y separately published work icon The Country I Come From selected work   short story  
  • Author:agent Henry Lawson http://www.poetrylibrary.edu.au/poets/lawson-henry
Issue Details: First known date: 1901... 1901 The Country I Come From
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Notes

  • Publisher's note: 'This volume contains a selection of stories and sketches from Mr. Lawson's While the Billy Boils, Over the Sliprails and On the Track. It is published by arrangement with Messrs. Angus & Robertson, Sydney, and is not for sale in Australia or New Zealand.' It was never re-issued.
  • Contains sixteen stories from While the Billy Boils and twelve from On the Track and Over the Sliprails.

Contents

* Contents derived from the Edinburgh,
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Scotland,
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United Kingdom (UK),
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Western Europe, Europe,
:
William Blackwood , 1901 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
An Old Mate of Your Father's, Henry Lawson , single work short story
The narrator remembers how his father would be visited by old mates and how they sit together talking about their days on the Ballarat and Bendigo goldfields.
(p. 1-7)
'Tom's Selection' : A Sketch of Settling on the Land Settling on the Land, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Lawson gives a graphic, if humorous, account of the hardships faced by settlers and the rivalry between them and squatters.
(p. 8-16)
Stiffner and Jim (Thirdly, Bill), Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Bill and Jim, the narrator, arrive at a pub desperate for a drink, but without any money.
(p. 17-27)
The Man Who Forgot, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
A soft-hearted shearer is deceived by a cunning swagman.
(p. 28-35)
His Country - After All, Henry Lawson , single work short story
Expatriate for fifteen years, a man denigrates Australia throughout a coach-trip in New Zealand, until he encounters the smell and sight of imported blue gum trees.
(p. 36-43)
The Union Buries Its Dead : A Bushman's Funeral. A Sketch from Life The Union Buries Its Dead, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Describes a bush funeral.
(p. 44-51)
Mitchell Doesn't Believe in the Sack, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Mitchell explains to his mate how to refuse to be sacked.
(p. 52-54)
His Father's Mate, Henry Lawson , single work short story
Tom Mason has lived a life full of misfortune and has lost all the people he loved. All he has left is his eleven-year-old son, to whom he is devoted.
(p. 55-71)
The Drover's Wife, Henry Lawson , single work short story

First appearing in The Bulletin in 1892, Henry Lawson's short story 'The Drovers Wife' is today regarded as a seminal work in the Australian literary tradition. Noted for it's depiction of the bush as harsh, potentially threatening and both isolated and isolating, the story opens with a simple enough premise: an aggressive--and presumably deadly--snake disrupts the working life of a bushwoman and her young children. Brave but cautious, the woman resolves to protect her children since her husband is, characteristically, away from home and of no help. 

As time passes within the story, tension builds, and the snake's symbolic threat takes on layers of meaning as the sleepless heroine recalls previous challenges she faced while her husband was away. A series of flashbacks and recollections propel the story through the single night over which it takes place, and by the time the climax arrives--the confrontation with the snake--readers have learned much about the heroine's strengths and fears, most of the latter involving the loss of children and dark figures who encroach upon her small, vulnerable homestead. To be sure, this "darkness" is highly symbolic, and Lawson's use of imagery invokes Western notions of good and evil as well as gendered and racial stereotypes. 

(p. 72-84)
The Bush Undertaker, Henry Lawson , single work short story
An old shepherd discovers his mate, Brummy, dead and mummified in the bush. Saddened, he feels compelled to bury him.
(p. 85-97)
Coming Across : A Study in the Steerage, Henry Lawson , single work short story
Lawson describes travelling steerage to New Zealand on a ship carrying ill-informed migrants, hard-drinking New Zealand shearers, and optimistic Australians.
(p. 98-117)
The Story of Malachi, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Malachi is the butt of endless practical jokes, which he endures patiently. But when the squatter's daughter is threatened by a maddened cow he shows true heroism.
(p. 118-125)
Steelman's Pupil, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Steelman strives to teach Smith the tricks of the trade, but eventually succeeds too well.
(p. 126-133)
Board and Residence, Henry Lawson , single work short story autobiography
Lawson describes the evils of unemployment and cheap boarding houses.
(p. 134-142)
Two Dogs and a Fence, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Mitchell muses on the behaviour of dogs.
(p. 143-145)
Macquarie's Mate, Henry Lawson , single work short story
The drinkers at Stiffner's shanty have a poor opinion of Macquarie, but his mate, Awful Example, defends him.
(p. 146-152)
The Shanty-Keeper's Wife, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
A party of coach travellers stop at a bush shanty, hoping for a meal after an uncomfortable journey. The publican informs them his wife is ill, asks them to be quiet, and tells them that he has no food and can only offer them rum and milk. Then the horses go missing and the travellers are offered accommodation for the night, at a price.
(p. 153-163)
The Hero of Redclay, Henry Lawson , single work short story

Joe is unhappy when Jack Mitchell brings an unlikeable shearer known as 'the Lachlan' to their camp. The Lachlan stays with them for the day, then moves on. That night Mitchell tells Joe the tragic tale of Jack Drew, a journalist and sometime gold prospector, and Ruth Wilson, a girl with whom Mitchell was also in love.

(p. 164-190)
The Darling River, Henry Lawson , single work short story humour
Lawson describes the oddities of travel by river boat on the Darling River. He also explains how Bourke came to acquire the reputation of being the most drunken town on the Darling.
(p. 191-207)
A Daughter of Maoriland : A Sketch of Poor-Class Maoris, Henry Lawson , single work short story
The story of Sarah Moses, a brooding sixteen-year-old Maori girl called 'August' by her new school teacher, and a man with literary ambitions who thinks he may be able to construct a romance from her story. One day August turns up on his doorstep, claiming her family have thrown her out. The teacher and his wife take her in and all goes well at first, but gradually they realise August's real intentions.
(p. 208-222)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Last amended 22 Dec 2023 09:56:01
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