A. W. (Alfred Wilks) Drayson

A. W. (Alfred Wilks) Drayson
Alfred Wilks Drayson (1827–1901) was a British army officer, author, and lecturer known for his works on astronomy, military subjects, and the paranormal. He wrote several books, including "The Earth We Inhabit" (1857), which proposed a controversial theory about the Earth's motion. Drayson also contributed to military literature with titles such as "Practical Military Surveying and Sketching" (1859). In addition to his scientific and military interests, he explored spiritualism and the supernatural, notably in "The Art of Practical Whist" (1879), where he combined his expertise in logic and probability with card games.

Author's Books:


Preface. In the history of colonisation there is probably no example on record so extraordinary as that of the emigration from the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, in 1835, of nearly six thousand souls, who, without guides or any definite knowledge of where they were going or what obstacles they would encounter, yet placed their all in the lottery and journeyed into the wilderness. The cause of this... more...

Chapter One. I was born in the city of Delhi, in Central India, where my father held a command as major in the old East India Company’s service. I was an only son, and my mother died shortly after I was born. I resided at Delhi until I was ten years of age. Having been attended as a child by an ayah, and afterwards taught to ride by one of my father’s syces, I learned to speak Hindostani before I... more...