JAMES BONWICK
I. TOWARDS A BIBLIOGRAPHY
One of Australia's most prolific writers was James Bonwick (1817–1906), teacher, historian and archivist. Many of his publications are journalistic exercises, of little value today, but some of his school texts and historical works retain some importance due to their pioneering nature.
Because of the mere bulk of Bonwick's work he has attracted considerable attention from bibliographers. Dr. George Mackaness compiled a list which appeared in the Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society, XXIII (1937); E. E. Pescott's James Bonwick…with a bibliography of his writings was published in 1939 and Sir John Ferguson's list appeared in the fifth volume of his Bibliography of Australia (Sydney, 1963), pp. 365–80 (six items published prior to 1851 were listed in earlier volumes).
Despite this close scrutiny, there is plenty of scope for the preparation of a detailed bibliography of Bonwick's works. What follows is a list of those publications by Bonwick which have not been described by Ferguson. Some are minor handbills and prospectuses, but most are more substantial works which need to be noted to complete Ferguson's list.
As a conclusion, I have supplied some corrections to Ferguson's descriptions where his details differ considerably from those discovered from my study of Bonwick's published work. Perhaps the point could be made that the number of errors found in the list of works of but one author suggest that a complete revision of Ferguson should be undertaken. Certainly, a reference work of the stature of the Bibliography should be without blemish, yet there seem to be many lapses, both large and small (my work on the publications of Henry Melville in earlier volumes of Ferguson indicate that there are many faults there also).
1 ADDITIONS TO FERGUSON
- An Appeal to the Public on Behalf of the Total Abstinence Society. (Hobart, 1844).
- 4pp.
- Pescott 5.
- An entry from Pescott who indicates that a copy was seen by him; he describes it as the second annual report of the Hobart Town Total Abstinence Society.
63
64
65
- Hofwyl House School, Hobart Town. (Hobart, [1844]).
- [4] pp.
- Alexander Turnbull Library.
- A prospectus for Bonwick's school at New Town Rd., Hobart.
- Introduction to Geography for Australian Youth. (Adelaide, C. Platts, 1851).
- [iv], [5]-72, vi pp.
- Public Library South Australia.
- A first edition of Geography for Young Australians (Melbourne, 1856) (F7206); a ‘third’ edition appeared in 1859 (see below) and thereafter Bonwick numbered later editions 4th (1863) to 9th (1875).
- Clarke's Authentic Map of Victoria, showing parts of New South Wales and South Australia. (Melbourne, W. Clarke, 1856).
- 8 pp. and folded map 28 ½″ × 17″ (map dated November 1855).
- Pescott 18.
- Mitchell Library.
- Surprisingly omitted by Ferguson, who included Bonwick's map of Melbourne at F7195.
- Grammar for Young Australians. (Melbourne, the author, 1857).
- 36 pp.
- British Museum.
- A second edition of this work appeared in 1858 with an altered title (see F7218a).
- Geography for Young Australians. (Melbourne, W'm. Goodhugh & Co., 1859).
- 66 pp.
- British Museum.
- Although Bonwick calls this a second edition, it is in reality a third edition to the Geography for Young Australians (Melbourne, 1856) (F7206), followed by editions numbered 4th (1863) to 9th (1875).
- Temperance in France, Switzerland, Italy, etc., etc. (Manchester, United Kingdom Alliance, [1861]). 38 pp.
- National Library.
- A reprint of a series of letters originally appearing in the Alliance News, written by Bonwick while on holiday in Europe.
- Lectures to Young People. Mr. Bonwick, … will Deliver a Lecture upon A Trip up the Rhine… [Melbourne, the author, 1862]. Handbill.
- S.L.V. (Board of Education Archives, Inwards Correspondence, 62/656). Advertises a series of lectures delivered to schoolchildren.
- The Search for Leichhardt. [Melbourne, the author, 1865].
- Handbill.
- Mitchell Library.
- Appeals to schoolchildren to subscribe to the ‘Ladies’ Leichhardt Search Committee’ which was collecting funds to send out a search party after the finding of some trees marked ‘L’.
- Barkly St., St. Kilda. Hofwyl School. [Melbourne, the author, 1866].
- 4 pp.
- Private possession.
- A prospectus for Bonwick's school, opened in January 1866.
- Geography for Young Australians. Sixth edition. (Melbourne, S. Mullen, 1867).
- 72 pp.
- Pescott 30.
- Crowther Collection, State Library of Tasmania.
- Geography for Young Australians. Seventh edition. (Melbourne, S. Mullen, 1869).
- 72 pp.
- State Library of Western Australia.
- Identical to the 7th edition at F7209 except for the date of publication.
- The Last of the Tasmanians; or, The Black War of Van Diemen's Land. (London: Sampson Low, Son, & Marston; Tasmania: J. Walch & Sons, and Walch Brothers & Birchall, 1870).
- viii, 400, [2] pp.
- State Library Tasmania; State Library Victoria.
- Identical to F7232 except for the Tasmanian publishers appearing in the imprint.
- Rides Out and About. A book of Travels and Adventures. (London, Religious Tract Society, [1878]).
- [vi], [7]-160, 16 (book list) pp.
- National Library.
- A variant of F7222 with green decorated cloth boards and the 16 page book list.
- Our Nationalities. I. Who are the Irish? (London, David Bogue, 1880).
- viii, 136 pp.
- Pescott 79.
- Mitchell Library.
- Not listed separately by F.
- Our Nationalities. II. Who are the Scotch? (London, David Bogue, 1880).
- viii, [9]-132 pp.
- Pescott 80.
- Mitchell Library.
- Not listed separately by F.
- Our Nationalities. III. Who are the Welsh? (London, David Bogue, 1881).
- vi, [7]-128 pp.
- Pescott 81.
- Mitchell Library.
- Not listed separately by F.
- Our Nationalities. IV Who are the English? (London, David Bogue, 1881).
- vi, [7]-128 pp.
- Pescott 82.
- Mitchell Library.
- Not listed separately by F.
- Little Joe; a tale of the Pacific Railway. (London, National Temperance Depot, [1882]).
- [iv], 96 pp.
- Private possession.
- A second edition of F7225.
- The British Colonies and their resources. Africa. (London, Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1886).
- iv, 108 pp.
- Pescott 91.
- Public Library N.S.W.
- Not listed separately by F.
- The British Colonies and their resources. America, (London, Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1886).
- iv, 108 pp.
- Pescott 92.
- Public Library N.S.W.
- Not listed separately by F.
- The British Colonies and their resources. Asia. (London, Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1886).
- iv, 116 pp.
- Pescott 93.
- Public Library N.S.W.
- Not listed separately by F.
- Climate and Health in Australasia … New South Wales. (London, Street & Co., 1886).
- viii, 84 pp.
- National Library.
- Not listed separately by F. or P.
- Climate and Health in Australasia … New Zealand. (London, Street & Co., 1886).
- viii, 78 pp.
- National Library.
- Not listed separately by F. or P.
- Climate and Health in Australasia … Queensland. (London, Street & Co., 1886).
- viii, 72 pp.
- National Library.
- Not listed separately by F. or P.
- Climate and Health in Australasia … South Australia. (London, Street & Co., 1886).
- viii, 60 pp.
- National Library.
- Not listed separately by F. or P.
- Climate and Health in Australasia … Tasmania. (London, Street & Co., 1886).
- viii, 40 pp.
- National Library.
- Not listed separately by F. or P.
- Climate and Health in Australasia … Victoria. (London, Street & Co., 1886).
- viii, 82 pp.
- National Library.
- Not listed separately by F. or P.
- Climate and Health in Australasia … Western Australia. (London, Street & Co., 1886).
- viii, 46 pp.
- National Library.
- Not listed separately by F. or P.
- The British Colonies and their resources … (London, Sampson Low, Marston & Company, [1886]).
- The four parts of the series (America, Australasia, Asia, Africa) bound into one volume.
- State Library Tasmania.
- A different title page to F7257.
- The Australian Natives. (London, Harrison and Sons 1886).
- [201]-210 pp.
- Oxley Memorial Library.
- An offprint from the Journal of the Anthropological Institute of November 1886.
- Romance of the Wool Trade. (London, Griffith Farran & Co., [1887]).
- vi, [2], 472, 16 (adverts) pp.
- Western Australia University.
- A different title page to F7259.
- S. W. Silver & Co's. Handbook for Australia & New Zealand. Fifth Edition. (London, S. W. Silver and Co., 1888).
- 2, x, 450, [ii], 16 (adverts) pp.
- National Library.
- A different title page to F15703.
- Rides Out and About. (London, Religious Tract Society, [1891]).
- [vi], [7]-160, 16 (book list) pp.
- Crowther Collection, State Library Tasmania.
- A variant of F7223: the 16pp. differ in content.
- Irish Druids and Old Irish Religions. (London, Griffith, Farran & Co., 1894).
- viii, 328 pp.
- State Library Victoria.
- A different title page to F7264.
- An Octogenarian's Reminiscences. (London, James Nichols, MCMII).
- xvi, 372 pp.
- Pescott 108.
- State Library Tasmania.
- An Octogenarian's Reminiscences. (London, James Nichols, 1902).
- xvi, 372 pp.
- State Library Victoria.
- Differs from the previous entry in that the date appears in Arabic numerals.
2 CORRECTIONS TO FERGUSON
Ferguson errs in his transcription of the title pages of items:
F7225 Little Joe. [1872]
F7229 Astronomy for Young Australians. (1866)
F7236 The Mormons and the Silver Mines. (1872)
F7249 Climate and Health in South Africa. (1880)
F7258 French Colonies and their Resources. (1886)
F15697 S. W. Silver & Co's. Handbook for Australia & New Zealand. (1874)
66
Ferguson errs in his collation of items:
F7235 Curious Facts of Old Colonial Days. (1870)
F7237 The Tasmanian Lily. (1873)
F7252 Port Phillip Settlement. (1883)
F7206 Geography for Young Australians (1856) is incorrectly described as a fourth edition.
Ferguson incorrectly dates items:
F7222 Rides Out and About; it should read [1878]
F7223 Rides Out and About; it should read [1888]
F7224 Rides Out and About; it should read [c 1886]
F7225 Little Joe; it should read [1872]
F14625 Index and Digest. Record Office Documents relative to Moreton Bay …; it should read [London, 1884] and could well be entered under Bonwick's name.
Ferguson gives incorrect colophons for items:
F7223 Rides Out and About [1888]; it should read ‘William Rider and Son, Printers, London.’
F7235 Curious Facts of Old Colonial Days (1870); it should read ‘Butler & Tanner, The Selwood Printing Works, Frome, and London.’
Ferguson entries under the following numbers can be ignored:
F7188b Grammar for Australian Youth (1868); unnecessary repetition of F7188a.
F7221 Emigration or where to go (1861); copies a faulty entry from Pescott 46.
F7241 Geography of Victoria (1873); copies a faulty entry from Pescott 70.
F7263 Early Struggles of Trade and of the Press in New Zealand (nd); disbound article from Gordon and Gotch's Australian Handbook for 1891.
F6335 Emigration! Where shall I go? (1869); entered under the pseudonym ‘An Australian Colonist’ and repeated at F7231a.
F7243 S. W. Silver & Co's. Handbook for Australia & New Zealand; full descriptions of the five editions are given at F15697, 15697a, 15699, 15700, 15702 and 15703.
II. THE BONWICK TRANSCRIPTS
One of the sources most widely used by Australian historians are the Bonwick Transcripts in the Mitchell Library. Copied in London by James Bonwick for the New South Wales government, they have been ransacked for details of the early settlement in New South Wales up to 1830. Other transcripts made for the Queensland, South Australian, Victorian and Tasmanian governments are less wellknown, but need to be considered here as forming part of the total concept which led to the transcribing project.
Most recently, the transcripts in the Mitchell Library have been extensively used by John Ritchie in his two volume The Evidence of the Bigge Reports (Melbourne, 1972). With this work fast attaining the status of the standard reference on its subject, it is perhaps time to examine the circumstances under which the transcripts were copied, to assess their limitations and to appraise their usefulness.
The task of searching for documents was one in which Bonwick was well practised. He had carried out such research intermittently in Hobart, Melbourne and Sydney from the 1840s, and after his return to permanent settlement in England in 1877 he began his research at the Public Records Office. The result of this work was embodied in the
First Twenty Years of Australia (London, 1882) and
Port Phillip Settlement (London, 1883). Both books are little more than chronicles, composed largely of quotations from contemporary documents linked with phrases such as ‘the writer then declares’, there being little attempt at interpretation or editorial comment. Yet both works were important in that they showed just how valuable the documents located in London could prove
67
to be in arriving at a comprehensive view of Australian history. The preface to
Port Phillip Settlement noted that there were ‘stores of wealth awaiting research in London’, and suggested that ‘faithful copies of such interesting documents should be in the public libraries of colonial capitals’.
1 Besides, instances of neglect and destruction which Bonwick had experienced both in London and the colonies made it even more essential that copies be made before valuable documents were lost forever.
2Bonwick was not the first colonial historian who realised the value of the records located in England. F. P. Labilliere had searched Colonial Office papers for his
Early History of the Colony of Victoria (London, 1878) and in the early eighties G. W. Rusden and J. H. Heaton had made reference to similar documents. At an even earlier date the Canadian government had commenced a programme that entailed a much more systematic and thorough search of English archives. The position of Dominion Archivist was created in 1872 with the purpose of collecting records in an Archives Office in Ottawa. Douglas Brymner (1823–1902) was appointed to the position and almost immediately began transcribing documents in the Public Records Office. Bonwick met Brymner, was impressed with the scheme, and realised that a similar plan could be adopted by the Australian colonies.
3Having already worked as an emigration lecturer for the Queensland government during 1874–5 and 1882–3, it is not surprising that in August 1882 he should make his first offer as a transcriber to the Colonial Secretary in Brisbane. His offer accepted, transcripts relating to Moreton Bay were begun in May 1883 and completed by December.
4Bonwick enjoyed his new appointment and worked at great speed. It was, moreover, a task of patient collection which suited his own view of history. Bonwick's researches had shown that Australian history was not without its ‘myths’, erroneous views created by partisan spirit. Many Australian histories were works composed by participants in the events they described and therefore often ‘coloured by the hues of party’.
5 Bonwick's own works were not without this fault, though he came to realise that he was often misled by accepting the evidence of personal opinions ‘influenced by party feeling or private sympathy’.
6 Bonwick saw it as his task to correct this bias by the presentation of history based on reliable factual evidence. He found models for his work in the books of English historians like Lecky and Sharon Turner, both ‘honest recorders’ who stressed patient critical scholarship; the ‘fine writing with faulty research and party prejudice’ of Hume and Macaulay was to be avoided as it would only sustain those ‘myths’ which Bonwick wished to destroy.
7Thus claiming the support of eminent historians, Bonwick pressed on with his idea of encouraging the Australian colonies to have him transcribe the relevant documents. Over a year passed on completing the Queensland transcripts before Bonwick was able to persuade the South Australian government to appoint him in February 1885, but it was only a small order and took less than five months to complete.
8 This batch was followed by transcripts relating to the discovery of Port Phillip, copied for the Melbourne Public Library from July to November 1886.
9In January the following year the Tasmanian government, prompted by the local historian James B. Walker (1841–1899), engaged Bonwick as a transcriber.
10 The first batch of these transcripts was completed in July 1887, a second batch in June 1888, and a third group was transcribed (at a guinea per day) between June 1890 and January 1894 when the work was stopped because the Premier pointed out ‘the absolute necessity of curtailing our expenditure’. Then between March 1899 and June 1902 further transcripts were copied gratuitously by Bonwick, but such was the interest in Hobart that neither the government, the Royal Society nor the Public Library was prepared to contribute towards a gift of £25 for Bonwick who had now retired from transcribing.
Finally, in April 1887 Bonwick's repeated
68
requests to the New South Wales government met with success when he was appointed to transcribe documents to be incorporated in a new history of the colony to be published in the centenary year of 1888.
11 The initial move came from Charles Potter, the Government Printer, who proposed the publication of a new edition of T. Richards’
Official History of New South Wales (Sydney, 1883), but it was decided that an entirely new work be published, the documentary material being provided by the transcripts. Accordingly Bonwick was appointed in April to transcribe for £50, and when the first batch was forwarded to Sydney in September 1887 the material they contained proved so valuable and interesting that the work was allowed to continue without interruption until Bonwick's retirement in 1902.
Soon after Bonwick's appointment, an ‘Historical Commission’ was appointed in Sydney, consisting of Walker (chief librarian of the Sydney Public Library), Potter (the Government Printer), G. B. Barton, and A. Britton who when he died in 1891 was replaced by F. M. Bladen. The work of this committee was to prepare the proposed new history for publication. In 1889 appeared the first volume of the History of New South Wales from the Records covering the period 1783–1789 and written by Barton; the second volume. 1789–1794. appeared in 1894, written by Britten who died before the final printing, and prepared for publication by Bladen. Shortly after the publication of the first volume it was decided that the transcripts themselves should be published currently with the History, and thus between 1892 and 1901 seven volumes of the Historical Records of New South Wales were published. Britton edited vol. i, part II, but on his death Bladen took over the editorship and the remaining volumes appeared under his control. The final volume appeared in 1901; it included the transcripts to 1811 so that the bulk of them, which generally conclude at 1830, remained unprinted.
From 1887, then, Bonwick worked full time at his transcribing duties, copying approximately 125,000 foolscap sheets for the Tasma-nian and New South Wales governments (both series were compiled concurrently). Copied by hand, many of them by Bonwick himself, some by female assistants employed by him, they represent years of patient work spent in the cold, dimly-lit Records Office. Other sources of information were not neglected; the Home Office, War Office, Admiralty, India Office and the Colonial Office were all visited, as were the headquarters of the London Missionary Society and many other private bodies. Journeys were made to Scotland, Ireland and Wales in search of material.
A modern historian has described the transcripts as ‘a major influence on Australian historical writing’, in that they stimulated serious historical research.
12 Many of the transcripts reached a wide audience by their incorporation in the
Historical Records of New South Wales and later in the thirty-three volumes of the
Historical Records of Australia (Sydney, 1914–25). The publication of these documents showed Australian historians the vast mass of evidence that was awaiting their research before reliable judgments could be made. The transcripts and their publication allowed Australian history to move from the highly personal interpretation which had hitherto served as history, to the balanced, professionally written work which is now the norm.
If the transcripts proved such a stimulus, can they now, after eighty-odd years of use, be accepted uncritically? When the Commonwealth government began publication of the
Historical Records of Australia, Dr. F. Watson, their editor, spoke of the ‘grave errors’ and lack of ‘accuracy, completeness and precision’ found in the
Historical Records of New South Wales.
13 Although he is offhand about the value of Bonwick's work, Watson does make some very pertinent criticisms of the transcripts.
Firstly, he noted the action of the censor before the transcripts were forwarded to Australia. In dealing with public records, Bonwick was restricted to material of a certain age. He
69
was refused permission to transcribe documents relating to Moreton Bay after 1850, and, presumably, the same restriction could have applied to documents of the other colonies had the transcription proceeded far enough. Furthermore, the authorities at the Colonial Office placed restrictions on those archives to which it gave Bonwick access. In one instance some material from the Appendix to Bigge's
Report was destroyed at the Colonial Office and the remainder was forwarded to Sydney on condition that it was kept ‘strictly confidential… not to be printed and not to be accessible to the public’.
14 This is a particular instance, and it is now impossible to determine how much censorship was applied during the day-to-day work; possibly it occurred frequently.
A second, more serious defect of the transcripts are the editorial omissions made by Bonwick himself. When he first applied to the New South Wales government for employment, Bonwick offered to work as ‘the historian and not the copyist’,
15 revealing an attitude to archives that has since proved erroneous. Later, when forwarding the first batch of transcripts to Sydney, Bonwick noted that ‘there is a careful omission of all names of prisoners, private slanders and irrelevant facts’.
16 There is no evidence to suggest that this policy of editing was changed as the copying continued. Nor are the New South Wales transcripts unique in this respect. A comparison of the South Australian transcripts with the microfilm copies of the originals shows that Bonwick paraphrased or omitted to a considerable extent; the Tasmanian transcripts suffer likewise because of Bon-wick's failure to include references to the location or series number of the original, and because he followed Walker's advice ‘to restrict your selection very considerably’.
17 Such editing not only destroyed the value of the transcripts as an undisturbed archival sequence, but, as Watson remarked, ‘it is only by the careful examination and assimilation of all statements … that the fundamental basis of truth may be conceived in its true proportions’.
Two further limitations need to be considered. As the bulk of the transcripts increased, both the Tasmanian and New South Wales governments allowed Bonwick to employ female assistants to carry out the actual copying while he acted as searcher and general superintendent. Although this practice certainly improved the legibility of the copies it is possible that the assistants, lacking historical background were not careful in their work nor had it thoroughly checked by Bonwick. Finally, the transcripts as now preserved in the Mitchell Library have been considerably re-arranged from the numerical sequence provided by Bonwick. Many have been extracted and bound into separate volumes, whilst the rest have been sorted into three series, thus rendering almost useless the lengthy indexes which Bonwick prepared.
The result of this censorship, editing and rearrangement is that the transcripts have to be used selectively and with care. Most of them have been published in the Historical Records of New South Wales and the Historical Records of Australia or are now available in the original form on the microfilm copies provided by the Joint Copying Project. Only some small sections of the transcripts (as indicated in the list below) retain some value — the rest are available elsewhere in a more accurate form. Until further close comparisons are made between the transcripts, the printed versions and the microfilms it would seem safest that the bulk of the transcripts remain undisturbed on library shelves.
A CHECK-LIST OF THE BONWICK TRANSCRIPTS
- ‘Documents in the Record Office, London, relative to Moreton Bay, 1822 to 1849’. (Royal Historical Society of Queensland.)
- Pp. 1290, bound into 4 vols. Transcribed, June-Dec. 1883.
- Availability: HRA I, x-xxvi; III v-vi; microfilm reels 55–7 and 107–224.
- Usefulness: limited.
70
- ‘Miscellaneous Correspondence with the Colonial Office, relative to the Foundation of South Australia,
- February 1831–May 1835’. (South Australian Archives, 521.)
- Folios: 690. Transcribed: March-July 1885.
- Avariability: microfilm reels 305–6.
- Usefulness: limited.
- Bonwick Transcripts. (State Library of Victoria.)
- Folios: 1108, bound into 9 volumes. Transcribed: July-November 1886.
- Availability: HRNSW i (part 1), iii-v; HRA III, i; microfilm reels 292–303, 424–8; various printed books.
- Usefulness: limited, apart from: ‘Reminiscenses of R. H. Bland’ (in the vol. ‘Documents on the Aboriginals of Western Australia’), and letter of Lieut.-Governor La Trobe's father, 1792 (in the vol. ‘Discovery and Navigation of Bass's Strait, 1798–1804’), both of which may not be available elsewhere.
- Bonwick Trancripts. (Tasmanian State Archives.)
- Folios: c. 20,000, sorted into 36 boxes. Transcribed: January-July 1887 (box 1); March-June 1888 (box 2);
- July 1890–January 1894 (boxes 3–18); March 1899–December 1902 (boxes 19–36).
- Availability: HRNSW iii-vii, HRA I, iii-xvi; III i-vi; microfilm reels 1–55, 98–224, 230–92; various printed
- books.
- Usefulness: limited, apart from: ‘Wesleyan Missionary Papers’ (box 18), and ‘Van Diemen's Land Company
- Correspondence’ (box 19) which may not be available elsewhere.
- Bonwick Transcripts. (Mitchell Library.)
- Folios: c. 104,000, sorted into 247 boxes or bound into 5 foolscap vols., 5 quarto vols. and 4 quarto index vols. Transcribed: July 1887–May 1904.
- Availability: HRNSW; HRA; microfilm reels 1–57, 92–224, 1165–7; various printed books.
- Usefulness: limited, apart from: Series I, boxes 49–54 (Missionary Papers 1786–1841), 55–61 (Miscellaneous Papers 1641–1892), 66–70 (Extracts from English Newspapers 1784–1826) and 80–81 (Extracts from Indian Newspapers 1793–1822) which may not be available elsewhere; Bound Volume Series, ‘Bonwick
- Transcripts, Biography’ (4 vols., A 2000) and ‘Papers relating to Margaret Catchpole’ (1 vol., A 2074), which may not be available elsewhere.
GUY FEATHERSTONE
