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One of the many superb displays mounted by the Special Collections section of James Cook University ,Townsville, in the Eddie Koiki Mabo Library , is about Bill Bowyang , with an informative letter from publisher , historian , author and artist , the late Glenville Pike. In the handwritten information, under Pike's Pinevale Publishing company letterhead , Glenville states that Bill Bowyang -Frank Vennard, of Bowen- wrote about the bush for the North Queensland Register for about 30 years until his death in 1947.
By Peter Simon
The extensive contributions were run on a page under the heading On The Track , another historica l feature , On the Top Rail .
Pike took over the latter page in 1947 under the heading Around The Campfire.
Bill Bowyang, he wrote , had been a famous bush writer in his day , "his little works" valuable now (l994). He had experienced trouble selling them for "two bob" (two shillings ) in 1937-1940.
Born in l884 on Vindex Station , his middle name Vindex, near Winton, while his parents were on a droving trip. Vennard worked at many jobs, canecutting, wool pressing and carried his swag from 1912-13. After the evacuation from Gallipoli in WWl , he wrote for Egyptian and British newspapers, often highlighting the antics and humour of Australian soldiers; he served in the Camel Corps , in Libya and Gaza , was badly wounded .
While in hospital awaiting his return to Australia, he was approached by David Barker who had been involved in the production of the Anzac Book, in London , and was made editor of The Kia-Ora Coo-ee magazine for the Australian Infantry Force in Egypt and Palestine , with a monthly circulation of 3000 which rose to 15,000.
Back in Sydney at the Randwick Military Hospital , he became involved with J.F. Archibald of the Sydney Bulletin and for nearly two years worked on the new Smith's Weekly , providing short stories and other literary items . Then he headed up to Bowen, North Queensland , where he died at the age of 67.
Hero of the North -Glenville Pike ,below.
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I first met Glenville , his Kiwi mother , also a writer and poet , and "aunty" , their dog, in Darwin, when I went to work on the Northern Territory News in l958. They called at the newspaper office , the women sat in the shade with the dog , while Glenville went inside and transacted business.
The editor of the paper , Jim Bowditch , urged me and other staff to buy any of Glenville's extensive output , which included hand-painted Christmas cards and the North Australian Monthly magazine , printed in Townsville , as he said the trio lived the life of church mice .
Acting on Jim's instruction, I still have a complete set of the North Australian Monthly , several of Pike's books and fond memories of Glenville, his mother and aunt . At one stage I even considered buying the Pike property in the Darwin rural area.
Over the years, I helped him out in some of his ventures , making photos or copies available.
When he was living near Mareeba , where he had a trunk filled with his extensive literary and publishing output , a substantial library , my wife and I called on him and his second wife , a jovial Eurasian woman .
As a special treat , they would go into Mareeba for a meal . His wife went to a Chinese eatery ; Glenville , headed to another cafe that served good old Australian steak and eggs , not this Chinese tucker which he did not like .
His first wife had been an American woman whose ex- husband had been a wealthy New York plastic surgeon who gave her a new Cadillac sports car each birthday .
Late in life , in Townsville for medical tests , Glenville visited Magnetic Island and recalled old times in Darwin , Cairns and elsewhere in the north .
