George Ash (Australian politician)

George Ash (19 September 1859 – 23 February 1897) was a newspaper editor, lawyer and parliamentarian in colonial South Australia.

Ash was born near London and on leaving school found employment with one of the large railway companies. A year later he started working for a legal firm, but found the work irksome and started with a large warehouse on Four Street. Then in 1877 he and a comrade set sail for South Africa, where he worked as a reporter for the Kaffrarian Watchman. He served in the Kaffir War as a volunteer in order to report on the conflict.

He next travelled to South Australia and secured a position with The Border Watch of Mount Gambier, and was sent by proprietors A. F. Laurie and J. Watson to Naracoorte to work on The Narracoorte Herald, which they owned. In 1880 he and J. B. Mather took over The Narracoorte Herald, and made quite a success of it, but lost everything in 1890 after they were successfully sued for libel by William Hutchison, of Morambro Station for questioning his suitability for the post of Justice of the Peace after his proven record of dummying.[1] It is worth noting that Ash had consistently fought against dummyism: one of his first editorials, in 1881, inveighed against the practice, and was read and praised in the House of Assembly.[2]

Hutchison won the case through J. H. Symon, Q C.'s highly technical attack, in which he managed to have most of Ash's evidence, including Hansard and the Government Gazette ruled inadmissible. Ash, who conducted his own defence, received a great deal of sympathy, particularly among small farmers, and was elected to the seat of Albert in the South Australian House of Assembly, serving from April 1890 with Andrew Dods Handyside as colleague, until his final illness.[3] He was a Freetrader, favoured Federation and political equality of men and women.[2]

Charles Kingston, who had been following his career with interest, offered Ash a position with his law firm Kingston & Hall. Ash enrolled with the University of Adelaide and after a stellar academic career received his LL.B. two years later. After serving his articles Ash was taken into partnership and Hall withdrew.

A teetotaler, non-smoker and diligent Member with an immense capacity for hard work, he was a regular visitor to the insane asylums, and fought for separate facilities for weak-minded children, leading to the establishment of Minda Home.

He died in a South Terrace private hospital of haemorrhage following a bout of typhoid fever. Tributes were paid to his memory by Sir John Downer, S. J. Way and his old adversary J. H. Symon among others.[4]

Ash Place, in the Canberra suburb of Gilmore, is named in his honour.[5]