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Book Reviews
As a social group the Anglo-Irish have been largely neglected in Australian historiography. Therefore, John Merritt’s study of William Edward Abbott, a patriarchal figure of the Wingen district in New South Wales, comes as a welcome addition to the existing literature. Yet, this work is significant in a quite different context. While Merritt insists that it was not intended as a biography, the reverse has actually occurred. However, it is Merritt’s technique which has raised this study above standard biographies. By analysing the public correspondence of a pastoralist whom the Bulletin sarcastically described as “that voluminous squatter”, the author has gained entry into the very mind of his subject. A complex mind it assuredly was, and Abbott was not necessarily typical of the squatting fraternity; rather, he marched to the beat of his own drummer. Thus, while many of Abbott’s beliefs were anachronistic, still others reveal remarkable prescience.
Born in 1844, Abbott reached the zenith of his influence at the very time that the squattocracy was in eclipse. His was a rearguard action, fought with great determination and clever manipulation. Ultimately, he was outmanoeuvred by the interests which he despised above all others — an organised labour movement. Although Abbott was an ardent defender of individual liberty and perceived the landed gentry as the epitome of individual success, he was unable to comprehend the blocked access to that social level. Recognising the existence of natural inequality in the capitalist system, Abbott believed that material success was the reward for hard work and superior intellect. This, in turn, provided justification for his sanctioning of wages based on productivity. He remained ignorant of the circumstances relating to birth.
Elected to the New South Wales parliament in 1889 on a Protectionist platform, Abbott soon proved to be a maverick, equally at odds with his own leader, George Dibbs, and that of the opposition, Henry Parkes. Worse, he undermined his own credibility by absenting himself from parliament at crucial times. Put succinctly, he was a failure as a parliamentarian and the claims that he was influential in effecting amendments to land legislation are doubtful. On the other hand, Abbott was effective as President of the Pastoralists’ Union of New South Wales and this, perhaps, reveals his limited abilities.
Abbott’s interests were nevertheless wide and he was a strong proponent of both a federated Australia and a white society. He was, after all, a product of his age and John Merritt has demonstrated a rare ability by allowing his readers to view that world through the eyes of a remarkable contemporaneous figure.
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