Cirrus@Austlit

Three sisters at the mercy of a tyrannical father are thrown into despair when he disapproves of the eldest's secret betrothal.

A notoriously idle Sydney mounted trooper narrates an incident from his early career pursuing escaped convicts turned bushrangers on the Huon plain and nearby ranges in Tasmania. His horse killed, he is captured and nearly burnt alive by a drunken member of the gang - but released by him to assist the convict when he is bitten by a death-adder. The man dies and the trooper wanders into the bush in a fever, and is rescued. Includes humour - the one time the trooper got off his back very quickly. The convicts had escaped from Port Arthur. (PB)