AustLit

'In the realm of international engagement, consular activity has often seemed the poor relation when compared to ministerial statecraft, or to diplomatic undertakings conducted by Ambassadors, High Commissioners and other senior envoys. In contrast to the first ambassadors, who were often personal representatives of one sovereign to another, the humble consul played a more mundane role: providing assistance to a country's citizens who found themselves in strife while travelling abroad. Such issues could occasionally surface at the commanding heights of the state, and in 1850 during the famous Don Pacifico affair, the British Foreign Secretary, Viscount Palmerston, famously remarked that “as the Roman, in days of old, held himself free from indignity, when he could say Civis Romanus sum; so also a British subject, in whatever land he may be, shall feel confident that the watchful eye and the strong arm of England will protect him against injustice and wrong”. But for the most part, consular activity limped along below the radar, and attracted relatively little attention or status.' (Introduction)

'Kate Auty's O'Leary of the Underworld expands historical work begun by Neville Green's The Forrest River Massacres (1995), but through the eagle eyes of legal analysis, a perspective for which Auty is well-known. Auty's aim is to profile the dishonesty and murderous actions of Bernard O'Leary, one of the main perpetrators of the Forrest River massacres in the Kimberley region. She brings together various contexts, personalities, and events that culminated in the case and trial. The killings that preceded the Forrest River massacre are also detailed (pp. 22–29). Auty's work is uncommon in targeting a specific individual, providing detailed backstories. She retrospectively charges O'Leary of crimes for which he was absolved. The book is illustrated with unique and well-sourced maps, photographs, and sketches that help the reader visualise events.'(Introduction)