Invited to the Cullen mansion for afternoon tea, Sarah Blay arrived wearing a blue dress of the new fashion she had ordered from an advertisement in the Hobart Town Gazette. The long conical skirt fell from just below her breast, the round neckline flattered her shoulders, which is where the dress puffed to meet the edge of the long sleeves. The hem was decorated with ruffles. She carried a patterned shawl and had her hair styled in the London fashion, with a part in the centre and tight curls over her temples. ‘What do you think, James?’ she asked her husband when he walked into the bedroom.
‘I can’t think. I don’t know what to say.’ He stood for a few minutes staring at his wife. ‘I have never seen you look so beautiful. You are beautiful, but that dress, you look like a queen.’
‘Am I
