George Ernest Morrison

George Ernest Morrison (4 February 1862 – 30 May 1920) was an Australian journalist, political adviser to and representative of the government of the Republic of China during World War I, and owner of the then largest Asiatic library ever assembled.

Early life

Morrison was born in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. His father George Morrison, who emigrated from Edinkillie, Elgin, Scotland, to Australia in 1858, was headmaster of The Geelong College where Morrison was educated. George Sr married Rebecca Greenwood, of Yorkshire, in 1859, and Morrison was the second child of the marriage. Three of Morrison's seven uncles were rectors of the Presbyterian Church, and two of the four others were principal (Alexander) and master (Robert) of Scotch College, Melbourne, where George Sr also taught mathematics for six months. Another Uncle, Donald Morrison, was the Rector of The Glasgow Academy between 1861 until 1899. He won Geelong College's Scripture History gold medal in 1876 and, an all-round athlete, the Geelong College Cup for running in 1878.

At 16, Morrison idolised explorer Henry Morton Stanley—so much so, in fact, that he wrote a book on Australian exploration in admiration of him.

During a vacation in early 1880, before his tertiary education, he walked from the heads at Queenscliff, Victoria, to Adelaide, following the coastline, a distance of about 650 miles (960 km) in 46 days. He sold his diary of the journey to the Leader for seven guineas. Despite having already made up his mind to become a "Special Correspondent", he initially studied medicine at the University of Melbourne. After passing his first year, the 18-year-old took a vacation trip down the Murray River in a canoe, the Stanley, from Albury, New South Wales, to its mouth, a distance of some 2,000 kilometres (1,243 mi). The first person to do so, he completed the distance in 65 days. Attracted more to adventure than study, he failed his exams two years running (which he later called "one of the fortunate episodes of my life").