Cranky camels, murderous mules, and a swarm of swaggies

It was 1919, and Charlie Gill was 12 when he started work on a cattle station east of the Flinders Ranges in South Australia. It was a tough but joyous life for a boy.

Charlie was an acute observer, with the memory of a steel dingo trap, and a great way with words. In  this 1968 interview he talks of sleeping rough when mustering, of dealing with cranky camels, on the dingo hunt, the joy of working with cattle, and why donkeys are sweeter than mules.

As a 21 year-old Mr Gill joined the police force. He recalls the hard line he was forced to take with the hordes of desperate swaggies heading west during the Depression years.

This is the first edition of Red Dust Tapes, where former radio documentary maker John Francis takes us on a journey through Outback Australia to meet now long-gone, colourful characters whose lifestyle has now all but disappeared.