Who was the serial correspondent "M.S."?

[Des_Beechey]

In 1908 a correspondent in Hobart sent a series of cards to a gentleman in South Africa. In the cards that I have just been adding to my web site, I came across three of her cards, which she numbered 18, 23 and 26. The correspondence is a travelogue, taking the reader on a tour, by her words and the pictures on the cards, of the sights of Tasmania. Her No. 18 is a view of Hobart from Bellerive, and the message reads thus:

The trip across the river lasts 15 minutes. We land at the jetty and walk round the beach and view Hobart from this pretty little place. Mt. Wellington in the background only adds to the picturesqueness of the scene. Bellerive is a popular resort for bathers. I might mention mixed bathing is not allowed in Hobart, it is done in some cases but only beyond a certain area. I have enjoyed a dip in the sea occasionally, but am sorry to say it does not agree with me and finally results in giddiness & head ache.I love the sea, it is so grand, so vast and beautiful. I like to see the waves crash to fury, don't you?

The cards were sent to Mr. F.C. Maslen, 53 Winder St, Durban, Natal, South Africa. Was it just a postcard exchange, or was it a closer association between the correspondents?

Does anyone have more of her cards? I wonder who she was?

Des Beechey

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[John Campton]

Hi Des,

The correspondent was Miss M Scott who as at August 1908 lived at 290 Liverpool St Hobart. Right up the top end near West Hobart. I have eleven of her postcards sent to the same person. They are numbers 21, 72, 75, 76, 80 82, 103, 111, 118, 135 and 181.

I have not been able to work out who she was but I had picked up these postcards from several sources for their views and not the correspondent. My interest was tweaked when I, like you, noticed many with the same address. A bunch came up on ebay with inflated prices a couple of years ago and I took the opportunity to photo front and back for my records in case their was something significant going on.

All her postcards are numbered (obsessive compulsive?) and the highest I have seen is no 211, no date unfortunately. No. 207 is dated 24.8.1909 and the earliest date I have recorded is no. 10 being 10.12 1908. This is over 200 postcards in less than a year to the same person.

I consider Miss Scott to be a "troubled soul". In one postcards she informs Mrs Masleu of a music recital in Franklin Square that night and asked her if she will be attending (from Durban!!!???). You have postcard no. 18 and I have 21 and I have photos of 17, 19 and 20. All these were posted individually to Mrs Masleu on 26 December 1908.

She has a lovely flowing hand that is easy to read and it is a wonderful reflections of the times and what she does. I do not know if her travels were real or imaginary. She must have had a lot of free time and money to travel as described in the postcards.

I have a hand written list of the postcards that I have been able to track down. If you would like a copy give me your address and I will post it to you. I will also try and dig up any spare photographic copies of the postcards surplus to my needs if you want them.

I know this will answer only one question and possibly raise more. But that it what it is all about.

Kind Regards John Campton

[John Campton]

Sorry I said Mrs Masleu It was actually Frank C. Masleu. My apologies.

JC

[Des_Beechey]

Hi John,

Its great that you can fill out the story on the serial correspondent, and even put a name on here. Miss M Scott is quite an intriguing story. As you say, she must have been a bit of a bit of a troubled soul, to send off postcards at that rate - 200 in a single year! And she must have been fairly well off to afford the cards and the postage.

I think you should keep the list of her cards, and I will let you know (as I hope other members will) when others turn up. The ones I have at the moment are:

18 26 Dec 08 Hobart from Bellerive "Swimming does not agree with me and finally makes me giddy"
23 26 December '08 Shot Tower "The Kingston Road is a splendid drive".
26 26 Dec '08 Huon River "This is an enchanting little scene"
29 2 Jan '09 Forest Hut, Hobart "I used to stand on the wharves and watch the troop ships leave laden with brave men for the front".

It seems she had some time on her hands over Christmas 1908, as numbers 18, 23 and 26 are all postmarked 26 December!

Have you seen anything of the cards that came back from South Africa in return? It would be interesting to see if he returned 1-for-1, or was he less enthusiastic?

Cheers

Des

[John Campton]

Thanks for that information Des. I have updated my records and will note any others that appear.

I have kept an eye out for return correspondence but have not seen any to date. Some others members may have some but are unaware of this "saga".

I can understand a lack of enthusiasm to reply, if I got that many it would scare me witless. In fact I would be thankful for the tyranny of distance.

If she can remember the troops leaving for the Boer War we may be able to approximate how old she was at the time of writing.

Will wait and see what turns up.

Regards JC

[Des_Beechey]

Dear John Campton and Bulletin Boarders,

I have acquired five more cards sent by the Serial Correspondent (Miss M Scott) - numbers 26, 46, 72, 101, and 100 (or 160 - hard to read).

One of them, illustrated below, is a NSW card. It is not postmarked, so we don't know if she was travelling in NSW when she sent it, or if she bought the card in Hobart.

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MysteryB.jpg (154.15 KiB) Viewed 1324 times

Cheers

Des Beechey

[John Campton]

Des I believe she did not get out of the state. Most of her later cards were sent under cover. All of course to the same person. Will note my file that you have them.

Thanks for posting this information.