Growing Together: Letters Between Frederick John Cato & Frances Bethune 1881 to 1884
Edited by Una B. Porter
Published by Queensberry Hill Press: Carlton 1981 1st Edition
Signed by Author - Privately Published - In Original Dustjacket - Foldout Chart
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This charming and highly personal work presents the courtship correspondence exchanged between Frederick John Cato and Frances Bethune between 1881 and 1884, preserving an intimate record of two young people whose lives would later become intertwined with the remarkable story of Moran & Cato and the development of Melbourne itself. Edited and introduced by their daughter, Dr Una B. Porter, the volume captures not only a romance but also the values, aspirations and daily experiences of educated young Victorians in the late nineteenth century. Rich in detail, the letters provide fascinating insights into colonial life in Melbourne and Invercargill, New Zealand, as well as the social, religious and cultural influences that shaped a generation.
Privately printed in a limited edition of just one thousand copies, this handsome first edition was produced to a high standard by Queensberry Hill Press and is now an increasingly elusive piece of Australian social and business history. Through the correspondence of Frederick John Cato—later co-founder of the celebrated Moran & Cato grocery empire—and his future wife Frances Bethune, readers witness the foundations of both a successful commercial enterprise and a lifelong partnership. The extensive editorial notes and introduction by Dr Una B. Porter, herself a distinguished psychiatrist and philanthropist and the youngest daughter of the couple, place the letters within the broader context of Victorian Melbourne and the rise of one of Australia's great retail families.
This copy carries particularly appealing provenance. It is one of the scarce supplementary copies and bears a contemporary presentation inscription from Dr Una B. Porter to Emily Naineman dated 1981. Also loosely inserted is an original handwritten letter dated 14 April 1982 from Deborah Browne of Surrey Hills, Victoria, explaining that Dr Porter had already inscribed the book and noting that she was then recovering from pneumonia and temporarily unable to receive visitors. These associated inscriptions and correspondence provide a direct connection with the editor and the Cato family themselves, adding greatly to the historical interest and desirability of an already uncommon publication in its original dustjacket."
Light wear to dust jacket. Pages clean and well presented. Signed by author. An excellent copy in very good condition overall. Please study photos to further understand condition.
