Cirrus@Austlit

Nineteenth-Century Travel Writing

Born in Victoria, William John Snowden (1858-1943) was a journalist and editor. After joining the South Australian Register, in 1882 he accompanied a parliamentary party on an expedition to the Northern Territory. His reports were originally published in the Argus, Sydney Morning Herald, and South Australian Register before being published as The Northern Territory As It Is. This engaging and humorous narrative is an account of the travels of the Parliamentary party, with the work focussing on anecdotes of the daily experience of travel and encounters. Sowden paid particular attention to the Chinese and Aboriginal populations, to the condition of the hotels visited, and the gold mining. The work concluded with an Appendix, containing reports on the general resources of the Territory by Professor Tate, F. G. S.