THE POSTMASTER’S MISTRESS

In October 1945, the Liberty ship SS Samnesse sailed into Durban Harbour, bringing returning servicemen and tanks from Europe. The ship was built in the United States during World War II and transferred to the British Ministry of War Transportation upon completion.

The only woman aboard was Elena VAN PRAAG (born 27 November 1920).  She was the girlfriend of Captain George Samuel JENNINGS (born 25 December 1914) of the 6th South African Armoured Division. Elena was of Dutch-Jewish descent and had grown up in Italy where her father, Barend, owned a shipping business in Genoa. In 1940 the VAN PRAAG family was forced into civilian internment. Her father lost his business and Elena’s reign as an equestrian champion was over. Banished from their home in Genoa, they left behind their work helping German Jews escape Europe via Italy, including Albert EINSTEIN's sister. They found refuge in Florence where their apartment in the Palazzo della Gherardesca backed on to a garden which the Germans occupied from 1943 until the Allies took over in 1944. This is where Elena met George.

George was tasked with marking the route north for his division, as well as driving Major-General Evered POOLE on his daily traverse of the Monte Cassino Pass, always under sniper fire. For this he was mentioned in dispatches. Elena’s father often hosted officers at home and one day he offered George a night’s accommodation. Elena met the young officer in the dining-room the next morning. At the end of the war, George managed to get Elena a berth on the SS Samnesse. Elena sailed out with 13 pieces of luggage, including a pasta machine.

In Durban, Elena was met by Stan CONKER, who had served as a Sergeant with George. At the same time, an official approached her and told her that she had been declared an "undesirable immigrant" and was to be repatriated within the week. She had to stay with Stan at his home until she boarded another ship back to Europe, where she worked for the Allies in their clean-up operations until 1947 when George was finally able to take her to South Africa.

The couple were married on 25 April 1947 and leased a guest farm in Munster, Natal. Elena had gone ahead of George and set about clearing lands and setting up a home. The farm had a party line telephone. Not being familiar with this system, every time the phone rang Elena picked it up, until the operator, Dulcie SAWYER, at the Munster Trading Post, shouted at her. Thereafter she wouldn’t touch it and eventually a policeman arrived on horseback to check on her because George couldn’t get hold of her.

Cecil BLAKE, a South African Airways pilot, was often a guest at the farm during sardine season. During his Johannesburg-Durban-Cape Town flights, he would drop a copy of the Sunday Times newspaper, weighted with a bag of sweets, onto the front lawn and repeat the service for the Port Edward Hotel. Whenever he flew over, he buzzed the guest farm. One day he spotted George kite fishing, so he severed his line. George retaliated by launching some kind of explosive device at the Dakota the next time the aircraft flew over. Unfortunately, Cecil wasn’t the pilot and the pilot reported being attacked. Cecil was in the office, overheard him, and realised it must have been George.

When the farm lease ran out, they decided to run the post office in Port Edward. George became the postmaster with Elena as his assistant and telephone operator. There was very little in Port Edward in 1957: a few rondavels at the Police Holiday Camp, the hotel, a couple of stores and a few cottages. John MPOFU, who had come from Munster with them, would wheel the postbags to the railway bus stop at the entrance to Port Edward every day. He would often take a nap in the wheelbarrow, head pillowed on the post bags - he and George started their postal work at 4:00 a.m.

In 1972, George was diagnosed with cancer and given nine months to live. The cobalt treatment worked, but left him with colon problems and he had to retire. Elena took over as postmistress and George spent his time as chairman of the town board for eight years. Although this was a voluntary position, he got the roads tarred and organised the construction of the civic buildings. Elena was also a capable draughtsperson and was responsible for drawing up plans for various buildings. George discovered that the defunct golf course was about to be lost and fundraised enough to revive it and build a small clubhouse. George loved playing golf and continued to play with the aid of a scooter when cancer incapacitated him. He battled poor health for 17 years. He passed away in Port Edward on 21 February 1988. His ashes were scattered on the seventh hole of his beloved golf course.

From the back of her cottage, Elena had a view over the golf course and from the front, a panoramic view of the Indian Ocean. She passed away in Port Edward on 30 October 2016.

Ruth FIFIELD was born in Johannesburg and became an English teacher in Port Shepstone. Her writing interests include local history, and that is how she got to spend Monday afternoons with Elena to record her life story. Eight years later, in September 2014, Ruth’s book, The Postmaster's Mistress, a 316-page biography, was published by Partridge Publishing. The book is available in softcover and e-book on Amazon.