From James Dawson   30 July 1881

Dear Sir

By last English Mail I received your favour of the 3^d of June thanking me for “Australian Aborigines”.¹

I am glad to learn that it has reached you, and I hope its perusal may please you as well as its appearance seems to do. I think the style in which it has been brought out does great credit to our principal publishing house in Melbourne, and to the Colony.

As regards the matter in the book, I may state that it was collected chiefly by my daughter Mrs Taylor,² who I may mention is a grand-niece of Mungo Park the African Traveller. Mrs Taylor enjoyed the singular advantage of having been amongst the Aborigines from the age of three till fifteen years, and consequently was thoroughly qualified to undertake such an arduous task, a task undertaken I may say without due consideration of the labour and anxiety; for had these been anticipated, I fear much “Australian Aborigines” would never have seen the light.

My daughter informs me that while on a short visit to my very old and dear friend (the late) Edward Wilson of Hayes she heard him speaking of you as a neighbour.³ Probably you may remember Mr Wilson talking about a friend writing to him about a pouched or Marsupial rabbit, if so, it was from me he heard of it, but since that time—notwithstanding the terrible inundation of these pests—I have heard nothing to confirm the story.⁴ There is a factory for preserving meat just now started in this neighbourhood, and as thousands of rabbits are potted daily I will ask the skinners to keep a look out for pouches.

Probably you are acquainted with my nephew Sir Wyvill Thomson. I am glad to hear occasionally from Lady Thomson that Sir Wyvill is recovering, but not to such a degree as to enable him to resume his duties in the College in Edinburgh.⁵

I am | Dear Sir | Yours very sincerely | James Dawson