Nature's Line

George Goyder was the first European explorer to see great salt lakes in the inland in flood and to witness the amazing transformation that follows the breaking of drought. His experience put him decades ahead of his contemporaries - who satirised him as the discoverer of the inland sea - in understanding the Australian climate. When he attempted to adapt the pattern of settlement to climatic reality by defining the border of the zone of reliable rainfall, his repeated warnings about the threat of drought were scorned. "George Goyder introduced settler Australians to the idea of variability of climate, and the limits to agricultural possibilities for the inland. Janis Sheldrick has brought us a wonderfully crafted biography of the man and his Line." - Libby Robin