AustLit

Davison Symmons was the son of a Church of England clergyman. In London he worked as a bank clerk, then became an assistant scene-maker in a London theatre. He came to Australia when his health deteriorated. His first job in Australia was selling tooth powder door-to-door, then he became a tea merchant, then a jackaroo on a sheep station in the Riverina district. Symmons started in journalism at the Corowa Free Press. He was one of the original three contributors to the 'Passing Show' column in the Saturday edition of the Melbourne Argus, writing under the pseudonym 'Oriel', a name he suggested to the editors of the journal, and which remained attached to the column throughout its existence.