Chapters 4-7
As they settle into married life, Stan continues clearing land and planting cabbage to sustain them. When Stan travels to town for market days, Amy feels "forsaken." In town, Stan is respected by other men because he is a hard worker; however, Stan prefers his "secret existence" to socializing. When Stan returns, Amy is pleased but struggles to express her emotions, resentful of being left alone. She visits her cow, Julia, and feels peaceful. One day when she is milking her cow, Amy sees a man approaching to sell her a set of illustrated Bibles.
When Stan discovers the man there, the couple invite him inside for a meal. He talks about his travels, and Stan feels dreamy. When Amy and Stan wake up, the man has already left. Amy discovers that the man took her nutmeg grater, her most valuable possession.
The O'Dowds move to the area, and Mrs. O'Dowd passes by to introduce herself. Though the women have a somewhat combative conversation, Amy considers Mrs. O'Dowd a friend and feels invigorated by their interaction. One day when Stan is working on his shed, a huge storm passes through, striking fear into Amy and Julia. Lightning destroys the old shed and damages some trees.
The Quigleys settle near the Parkers. The two oldest boys work on the house, but the girl, Doll, and the youngest boy, Bub, visit Amy. She thinks of them as good people but has little patience for them. Amy soon realizes she is pregnant. She is nervous, and Stan tries to calm her; she is comforted by his presence and doesn't need his verbal reassurance.
Soon, Amy discovers that Julia is carrying a calf. Stan wants to sell the cow because she has mastitis, but Amy feels attached to Julia. The cow births her calf but comes down with milk fever. Amy must go to the O'Dowds to fetch milk for the calf since Julia cannot feed it. They agree that she can use one of their goats.
Stan cares for Julia, but she doesn't improve. Amy offers to sit with the cow while Stan rests. Seeing Julia suffer makes Amy feel hopeless. She walks off and returns to find that Julia has died. Amy experiences pains in her own body. When Amy returns to the house, she tells Stan to bring Mrs. O'Dowd; she is worried she will not have a child after all.
Over the years, Amy has become pregnant several times but cannot carry a child to term. Stan expresses contentment with the life they have, but Amy wants more. However, she keeps her thoughts to herself. The couple sometimes attends church, but Amy cannot figure out Stan's feelings about religion. Stan occasionally picks up extra jobs to make ends meet and leaves home for a week at a time. A German man named Fritz comes to work for them.
Soon after, torrential rains begin, flooding people out of their homes in Wullunya. The Parkers' home is on a hill, so they won't be washed out, but Stan is concerned about the welfare of others. He, O'Dowd, and some other men volunteer in the flooded areas. They pull a dead man into their boat, covering his face.
Stan later sees an older man dead in a tree before the group comes across Mrs. Wilson, who doesn't want to abandon her sewing machine. She eventually gets into the boat, asking whether they saw her father, who had left in a small, rickety boat and not returned. The other men didn't see him, and Stan doesn't reveal that he did.
Meanwhile, Mrs. O'Dowd convinces...
(This entire section contains 988 words.)
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Amy to travel to see the flood waters. She mentions that they might find their husbands. Mrs. O'Dowd talks about a circus she and Mick O'Dowd, her husband, had seen in Wullunya years before. Mick drunkenly wanted to join in the circus acts; his wife argued with him before he passed out. Mrs. O'Dowd reveals that they were not married by a priest.
When they arrive in town, Mrs. O'Dowd asks a woman if she has seen their husbands. The woman tries to tell them her family's home was washed out, but Mrs. O'Dowd doesn't listen. Spectators talk about ways to resolve the problems caused by the floods, and the governor tactfully asks questions of the mayor to determine what help is needed.
Their husbands' boat pulls up with two rescued two women. Amy is nervous about seeing Stan; they feel close but don't talk. The O'Dowds head home, and the Parkers get a ride in the Peabodys' dray. As they eat in the dray, they notice a little boy crying. He won't tell anyone his name, so Amy jumps out and questions him. He still will not speak, but she insists they take the boy home with them until they can find out more. Amy tries to comfort the child, but he remains silent; she starts to imagine they could be a family. Stan, on the other hand, isn't excited about taking in the child.
Eventually, the Parkers arrive home with the boy. Amy makes a meal and talks to the boy. When they go to bed, Stan disapproves of Amy's decision, and Amy feels that she has never loved her husband. When she checks on the boy, he looks through a shard of glass that he carries in his pocket. He tells Amy he got it from a window in the church where he slept; he reveals nothing about his family.
In the bedroom, Stan is getting dressed; it is time to wake up for the morning farm duties. When Amy returns to the house, the boy has left. Stan and Amy stand by the window looking at the cows and the farm. They do not speak much but feel united. No one ever hears what became of the boy. Around the time of the floods, the area where the Parkers live is unofficially named Durilgai.
