Diggers Gazette, 1, no. 14 (1 June 1920). Source: National Library of Australia’s Trove
In 1920, an article published in the Diggers Gazette, the official organ of the Returned Sailors’ and Soldiers’ Imperial League of Australia (South Australian Branch), raised an Irish question that everyone could ‘safely’ discuss: how does the ex-soldier secure passage to Australia? The unnamed writer used the experiences of Irish immigrants who had already succeeded there, highlighting two key characteristics: having a relative already in residence in Australia and having the ability and want to work. It mentioned that the Irish had innate characteristics for success listed as: pluck, industry, energy, ingenuity, determination, and resource.
The Irish had been demonstrating these characteristics since they first landed in Australia in 1788 – many involuntarily for reasons including convictism and poverty – and by 1920 were well settled and integrated. By now too, they were particularly numerous and more prosperous where there was greater colonial settlement on the eastern side of the continent. It must be noted that the aforementioned article in the Diggers Gazette, based in Adelaide, was published at a time when the Irish community in Australia was expanding and developing well beyond the original colony of New South Wales.
Irish Aussies: historical perspectives 