Nevill and Greg reached Sydney on 17 November and stopped off to visit the Sydney Adventist Hospital and meet with other Adventists. They made good time to Goulburn, where Greg left the expedition to continue his work as a colporteur, and Nevill travelled on alone to Melbourne.
Nevill enjoyed visiting places of significance to the Seventh-day Adventist Church and headed for Warburton where the book he had been selling, Our day in Bible Prophecy, was printed at the Signs Publishing Company. He also visited the Sanitarium Health Foods factory and the Health Centre. 1.
Word had reached Melbourne of Nevill’s arrival and a group of well wishers headed north up the Hume Highway to welcome him. But because he had been to Warburton, Nevill arrived in Melbourne from the east and missed the welcome!
On his arrival in Melbourne he took Bubsie to the Citroen garage to get some work done, but found the place virtually empty, which puzzled him. One of the salesmen asked his name and exclaimed, “Are you the Overlander?” He then explained that everyone had driven out to meet him as he came into Melbourne. Nevill would have been disappointed to miss their welcome. 2.
Nevill was anxious now to get home for Christmas. It had been an epic journey, but even though he was warned not to travel across the Nullabor in summer, he set out for Adelaide on 13 December. The trip to Adelaide was 510 km, which he completed in 17 hours. He must have driven through the night to get there, so determined was he to reach Perth in time.
There was an added incentive too. Nevill had heard of another driver, J. K. Warner, also in a Citroen, attempting to be the first to drive around Australia, and he was only 900km behind!
There was also Mrs Marion Bell, attempting to be the first woman to drive around Australia. The race was on! 3.
The heat and sandy, rutted road made driving difficult but Nevill pressed on through the desert, seeing no one on the way. Between Eucla and Balladonia he saw a car parked by the side of the road. Pulling up, he found the car had broken down and the driver and his two female passengers were dehydrated and in desperate straits.
The little party had no tools, no mechanical knowledge, and no water. Nevill got the car started again, shared his water and set off, grateful that he had been able to save their lives. 4.
Nevill didn’t quite make it to Perth for Christmas, but he wasn’t far away. He spent Christmas with his brother in Widgiemooltha, and then set off for the last leg of his journey on 30 December.
Crowds were waiting to welcome him back, and a convoy of Citroen enthusiasts led him through the cheering throng.
“The Citroen was in excellent condition, albeit bearing signs of the rough treatment experienced on trackless roads,” reported The Daily News.
The Truth gave Bubsie a road test and reported,” The little car never faltered for an instant up the steepest hills and averaged 15.6 km’s per litre of petrol.”
Bubsie had travelled 17,220 km in 148 days, an average of 116 km per day and had endured the trip well. 5.
Bubsie was displayed in the shop window of the local Citroen dealer and caused quite a sensation. In 2019 Bubsie again caused a sensation by appearing at the Motorclassica at Melbourne’s Exhibition Buildings in October to celebrate the anniversary of the founding of Citroen. Citroen enthusiasts were promised “The highlight will be the 1923 5CV that circumnavigated mainland Australia that is being borrowed from the National Museum for one of its rare off-site appearances.” 6.
Nevill put the Citroen into storage, but his adventures were not over yet.
REFERENCES:
- Letter to Mother. December13, 1925
- Letter to Mother. December 13, 1925
- Warner didn’t reach Perth until February 1926.
A Meritorious Performance. The Daily News, 15 Feb 1926. Retrieved from https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/84165415/8407881
Marion Bell arrived back in Perth on 7 April, 1926
Fawbert, Jenny. Marion Bell. Retrieved from https://static1.squarespace.com/static/55891778e4b034e58f5e51e7/t/6214033d7f588f029e323e46/1645478720007/Marion+Bell.pdf
- Sunday Times, Perth. A chat with Mr. N.R. Westwood.
- Citroen around Australia. Retrieved from https://historicvehicles.com.au/historic-car-restorations/citroen-around-australia/
- Retrieved from https://www.tradeuniquecars.com.au/feature-cars/1908/100-years-of-citroen-1919-to-2019
