The Dog with Seven Names Page 13

  Reverend John Flynn, aided by Doctor Allan Vickers, established a network of flying doctor bases across the country, known as the Australian Inland Mission (AIM) Medical Service, and later called the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS). This network was credited with providing a ‘mantle of safety’ for the outback. The Port Hedland Base was set up in 1935 with Dr Vickers in charge of the hospital there and in Marble Bar. Fred is a fictitious character. His name honours Fred Hull, the original radio operator at Port Hedland who served 37 years with the WA chapter of RFDS. Everett Bardwell was a Port Hedland radio operator. Len Taplin was a WWI flying ace who later flew for Western Australia Airways and became a leading citizen of Port Hedland.

  Nursing staff – The staff members in this story are fictitious; however, I have used the name Joan in acknowledgment of the help given to me from Joan Foley, daughter of Matron Joan Arlborough. I’ve used the name Bonnie because there were two different nurses of that era called Bonnie.

  Others – Mrs Kerr at Wallareenya Station is mentioned in Jenny Hardie’s Nor’Westers of the Pilbara Breed. Harold Mathieson (sometimes spelt Matheson) was captain of the refuelling ketch, Nicol (or Nicole) Bay. On 3 March 1942, Mathieson and Charlie D’Antoine showed enormous courage weaving through burning fuel to save Dutch survivors. Gus Winckel was a Dutch officer and pilot. After landing a planeload of Dutch refugees on Broome airstrip, Winckel managed to shoot down a Japanese fighter using a dismantled machine gun. Jimmy Woods was a well-known aviator responsible for daring airlifts and rescue operations.

  Bombings in Northern Territory and Western Australia

  Darwin was attacked by Japanese aircraft on 19 February 1942. Sometimes referred to as ‘Australia’s Pearl Harbor’, this was mainland Australia’s first air raid. Two attack waves resulted in 235 casualties and 300–400 wounded. Eleven ships and thirty aircraft were destroyed, as well as massive damage to homes and infrastructure. Darwin experienced further assaults during 1942 and 1943.

  Wyndham and Broome both suffered air raids on 3 March 1942. By chance, pilot Jimmy Woods departed Wyndham moments before the first attack and was able to land just after the Japanese Zeroes left Broome. On 23 March Wyndham was bombed again. There were no casualties.

  Broome air raid – Due to the urgent nature of evacuation from the Dutch East Indies and crammed aircraft, the exact number of fatalities and those injured in the Broome Attack is not known. Casualty estimates vary between 88 and over 100. Twenty-four aircraft were destroyed in about twenty minutes. Victims included many women and children. Hendrik is a fictitious character.

  Aircraft, pedal radio and evacuations

  Aircraft – During WWII a variety of aeroplanes were used to reach patients in the north-west and evacuate wounded. These include BA Swallow, Dragon, Lodestar and Electra.

  Pedal radio – Alf Traeger invented the pedal-powered radio in the late 1920s. It was used by the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) and brought a sense of community to remote stations. A single operator was able to generate power by pedalling with their feet, leaving their hands free to operate the radio.

  Evacuations from north-west towns – After The Fall of Singapore, as Japanese air raids targeted north-western Australian towns, residents of the Pilbara and Kimberley began evacuating south.

  Further evacuation occurred after the Broome raid. Wounded Dutch evacuees were airlifted to Port Hedland. Locals fled inland on trucks; some heading to Beagle Bay, others heading south. Impassable roads meant many fleeing residents returned to Broome.

  World War II evacuees from Dutch East Indies – After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the Dutch colonial government mobilised their East Indies forces, however their army was greatly outnumbered. Before surrendering on 9 March 1942, women and children were evacuated. Thousands of people passed through Broome and Port Hedland.

  Places

  Marble Bar

  Marble Bar is known as the ‘hottest town’ in Australia, with consistently high temperatures in the summer months of over 38 degrees, often occurring for days on end. There really are anecdotal stories of freshly laid eggs cooking when they hit the hot ground. Marble Bar is home to a multitude of biting creatures and insects, including ants, mosquitoes, spiders, sandflies and huge bungarra. The Ironclad Hotel – Marble Bar’s first hotel – was erected in 1892 and retains the corrugated iron façade for which it was named.

  Corunna Downs secret WWII airstrip

  Construction began in 1942 and it became a base for US Army Corps (USAAC) 380th Bombardment Group Liberators and later for RAAF B-24 Liberators. It was situated 35 kilometres south of Marble Bar beside an ironstone ridge. During thunderstorms chain lightning bounced between hills and clouds because of the high iron content in rocks. Conditions at the base were extreme. In addition to searing temperatures, Corunna was home to scorpions and snakes, including the death adder. A natural heat haze helped protect the base from enemy aircraft.

  Language

  Language has changed since the 1940s. Few Australians these days use words like ‘struth’ and ‘tickety-boo’. The references to American soldiers as ‘Yanks’ was often said with laconic fondness, in a similar way that Australians were called ‘Aussies’. In contrast, more disparaging words were used for nationalities considered to be the enemy. Japanese soldiers were sometimes called ‘Japs’, but this is not acceptable usage today. This term has been used in the story not to offend, but to reflect the feeling of the day.

  Acknowledgements

  Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the University of Western Australia for generous financial scholarship assistance and my PhD supervisors, Professor Van Ikin and Dr Tess Williams. This story was one of two Creative Works accompanying research into anthropomorphism in Australian children’s literature. The other work, The Shark Caller, was published by Penguin Random House in 2016.

  The actual writing of The Dog with Seven Names began in 2012; however, story seeds of inspiration lodged long before that. Like many Australians, I can relate to stories of aeroplanes and flying doctors landing on remote airstrips. In 1934, residents of my home town, Albury, formed a car headlights runway for the lost Uiver. In 2005 I accompanied my daughter (with fractured pelvis) across Australia in a small RFDS plane. We refuelled at remote airstrips, eventually reaching Perth, and the kindness of medical and flying staff has stayed with me.

  During the long writing journey many people have offered assistance. As always I am indebted to family members. My daughter, Sophie Wolfer, has grown up reading my stories and is a skilful editor whose advice I treasure. I’m grateful to my sister, Karen Davidson, and mother, Audrey Davidson, who’ve also read many drafts of Dog’s story and given valuable feedback. Thanks to other family members too, for their generous input: Tolina and Owen Davis and Amelie Watson. This story is dedicated to my husband, Peter Watson, with thanks for his support and absolute belief in my work. Hugs and crackle treats as well to rescue dog, Harry, for daily inspiration and love.

  I am fortunate to belong to supportive writer groups. Bouquets to my friends from SCBWI and my Albany critique buddies: Kate Woodward, Sian Turner, Maree Dawes, Barb Temperton, Beth Kirkland, Andrew Turk, Venetia Marshall and Tracey Lawrie. Thank you to Karen Swallow for Dutch language help, Sue and Mavis Hoare (1950s aviatrix) as well as Lorraine and Geoff Horsley (RFDS pilot) for aviation advice. For historical assistance I’m indebted to Michael Wenke (National Archives of Australia), Eddy Cole and David Theodore (National Anzac Centre), Sue Lefroy (Albany Public Library History Collection), the State Library of Western Australia, Australian War Memorial, Broome Historical Museum, Kevin Gomm, as well as Sharon Groch and Helen Ellacott (South Hedland Public Library) for allowing me to trawl through their evocative photographic collection. Grateful thanks also to Sarah Valentine and Joan Foley for sharing details of their family histories and knowledge of the Marble Bar area.

  The team at Penguin Random House has been wonderful. Heartfelt thanks to Zoe Walton and Mary Verney for their wise editing. My little dog was
in such safe hands throughout the editing journey and I loved knowing that Mary also loved Princess. Thanks also to Nancy Liang for a gorgeous cover.

  It’s not unusual for authors to experience moments of serendipity, synchronicity or coincidence during the writing of a novel. Sometimes things seem ‘meant to be’. In 2015, this happened during a research trip to Broome, Port Hedland, Marble Bar and the site of the secret WWII Corunna Downs airbase.

  At extreme low tide in Broome it’s possible to see the WWII Catalina flying boat wrecks on the mudflats of Roebuck Bay. Due to quick-turning tides, accessing the wrecks via hovercraft allows maximum viewing time. Broome Hovercraft’s minibus collected me before dawn. I began chatting to a fellow traveller, Karen Hasselo, and discovered she was the daughter of Henk Hasselo, whose Dornier flying boat was one of those attacked in the 1942 raid. Karen’s evocative anecdotes about her father’s experiences helped bring history to life.

  Fate intervened again when I flew into Port Hedland. Arriving at dusk, I drove to the site of the old hospital. With just a few days in town, I wanted to see the hospital as soon as possible. On previous visits, the semi-ruined building was fenced off, however this time lights were blazing. The building has been beautifully restored and is now a Dôme cafe. How lovely to sit on the verandah with fresh coffee, imagining scenes from 1942. The next morning I was lucky a third time at Dalgety House Museum, when volunteer Joan Foley told me her mother, Joan Arlborough, had worked at the Marble Bar Hospital in 1940. Joan’s stories added flesh to the bones of my nursing characters.

  Finally, I’d like to acknowledge organisations such as RFDS and Angel Flight, which facilitate patient transfers across our huge nation. RFDS flew over 26 million kilometres last year in 69 aircraft, the equivalent of 34 trips to the moon and back. Your staff and volunteers are heroes.

  Readers keen to learn more about this era may like to scan Trove’s comprehensive online collection of newspapers. Publications such as The West Australian, The Geraldton Guardian and Express and The Daily News were most valuable in researching this story. Reader may also enjoy: Antonio Cafarella’s Corunna Downs the Invisible WW2 Airfield; Joy Flegg’s It Happened in Marble Bar; Kevin Gomm’s Red Sun on the Kangaroo Paw; Jenny Hardie’s Nor’Westers of the Pilbara Breed; Ernestine Hill’s Flying Doctor Calling; Dr Tom Lewis and Peter Ingman’s Zero Hour in Broome; Kathleen Mallett’s To the Bar Bonded; Fred McKay’s Traeger, The Pedal Radio Man; Michael Page’s The Flying Doctor Story 1928-78; Port Hedland Historical Society’s Hedland Voices; Frank Purser’s The Story of Corunna Downs; John Thompson-Gray’s Love Luck and Larceny and W.H. Tyler’s Flight of Diamonds.

  Also by Dianne Wolfer

  The Shark Caller

  A Random House book

  Published by Penguin Random House Australia Pty Ltd

  Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney NSW 2060

  www.penguin.com.au

  First published by Random House Australia in 2018

  Copyright © Dianne Wolfer 2018

  The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity, including internet search engines or retailers, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying (except under the statutory exceptions provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968), recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of Penguin Random House Australia.

  Addresses for the Penguin Random House group of companies can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com/offices.

  ISBN: 9780143787464

  Cover image © Nancy Liang

  Cover design by Christa Moffitt, Christabella Designs

  Internal design and typesetting by Midland Typesetters, Australia

  The author has used historical elements as a base for this story, but this is a work of fiction. Names, characters and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses or companies is entirely coincidental.

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