opening of the text provides a foundational understanding of bushranging, highlighting its origins connected to the convict system in Australia. Boxall discusses how the harsh treatment and oppressive laws against convicts often pushed them to revolt against the system, leading many to take to the bush to escape their dire circumstances. He emphasizes that early bushrangers were often driven by desperation rather than inherent criminality and illustrates the grim realities they faced, including severe punitive measures like flogging. Boxall aims to present a comprehensive picture of bushranging and its implications for Australian society, suggesting that the bushrangers, despite their notorious actions, were products of their brutal environment. (This is an automatically generated summary.)