It is 1838 now and 5 years have gone by since Rufus Dawes, Captain Maurice Frere, Sylvia and her mother are saved by a ship after spending 3 to 4 weeks stranded on an island. We find our "hero" dealing with the continued horrors and degradation of convict life. Of course Dawes is diddled by the bad dastardly Frere out of a free pardon. Frere played the hero spreading the story that he was the rescuer looking after Sylvia, then aged 12 and her ill mother, Mrs Vickers while at the same time guarding and controlling the vicious and deranged Dawes.

Book 3 is a long one, it has 27 chapters. (Marcus Clarke has a knack with words.) In order to do justice to the story I deemed it necessary to write a 3 part overview that includes Sylvia and Frere's lives. They both, unconsciously on the part of Sylvia and consciously on the part of Frere negatively impact on Rufus Dawes's circumstances.
The little girl Sylvia on the island in 1833.
Once Sylvia sets her eyes on the ragged worn out hungry Dawes she remembered him as the nice kind convict that handed her the ball, the one that Frere savagely whipped. Sylvia does not like Maurice Frere, she finds him a cruel bully ignorant man. Sylvia takes it on herself to lovingly nurse Dawes back to health and once he does they continue their firm friendship with Sylvia delighting in his clever survival skills that keep them all alive. She is so enamoured of his ability to make a rescue boat, his kindness, giving her his food etc that she proclaims that she will get him a free pardon once they are all reduced.
However, this was not to be the case because during the 11 days at sea Sylvia falls ill from exposure, thirst and lack of food that her memory is lost once they are all saved. Sylvia is taken in hook line and sinker by Maurice Frere's story of being the the hero protecting her against the bad convict. Her mother, Mrs Vickers dies 3 hours after being saved by the ship.
The grown up 17 year old Sylivia
The amnesia continues over the 5 years and we find Sylvia a beautiful delicate frightened 17 year old in Hobart town engaged to Frere, her perceived hero and protector. Her father has become wealthy and she is a young lady of society. Sylvia is depicted as a very kind hearted caring young woman who feels for the sad plight of convicts. She is their biggest advocate.
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The court case for the convict Rufus Dawes and John Rex along with his fellow convicts who took control of the Osprey was due to be heard after 5 years. Sylvia was to testify against Dawes but believing Frere she is that Dawes is very scared to face him in court. She breaks down before appearing in court and is taken home by her father.
Dawes is crushed because he was hanging onto Sylvia's testimony, this was his door to freedom. His hanging was transmuted to life banishment to Port Arthur. Before he leaves on the schooner for the ride to the penal settlement he picks the locks in his irons, jumps the fence and runs off. (Maurice Frere is beside himself with fear that his deceit and lying will be found out, he has done an innocent man a terrible wrong. He threatens, yells and bullies the soldiers to search.)
Meanwhile after 3 days of freedom the desperate Rufus finds Major Vickers's house and the beautiful Sylvia is alone in the garden. But when he walks toward her, hopeful for a warm welcome, she screams in horror and wretched fear not recognising him. She only sees a dangerous convict. In a flash Maurice and a servant tackle the poor Rufus Dawes at that second he realises that he is done. Sylvia, his one and only hope does not recognise him.
It was the next day in the garden that Sylvia finds a little material parcel made up of a little bit of a grey uniform that she and Maurice find a very dirty 3 inch square of blue material. Before Sylvia remembers that it is part of her dress from 5 years ago Frere quickly throws it into the water and it is lost forever. Sylvia exclaims in protest but is quickly calmed by Frere's smooth talking and hugs.
At this same moment, they both look up to watch a schooner in the harbour carrying Dawes clad in irons to Port Arthur. Not long after Sylvia marries Frere in a society wedding. Is Sylvia really in love with Frere or is it in gratitude? She has definitely become reliant on him as a protector. She feels safe!
(There is no doubt that Maurice Frere is a lying deadbeat of a scoundrel that will eventually be found out. What a rotter of a villain.) How Marcus Clarke stretches out the pain of his main characters ..... it is a skill!)
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Cheers and Blessings


(A little black basalt rock in the wet sand on my surf beach.)