Page:Facts and Fancies about Our "Son of the Woods", Henry Clarence Kendall and his Poetry (IA factsfanciesabou00hami).pdf/45

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After the Kendall lecture I was introduced to Mrs. Kendall and her brother, Mr. Rutter, and was invited to spend a day with them. It was then that I learnt from Mrs. Kendall and the elder children, Fred and Frank, about the poet's life at Camden Haven, as well as having received some details from other equally reliable sources. For some five or six years he resided at Camden Haven with his wife and children while in the employ of his good friend, Mr. G. L. Fagan, who had started a cedar business there and gave Kendall the position of trust as accountant and book-keeper. Camden Haven was a beautiful place, and there he led a very quiet, peaceful life, enjoying the society of his wife and young family, all of whom he was very fond.

There was nothing he delighted in more than taking all the children (those old enough to walk) wandering in the bush, finding the bushes that he liked the smell of when burning. He prided himself on knowing the best wood for burning. The black myrtle was his favourite, and he found the burning of gum-leaves also gave a delightful aroma. He knew all the trees and the scent of them. He was very fond of the scent of the wattle, and would talk to the children of all the different trees, giving their names and derivations. In his playful moods with the children he called the trees Mr. and