Robert Brough Smyth
Robert Brough Smyth (1830 – 8 October 1889)
Life
Smyth was born in
Smyth arrived in the
On 1 February 1876 several members of Smyth's staff sent a petition to the minister for mines asking that an inquiry should be held into the despotic conduct of Smyth towards his subordinates. Three members of parliament were appointed to inquire into the matter, and after a series of sittings held in February, March and April 1876, Smyth resigned from the service. Smyth had been working for many years collecting materials for a book on the life of
Smyth was an able and hardworking man, not suited to be the head of a department. He is remembered for his book on Aboriginal people and their cultures in connexion with which he had the assistance of many helpers. A large amount of material was collected and is valuable as a resource for studying Aboriginal cultures today. The beauty of this material is the honesty in which he wrote and the lack of political influence as is the case of many current works.
References
- ^ Hard Times:First sketch of a geological map of Australia (1873)
- ^ MUP, 1976, pp 161–163. Retrieved 3 February 2010
Further reading
- Serle, Percival (1949). "Smyth, Robert Brough". Dictionary of Australian Biography. Sydney: Angus & Robertson. Retrieved 3 February 2010.
- Mennell, Philip (1892). . The Dictionary of Australasian Biography. London: Hutchinson & Co – via Wikisource.
- "Robert Brough Smyth". Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. 11 December 2015.