To-day will see the publication of the most ambitious piece (technically speaking) of book-printing which has occurred in any Queensland town, excepting, of course, Brisbane, up to the present time. It is seldom that a book like "The Garden of Queensland," representing as it does merely an account of the Darling Downs, is excellent from every point of view. Usually the letterpress is sacrificed to the illustrations or the illustrations to the letterpress. In this instance neither alternative has occurred. The name of the compiler, Mr. George Essex Evans, is more than sufficient guarantee that, in point of literary merit, the book is all that can be desired. The author has thrown his whole heart and soul into the work of gathering and editing the different facts, and the result is a perfect mine of information ready to the hand of any who care to delve in it. The historical part of the book is particularly good, and shows a complete grasp of that particular branch of the subject. Mr. Evans begins with an introductory chapter dealing with the discovery by Allan Cunningham of the vast extent of open downs to the north of New England, christened by him the Darling Downs, in honour of the then Governor of New South Wales. Then follows an "early sketch," devoted to a discussion as to the climate, natural features, and the quality of the soil, and giving in addition a short record of the pioneers who first opened up the country after Allan Cunningham had proclaimed its virtues. The rest of the work is given up to a description of the principal towns and settlements, stations, and selections which are now scattered over the Downs in all directions. In this portion of his work also, Mr. Evans is intensely interesting. No matter what may be the calling or inclination of the reader, he will find in the pages of the book something that will be of great service or at least attractiveness. Mr. Evans has not been content with the dry-as-dust facts That statisticians usually affect, but has chosen rather to place his data in a setting of prose which is both pleasant to read and to remember. Not only is Mr. Evans's work on the highest plane, but the more mechanical part, performed by Messrs. J. H. Robertson and Co., of Toowoomba, is likewise much to be commended. The general typography, the illustrations (from excellent photographs by James Bain), and the display generally combine in the production of a book that is completely satisfactory.
First published in The Brisbane Courier, 12 August 1899
[Thanks to the National Library of Australia's newspaper digitisation project for this piece.]
First published in The Brisbane Courier, 12 August 1899
[Thanks to the National Library of Australia's newspaper digitisation project for this piece.]
