Jane Mander and Her River

New Zealand Listener, Volume 32, Issue 824, 13 May 1955, Page 31

Jane Mander and Her River

NTELLIGENT, vigorous, determined, ctitical, forthright, but mellowing with age. Those are the words Oliver A. Gillespie uses to describe Jane Mander, one of our most important New Zealand writers, in his Jane Man-der-a Radio Portrait. This feature will be heard at 9.30 am. in the Main National Programme on Sunday, May 22, and on the Saturday night, May 21, at 7.30 p.m., the main National stations

will broadcast a repeat performance of Oliver A. Gillespie’s adaptation of Jane Mander’s first and most important novel -The Story of a New Zealand River. Mary Jane Mander’ was _- born at Ramarama, a few miles south of Auckland, on April 6, 1877. Her father, Francis Mander, was a vigorous pioneer of the sawmilling industry, who, at sixty, had to be restrained from riding buckjumpers. His daughter inherited. much of his character-his energy, determination and restless desire for change. The family never staved long in one sawmilling community, and her education was spasmodic, though she loved reading and music. At fifteen she decided to become a teacher, and taught at the Devonport, Newton West and Otahuhu schools. At 23 she began working on her first novel, and about then gave up teaching for journalism in Whangarei, where her. father, meanwhile, had become Member of Parliament for the Marsden Electorate. Jane. restless as ever, determined to leave New Zealand. She visited Australia, then London, taking her novel in manuscript with her. But she wanted to visit America and. eventually got there. starting her studies at Columbia University, New York, at the age of 35. She gained top marks in every subject she studied. Poor and ill she struggled with her writing, and also worked untiringly for women’s suffrage, prison reform, and the Red Cross. Her. sixth and last novel was published in 1928, and in 1932 she returned to the’ New Zealand she had never forgotten. She died in Whangarei on December 20, 1949,