Ghost Gum Valley (82 page)

Samuel Terry is seen solely through the eyes of the fictional Garnet Gamble, who is obsessed with toppling his rival from his status as the wealthiest man in NSW. Samuel Terry's remarkable career as entrepreneur, philanthropist, respected family man and high-ranking Freemason, is meticulously documented in Gwynetth M. Dow's fascinating biography,
Samuel Terry: The Botany Bay Rothschild.

Marmaduke Gamble's ambiguous social status was experienced by many free-born first generation Australians who were the off-spring of wealthy Emancipists. Although often widely travelled and well educated as hybrid ‘English gentlemen', their inherited ‘convict strain' made many of them social outcasts among the Colony's Top Thirteen families (who no doubt would have been impressed by Isabel de Rolland's blue-blooded ancestry).

Rupert Grantham's murder and the trial scenes of his assassins
are a fictional interpretation of the real-life murder of firebrand barrister and newspaper owner Dr Robert Wardell. I acknowledge with gratitude the detailed accounts in the
Sydney Herald
and
Australian
newspapers of the era. This rich archival material gave me the freedom to dramatize Marmaduke's role in a trial that triggered the threat of convict insurrection and spread wild rumours that the ring-leader was manipulated by men in high places. One of these executed youths became the convicts' hero, later idealized by Frank the Poet.

Whenever I was faced with contradictory accounts by respected historians I chose the version best suited to the story. For example the famous so-called ‘Barrington Prologue'. Reputable theatre historians are divided about the true identity of the author and/or actor (I have read six candidates to date) and exactly when the first version was performed. Marmaduke is a lover of theatre,
not
a contemporary historian with hindsight knowledge. Marmaduke never allows strict adherence to facts to get in the way of a good story. Therefore on stage he quotes with authority
one
of the theories circulating about the Prologue in order to inspire the illiterate convicts in his audience with the idea that they too are making Australian history.

For the creation of Garnet Gamble's empire and Bloodwood Hall I owe special thanks to Matthew Stephens, Reference Librarian of the splendid Caroline Simpson Library and Research Collection, Historic Houses Trust NSW. He guided me to a cornucopia of richly illustrated material, including Rudolph Ackermann's journal published monthly in Britain from 1809–1828.
The Repository of Arts
covers the arts, literature, commerce, manufacturing, and fashion and gives a vivid insight into how the wealthy in the Colony kept abreast of the Georgian era's designs and lifestyle.

My fictional world of Bloodwood, Mingaletta, Ghost Gum Valley and Penkivil Park was drawn from colonial estates built by free convict labour some of which have survived thanks to the dedication of private families, historical trusts and societies. I was inspired by visits to Parramatta's Old Government House, Vaucluse House, John Macarthur's Camden Park, architect Francis Greenway's Hyde Park Barracks, St James's Church and South Head Lighthouse, and Tasmania's wonderful colonial heritage. On a personal tour of Alexander Macleay's Elizabeth Bay House, Curator Scott Carlin gave me
fascinating insight into the Colonial master-servant relationship. The contrast between lavish assembly and family rooms with the assigned servant girls' cramped quarters in attics hidden behind the parapets, and the ‘fish eye' lens of the servants' mirror in the dining-room, inspired dramatic scenes at Bloodwood Hall.

My addiction to the BBC series
Antiques Roadshow
was a rich source of antiques and architecture of Britain's grand country mansions, many of which found their way into Bloodwood Hall, including the ‘priest hole' and the secret at the heart of Marmaduke's watch.

Ghost Gum Valley is my fictional name for a remarkable Aboriginal site I was privileged to visit but out of respect for the traditional custodians of the land I have not identified the location. Isabel's awe and respect for Aboriginal culture is a direct reflection of my own. Garnet Gamble's treatment of the Aboriginal tribes whose land he usurped is a matter of bleak historical record but does not of course reflect all landowners of the era. Marmaduke's lost opportunity to explore Aboriginal culture and to sustain the friendship with tribal men he shared as a child, are a reflection of some members of his generation. But his use of the term ‘blacks', common to the period, is used by him in a non-derogatory sense. While it is important to avoid political correctness, it must be acknowledged that many attitudes and language used in an historical context are unacceptable and offensive in contemporary Australia.

I am greatly indebted to many people and research sources for their help, including:

R
EBECCA
E
DMUNDS
, Assistant Curator of the Justice and Police Museum, Sydney. Her expertise and tireless enthusiasm in accessing legal, police and courtroom archival material made my work a research adventure.

F
ABIAN
L
O
S
CHIAVO
and L
INDSAY
A
LLEN
, Archivists of State Records NSW, for guiding me to a treasure trove of historical material including convict indents, shipping records, maps and census records.

P
ROFESSOR
J
OHN
P
EARN
, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Royal Children's Hospital, Brisbane, Queensland, author of many fascinating books on colonial medicine which proved invaluable
in my research for both
Ghost Gum Valley
and
Ironbark.
I owe him special thanks for drawing my attention to colourful stories about duelling, the cause of transportation of a number of well-known ‘Gentlemen Convicts'. Colonial duels were often rough and ready events far outside the duelling rules of the era's Code Duello.

D
R
A
NDREA
B
ANDHAUER
, Senior Lecturer, Director of International and Comparative Literature Germanic Studies, School of Languages and Cultures, University of Sydney for her interest and advice about aspects of German language.

R
ABBI
D
R
R
AYMOND
A
PPLE, AO, RFD
, celebrated author on many subjects including Masonic history, was Chief Rabbi of The Great Synagogue for 32 years, Senior Rabbi to the Australian Defence Force, and Past Deputy Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of NSW and the ACT. I am enormously grateful for his speedy e-mail responses from Israel to my questions, his Masonic contacts, insight into the influential role played by Masons in Penal Colony society and the impact of their acceptance of Emancipists into their ranks.

G
RAHAME
H. C
UMMING, OAM
, author, historian of The United Grand Lodge of NSW and ACT. My warmest thanks for steering me through complex Australian Masonic history via interviews, access to books, documents and memorabilia in the Masonic museum, his research of historical Masons. And not least helping me create credible Masonic backgrounds for the Gambles. To
MICHAEL GOOT
, Past Master of Lodge Mark Owen my thanks for his long support of my work and his introduction to historians of the United Grand Lodge.

J
ENNY
M
ADELINE
of the Society of Friends provided me with fascinating historical material, family documents concerning the beautiful Quaker Commitment ceremony, and understood my need to blend history with fiction when portraying Quaker missionary James Backhouse – renowned for his work in hospitals, prisons and the conditions of Aborigines and for establishing the first Quaker meeting houses in Tasmania (VDL) and mainland Australia.

E
LSPETH
B
ROWNE
of
ISAA
(Independent Scholars Association of Australia) for her long-term interest and generous advice on historical questions.

The A
USTRALIAN
J
EWISH
H
ISTORICAL
S
OCIETY
's archival team for their valuable suggestions about Jewish convicts of the era from which I
drew the fictional Josiah Mendoza. I am particularly grateful to the society's volunteer N
OELA
S
YMONDS
for her research help that included her ancestor Barnett Levey.

M
ARION
M
CCABE
kindly gave me permission to use the extraordinary true story, told to me by her late mother, my friend Anne Goldie Cousland, that is the essence of the birth scene in
Ghost Gum Valley.

U
TA
H
ERZOG
, psychologist, for her valued expertise concerning the repercussions of childhood trauma suffered by adults. My friend S
USAN
A
RBOUW
's sensitive professional exploration of the repressed memories of child abuse. R
EV
. D
AVID
H
ILTON
for his remarkable insight and help to J
AN
D., a victim who willingly shared her childhood experiences for the benefit of this book.

D
AVID
S
COTT
M
ITCHELL
(1836–1907), legendary bibliophile and philanthropist whose vast legacy to Australia of his collection of books, art and historical memorabilia created the Mitchell Wing in the State Library NSW. In the reading room he endowed for historians and writers, where I read biographies of Edmund Kean, Governor Sir Richard Bourke, Thomas De Quincey's
The Confessions of an Opium Eater
, it was a thrill to find his hand-written inscription DSM in the flyleaf and realize I was sharing loved books from the personal library of this great man.

My particular thanks to Librarians in the State Libraries of NSW, Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland, the National Library of Canberra and rural historical societies.

Finally I am grateful to my father, F
RED
P
ARSONS
,
TV
and radio comedy writer, playwright and biographer of
A Man called Mo
(Roy Rene, ‘Mo McCackie'). He bequeathed to me his love of Shakespeare, comedy, the treasures in his theatrical library and a fund of anecdotes about actors, playwrights, and comedians dating from the strolling players of Shakespeare's time.

AUTHOR'S ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My journey along the road to
Ghost Gum Valley
could not have been accomplished without generous personal and professional help from a number of very special people, not all of whom I have met face to face, but to all I offer my heartfelt thanks.

I am most fortunate in having
Ghost Gum Valley
in the hands of Simon and Schuster's exceptionally gifted Australian publishers,
Managing Director
L
OU
J
OHNSON
, Head of Publishing
L
ARISSA
E
DWARDS
and their wonderfully supportive team who work together to make publication a memorable adventure. Every author needs fine editors and I was delighted to be reunited with two who had worked with me on
Ironbark.
My heartfelt thanks to J
ODY
L
EE
for
her sensitive insight into my characters, their era, and not least
for her buoyant sense of humour.

Equally to K
ATE
O'D
ONNELL
for her fresh, meticulous eye, for gently challenging perceptions and stimulating further exploration. And to Larissa Edwards for her guiding light throughout the editing journey.

To S
ELWA
A
NTHONY
, my Australian agent since the development of
Ironbark,
I pay full tribute to her remarkable combination of nurturing, straight talking, wisdom and the mutual trust enjoyed by all in her ‘family' of authors; to my German agent B
ASTIAN
S
CHLÜCK
of the Thomas Schlück Agency, my champion in Europe.

Author B
RIAN
N
ICHOLLS
, the first person to read
Ghost Gum Valley
at a late stage of development, gave it the benefit of his experience as documentary writer, producer, director and editor. His support during marathon races towards deadlines is a gift every author deserves.

My family and friends were generous and forgiving when I was so locked into the 1830s time zone of
Ghost Gum Valley
I overlooked social milestones. E
ADIE
C
ASSIM
, 5, and G
US
C
ASSIM
, 2, keep me grounded and revitalized. Their joyous celebration of life is a gift shared with their actor parents, my son N
ICHOLAS
C
ASSIM
and his beloved N
IKI
O
WEN
. As always I am indebted to my sister and friend D
ONNA
for her uniquely Australian sense of humour and wisdom.