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Showing posts from January, 2014

Australian fairy tales in a Texas University!

The 'Texas' cover is in mint condition. There are 7 copies in libraries around the world and surprisingly one in  Austin, at the  The University of Texas Library. I was hoping that it had an intriguing history: perhaps a copy held by Ernst's sister Elsa who worked in women's prisons in USA or donated by her brother Hans, an engineer and inventor working in Cincinatti but the story is more practical. Accessed from http://sevenroads.org/Labels/D.html According to Margaret  Tufts Tenney,  Head of the Reading Room,  Harry Ransom Center i t is likely that it came from the purchase of stock from an old bookstore.  This way of obtaining materials was practiced in conjunction with a book dealer the Center worked with throughout its formative years.  There are booksellers pencil marks on the first flyleaf and a bookseller sticker on the verso of the front board.  This indicates it came James Dally in South Australia, one of the five states where the boo

Australian Christmas Carols

A phone interview with a Junior Red Cross member who was in Ernst's Red Cross Circle led me on another research track. She told me that Ernst's pride in Australia was obvious at Christmas time with the regular singing of Australian Christmas Carols. I was given two clues:   a) written by a Melbourne man   b) one carol was about 'Brolgas dancing'.  I believe the lyrics they sang were those written by A BC staff writer John Wheeler to music by William James.           THE CAROL OF THE BIRDS 1. Out on the plains the brolgas are dancing Lifting their feet like warhorses prancing Up to the sun the woodlarks go winging Faint in the dawn light echoes their singing Orana! Orana! Orana to Christmas Day. 2. Down where the tree ferns grow by the river There where the waters sparkle and quiver Deep in the gullies bell-birds are chiming Softly and sweetly their lyric notes rhyming Orana! Orana! Orana to Christmas Day.   3. Friar birds sip the nectar of flowers Cu

First Draft drafted

A tedious fortnight trying to meet my own imposed deadline of completing my First Draft by our 18th year anniversary. I have done battle with technology to make sure margins are correct size, lines are spaced 1.5 and the fonts are readable and easy for 'tired eyes'. I changed my spacing - that took a whole day. I got seasick twice when I scrolled so fast I became nauseous. Am still perplexed at why everything but the reference list managed to stay within the margins. But, it was 1 am when I was trying to sort out how to fix it and gave up. Note: Will sort before I submit. I have pestered my family to read at an inordinate rate this fortnight: The Librarian and Daughter No 1 have read each chapter as it 'came off the press'  for errant commas and sentences that are sense-less. Daughter No 2 declined and suggested she'd wait to see the 'DVD' of the book.  Holiday now. Off to New York, Washington, Philadelphia and a different kind of blog.