Central Queensland: Its Marvellous Pastoral and Mineral Resources, Its Unbounded Agricultural Possibilities, and Its Scenic Beauties

Brisbane: The Queensland Government Intelligence and Tourist Bureau. Fair. 1914. "New Edition". Softcover. (staple-bound) [heavily worn at edges, small tears at a couple of corners of front cover, spine covering partially gone but binding intact, some scrunching and minor dog-earing to lower corners of first few pages; fold-out map in excellent condition, with some minor creasing along the edge where it extends just slightly outside the text block]. (B&W photographs, fold-out color map) The subtitle pretty much tells it all. "Notwithstanding that the bulk of its country is devoted to the raising of sheep, cattle, and horses, evidence is forthcoming that the land is equally as fertile and wealth-producing as it is in other divisions of the State of Queensland." It goes on in this vein, extolling the region's richness in every possible way, before finally getting to the point: "The real want of Central Queensland at the present time is population." As of 1912, it's stated, there were just 79,332 residents, in an area of 212,224 square miles -- and all 164 pages of this book (with oodles of facts and figures, and a photograph on practically every page) were devoted to convincing the reader that he or she ought to add themselves to that number. (As of the 2021 census, the population had grown to 228,246 -- finally, more than one person per square mile!) .