A Celebrated Production
The Celebrated George Barrington: A Spurious Author; The Book Trade and Botany Bay
Nathan Garvey, C. H. Currey Memorial Fellow at the State Library of New South Wales for 2008, isthe author of a number of articles on early Australian literature and the eighteenth and nineteenth-century book trade. His first book, The Celebrated George Barrington: A Spurious Author; The Book Trade and Botany Bay is based on his doctoral thesis, undertaken at the University of Sydney.
Commentating on the publication, Garvey writes: "This is a book about the 'Barrington'... but in a broader sense it is also an inquiry into the print cultures of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries and, more particularly, the somewhat shadowy world of popular publishing in this period."
Garvey in his first chapter, describes Barrington's notoriety as a gentlemen pickpocket in the late eighteenth century, with Barrington becoming known as 'The Prince of Pickpockets'. Born George Waldron in Ireland, Barrington was arrested fourteen times but only served three short prison terms before being sentenced to transportation. On arrival in Sydney in September 1791, he was sent to work at Toongabbie for ''Irreproachable conduct'”. However, in November 1792 Barrington was given a conditional pardon.
This pardon was made absolute in 1796, and John Hunter appointed Barrington Chief Constable at Parramatta. In 1800, Barrington's "infirmity", a euphemism for insanity led to his resignation, although he was allowed to keep half his salary as a pension. Barrington died on 27 December 1804 but his 'celebrity’ status continued long after his death for several reasons.
The cult of celebrity is not a new phenomenon, and Garvey provides fascinating insights into how Barrington " was created and commodified by the press". People were originally interested in his crimes, "a folk hero perhaps in elegant dress", but then he became the "redeemed sinner" saved by transportation.
Another major factor in the longevity of Barrington's fame came through his alleged publications. Garvey's second chapter, 'The Lives of George Barrington' documents the messy and complicated publishing history of the biographies of Barrington and his alleged travel narratives. This is important, as the "Barrington" books were probably the most widely circulated accounts of the early years of European settlement in Australia.
This was a book trade in a world mostly without copyright laws and adding insult perhaps to injury, the author was not the author in this case. Garvey meticulously documents more than eighty separate works attributed to Barrington, which for decades had proved to be a source of bibliographical confusion. Much is owed in the unraveling of the bibliographic complexities, according to Garvey, to the work of E.A. Petherick, Arthur Jose, and J.A. Ferguson.
The text includes an extensive annotated reference section and a comprehensive bibliography of the 'Barrington' books published between 1790 and 1840, with some 26 illustrations included from the early 'Barrington' books. A short Epilogue concludes that the publishing history of the 'Barrington' books is best seen "as a series of acts of fabrication, intellectual transgression and commercial opportunism - intimately connected with the changing nature of print culture in the late Georgian era.”
Garvey has successfully combined bibliographical, biographical and historical sources to provide a fascinating insight into George Barrington and his times and influence, both intentional and unintentional, in late eighteenth century England and early colonial Australia via 'his' publications. The book also benefits from the usual excellence in production standards that we have come to associate with Hordern House, this volume being printed in two-colours and bound in red saifu cloth. A celebrated production indeed in all respects.
Reviewed by Colin Steele
No comments:
Post a Comment