📒 MacDonald was an explorer, author and mining engineer, and also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. In his twenties he travelled to Alaska with Jack London and was later one of the pioneers of the Klondike goldfields. In a lfe full of adventure, he led various exploring and geological expeditions to the interior of Australia and spent some time in Western Australia and Queensland, also serving with the Australian contingent in the Boer War. His interest in exploration and prospecting and experiences in various frontier regions provided material for his adventure stories which endorse the virtues of endurance and comradeship. Subtitled 'A Story of the Trackless Desert', this tale of gold-digging and exploration set in Australia was first publshed in 1907. With eight illustrations and a facsimile of the original cover.