 written in black ink in cursive style. A signed portrait of Oliver Hogue appears opposite to the title page. The book is bound in dark blue with red writing.
A paper clipping of a poem from a newspaper or magazine is contained within the book. The poem is entitled 'To My Camel'.

The Christmas card is cream in colour with blue writing and features a cartoon of Trooper Bluegum drawn by Australian war artist, David Crothers Barker. It shows Hogue wearing his uniform and slouch hat with the emu feathers, indicating service with the Australian Light Horse. The writing on the front reads 'Seasons Greetings Egypt - 1916'. On the inside left, there is an inscription from 'Bluegum' and on the right a depiction of the Rising Sun badge. The back of the card features another poem by Trooper Bluegum reproduced from 'London Opinion', entitled 'An Epic from Egypt'.

Historical information

Oliver Hogue was born in Sydney on 29 April 1880. He enlisted as a Second Lieutenant in Sydney, aged 34, on 16 September 1914 with 2nd Light Horse Brigade, Headquarters.
He embarked from Sydney, New South Wales, on board Transport A29 Suevic on 21 December 1914. He served with both the Australian Light Horse and Imperial Camel Corps in the Middle East. He was present when the Allied forces, including the Australian Light Horse, captured Damascus in October 1918.
The new governor, Emir Said, formally surrendered the city to Major Arthur Olden of the 4th Light Horse Regiment. Having survived the entirety of the war, he intended to return home to Sydney after four and a half years away, but was admitted to hospital in England and died from influenza on 3 March 1919.

Kinnoull Hill is a hill located near Perth in Scotland. It shares its name with the nearby Kinnoull parish. Oliver Hogue perhaps visited Scotland including Kinnoull Hill while on leave.

David Crothers Barker was born in Ballarat, Victoria. He enlisted, aged 28, on 7 April 1915 with 5th Field Ambulance, Australian Imperial Force. His service number was 2965.
He embarked from Sydney, New South Wales, on board HMAT A31 Ajana on 31 May 1915. He served in the Middle East campaigns. By the end of the war, he was a Warrant Officer (Class I) with the Australian Army Medical Corps.
He returned to Australia on board HMAT A71 Nestor on 25 December 1918, arriving home on 1 February 1919. He also served on the home front during World War Two.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW00523

Item type

Collectibles

Ephemera

Personal Effects

Themes

Art and Design
Communication
War and Conflict
War and Conflict > World War 1

Material

Card

Ink

Width

86 mm

Height or length

143 mm

Inscriptions and markings

On cover of book:

"LOVE LETTERS OF
AN ANZAC

('TROOPER BLUEGUM')
OLIVER HOGUE"

On inside cover:

"J.M. Bryden
May 11th 1916"

On cover of card, above and below cartoon:

"SEASONS GREETINGS
EGYPT - 1916"

Below cartoon:

DAVID BARKER"

On inside cover of card:

"With sweet remembrances
of Kinnoul [sic] Hill &
sincere good wishes
for the New Year.
Bluegum"

Transcripts

TO MY CAMEL
You're an ugly smell-ful creature;
You're a blot. upon the plain;
I have seen Mahomet beat you,
And it gave me little pain.
You're spiteful and you're lazy,
You'd send a white man crazy,
But I reckon you're a daisy,
When the Turks come out again.
Your head is most unsightly,
And so is your humpy back;
I hear you roaring nightly,
When you're looking for the track.
You're bow-legged and you're bandy,
But in this desert sandy,
It's as well to have you handy:
You're a mighty useful hack.
You shake me something cruel
When you try to do a trot;
I've got to take my gruel,
But you make it very hot:
I've somehow got a notion
That your humpty-dumpty motion
Is worse than on the ocean,
It 's a nasty way you've got.
It's a sun-scorched land, the East is,
So we need you when we trek;
My old prad a bettor beast is,
But he soon becomes a wreck:
You thirst a week unblinking,
And when I see you. drinking,
You always set me thinking:
Lord, I wish I had your neck.
TBOOPER BLUEGUM.

AN EPIC FROM EGYPT
It ain't no use a-swearin',
It ain't no good to fret;
There's little gained by grousin'
Or getting all upset.
This wilderness is rotten —
All flies, and dust, and tears.
But the Israelites they stuck it
For years and years and years.
The Willie-Willies choke yer,
The dust-storms get yer down;
The red sun robs yer beauty
And burns yer black and brown.
The drought is something shocking ;
The thirst, our squadron fears,
Can only be abolished
By beers and beers and beers.
But war won't last for ever,
This scrap'll soon be done,
An' we'll have done our little bit
A-strafing o' the Hun.
An' when we get back home again,
An' meet our little dears,
All thought of Egypt will be drowned
In cheers and cheers and cheers.
(From "London Opinion")