RSVP -- SIMPLE GOOD MANNERS OR GEN Y IMPROPRIETY

I was recently indirectly involved with a “social” event. The young person at the centre had already been given an expensive formal function for their 18th birthday and now asked for a fancy-dress barbecue for their 21st.

“What about invites?” asked the parents somewhat naively? “Oh, I’ve put it on FaceBook, 180 are coming!”   Five half sides of lamb were purchased to feed the multitude, rotisseries hired, relatives seconded to assist with catering.

On the night, just 47 guests arrived!  Many unknown to the guest-of-honour. What a waste of food and effort.

More and more we speak of, and some of us teach, “communication and its importance in 21st century society”.

Technology has advanced in leaps and bounds — letters replaced by telex — replaced by facsimile — replaced by email— replaced by Facebook.

Today, seemingly, every young man, woman and child has a music player ear-piece in one ear; a mobile phone glued to the other ear while busily texting or twittering: communicating inane, puerile, vacuous trivia to one another, while creating vast profits for the relevant “telco”.

Some invitations we receive are general and vague, “Why don’t we meet at the Club soon?” and can be treated in a similar manner.

Other invites are more structured and specific, after much thought and planning. A venue has been booked and paid for in advance. Catering is costly: numbers must be committed in advance Even for functions in someone’s home, food has to be purchased and prepared.

But when it comes to a commitment, the current trend is to ignore or to “waffle”. Oh, I’m not sure what I’m doing on that day/at that time. What personal disrespect! These people are implying Well, your invite’s OK as far as it goes, but I might get a better offer later, so I won’t say anything now. I’ll wait until the last minute, review all invitations; then contact the best offer and rudely add myself (and sometimes a partner) to their catering plan. Or I’ll just arrive: they’ll be so embarrassed that they’ll just accept my presence.

Répondez, s’il vous plaît

The literal translation is “reply, if you please” which some choose interpret as “If I choose to, I might reply. Of course, the true meaning of rsvp is “please reply!”

This doesn’t mean we have to accept the invitation. Nor does it mean we have to give a reason for not accepting.

It does mean we have been given the courtesy of an invitation and we should reply!  Forget about the social mores of the day—we have a human-decency, one-person-to-another, obligation to contact (phone, write, fax, email, text) the inviter promptly and advise whether or not we will attend. 

MACLAINE "FIRST FAMILY" LINK WITH SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Jane (Maclaine, daughter of Murdoch 19th), her husband, Colin Campbell, and their four sons made the lengthy voyage to South Australia in 1839, some 29 years after her brother John Maclaine arrived in Sydney.

The town of Bangor today.

They settled in the Mount Remarkable district in 1844 when Colin Campbell started mining copper. 

To improve the value of its land the Mount Remarkable Mining Company decided to lay out a town on both sides of the property. The town at the northern end was named Melrose (after Melrose in Scotland) — and is the oldest town in the Flinders Ranges at the foot of Mount Remarkable.  The town to the south became Bangor. 

Campbell’s son, Alexander, bought 2,400 acres at Bangor in 1853. He built a home on it for his parents (Colin and Jane). It was named “Glenorchy” after a property in Scotland where the Campbell’s came from. 

Colin, Jane and Alexander are buried at the cemetery about five kilometres north of Bangor.

Colin Campbell, died 29 Dec 1856, aged 86. Jane (Maclaine) Campbell died 12 Dec 1860, aged 75. Alexander Campbell died 19 July 1866, aged 45 years. 

Left: The family grave headstone at Banger

MACLAINE'S PEAK, NSW

Some years ago I was looking through historical documents stored at Sydney’s Macquarie University when I came across this entry…

Excerpt from George Evan’s Diary --
Tuesday, 16th November 1815. The first half hour's Chaining was tolerably good; but, for six Miles afterwards, it was extremely fatiguing along a Rocky and Bushy Ridge, which led me to the Centre of the three hills, I shewed you in our long Ride and which I have named “Mount Macquarie”; the three range in a direct line, bearing N.W. and S.E.; that to the S.E. measuring ¾ of a Mile from Mount Macquarie, I call “Maclaine’s Peak”; the N.W. one is separated from the others by a small Gully, and at a distance of about 2 Miles from Mount Macquarie, I have named “Antill’s Peak”.

Under instructions from Governor Lachlan Macquarie to pursue a western course from Bathurst “until he shall fall in with the western ocean,” seasoned explorer, George Evans, left Sydney on his second inland journey in 1815. 

Lachlan Macquarie, Maj.General, 73rd Regiment of Foot, was, undoubtedly, Australia’s most significant 19thC colonial governor.  Lt John Maclaine, (son of Murdoch Maclaine [1736-1804], 19th Chief of Lochbuie) was Lachlan Macquarie’s uncle and his ADC (aide-de-camp) whilst governor of the colony of New South Wales.­­­

Macquarie hoped that Evans might meet with some great river “which may probably fall into the sea on that part of the coast bearing in a south-easterly direction from Spencer’s Gulf (South Australia).” Evans did not reach the sea on this journey, but he found the river, which he named the “Lachlan”. The Lachlan River was later found to be part of the major river system of south eastern Australia – the Darling, Lachlan, Murrumbidgee and Murray rivers.

I went to current maps of the area but there was no mention of Maclaine’s Peak. Ultimately a formal proposal to reinstate the name was put to the NSW Geographic Names Board.

Persistence pays and today, as a result of Clan effort, John Maclaine, Lt, 73rd Regiment of Foot is reunited with Uncle Lachlan (geographically, at least) – and Maclaines Peak will be on subsequent maps of the area.