Carranya

Reading a modern reproduction of the fascinating diary kept by Charles Darwin on his HMS Beagle sojourns around the world, I came across an interesting account from his visit to Australia. Journeying on horseback to Bathurst from Sydney, Darwin stayed at a large property, 'Walerawang' (surrounding the present-day township of Wallerawang some 150 km west of Sydney), and went hunting early the next morning. To quote him: "We continued riding the greater part of the day, but had very bad…

Jefferies was a prolific author and essayist during the Victorian era, one who has been described as having "..wonderful eyes. He saw what other men did not see, or were too preoccupied by the problems of earning a living, to bother about." While searching antiquarian bookstores in Hay on Wye, I happened across a compendium of his writings assembled a few decades ago by a scholar and an artist, and bought it for the princely sum of six quid. In these essays, he clearly demonstrates his…