Background
Haynes was born in Singleton, New South Wales, son of John Haynes, a schoolteacher, and his wife Margaret, née Daly.
Haynes was born in Singleton, New South Wales, son of John Haynes, a schoolteacher, and his wife Margaret, née Daly.
He was apprenticed as a compositor with the Morpeth Leader and worked for several country newspapers.
In 1873, he moved to Sydney. In 1880, he founded The Bulletin with Archibald, and in 18 months built its circulation in up to 15,000. He believed in serious provocative journalism, especially exposure articles
As the result of one article, he was sued by the owner of the Clontarf pleasure gardens.
He refused to pay the costs of the resulting libel action and was imprisoned for six weeks in 1882 (the public raised £3,000 and he was released). During the campaign, he repudiated his Roman Catholic faith, which led to lasting bitterness with Protectionists.
He was elected and held Mudgee to 1894. In 1891, Haynes was ratepayer on several Sydney addresses that were the focus of radical and even anarchist activity in Sydney (Leigh House, Active Service Brigade Headquarters and William McNamara"s Book Depot).
He continued to support free trade and decentralisation.
In 1904, he was narrowly defeated for Wellington, and continued to lose elections until elected to Willoughby in 1915, but he was defeated in 1917. Haynes continued to pursue the allegedly corrupt politicians Crick and William Nicholas Willis through the courts, the latter all the way to South Africa. The 1906 Royal Commission on Lands Administration partly supported his allegations.
He was later editor of the Newsletter, which in 1906 attacked John Norton, fellow parliamentarian and Truth publisher, as a criminal and murderer.
Haynes died at his residence at Alfred Street, North Sydney from heart failure supervening Influenza.
He was an unruly member of Parliament and his constant accusation of corruption involved him in bitter arguments and physical aggression, including an attack on the Protectionist member William Patrick Crick in 1893.