edward gustavus campbell barton was prominent in queensland in early electric lighting projects, including first electric lighting of the queensland assembly. he was appointed as queensland government electrical engineer in 1886. but by march 1888 he had left the public service and formed a partnership with mr. c. f. white as barton, white and co. barton had a close association with the technical college and in a private capacity ran courses with lectures which paralleled the rapid advances in all matters electrical at the time. in july 1891 he gave a lecture at the school of arts on the topic of induction coils, a key component of wireless and x-ray technology. in april 1899 he gave a comprehensively reported lecture on wireless telegraphy at the technical college and concluded with a demonstration of "marconi apparatus" including both an induction coil and a branly detector. in mid-1901, barton gave an entire series of lectures at the technical college on the subject of telegraphy and in may 1901 the lecture was devoted to wireless telegraphy, again concluding with a demonstration of his equipment. it was stated that the system had been imported and consisted of a righi oscillator, induction coil and branly coherer. a further series of lectures was conducted in 1902, including one in march 1902 on the subject "wireless telegraphy and its position in regard to submarine cables". the descriptions of the demonstration tend to indicate that the wireless apparatus had not been further developed. indeed, though barton's own career continue to ascend, there is little further reference to wireless activities. however, amongst his young students was john graeme balsillie who went on to become the inventor of the balsillie system of wireless telegraphy which was used to deploy the majority of australia's coastal radio network in the early 1910s.