they began to hire other prospectors to assist them, and over the next few years grew into a town, which was named Boulder. While Brookman oversaw operations on the ground in Western Australia, his brother reconstituted their syndicate (now called the Coolgardie Gold Mining and Prospecting Company) as a public company on the Adelaide stock exchange. He also floated several subsidiaries in other colonies. By the time Brookman left Western Australia in 1895, he had pegged out of territory, which would eventually house some of the most lucrative mines in Western Australia. He first went to Adelaide to resolve his earlier bankruptcy, and then went on to England to secure capital from London's financiers. Brookman spent just over a year in London, acquiring directorships in thirty mining companies and reputedly becoming a millionaire. Politics On his return to Perth, Brookman's reputation was such that he was called upon to act as a spokesman for the mining industry. He was an opponent of John Forrest's government, which he and many other miners viewed as unsympathetic to their interests. Brookman was elected to parliament at the 1900 Legislative Council election, winning a six-year term in the new Metropolitan-Suburban Province. He was not actually in Perth for the election, instead letting his supporters campaign for him while he attended the 1900 Paris Exhibition. Later in the year, Brookman was also elected Mayor of Perth, defeating two other candidates (Timothy Quinlan and Thomas Molloy) by a large margin. Brookman's status as a political outsider helped secure his victory in the mayoral race, but once in office it proved to be a disadvantage. His lack of alignment with any of the existing council factions meant he was unable to control the agenda of council meetings, leading to persistent criticism from the press. After a series of minor controversies, Brookman resigned the mayoralty in June 1901. He continued on in the Legislative Council until December 1903, when his seat was declared vacant due to non-attendance. Later life As was the norm before payment of members, Brookman maintained his business interests while in parliament. He suffered heavy losses in a stock-market collapse and also lost several directorships due to unexplained absences, finally losing much of his remaining wealth in a failed venture to build a smelting plant at South Fremantle. Brookman moved to Mandurah for a period, and then spent his final years travelling with his widowed