Belinda Murrell: Bringing Australian History To Life | Page 15

EXTRACT

down and followed their lead.
‘Ma, they’re the kids from the circus,’
said the eldest, jiggling up and down
with excitement. ‘Remember? We saw the
parade? They’re the girls who were riding
the elephants.’
A smile lit up the worn face of the
mother. The bailiffs were now carrying out
a large armchair. They propped it down on
the pavement to watch the dogs’ antics.
‘Hup,’ said Claire to the dogs she was
leading. The white poodle barked at her.
The tan-and-white terrier sniffed the
ground and wagged his tail. The children
laughed.
‘She’s an apprentice dog trainer,’
explained Jem, with a twinkle in his eye.
‘She’s not very good yet. Hup, girls.’
Immediately, Claire’s two dogs jumped
up on their hind legs and strutted along,
looking very proud of themselves. Claire
grinned and shrugged.
Everyone was so focused on the dogs’
tricks that at first they didn’t notice what
was happening.
A commotion sounded from further up
the street. Claire glanced in its direction,
startled. A large crowd of rowdy people
was approaching. The men carried
crowbars and pick handles. They saw the
policemen on the pavement and began
to run towards them. The policemen
unbuckled their truncheons and pulled
their revolvers.
‘Oh no,’ said Jem. ‘Looks like trouble.
We’d better scram.’ He whistled to his
three dogs and clipped the leads back
onto their collars.
Rosina spun around and started
walking in the opposite direction, her
dogs following closely.
‘The kids,’ said Claire, gesturing to the
family by the furniture. ‘They shouldn’t be
here.’
The mother looked terrified. She

scooped the
youngest up in her
arms. Hugging the
children to her, she
hurried towards the
three friends.
‘Can we help?’
asked Rosina. ‘We
need to get out of
here fast.’
The woman
nodded. Rosina
picked up the next
youngest child. Claire
took the hand of
the eldest girl and
hurried back the way
they had come.
Jaspar barked
loudly at the coming
threat, his hackles
raised.
‘It’s okay, boy,’ Jem
soothed. ‘We’ll be all
right.’
Jem glanced back.
The menacing crowd
had surrounded the
house, and the men
were flinging rocks
at the policemen.
The children’s father
was taking refuge
behind his furniture.
Two men in the mob
looked familiar.
‘Hey, that’s Flash
Frank and Roy,’ cried Jem. ‘What are they
doing in the middle of an eviction riot?’
‘No time to worry about that,’ said
Rosina. ‘Let’s go.’
The group hurried back towards the
main road, escorting the family to a
friend’s house nearby. As the three friends
walked away, the mother stood on the

front veranda, her children clustered
around her. She looked cowed and
beaten. Claire felt so sad for them.

Times are tough for the circus folk and for everyone. Will the opening of the Sydney Harbour
Bridge bring a more optimistic mood – or more trouble? Read The Sequin Star to find out.
The Sequin Star is published by Random House Australia and is copyright © Belinda Murrell 2014. RRP $17.99

randomhouse.com.au/teachers 15