Sunday, November 7, 2021

ANOTHER WORN LITERARY FIND

 Shipping  Reporter  mixes  with  a  grubby  Larrikin

Rummaging about Magnetic Island  yet  again, our  waterfront snoop  found a very  battered 1956  copy of  the Selected Verse of  C. J. Dennis , chosen  and  introduced  by  Alec. H. Chisholm ,who  decribed him in an informative  preface  as the  Australian  Laureate of  the  Larrikin . 

 Recently  four books by  Dennis  , with   interesting  inclusions ,  were  found  by  a  fossicking   correspondent  in  Darwin  , featured  in  this  blog .  

It  would  seem  that  Dennis   books  are  tucked  away  in  offbeat  places  all  over  the  nation  , waiting  to  be  discovered .

The island  find, illustrated by Hal Gye ,with a  12 page glossary of Australian terms,  ,was minus its front cover, had been scribbled in , was badly wormed ,  went  into   lengthy quarantine . 

Inserted  was  a circa  1950s  order form  for the Sydney storeWinns, with  extensive details of  mail and  freight  charges   within   Australia   and   the   Pacific  islands.

Townsville was  not  listed  in  the  Queensland air freight  list , but  Burketown ,  Normanton , Mount Isa   and   Charleville   were. Northern Territory   towns  listed   were Alice Springs,   Darwin , Katherine  and  Tennant   Creek .