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George A. Walstab George A. Walstab i(A75905 works by) (a.k.a. George Arthur Walstab; G. A. Walstab)
Also writes as: G. A. W.
Born: Established: 31 Dec 1834 Tottenham, London,
c
England,
c
c
United Kingdom (UK),
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Western Europe, Europe,
; Died: Ceased: 9 Feb 1909 Melbourne, Victoria,
Gender: Male
Arrived in Australia: 18 Nov 1852
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Works By

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1 [Untitled] [The Lone Hand, 1 August 1907] George A. Walstab , 1907 single work correspondence
— Appears in: The Lone Hand , 1 August vol. 1 no. 4 1907; (p. 418)
1 The Strange Disappearance of Corporal Robertson George A. Walstab , 1889 single work short story
— Appears in: The Australian Journal , January vol. 24 no. 284 1889; (p. 263-270)
Tale of the Victorian mounted police in 1853, recalled in England in 1888. The disappearance of a gentlemanly corporal reveals publicly the coarse drunkenness of his wife and his love for a refined and beautiful governess on a nearby station. Narrated by the then young officer in charge of the troop in the Victorian country town. Involves descriptions of local social life, detective work, and references to the local Chinese camp. (PB)
1 The Mystery of Queen's Wharf George A. Walstab , 1886 single work short story
— Appears in: The Nepean Times , 25 December 1886; (p. 1) Man or Devil: Tales of the Australian Gothic 2020; (p. 147-175)
1 Sheepwash's Christmas Surprise George A. Walstab , 1885 single work short story romance
— Appears in: Table Talk , 24 December 1885; (p. 3-4)
A True Story
1 The House by the River : An Indian Ghost Story George A. Walstab , 1883 single work short story horror
— Appears in: The Australian Journal , June vol. 18 no. 217 1883; (p. 548-550) Australian Gothic : An Anthology of Australian Supernatural Fiction, 1867-1939 2007; (p. 72-85)
A British soldier sends his family to a vacant house near Calcutta to escape the cholera , but has to bring them back when a ghostly woman appears. A subsequent night spent there with a fellow officer brings an even more horrific encounter with the woman. Well written. (PB)
1 Never Discovered George A. Walstab , 1882 single work short story
— Appears in: The Australian Journal , June vol. 17 no. 205 1882; (p. 534-537)
A policeman recalls the murder of a girl at the foot of the Grampians years before, when he was posted there as a police cadet chasing cattle rustlers. In love with the girl himself he is eclipsed by a clever mysterious Frenchman - who proves to be very jealous. The girl's murder soon after their engagement is attributed to an escaped cattle rustler but the narrator has his own theory. Well written romance/murder story - a little in the 'W. W.' style. (PB)
1 The Colonel's Secret George A. Walstab , 1881 single work short story
— Appears in: The Australian Journal , September vol. 17 no. 196 1881; (p. 15-20)
Tragedy of an English officer retired to Victoria who lives in seclusion with his sister. The local doctor is finally consulted when she has a fit of insanity and discovers the cause is the brutal breach of their engagement by her fiancee and his subsequent execution by her brother in a duel. Touching (and a little disturbing) portrait of brotherly/sisterly love. (PB)
1 'How I Found My Dog:' or, My Christmas Drink George A. Walstab , 1870 single work short story
— Appears in: Williams's Illustrated Australian Annual, for the Holiday Season [1870-71] 1870; (p. 6-12)
1 Double Harness George A. Walstab , 1869 single work novel
1 1 Confessed at Last George A. Walstab , 1868 single work novella

'At 28 Disney Vernon is a 'bad lot'. Dying of consumption he has married the clergyman's daughter whom he seduced and asks his estranged brother, Charles, to care for her after his death, especially as she is pregnant. She bears a daughter and Disney disappears. He is feared murdered by William Mostyn, the husband of Disney's one true love who died leaving a son. Disney's wife dies of grief and the story turns to the children's lives, 18 years later, in the 1830s.

'Harry Mostyn and Isabel Vernon meet and fall in love but their relatives prevent the match. Walter Livingston, a one time friend of Disney Vernon, also loves Isabel. He befriends Harry, but determines that he shall never marry Isabel and is entangled in a plot with a mysterious Mr Anderson to ensure the young man's ruin. With the help of his father, his uncle and Isabel, Harry clears himself from their snares.

'Harry's hunt for the solution to Disney Vernon's murder takes him to Sydney in 1834 as aide de camp to Governor Bourke, and thence to New Zealand where he is involved in Maori skirmisheds, political bargaining and romantic tragedy. Once again he follows John Anderson to Europe where all is finally revealed.' (PB)

5 14 y separately published work icon Long Odds : A Novel Marcus Clarke , George A. Walstab , 1868-1869 Z1117962 1868-1869 single work novel Bob Calverly, Australian nephew of Squire Valentine Yoricks, is visiting England when he falls in love with Kate French, niece of Saville whom she loves. As the story opens Cyril secretly marries his landlady's daughter, Carry Manton - just as his brother's death in a steeplechase makes him heir to his father's estate. The machinations of Rupert Dacre enmesh both Cyril and Bob on the paths of ruin - one through denying his marriage and the other through gambling debts and money-lenders ... Enlivened by the portraits of poet/grocer Binns and literary man/reporter Bland, heroes of the humble working man's sphere and mediocrity ... (PB)
2 Lost in the Ranges G. A. W. , 1867 single work short story crime
— Appears in: Colonial Monthly : An Australian Magazine , October 1867; (p. 113-121)

— Appears in: The Empire , 5 November 1867; (p. 2)
1 How I Became a Groom, and for How Long. George A. Walstab , 1867 single work short story
— Appears in: The Australian Monthly Magazine , March vol. 4 no. 19 1867; (p. 37-49)
2 1 y separately published work icon Looking Back, Or, Pique, Repique and Capot George A. Walstab , Calcutta : Wyman , 1864 Z1344123 1864 single work novel

'Tale of a man's life recalled in later years - and principally of his friend Harcourt Darrell, the scion of an old Roman Catholic family in England. The narrator and Darrell were school friends and spent several months in Devonshire studying with a Protestant clergyman before they were to enter the army. While there, Darell fell in love with the gentle clergyman's daughter but his strict Roman Catholic mother opposed the match unrelentingly. The effect of her refusal on the lives of all the protagonists, especially Darrell in his rapid decline into a true "Wild Darell" comprises the major thread of the tale whose main events take place around 1850. The narrator, George Wainwright's efforts to restore his father's lost fortunes through entering military school in France and his grand passion for a married Frenchwoman bring adventures to him too. Walstab also takes the chance to involve Wainwright in French politics and [the life of] Louis Napoleon (1848-1851). Wainwright eventually emigrates to Australia and joins the Victorian mounted police. Among the other duties, [he guards] a quarantined ship.' (PB)

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