The Argosy, Vol. XXIV No. 2

The Track of Midnight, by G. Firth Scott (complete in this issue), is an adventure tale set in pre-gold-rush Australia. James Wilton, an English settler engaged in pastoral pursuits, becomes stranded when his dray carrying wool and hides sinks into mud crossing a flooded flat. Sheltering under the tarpaulin overnight, he discovers armed white outlaws collaborating with Aboriginal warriors attacking his bullocks. The men search for him; a bullet narrowly misses. While they massacre his team and feast with the natives, two white men urge the Aboriginal group to set fire to the dray. Wilton, trapped in his hiding spot between wool bales, considers escape by sliding into the water and concealing himself in vegetation. The narrative emphasizes frontier dangers from both "wild black fellows" and white convict escapees roaming unsettled districts.