The Day She Cradled Me
Page 32
I have imagined the circumstances of the meeting and engagement of Minnie and Charles Dean, but Charles was indeed a shepherd at Dunrobin Station, and it is also known that he visited Minnie in jail. The circumstances of his death are drawn from the historical record.
Lastly, I would like to note the complications of names in the Victorian period. This proved a particular challenge in the section of the book that deals with Minnie’s childhood, for when her two sisters Janet and Isabella died, their Christian names were used for following children born into the family. Similarly, I found that there were a large number of court witnesses with the surname Cameron. For ease of reading, I have given the Cameron sisters from the hotel in Bluff the surname Browne (this includes within the letter composed by Minnie Dean, which is otherwise verbatim), and the woman Cameron from the hotel in Mataura the surname Fielding. Similarly, I have changed the surname of the doctor who attended Catherine Cameron when she died from Hanan to Bailey to avoid confusion with Mr Hanan, Minnie Dean’s counsel. As for John, Catherine and Maggie Cameron — their surname remains unchanged.
My intent in writing this book was simple: to bring Minnie Dean’s last statement to a public forum as she intended, and to challenge the many previously held beliefs that surround her, even to this day.
I hope I have achieved this.
Acknowledgements
My sincere thanks goes to those people who so kindly helped me with my research for this novel: Betty Hendry from the Watt Library in Greenock, Scotland; Jean Strachan, the Heritage Collections Librarian from the Dunedin Public Library; and Rosemary Shivnan from the Alexander Turnbull Library. All went above and beyond the call of duty. I would also like to thank Lynley Hood, who without hesitation offered her own research notes, which ultimately piqued my interest and were the germ of the novel.
I used a number of sources when writing, far too many to list, but special mention must go to the Hocken Library, and the National Library of New Zealand — the Papers Past website is a treasure trove of information for anyone interested in New Zealand history, and is where I found the letters, newspaper reports, advertisements, and trial and inquest transcripts, all of which I have used verbatim. Possibly the most significant source of material, however, was the manuscript left by Minnie Dean herself, and on which the book has been based — I have quoted several passages in the novel, and have adhered almost entirely to her version of events. The song is quoted from an old Scottish ballad, and the Reverend’s prayers are from the Presbyterian Book of Common Prayers.
I am fortunate enough to have had a wonderful team of readers, without whose enthusiasm this book may never have reached the bookshelves, so my grateful thanks goes to Winsome Gooch, LaVerne Clark, Karen Johnson Mead and Cherie Le Clare.
And as if my luck had not stretched far enough, I could not have wished for better hands in which to have my novel fall than those of Harriet Allan and Jane Parkin. Thank you both.
Finally, thanks to my family: Reg and the children, Gabriel, Maria, Rhiannon, Spencer and Hunter, whose belief in me never wavered, even once. I did it!
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About the Author
Sacha de Bazin is a Nelson-based mother-of-five and former primary school teacher. Her interest in Minnie Dean was piqued some time ago, so she researched every scrap of information on Minnie she could find. Compelled to record the story, this novel is the result. Having well and truly caught the writing bug, Sacha is now carrying out research for her next book.
Copyright
A BLACK SWAN BOOK published by Random House New Zealand,
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For more information about our titles go to www.randomhouse.co.nz
A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of New Zealand
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First published 2012
© 2012 Sacha de Bazin
The moral rights of the author have been asserted
ISBN 978 1 86979 774 4
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Design: Megan van Staden
Cover photograph: © Martha Schuster/Trevillion Images
Author photograph: Melinda Baigent
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