A. Polack auctioned land, stock, farm implements, furniture and household items, including books and stationery, in nineteenth century Sydney, New South Wales.
John Thomas Wilson (fl. 1834-1840), confidence man, was employed by A. Polack, the latter going security for Wilson for six months, from about January 1838. A. F. Pike notes in the biographical entry for Wilson in the Australian Dictionary of Biography online (sighted 26/03/2014) that '[u]nder Wilson [A. Polack's] 's business began to flourish.'
The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser notes on page 2 of the issue of 21 August 1838 that 'By our advertising columns of this day, it will be seen that Mr. Polack has disposed of a portion of his auctioneering business to Mr. John Thomas Wilson ... From Mr. Wilson's well-known attention to business, there can be but little doubt of his succeeding in his new and extensive undertaking.' The latter sentence may have been written in sarcastic vein.
