Love's summer in the snow. "Mail Office", Nhill. n.d.

Component identifier:

Item 1

Content Summary:

Folder. 4pp. 7 3/4" × 4 1/2". This appears to be a sheet of cream paper pasted down upon a sheet of gray. The marks of jointure are clearly visible. Upon the front, which is gray, the title is printed in gilt: Poem for Recitation. By J.S. Neilson. 'Love's Summer in the Snow'. An incident in the Greely American Arctic Expedition." The front is ornamented: the back is blank.

Tipped into a folder together with 6pp. letter from Shaw Neilson to James Devaney: "...I am sending you a copy of a poem my father got published when we were living at Nhill. You will notice the J.S. Neilson on it, but it is not mine. We were both writing verse at the same time and our names got mixed. That is why I started to use 'Shaw Neilson'." The letter contains many references to A.G. Stephens and their publishing Agreements: he ends, "A.G.S. was a great man and a generous friend".

This letter is written by Neilson's step-sister, Lisette, at his dictation but is signed, in his hand, "J.S. Neilson". The letter is dated 31 December, 1934.

In his Autobiography Shaw Neilson writes: "...In the later part of 1893, the A.N.A. of Melbourne offered prizes for Short Stories, Poems, etc., in connection with the celebrations of that year. My father won a prize of six guineas for a poem on The Pioneers (Set Subject), and I won a prize of two guineas for a poem for Juniors (under 21) on any subject. Dad knew I was competing but he never saw my verse until after it was printed in the paper...I think the best bit of verse he wrote during our stay at Nhill was Love's Summer in the Snow. It seemed to have more charm about it than the others. He had a good ear for rhythm, and he had read much good verse. He wrote one religious piece Easter Tide for the Australasian just before we left Nhill. I think it is a remarkable piece of verse for a man with no education: a man that had to fight so very hard to make a living all his life."

Neilson also mentions that in 1890, while working on a fencing contract, his father worked hard at a ballad. It was not printed. Ward Lock Co. would have printed it but they were not prepared to pay for it, merely to give Neilson a copy of the book in which it was to appear.

In the A.N.A. Competition the judges were astonished to discover that the winners in both senior and junior sections, were father and son.

Names:

John Shaw Neilson

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