Lawson shows us what living in the bush really means. The result is
a real book--a book in a hundred. His language is terse, supple, and
richly idiomatic."

Mr. A. Patchett Martin, in Literature (London): "A book which Mrs.
Campbell Praed, the Australian novelist, assured me made her feel that
all she had written of bush life was pale and ineffective."

The Spectator: "In these days when short, dramatic stories are eagerly
looked for, it is strange that one we would venture to call the greatest
Australian writer should be practically unknown in England. Short
stories, but biting into the very heart of the bushman's life, ruthless
in truth, extraordinarily dramatic, and pathetically uneven...."

The Times: "A collection of short and vigorous studies and stories of
Australian life and character. A little in Bret Harte's manner, crossed,
perhaps, with that of Guy de Maupassant."

[The Announcements at the end of this section give alternate titles
for two of Lawson's works, to wit: "On the Track" is given as such, but
"Over the Sliprails" is given as "By the Sliprails", and the combined
work "On the Track and Over the Sliprails" is given as "By Track and
Sliprails". Of course, only "On the Track" had actually been printed at
the date of the advertisement, so it might be theorized that these had
been working titles, afterwards discarded, whose inclusion here was
overlooked.--A. L., 1998.]

About the author:

Henry Lawson was born near Grenfell, New South Wales, Australia on
17 June 1867. Although he has since become Australia's most acclaimed
writer, in his own lifetime his writing was often "on the side"--his
"real" work being whatever he could find. His writing was frequently
taken from memories of his childhood, especially at Pipeclay/Eurunderee.
In his autobiography, he states that many of his characters were
taken from the better class of diggers and bushmen he knew there.
His experiences at this time deeply influenced his work, for it is
interesting to note a number of descriptions and phrases that are
identical in his autobiography and in his stories and poems. He died at
Sydney, 2 September 1922. He is most famous for his short stories.

"On the Track" and "Over the Sliprails" were both published at Sydney
in 1900, the prefaces being dated March and June respectively--and so,
though printed separately, a combined edition was printed the same
year (the two separate, complete works were simply pu