y separately published work icon A Treasury of Colonial Poetry anthology   poetry  
Issue Details: First known date: 1982... 1982 A Treasury of Colonial Poetry
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Notes

  • Contents indexed selectively. This volume also contains a number of poems by New Zealand writers.

Contents

* Contents derived from the Milsons Point, North Sydney - Lane Cove area, Sydney Northern Suburbs, Sydney, New South Wales,:Currawong , 1982 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Waltzing Matilda : Carrying a Swagi"Oh! there once was a swagman camped in the billabong,", A. B. Paterson , single work poetry (p. 9)
Somethingi"It is something in this darker dream demented", Francis Adams , single work poetry (p. 10)
The Kangaroo Hunti"Up and away by the break of day,", Francis Adams , single work poetry (p. 10-11)
The Sheep Shearersi"Here's work for men to do and sweat,", Francis Adams , single work poetry (p. 11)
Spring Morningi"What clearer than this earth and air?", Francis Adams , single work poetry (p. 11)
Love and Deathi"Death? is it death you give? So be it! O Death,", Francis Adams , single work poetry (p. 12)
Gordon's Gravei"All the heat and the glow and the hush", Francis Adams , single work poetry (p. 12)
The Old Bark Huti"In an old bark hut on the mountainside", single work poetry (p. 13-17)
Evening: A Fragmenti"It is the evening hour, and silently", Emma Frances Anderson , single work poetry (p. 18)
An Australian Girl's Farewelli"I'm leaving thee, my happy native land,", Emma Frances Anderson , single work poetry (p. 19)
Prologue, Spoken by George Barrington The Barrington Prologuei"From distant climes, o'er wide-spread seas we come,", Henry Carter , single work poetry (p. 20-21)
The Wild Colonial Boyi"'Tis of a wild Colonial boy, Jack Doolan was his name", single work poetry

'The Wild Colonial Boy' is a traditional Irish/Australian ballad of which there are many different versions. It has been argued that the original version was really about Jack Donahoe (variously spelled Donahoo or Donahue), an Irish transport who arrived at Sydney Cove in 1825, and was subsequently convicted of highway robbery and sentenced to death. He escaped and waged a guerrilla war against the wealthy for more than two years in the country around Sydney. On September 1st 1830 he was ambushed by a police party near Cambelltown and shot dead, his companions Webber and Warmsley escaping into the bush. This version was eventually outlawed as seditious so the name of the protagonist changed.

The resulting Irish version is about a young emigrant, named Jack Duggan, who left the town of Castlemaine, County Kerry, Ireland, for Australia in the 1800s. According to the song (and in keeping with the true story of Jack Donahoe), he spent his time there 'robbing from the rich to feed the poor'. In the song, the protagonist is fatally wounded in an ambush when his heart is pierced by the bullet of Fitzroy.

The Australian version has Jack Doolan (or sometimes Jack Dowling) as the protagonist, and here Castlemaine refers to the Australian town in Victoria. In both versions variation in the wording and language occurs across different sources.

In his Old Bush Songs, Banjo Patterson wrote: "it will be noticed that the same chorus is sung to both 'The Wild Colonial Boy' and 'Bold Jack Donahoo'. Several versions of both songs were sent in, but the same chorus was always made to do duty for both songs." This chorus, included in some (not all) Australian versions is as follows:


Come, all my hearties,

we'll roam the mountains high,

Together we will plunder,

together we will die.

We'll wander over valleys,

and gallop over plains,

And we'll scorn to live in

slavery, bound down with iron chains.

 (p. 27)
The Bushman's Lullabyi"Lift me down to the creek-bank, Jack;", Rolf Boldrewood , single work poetry (p. 42-43)
What of the Night?i"To you, who look below,", Ada Cambridge , single work poetry (p. 44)
Good-Byei"Good-bye! - 'tis like a churchyard bell - good-bye!", Ada Cambridge , single work poetry (p. 44-45)
Honouri"Me let the world disparage and despise-", Ada Cambridge , single work poetry (p. 45)
Despairi"Alone! Alone! No beacon, far or near!", Ada Cambridge , single work poetry (p. 45)
An Old Bush Road The Old Bush Roadi"Dear old road, wheel-worn and broken,", Jennings Carmichael , single work poetry (p. 46-47)
A Woman's Moodi"I think to-night I could bear it all,", Jennings Carmichael , single work poetry (p. 48-49)
The Australian Girli"She has a beauty of her own,", Ethel Castilla , single work poetry (p. 50)
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Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

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Works about this Work

A Mixed Bag of Early Poetry Ralph Elliott , 1983 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 2 July 1983; (p. 20)
— Review of A Treasury of Colonial Poetry 1982 anthology poetry
The Past Lives on Versifiers Stephen Knight , 1982 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 27 November 1982; (p. 35)
— Review of The Wild Colonial Boy : Bushranger Jack Donohue, 1806-1830 1982 anthology poetry prose extract ; A Treasury of Colonial Poetry 1982 anthology poetry
The Past Lives on Versifiers Stephen Knight , 1982 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 27 November 1982; (p. 35)
— Review of The Wild Colonial Boy : Bushranger Jack Donohue, 1806-1830 1982 anthology poetry prose extract ; A Treasury of Colonial Poetry 1982 anthology poetry
A Mixed Bag of Early Poetry Ralph Elliott , 1983 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 2 July 1983; (p. 20)
— Review of A Treasury of Colonial Poetry 1982 anthology poetry
VIEW ALL WORKS ABOUT (2)
Last amended 17 Mar 2020 08:29:43
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