MIGHT BE OF INTEREST TO STEPHEN

[Maureen K Clifford]

I have never heard of this bloke Stephen but you probably are familiar with him - what a wonderful collection of childrens poetry

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/30726/30 ... 0726-h.htm

[Stephen Whiteside]

Thanks for this, Maureen.

Yes, it's a famous book. E. W. Cole was the publisher, not the poet.

Cole was an extraordinary man. He had a very famous bookshop in the Melbourne CBD. It was more like a circus. There was a whole range of attractions there apart from books, all available for people to look at free of charge. The hope was, of course, that they would also buy books, which they did.

When he decided it was time to marry, he advertised in the newspaper for a wife, and interviewed the many applicants. He married the successful one, and they had a long and happy marriage.

Cole also published C. J. Dennis' first book, "Back Block Ballads and Other Verses", in 1913. It was not a happy experience for Dennis, though nobody seems to know the details. Perhaps Dennis' expectations were simply too high. Anyway, Dennis moved to A & R, and never left them.