Topic: Earning A Living.

My Great Great Aunt Susan Darchy (1857-1922) was born to a wealthy pioneering family in western NSW, Australia. She had a privileged childhood growing up on an outback cattle station, with a private tutor and a succession of governesses.

Her parents took her to England in 1873 when she was 17, possibly so she could make her debut at court. She was only 20 when her father died. She visited Europe again with her mother and younger sister Rose Ann at least twice and in 1885 was at Aix-les-Bains in the South of France staying at the same place as Queen Victoria of England. Susan, Rose and her brother Louis were all presented to the Queen on more than one occasion.

A bad recession hit Australia in the 1890s together with a drought and rabbit plague. The English Banks, with little knowledge or understanding of Australian conditions, foreclosed on a huge number of pastoral properties. The Darchy children had to earn a living! Susan wrote some years later: “I found myself in Sydney with 20 pounds in my pocket and facing the necessity of doing something to earn money before that was exhausted.” She began writing to newspapers, including those overseas.

Through her own courage, determination and energy she soon became a well-known journalist, being in charge of the Social and Fashion columns of an Australian daily newspaper. According to an article on the Lady Journalists of NSW, “A great deal of tact and discretion is required in one who has the control of the social department of a large daily paper, and during the times that Miss Darchy has managed that portion of the Telegraph she has exhibited those qualifications to the fullest extent…..The lady who supplies the social and fashion news to a big daily journal in a large city like Sydney has abundant work to do; but Miss Darchy is active and industrious, and by economy of time manages to (also) contribute regularly to a daily paper in Paris and to send a colonial letter periodically to the Sketch, an illustrated journal published in London. She also writes for several country papers in New South Wales….”

In 1899 Susan delivered a public lecture in Sydney’s School of Arts on “The Power of Thought”. She…“treated the subject in a general way, emphasising the importance of right thinking and showing that it could be taught by scientific methods. For the results of scientific thinking she claimed perfect health and happiness to the individual.” There must have been many other such lectures given. A small entrance fee would have been charged.

In 1900 Susan went overseas and gave a series of lectures on Australia in San Francisco and London. The San Francisco Chronicle published a very long article about her entitled “What Australian Women Are Doing”. Her lectures on the Australian Bush were very well received in London and she was mentioned several times in the Court Circular of The Times.

Susan tried to obtain finance for her lecture tours from the Australian Government, but was unsuccessful. A letter to the Prime Minister written in 1901 says: “My object in writing to you is to ask you if the Commonwealth could not help me to make my work of greater value to Australia.I (have) managed in three months to give twenty five lectures in London and various parts of England. So far, I have had everything to face single handed, this work has been enormous and the expenses very great. Those in the know here are amazed at the measure of success I have secured, for independent lectures of anyone who has not poisoned a few husbands or who has not become distinguished in South Africa are considered suicidal.” It would seem she knew the Prime Minister personally!

She continued “I was fortunate in getting work to do under the auspices of the British Empire League, through the influence of Sir Andrew Clarke and Mrs Copeland, but although the work done by the League is important I am able to touch another class of people than they do.
There are few women lecturers here, and I am the only one representing Australia and I find that the womans’ point of view and the womans’ presence counts for much. The secretaries tell me that my audiences come next to Winston Churchill’s, and I suppose that means something today.” Unfortunately her application was unsuccessful. Barton wrote:
“You work has my full sympathy, however, and I trust that your efforts may be attended by the success which they merit.”

She also went to Canada, from where she wrote a very long entertaining letter to her old newspaper, mainly about her travels.

An Australian newspaper said in 1901 that Susan was “waking things up at Home” (ie England). (Sydney Stock and Station Journal, 26 Feb 1901 p.8)

Returning to Australia, Susan set up a high fashion dressmaking business known as “D’Archy et Cie” .(By that itme the spelling of the surname had changed slightly). A Melbourne newspaper reported in 1903: “Good work, fair prices and an admirable cut have brought D’Archy et Cie of Collins St. into prominence, so much so that another dressmaker has been engaged….. Susan was described as a clever designer, whose forte was evening and race gowns. By 1907 the competition for quality staff particularly apprentices, bodice hands and improvers, was increasing, as evidenced by the number of similar advertisements in the main Melbourne newspaper. The business was still going in 1909 but cannot be found after that.

It would appear that Susan returned to England again and did much work for the Australian War effort. The Sydney Morning Herald of October 6 1915 reported regarding a very patriotic song:

Indeed several of Susan’s brothers including my own GGGFather enlisted … (for American readers – Australia’s experiences in World War I were VERY different to that of your country.)