Yank Crank Bank
To help American servicemen orientate to Aussie ways during the second world war, the US Army produced the following instruction booklet in 1942.
Some highlights include the dictionary of Australian Slang on pages 51-54 :
Their everyday speech is just about the slangiest of all the brands of English.
‘Bastard’ (pronounced ‘Barstud’) – sometimes a term of affection (page 54) …the best thing any Australian can say about you is that you are a “bloody fine barstud”
‘Wacko’ – exclamation expressing anticipation, approval or delight (page 52)
Australian Rules Football creates a desire on the part of the crowd to tear someone apart, usually the referee – some parks have runways covered over, so the referee can escape, more or less intact, after the game is over (page 30)
Some lowlights include…
Except for the 70,000 or so primitive “Abos” who roam the waste lands (page 15)
Tasmania …is both a ranching and a farming area, producing wool and a huge crop of apples yearly (page 42)
Family who participated in WW2 include:
- Charles Gilbert
- George Heslop
- Alex Bruce Migan
All returned home safely.
