Eyre's story is one of mixed fortunes. In his early life a heroic explorer and traveller through some of the most desolate country in Australia, and in his later years the colonial Governor of Jamaica in the period of a brief rebellion and brutal reassertion of British control.

As a biography it is extremely well done but the subject, another relatively small player on the vast stage of the 19th Century British Empire, is likely of little interest to the modern reader. Unless of course they have a particular interest in Jamaican history, or of early Australian exploration.

But this is more than just a biography, it's also an examination of the relationship between colonial European Governments and settlers on the one hand, and indigenous peoples in Australasia, and former slaves in the Caribbean on the other. Dutton, through Eyre's observations, lends credence to the accounts of arbitrary justice dealt out to Aborigines on the Australian frontier, while highlighting many who deplored that behaviour, including Eyre. Curiously Eyre's accounts haven't figured largely in the recent debate in Australia on whether massacres of Aborigines took place in the 1800's - perhaps because of an apprehension about his persistent reputation as a racist homicidal despot in Jamaica

The real attraction for Dutton in writing this book was to understand how this reputation came about, and how it could be reconciled with Eyre's history as a very ordinary man, and a defender of indigenous rights in Australia. That story is essentially one that encompasses the whole system of British colonialism into which Eyre was simply swept up. Dutton's account of the clash of liberals and the old order over the proper role and exercise of colonial rule opens up fascinating vistas into British society and attitudes. In some ways the politics and the issues are still familiar to us today, as indeed are the moral dilemmas facing administrators who work for a Government involved in 'foreign adventures'.

I was a while ago prevailed upon to donate my (unread) copy of this book to the very worthy Eyre Bird Observatory, an incredibly isolated stop on one of Eyre's epic journeys of exploration. After reading this book I've come to appreciate it's considerable virtues, and have ordered a second copy to donate - but don't begrudge the cost at all. Highly recommended, and I hope if you ever visit the observatory you'll find a copy there. ( )