Author and Philanthropist
Samuel Furphy
The Ian Potter Foundation Limited
THE IAN POTTER FOUNDATION
Level 3, 111 Collins Street Melbourne Victoria 3000 Tel Fax email web
03 9650 3188 03 9650 7986 admin@ianpotter.org.au www.ianpotter.org.au
ISBN 0-646-46421-3
Alec Prentice Sewell ( 1 909-2003)
Samuel Furphy
page 3
A
Child at Heart Tiz is
bridge is Peter Pan's
He knows your name anc/ ways Has /un wit/, Pup and Fans Enjoys h is endless days.
WHE N WALKI NG AROUND ALE C PRE NTICE SEWHL'S
property 'Teamsters' Hill ' in Toolangi, one regularly encounters a poem inscribed in wood, sto ne or metal. A small plaque is fixed to a bridge over a fishpond in the beautiful garden behind the house; it displays a poem, (above), which in four lines conveys a great deal about the life and legacy of its author. Alec Prentice Sewell was a child at heart: his interests included gardening, sport and literature, but above all he ce lebrated the innocence and wonder of chi ldhood. He identified closely with Peter Pan and it is very appropriate that although he had no chi ldren of his own, he left a lasting legacy to ch ildren in his will.
Pe t er Pan's Bridg e
Alec Sewell's childhood years - from his birth in 1909 to his graduation from Haileybury College in 1926 - are
The remainder of Alec's estate has passed to The Ian Potter Foundation, whose Governors are honouring
the years he remembered most fondly later in life and
A lec's wish that the funds be app li ed for t he benefit of
they feature strongly in his octogenarian writings . His
young children.
early career as a bank clerk, his war service, and his postHandsome, creative and playful, Alec Prentice Sewe ll
war employment with the Universities Commission were less im portant to him. After retiring he moved to his
was also en igmati c; he was a man of few extravagances
childhood holiday home at Toolangi and began the most
and simple pleasures. Through shrewd investment
creative period of his life; he wrote poetry and stories,
of inherited wealth and modest living he built up a
he tended the garden of his beloved mother, and he
substantial fortune; but there were few outward signs
created a stimulating and picturesque environment for
of this wea lth, which he principally valued for the
the chi ldren he never had.
benefit it could bring to others. Alec Sewell was a man of considerab le creativity; he also had a great emotional
Befitting his own love of childhood and his belief that
intelligence and was astute, positive and intuitive in his
all children deserve a stable and stimulating upbringing,
judgement of a person's character. A bachelor all his life,
Alec's philanthropy focuses on youth. He has bequeathed
Alec confessed to 'past affa irs,' but none that resu lted
his wonderful property at Toolangi to Anglicare Victoria
in the fam ily he desired. He battled ill-health and was at
as a holiday home for children in need and the parents
times a self-described 'lost soul'; but he blossomed in
or foster parents who care for them. He has also made
older age, paradoxically through a return to youth. In his
mater, Haileybury
writings he recaptured the joy of chi ldhood adventure. In
provision for scholarships at his a/ma
College, specifying that recipients show all-round
his gardening, he sustained himself through knowledge
potential but lack the financial opportunity to realise this
of what he would leave behind: a sanctuary for children
potential.
in need. page 4
Alec Prentice Sewell traced the origins of his surname to
Sewell: 'Sea Victor, Ruler
Cumbria in north-western England - 'probab ly the Isle of Man ' - and discovered its translation from Old English was 'sea victory' 1
or 'sea ruler.' 2 Alec's paternal grandfather Richard Blamyre Sewell was born in 1837 and christened at Bolton Le Moors in Lancashire. He sailed to Australia as a 21-year-old in 1858 aboard the
Winefred; he travelled alone, seeking prosperity in the antipodes: An engineer, there wasn't much that he couldn 't do or make. Rather below average height, but deep-chested and strong, he took no slack from any man, yet was good-natured and helpful, though impatient. He treated all women ... with knightly solicitude and deference, and they all seemed to like him. Any in trouble he would help, yet there was only one woman for him. 3 Duri ng the voyage Richard met Emma Sophia Cottrill, a
A.-tl1ur Edgar Seu·e// (1865-1952)
beautiful 16-year-old from Worcestershire who travelled with her parents and seven younger siblings. Alec surmised that his grandmother 'must have been something to look at on that ship' as even in her eighties 'her complexion was one of peaches and
Seicell, (Dane or maybe 1\Torseman),
cream.' The weeks on board the Winefredwere enough to foster
Sailing icitl1 eacl1 earl an oarsman,
a romance between Richard and Emma, but the courtship was not
Harried Englis/1 coasts and islands,
as smooth as young Richard may have hoped: during the voyage
Sacked and burnt 'round Pictis/1 Higli/ands.
well away from a pub'; after arriving in Melbourne this friendship
Richard also befriended the bosun 'who was a good bloke at sea, landed Richard in trouble when he jumped to the defence of the bosun when the latter was ejected from Young and Jackson's Hotel
Longboat raided Gaul and Ireland, Daic11 attacks icit/1 seax and firebrand, Goe-ls like Tiic, in blood tl1en icallou·ed, Viki11gs i-ery smartly /olloiced.
in Flinders Street by a fellow reveller. At the very moment of the scuffle Robert Cottrill, the dignified father of Richard's sweetheart, walked past: 'The gentleman stormed home and commanded his w ife never to permit the young Sewell to enter the house. "Rolling in the gutter in a drunken brawl outside Young and Jacksons." ' 4 Fortunately, Richard had the support of Emma 's mother, who would sneak him into the house to see her daughter. Eighteen months after their arrival in Victoria, Richard and Emma were
Summer blood sports, snatcl1i11g plunder, Loeers a/ten torn asunder, Seicell, means sea victor, ruler. Rutl1less raper, needed cooler.
married; the couple had eleven children, eight of whom survived infancy. The most prominent of the Sewell children (and also the youngest) was Sir Sidney Valentine Sewell, who won scholarships to study medicine at the University of Melbourne; he became a physician at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, was an expert on the treatment of tuberculosis and a president of the Royal Australasian
Back to /iord and icinter quarters,
College of Physicians (1940-42). 5 Arthur Edgar Sewell, Alec's
V?,/e icit/1 little sons and daugl1ters,
father, the fourth of eight sons, was born in Williamstown in 1865. According to Alec his father was highly intelligent but a little
Dreaming o/ next summer's funning,
impractical
His descendants lack /1is cu11ning. Dad had a first class brain; he wasn't so hot on common sense. My mother had the common sense, but he had a first
Spotlig/1t on our lives prosaic, TI7or/ds
/ram Haga,·'s life arcfiaic,
Licence s/1ocki11gly outrageous,
class brain and could be anything he wanted to. He got a job in Morris and Meeks (the largest ironmonger in the southern hemisphere). He was made accountant in that enormous firm. 6
Green icit/1 e11L·y 1 so contagious. 1 pag e
5
The Prentice Family of Rutherglen
A LEC HAS NOT RE CORDED THE DETA [LS OF THE
shipboard romance of James Prentice (1830-1891) and Mary Brown (1836-1912 ), but they too courted en route to Australia. Alec never met his maternal grandfather and his grandmother died when he was very young; nevertheless, the influence of the Prentice family on Alec was great. James Prentice was a prominent farmer in the Rutherglen district of northern Victoria, owning over one thousand acres at 'Emu Plains'; he farmed cattle and sheep, but the property was best known for its vineyards and gold mines. In 1876 Emu Plains boasted 11 acres of vines, 'ma inly Pedro Ximenes and Malbec' and 'Golden Chasselas for the Melbourne table grape market,' but by the end of the century the area under vine had increased tenfold. 8 According to family legend, Francois de Castella brought vines from Portugal to Emu Plain s, which was one of the first vineya rd s to produce port wine in Australia; the vines were later sold to Burgoynes by Alec's uncle. 9
I sab ella Pr entice (1 877-1 958) To augment his w in emak ing business, James Prentice pegged out ground in 189 1 and formed the Prentice Freehold Gold Mining Company w ith a capital of £8,000 . In seven years the mine produced 59,000 ounces and
James and Mary had five sons and five daughters: the youngest, Isabella, was born in 1877 .12 Alec observed that, although born in Austra lia, Isabella 'had that quiet
paid £69,000 in dividends. More gold mines followed the trunk towards the Murray River, including the 'North Prentice' and 'Great Prentice,' but there was substantial
cha rm and gentle voice possessed by many Highland Scotswomen.' 13 Isabella was on ly 14 when her father died, but had a very close re lationship with her mother;
outside capital involved. 10 It is unclear exactly how lucrative t he mines were for the Prentice fami ly, but Alec
she lived at Emu Plains with her mother and variou s siblin gs and was the bookkeeper for the family business.
downplays their signifi cance:
Isa bella remained in Rutherglen until she married in her late twenties; although she must have brought some
The three goldmines? They were not so dusty, but there is mighty little of that gold dust clinging to
money to her marriage, her most significant inheritance
me. Any sort of dust blows around, and gold dust in
was the strong Prentice fam ily va lu es.
particular. Sic transit gloria mundi. 11
page
6
A Memorable Childhood Growing up in Staniland Grove was the source of
.ARTHUR EDGAR SEWELL Al'W ISABELLA PRENTICE
were married at 'Emu Plains' on 6 September 1905 .
many fond memories for Alec. It was a new residential
Arthur had been living in St Kilda, but t he newly married
area and the houses were not even numbered until
couple soon ma de t heir home (which they called
1929; consequently, Jack and Alec often played in and
'Belthur') at 5 Staniland Grove, Elsternwick. Despite
around construction sites as new houses we re built
being a successfu l accou ntant, 40-yea r-old Arthur was
on neighbouring blocks. At about t he age of six, Alec
less successful when it came to his own money and was
entertained himself by playing in a sand heap with his
£1,000 in debt when he married Isabella . Accord ing to
brother Jack, after the w orkmen had gone home:
Alec, his father quickly surrendered all responsibility for
Alongside was a large bin with plank sides in which
money to his more prudent w ife :
a slurry of lime bubbled threa teningly I was in the First payday he came home and threw his pay down
habit of walking around the centimetre-wide edge
and said to mother, "Do with
which was always wet with slurry
it what you like, you can 't do
This time I slipped and the burning
worse than what I've done
fluid closed over me. I half ran, half
with it." I used to say to my
hobbled the hundred metres (a
father, "You are a pretty lucky
hundred kilometres?) to sanctuary
man." He said, "No, I'm a
Mater peeled the clothes of me,
good judge. "
14
dunked me in the bath and gave me warm boracic water to bathe my
Their f irst son, Jack Prent ice
eyes. I survived to try climbing ta ll
Sewe ll, w as born in 1907 and
smokestacks some years later 16
Alec Pre nt ice Sewe ll was born in El sternwick on 5 February 1909;
Th e love and care provided by
both Jack an d A lec w ere named
Alec's mother w as combined w it h a
after Prentice uncles. Alec later
desire that her sons not 'get above
recalle d an early memory of his
themse lves .' The fam ily cou ld afford
mother:
the assistance of a housema id, but Isabel la did not allow her sons to be
He looked up into the face
lazy an d complacen t , or to take t heir
of comfort, goodness and
privilege for granted
gentle authority Just now it was as white as the high
.Artl1u r Sewell witl1 l1 is t wo sons, Alec P rentice Sewell (left) a nd
white bone-collar which fitted
Ja ck P ren t ice Sewell,
c 191 2
closely around the slender neck.
When I was about 76- 77, I was late and asked a maid to clean my shoes. My mother heard this and when I
A head with fine -spun auburn hair escaping from
got home that night (with no one there) she said,
under a hat with a stiff narrow brim, which held clear
" That girl who you got to clean your shoes, the only
of the face a black wide-netted veil. The hazel eyes,
difference between her and you is that your parents
with their candid gaze, followed the tracks of the
have a lot more of the worldly goods than hers.
permanent way He was able to observe this woman
If you can't get up early enough you can go with
for two or three undisturbed seconds. He put up his
dirty shoes." 17
hand, touched her face, and felt the net ridges on his Alec attributed his mother's careful attitude rega rding
finger tips. 'Your face is white, Mother '
money and privilege to her rural upbring ing : 'She w as The boy w ou ld have been about three as he sat upon his mother's knee on Elsternw ick Ra ilw ay Station, w ait ing
a Rutherglen girl; alw ays a country w oman 's fee li ng. ' Although Alec inherited and accumu lated a considerab le
for the puff-p uff to huff, snort and w histle them to
fortune through his life, his lack of conspicuous
Brighton. He had fe lt compass ion, and w as to remember
consumption might be exp lained by the example of his
those few moment s, of no open disp lay of affection,
mother's humil ity.
throughout a long life. 15
page 7
A 'Hill Holiday Home
1
No more Latin no more Frenc/1 no more s ittin ' on a frnrd wood benc/1.
18
Tim Sewe ll family and tw o visitors at Taolangi (i-U ec sea t ed o n stu mp)
Toolangi, that Arthur and Isabella soon resolved to buy
\\'7 HE N ALEC \\'7AS 7-YEARS-OLD, HIS PARENTS decided to invest in a holiday home; a retreat from the
a place of their own; the fami ly was shown around th e
city was particularly appealing to Isabella who missed
town allotment blocks by Mr Cameron, who impressed
the country air she had enjoyed during her Rutherglen
young Alec by the ease w ith wh ich he despatched a
childhood. On a previous holiday th e Sewell family had
sna ke enco untered along the way. According to A lec,
fallen in love w ith the tiny town of Toolangi, which was
Mr Cameron taught the family 'all we were ever to
nestled in the Great Dividing Range 'along the watershed
know about the bush.' 20 The family chose two town
between Healesville and Kin glake.' Toolangi is thought
allotments blocks in the southwestern corner of Toolangi.
to mean 'stringing bark tree' and is traditional land of
Alec recalls:
the Wurundjeri people; it experienced its first significant
We all felt we had been struggling over logs for
European incursion in 1893, when the Plenty Ranges
years, and my parents made the choice because
were closed to logging to preserve Melbourne's water
it was the highest village ground in view and we
catchments - in due course, paling splitters moved into
were all thorough ly 'bushed' in the bush, and in any
the Toolangi forest to ply their trade.
case it was impossible to get a quick grasp of the topography hemmed in and dwarfed as we were by
When the Sewells first began visiting Toolangi, they stayed at Toolang i House Hotel; they were collected
the enormous eucalypts and dense undergrowth. It is
at the Healesville train by Alex Cameron, who ran the
so different now. The primeval bush has given place
Hotel w ith this mother. Cameron read the newspaper
to rich irrigated land yielding strawberry runners,
during the journey to Toolangi w ith the re ins between
vegetables (including witloof), plant nurseries, indeed
his legs and nearly collected a speeding cart at Devils
nearly anything other than alkalinity-insistent plants,
Elbow in 1916. 19 So pleased w as the Sewell family w ith
and those that are frost tender 21
page 8
Alec explained: 'my parents caused a small hole to
In one of his charming autob iographical short stories,
be carved among the primeval forest giants for our first
Alec tells of the efforts he and his brother made to cut
house in Toolangi.'22 By Christmas 19 16 a comfortable
a track through the bu sh from Teamsters' Hill to the
bungalow dwelling w ith a 2.5 metre perimeter verandah
Toolangi Post Office. When returning from an errand to
had been built; but, tragically, a fire destroyed the new
collect milk, Alec had decided to take a short cut hom e
home before the family had enjoyed it for even one
'by way of the virgin-forested hypotenuse,' but had
night Alec's fathe r had procrastinated - "Did you see to
found the scrub difficult to negotiate:
the insurance, Arthur?" ... "No, No, I was too busy, I'll do it tomorrow" - so the family was forced to simplify its plans and convert a shed into a simple two-bedroom cottage . The cottage was initia lly referred to as 'The Hut,' but the property later became known as 'Teamsters' Hill' in honour of the paling sp litters who had preceded settlement in the area and had gathered the fruits of their labour in a clearing near the Sewell cottage.
Next morning he began to cut the track after surveying it, and marked the trees. Later his elder brother joined him and they slashed, chopped, sawed, crowbarred, jacked, mattocked and raked their way to a long and huge log which lay across the bottom of the gully, and at a wombat height above the track. He began to deviate around it, but his brother said, 'We'll make a ramp under it.' Which they did, one on
For the Sewell family, the journey to Toolangi
each side and meeting beneath the log. They even
consisted of a half-kilometre wa lk or Hansom Cab ride to
drained the excavation away down the hill. Unusual
Elsternwick Station followed by a train journey to Spencer
enterprises had a particular fascination. 25
Street Station; the family then boarded a frustratingly slow train to Yarra Glen , w hich 'stopped at or between stations impartially and seemingly interminably.' 23 A short journey in the mail coach followed to Geddes Grand Hotel, w here the family enjoyed a midday meal before being collected by Charlie Bath who had the mail contract for Kinglake and Toolangi . There were 23 kilometres of dirt road between Yarra Glen and Toolangi and the trip was regularly broken to deliver sup plies, but the fam ily wo uld eventua lly reach its destination. Young Alec often enjoyed the final leg of the trip up front w ith Charlie and was occasionally entrusted w ith the reins .
The boys concea led the meeting of their 'secret milk track' and the road, which remained undiscovered for twelve months. The road gang that happened upon it immediately guessed it was the work of 'those two boys on the hill w ho were always into something.' Nevertheless, the milk track continued to serve as a convenient route into town, even if the boys we re occasionally stalked by wa ll ab ies w hen returning w ith milk after dark. A Toolangi chore that aroused less enthusiasm in Alec was the task of helping his father empty th e lat rine; A lec reca lls he gave 'what little assistance was possible under the handicap of having
At Toolangi, Alec and his brother Jack entertained
temporarily given up breathing.' 26
themselves in a variety of ways: they rode their pony or played football or cricket depending on the seaso n; in the mornings they often worked grubbing gum trees for which they were paid three pence per tree. The task of clearing the fam ily block was a significant one and the two boys became experts at stoving stumps; Alec recalls he and his brother, w ith occasional help from their parents, burned out a total of 160 stumps in a threeacre area. The techn ique was we ll described by Alec in
Tanglefoot Tales. 24
During an extended stay at Toolangi, Alec attended the small local primary sc hool 'I remember attending our little one-master school for a few months as one of about six or eight pupils, around 1917, w hen aged about eight The ma ster saw that I had an aptitude for landscaping, and let me slightly reshape one of the flower beds and extend it ' 27 Whether Alec also attended primary school in Elsternw ick is unclear; perhaps his mother took care of tuition at home. He commenced his forma l education in 1918.
Pompey the Pony Pompey is a skewba ld and very amiab le but a bit and is very mu ch
/i/ee
t/1 e people I
/i/e e.
o/ a devil
28
The pony resided in Yarra Glen between holiday visits
THE SPIRITED PONY 'POMPEY, WAS A CHIEF
attraction for both Alec and Jack during the ir visits
and Jack and Alec always took turns riding the pony
to Toolang i. Pompey was a gift from one of the boys'
between Yarra Glen and Toolangi . During the holidays
Rutherglen uncles: 'A noted cattle pony, he was trucked
Alec and Jack rode Pompey to the Toolangi Post Office
by rail to Yarra Glen station .'
to collect the mail and provisions; in summer they would groom the pony and parade him around the dirt tracks
I cannot speak for my brother, but to me this pony
of Toolangi for the benefit of the many holiday visitors,
exceeded my every expectation. Shortish, with a
who wo uld exclaim "Oh, look at the pretty pony."
broad and powerful frame, withal beautifully shaped. His head not big, but nearer that than small, with a
Pompey was not, however, always so we ll behaved; he stubbornly refused to be tied and was very difficu lt to
fine broad forehead, eyes wide-set, and rather more than his fair share of equine brains and cheek' Legs
contain in a yard as he always discovered the weakness in a fence. Pompey was also afraid of snakes:
rather thick and solid, yet again well shaped. The inches-thick forelock was a pure white adornment
Pompey was mortally afraid of reptiles and always
that we were obliged to keep cut as a fringe in a
saw them before I did, and nothing on earth would
straight line above his eyes. Th e tail was of the same
persuade him to pass while one was in view, and
colour and luxuriance, the end still thick, which was
even minutes afterwards he would have to be belted
kept cut just clear of the ground. This not solely for
past the spot, bucking, prancing and snorting.
looks, but to give him a good reach to swot the
Unfortunately, there were so many sticks about our mountain afforested roads, and he nourished grave
maddening summer fly.
concerns about all of them, and took precautionary His was a double mane equally abundant on each
action about every twentieth. Consequently a ride
side of his neck, the white and tan applied in effective
at any pace was regularly punctuated by nervous
broad alternations. The same colour application extended to his shortish, sturd y barrel, including the robust and beautifully full, rounded rump. The thought w ith me was that w ith paint brush in hand one woul d have realised that no improvement in colour distribution was possible. One did not need horsemanship to appreciate the mild yet spi rited eyes w ithout a trace of vices. 29
page 10
swerves, quiverings and proppings.
In about 1920 the Sewell family bought its first
On one occasion, while riding down the Old Toolangi Road, Pompey's paranoid evasive action caused Alec
automobile - a Buick, registration number 414 - and
considerable grief:
Jack and Alec began to outgrow Pompey. Consequently, the pony was gifted to two nursing sisters who took care
He was going at a good clip when he saw another
of children whose parents were travelling or otherwise
imaginary snake and did a genuine cattle-pony dead stop. Every horseman knows the agony of rolling
unavailable. It is, of course, exceedingly appropriate that a pony so dear to Alec Prentice Sewell was donated for
things on the pommel of the saddle, and usually this is a dire but short trial. This time it could scarcely
the benefit of children in need. Although it is unlikely young Alec made the decision himself, it fits nicely w ith
have been worse. As I felt the blood draining from
his later philanthropic spirit and dedication to child
my cheeks, I rolled feebly out of the saddle, and even
welfare.
in extremis, I looped the bridle over my bent arm as I stretched out flat on my back in the middle of the road There were four thoughts in my mind How long could I stand this degree of pain? We had given up crying for anything when very very young, Pater saying in the old style That's for girls, boys don't cry.' Had I permanently ruined my marriage prospects? Would Pompey wrench, nay just wa lk away to the plains? Would his path be over my recumbent form? 30 After an eternity lying in the dust, Alec noticed Pompey was waiting dutifully; despite his penchant for breaking ties and jumping fences, he passed up this opportunity for escape and waited until Alec had composed himself. Pompey then carried a sorry Alec home at a gentle walk: 'Not so much as one quiver, tremble or baulk the whole way, unless on my part'
page 11
Education Haileyburiensis Parents want their lads to charm us, Want them singing 'Gaudeamus ', From tl1.e palette any mixture, There's no racial colour fixture.
Fe lla learns to be a grafter, Study first and sport thereafter, Proud results have been un/olc/.ing,
ALE C BEGAN HIS FO RMAL SCHOOLING IN 1918 AS a day student at Haileybu ry Co llege, w hi ch was at that
Top positions our boys lwlding.
time situated on the corner of South Road and New Street, Brighton Beach . Alth ough Haileybury had been founded in 1892, it was stil l a relatively small private
Can /eel uni's like a brotl1er,
school with around one hundred students across all levels (the student numbers had been adverse ly affected by
W ith us school's our other mother,
World War One) Alec arrived at Haileybury three years after the retirement of the co lleg e's owner and founder
Li/elong lifes tyle is em bedded,
Charles Rendall; he was therefore more fam il iar with
Firmly stamped and strongly treaded.
the new prin cipal Lo uis de Crillon Berthon. Alec recalled in Tanglefoot Tales an occasion when, after wrestling a somewhat larger lad to the ground, he was told by Berthon 'You're not a bad chap, Sewel l, but the trouble is you don't know your own strength. ' 31 A lec showed the earliest signs of literary ab ility when he was awarded a junior prize for w riting in 1921; but his most notable achievements at school were on the sporting field. Alec w as a talented all-round athlete, but was particularly strong in sprinting and high jump competitions; he regularly w on ath letics championships at Hail eybury and in his final year achieved his ambition of w inning the open high jump at the Associated Grammar Schools (AGS) combined school sports.
~ ~ -t<>~
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vj{-
~c>~
~
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...::;7r~~ v,Jt
C<.-
$~cy~
~ A lec Pre nt ice Sewell aged 1 4
page 1 2
Alec (l10ldin g ball) as captain o/ tl1 e u nde/eated Under 1 4 I-laileybury Co llege Fo otball Team
Alec was also a very talented footbal ler. In 1920 he
Alec also achieved significant success on the cricket
captained the under-14 football team to an undefeated
field; he was a member of the school's First XI for the
season; remarkably, he also played in the school 's senior
last four years of his schooling and was invo lved in the
football team that year and, along w ith his brother Jack,
celebrated 1926 premiersh ip win over Ivanhoe Grammar.
helped the team w in the 'B grade' premiership in the
Alec usually opened the batting in that season and
AGS competition. For his last two yea rs at Haileybury,
scored a total of 190 run s at an average of 21; he also
Alec captained the senior football team: in 1925 the
took five w ickets for the season at an average of 24. In
team played in 'A grade' for the first time and finished
the premiership match he was not at his usual best: he
in a creditable fourth position; the following year,
opened the batting but suffered the embarrassment of
due to a lack of large bodies, the team returned to 'B
scoring a pair. He did, however, take a w icket in each
grade' where it simply dominated. The team won all
innings, including the all-important w icket of Ivan hoe
six matches, some by massive margins, and finished
opener and top scorer McCahon who he bowled for 33
the season with an embarrassing ly high percentage of
in the second innings. Alec also represented his school in
2,676. The biggest victory came against a Camberwell
Tennis and Athletics.
team w here the final scores were Haileybury: 48.38.326 Alec was very proud of his and his schoo l's sporting
- Camberwell: NIL. The only serious competition for the season was encountered during the last match against Caulfield, wh ich Haileybury won by 60 to 29 points. According to The Hai!eyburian 'the feature of the play was Sewell's defence at centre half-back. ' 32
achievements: 'In my short time at schoo l from 1918 to 1926, w ith an all-up roll call of little more than a hundred, our sporting record speaks of a Th ermopylae of endeavour, unity and fierce ach ievement. ' 33 Friend s of Alec recall him saying that he was asked to train w ith a Victorian Football League club and that he thought he could have played league football if things had been different; apparently, however, his parents did not approve of the idea. If Alec had played football at a league level, he wou ld not have been the first in his family to do so; his Uncle Tom Prentice played a few games for Essendon on the wing as a 17-yea r-old . According to Alec 'Essendon was the fashionable side in
~~ c:>~ ....:7/c:>~fJe.A,-t,~~
~~
C<./1.,-f_.a,
those days. They had many chaps who had fin ished at Uni - Architects, Doctors, etc. ' 34 Tom Prentice did not stay at Essendon for long; he returned to Rutherglen, w here he capta ined the local side from 1893 to 1900. 35 Despite his uncle's link w ith Essendon, Alec was always a supporter of the Richmond Football Club.
page 1 3
Alec Prentice Sewe/1 (cl 940)
As an older man, Alec recalled that he ' hated every
WHEN ALEC LEFT SCHOOL HE WA.J.'\"TED TO BE Al'\! ethnologist; he was fascinated by anthropology and the
second' of his job with the bank. His brother Jack
'science of races .' Although some of the poems he wrote
followed uncle Sidney Sewell's example by studying
decades later display an interest in Australian Aborigines,
Medicine and graduated from Melbourne University in
he was not able to pursue this interest as a young man.
1931; perhaps Alec was frustrated that he was unable to
He had passed five out of six subjects for his Leaving
undertake further study or pursue his career of choice.
Certificate, but a career as an ethnologist would have
In time, his lack of job satisfaction began to affect his
required matriculation and several more years of study
performance at work and in February 1932 he resigned
at university. In May 1927 The Haileyburian recorded the
at the bank's request. A note on his record sheet states
career paths of its school leavers and noted: 'Alec Sewell
Alec was 'an unsatisfactory officer showing no promise
is deep in the mysteries of the study of accountancy. ' 36 It
of advancement in the Bank's service' - clearly his poor
is not entirely clear what led him into a career as a bank
performance was a product of his lack of enthusiasm
clerk, but it might well have been the influence of his
for the job. It is difficult to say what occupied Alec's
accountant father. It was obviously not, however, his first
time for the next few years: he spent some of his time
choice of career and he never spoke about it positively or
at Teamsters' Hill and Toolangi resident Alex Demby
in much detail. Alec commenced work with the National
remembers Alec occasionally played with the local cricket
Bank of Australasia (or 'the Bank' as he always called it)
side. Alec might have found some other employment in
on 3 June 1927; he began as a probationary officer in
Melbourne, but he only ever spoke of working for 'the
the Bill Department and subsequently worked as a clerk
Bank' before the outbreak of World War Two in 1939.
in a variety of departments including remittances, orders,
Many decades later he observed: 'While I had always
passbooks, inward exchanges and in branch offices in
worked, I never got the job that I wanted and was a sort
Prahran, Caulfield East and Hawthorn. In June 1931 he
of lost sou I.'
was relocated to Leongatha for three months, before being stationed in Violet Town .37
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BY 1939 ALEC WAS A 30-YEAR-O LD BACHELOR Al'.JD still living with his parents; with no ag reeable ca reer to inspire him, he decided to travel overseas and see some of the w orld. Alec w as lucky eno ug h to obtain a letter of introduction fro m t he Premi er of Victoria to aid him in his t ravels. He later recalled: 'I went to the old country
O ld Se ymour Ca mp c 1928, Alec top le/t
to see t he fam ily roots in England and Scotland . It w as a wonderfu l thrill to wa lk on t he turf. It was one of the
Alec then trained for severa l months w ith the 2nd
biggest thrills I have ever had .' 38 He spent considerable
Field Artillery Regiment near Maryborough in Queensland
time in his mother's native Scotland and also visited his
and was a member of a six-man gun crew in the 4th
brother Jack, who was practicing med icine in England.
Battery. Hi s gun sergeant Ross Holdsworth recalls he was
With Eu rope on the brink of war, it must have been a
bright and cheery and worked hard in training, despite
fascinating time to trave l to Britain . Alec stayed there
the hindrance of his bad back . He was not a typical
unti l at least June 1940, when he acquired another letter of introduction, this time from the Agent General
soldier: his shirt was often out and his bootlaces undone, and he was genera lly unkempt; but Alec was a we ll-
for Victoria in London. If he left the UK at about th is
liked sold ier and a great teller of stories. Hi s travels and
time, Alec wou ld have marginally missed the Battle of Britain, which began in July 1940. Alec then travelled to
adventures we re a great source of yarns shared around
the United States of America, which for the time being
the army camp, although colleague Alf Mellor suspected
was isolatin g itself from the looming disaster in Europe .
that many of the stories were probab ly apocryp hal.
Alec also visited Canada before returning to Austra lia.
Alec was also very wi lling to enterta in his fe llow soldiers by encouraging them to laugh at him. His bad back
Not long after his return Alec decided to join the war
regularly disrupted his training; but, although A lf Mellor
effort; he passed a medical examination and joined the
was sure the complaint was legitimate and that Alec was
2nd AIF on 17 March 1941. Like many young Austra li an
'no malingerer,' he noted that Alec always seemed to be
men at the time, Alec had previously undergone
well enough for a game of football if one was on offer.
rudimentary military training: he attended the local Ultimately, however, Alec's war service was
drill hall at Ripponlea as an 18-year-old in 1927 and was instructed by Sergeant Simpson on t he rudiments
compromised by his ongoing ill -h ea lth. He later w rote
of arms, includ ing how to disarm a bayonet-charging
that he would have died from pneumon ia: 'that is, if the
German w ith nothing but bare handsl
39
Alec was initially
early antibiotics had not appeared in the shape of those
asked to take on an army office job, but he 'didn't want
dreadful great lifesaving M and B tablets that had to be
to push a pen' and began military training at Seymour
sna pped in tw o unless one had a gullet like a horse.' 40
in August 1941. After only two months of training Alec
In July 1943, w hen his reg iment was transferred to New
was admitted to the camp hospital for three days w ith a
Guinea, Alec was classified medical ly unfit and remained
severe cold: it was one of many ailments that w rought
in Australia. He w as in and out of hospital throughout
havoc w ith his military career including a bad back, high
the war and spent much of his wa r service in the clerical
blood pressure, rheumatic fever and pneumonia.
positions he had hoped to avo id . page 15
833 Burwood Road
833 Burtl'Ood Rood, East Hoictf1orn (as it appea.-s in 2005)
AFTER ALEC LEFT HAILEYBCRY COLLEGE I;,( 1927
Alec was also very close to his brother Jack and
and began working for the Bank, he continued to reside
shared many of the same friends. His decision to travel
with his parents in Elsternwick. In 1930, however, the
overseas in 1939 was probably influenced by a desire to
family moved to a larger home at 833 Burwood Road
see Jack, who was living in England; during this trip Alec
Hawthorn East, which remained the family home until
was present at Jack's marriage to Beryl Bennett. When
1955. Not far from Burke Road, Camberwell, the house
war began, Jack remained in England and enlisted in
is a fine two-storey Georgian building, which was large
the RAF as an Ear Nose and Throat specialist He lived in
enough to require servants. The new residence became
Britain for many years and only returned to Australia as
a focal point for the wider family of the Sewells and
an older man.
Prentices and for other friends and acquaintances; Alec's cousin Andrew Gilmour recalled long Sunday lunches at Burwood Road with several people in attendance. The house also featured a billiards room, and Alec often reminisced that Australian champion Walter Lindrum had played there. Alec's friend Roy Buzza got the impression from Alec that the family were socialites and regular entertainers.
In the post-war years, Alec kept in contact with his army friend Ross Holdsworth; Ross recalls that Alec was an unusual person - 'very well read and excellent company.' According to Ross, Alec was very fond of words and liked using new words in his conversation . Ross was working as a pharmacist in Camberwell and he and his wife would regularly invite Alec over for a meal. Ross and Alec also shared a love of the Richmond
The financial brain of the Sewell household was certainly Alec's mother Isabella: Arthur would give her the money to manage and she invested it wisely and ensured the family was financially secure. Alec had a great deal of time for his mother and she had a large influence on him; his father took him to cricket and football matches, but many got the impression that Alec was never quite as close to his father, who was 44 years his senior. Arthur Sewell was a prominent Freemason and, according to Alec, was offered the position of Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of Victoria; Alec recalls he was 'always worried about looking after Mother when Dad was at meetings.' 41 The relationship between Alec's parents was very strong and Isabella loved her husband dearly; Arthur also showed considerable affection for his wife, calling her 'Belle' in a good mood, but 'Bella' in a bad mood.
Football Club and attended games together.
The Universities Commission
A lec did not comp lete his work ing life w ith the
A FTER TI-IE \\'TAR ALEC TOOK ON A JO B THAT I-IE
found consid erab ly more interesting than his pre-
Unive rsities Comm ission; he mentioned in an interview
wa r bank in g emp loyment. He was appointed to the
later in life: 'I finished up going down to the army. ' 43 He
Universities Commission and helped administer the
presumably worked in an admin istrative position, but his
Colombo Plan, which fostered regional cooperation
health continued to cause him problems. At about this
and deve lopment through education and aid programs.
time he was diagnosed wi th prostate cancer; he later
Alec worked close ly w ith the students w ho stud ied
explained to his friend s that 'he had prob lems with his
in Australia under the scheme; he helped them find
wate rworks.' Although he overcame this health scare, it
accommodation, introduced them to university lecturers
was probably what fin ally convinced him to retire at the
and professors, and generally ensured their transition to
age of 60. Given Alec's lack of enthusiasm regard ing his
Austra li an unive rsity life was a smooth one. Alec later
working life, it is temptin g to interpret his retirement as a
reminisced that it was a wo nderfully interesting job,
beginning rathe r than an end; certainly, the fina l third of
although it was a struggle because he was often ill .42
his life is the most significant in terms of his literary and philanthropic legacy.
In 1952 Alec's father died at the age of 87. Apart from his time overseas and in wa r service Alec had lived at home all his life, so it must have been a traumatic t ime for him and his mother. The fam ily home in Burwood Road was now unnecessarily large and Alec's mother resolved to sell it and move permanently to Toolangi; Isabe lla had always been particu larly attached to Tea msters' Hill and Alec's memories of the place often relate to his mother. She lived the last six years of her life in Toolangi. Alec was stil l working, so he purchased a smaller home in Alta Street, Canterbury, w hich he used as his Melbourne base until he retired in 1970; nevertheless, he spent more and more time at Toolangi, even after his beloved mother died in 1958.
pag e 17
Romance? Plea
IT IS TEivlPTING TO SEARCH ALEC'S SHO RT STO RIES and poems for hints about his own romantic experiences.
Tanglefoot Tales is certa inly auto biog rap hi ca l to a large
Fella who can make me proud, cerebral witl1in our crowd,
degree, but his other w ritings are not identifiably so; the open ing remarks in Alec's collection of short stories for adu lts, Flickers and Glows, specifica lly deny any basis
toes to crown quite well endowed,
of the stories in reality: 'Any characters herein depicted
lending silver to each cloud.
are figments of the author's imagination, and any real imagined resemb lance to any person, living or dead, would be coincidental. ' 45 Despite Alec's written den ial,
Plato, Bros, intertwine, wrong proportions undermine, mix is wl1.ere to seek /or sign, dominance may point decline.
Selfish lust brings sel/-de/eat, bud to bud can but repeat, lave is selfless self to share, wondrous gift brings gift as rare.
he once rather playfully confessed that 'one of the stories is true,' but refused to identify w hi ch one. Perhaps the romantic and sometimes mildly erotic stories in Flickers and Glows are part ia lly drawn from his own experi ences? The same may be said of many of his poems, which exp lore the competing views on love of Plato and Eros. Alec once said: 'I always intended to get married and intended to have at least 3-5 children, but never got around to it. ' When asked if he had many girlfriends, he rep li ed: 'Yes I did. Heaven knows, I li ked them; I liked them too much, that was one of my troubles .' 46 In Tanglefoot Tales Alec reca lls an early romance, wh ich came to nothing: 'At seventeen there had been a di ll of
If you lave, then give to me, not in /eeble weak law key, give in Juli virility,
a girl of the same age. Fortunately she had been the less dillworthy of the two of us.' 47 A friend recalls of Alec's travels in 1939: 'He spent a lot of t ime in Scotland; he liked t he Scots, pa rticu larly t he women !' A lec described himself as a playboy, but exactly what he meant by this
kiss me /air, and then let be. 44
we w ill never know; neverth eless, he had stro ng emotions and a sensuality about him . A romantic feature of A lec's wonde rful garden at Toolangi is the 'Love Seat,' wh ich overlooks the football ova l. Like many features of the garden , it is accompan ied by a poem:
The most signif icant woma n in Alec's life was undoubtedly his mother: Toolangi neighbour Alex Demby Tl1e 'L ove Seat' in A. lee Sewe // 's ga rde n in Tao la n gi
recalls that 'Alec had one girlfri end, but we al l fe lt he dedicated his life to his mother.' Alec always spoke about his enormous affection for 'Mater.' Moreover, his attachment to his home in Toolangi related specifical ly to his memories of his mother; he reca lled creating the garden at Teamsters' Hi ll with his mother and she was an important inspiration for his vision for the place after his death. page 18
A Vision for Toolangi
FOR ALEC, TOOLAl'\GI'S APPEAL SPROL'TED FRO~l
his memories of childhood; it was the place he most associated with his mother, and the secure cradle of his youthful years. As the prospect of a family of his own faded, Alec's long-term plans for Teamster's Hill began to evolve. He wrote in 1989 'You intelligent ones will long since have discerned that in my four-score yea rs as a bachelor, I have slowly but surely felt the lack of fatherhood. ' 49 After the death of his mother in 1958, and particularly after his retirement in 1970, Alec formed a vision for Teamsters' Hill, which involved creating a sanctuary for the children he never had: 'In the all -tooforeseeable future, when the writer can be thought of in terms of non est, there will be a considerable chatter of children in this garden.' 50
Alec's cottage at Taafa119i (,\fay 2005)
A Vision for Toolangi continued
Other poems inscribed on the structure revea l the
Alec hoped t hat when he died Teamsters' Hil l would become an orphanage; he pictured it as a home for
phi losophy of life and moral ity Alec w ished to pass on to
deprived children, of any colour or creed, which wou ld
the children who wou ld enjoy his garden:
provide the stimulating environment for ch il dhood
i ·e i ... BH>._tl) f rot 1 c111c
development that he himse lf had experienced. He proposed to demolish his simple cottage (the family
·1 WO tl1iug~ ...
home holiday home sin ce 19 16) and build a two-storey dwelling w ith accommodation for foster parents and
Ki1ulncs~ in
6-8 children . He be lieved that the wonderful garden and mountain scenery at Toolangi wo uld be an idylli c place
( ou1•c11-ie
for children to grow up. He was following a common
one;
c'llH
rou >
,1110
iu ) our
but increasingly old-fashioned view that 'children at ri sk'
bn 1 J t.•
own. (
Ill
Ill(
I\
needed to be re moved from the corrupting influence of the city - the 'heartless world' - to the protective and pristine natural environment of the country. Before his mother died, Alec had discussed with her various plans for the development of the garden, and her plans formed the basis for his vision. For Alec, development of the garden involved more than planting trees, bushes and flowers . He was creating an environment for outdoor recreation for the ch ildren who were to live at Teamsters' Hi ll. Behind the house, near 'Peter Pan's Bridge' over the fishpond, Alec bui lt a ch il dren's play area featuring a play house ca lled 'The Inside Inn' surmounted by a lookout; on the inside wall are favourite poems w hich are
1c
either entertain in g or instructive. The structure's name is borrowed from the poem:
In~idc [ 1111
1
lbl( t.' 1 0
1
tll(-'
•<·c· wr o ·
( )u ... ide l r. inl'i
1c
ln . . ic
o ~cc>
tl1t.'
c
ln~ide
I1111
Inn':-,
1
1i ... in ic.le 111. \
pag e
20
' 11.
Tf1 e 'Inside Inn'
l•
'Bla ck Gully Orn/'
Befitting his love of sport, Alec undertook the major
At all times, Alec's first priority was honouring the
task of creating an under 12's football and cricket oval.
memory of his family and ensuring the beloved property
Because it is situated on a sloping part of Alec's property,
and garden would survive. He was very focussed on his
the oval's construction involved substantial earthworks;
childhood associations with Teamsters' Hill and wanted
but Alec spared no expense and installed goalposts and
to protect its integrity and meaning for his life and family.
a perimeter fence. Neighbour Clive McPherson sold Alec
According to friend and adviser Dorothy Scott: 'He had
a ride -on -mower and he mowed it religiously, or grazed
a vision of himself as a part of a continuous chain of
it with a small flock of sheep; but, ironically, Clive never
human history and had affection for the innocence of
remembers a game of football or cricket occurring on
childhood.'
the oval. This was most likely due to Alec's concern that 'the balls might have ruined mother's rhododendrons .' Alec also had a swimming pool installed in the late 1990s, heated by both solar and gas. His loyal friend and gardener Roy Buzza counselled him not to build it, because he was concerned it would require too much maintenance; but Alec was determined to add to his children's paradise. He even had plans to build a tennis court, but these did not come to fruition before he died. When at his most enthusiastic, Alec spoke of his desire to expand his idea beyond Toolangi. He planned to purchase a block of land by the ocean on the Mornington Peninsula for another similar establishment; he thought it would be a wonderful idea if the children at each home could swap dwellings during the school holidays, with the children by the sea experiencing bush life and vice-versa. At age 81 he told the Healesville paper Mountain Views: 'Provided Australia prospers and my investments prosper - in the course of time I envisage that this provision will be extended to other houses (one in the mountains and one by the sea) in every State in the Commonwealth.' 51
page 2 1
T/, e s wimming poo l (ins talled in 1 998 )
LLate Maturing Quince
1 :
Alec Sewell the Writer So he journeyed to Toolangi, where tl1.e mountain ash yearns skyward, And the messmate and the blue-gum grow to quite abnormal size. 'Spite the "stately homes" he vaunted, 'twas the simple life 11.e wanted; And 11.e got it, good and plenty, at Toolangi on the rise.
C.J. Dennis
THERE IS LITTLE DOUBT THAT ALEC PRE NTICE Sewell drew considerable literary inspiration from the most famous poet ever to reside in Toolangi: C.J. Dennis (author of The Sentimental Bloke) was introduced to Toolangi by his friend the painter Hal Waugh in 1908; the two men pitched tents by the river, which they called the 'Hall of Hal' and the 'Den of Den.' From his tent Dennis submitted writings to the Bulletin and other newspapers. C.J. Dennis grew attached to Toolangi as quickly as the Sewell's would a few years later and soon moved into an abandoned timber getters' hut; the cottage was extended and renovated and rema ined his principal home for the rest of his life, apart from a short period writing for The Labor Call in Sydney in 19 14 and time spent in his Collins Street flat. 52 The garden surrounding the cottage was chiefly the work of Mrs Dennis. Alec recalled: It was amusing to hear the pilgrims say, as they leant over the fence, "Just the garden one would expect from a poet." Den had no more than a half share in its concept and far less in its construction, apart from writing the cheques. 53 In 1922 Dennis began his career w ith the Melbourne Herald, where he was employed as a staff writer and poet until his death in 1938. It w as during this period that Alec Sewell became acquainted with Dennis: The thing that stays with me is talking to Oen as he reclined in a deckchair on the lawn. I would have been about seventeen ... He rarely got out of his dressing gown, and I always posted his weekly supply to the Herald on Sunday night. He was an interested, and interesting man for a seventeen-year-old to talk to. I liked him greatly, and I did him a secret good turn, which was little enough for all the tennis I enjoyed at Arden. 54 pa ge
22
Tangle/ oa t Tales (firs t p ublish ed 1989) Fr eigl1t 1\'1e ig l1ts: In 1\tl y Rl1y111 ing Verse
(2 0 03)
According to Alec, 'Den
There is no doubt
was not overly robu st, and
that Toolangi was an
although not without
eq ually important force
a certain distinction,
behind Alec Sewe ll 's literary
it would have been
output; the routine of
idle to deny that the
gardening during the day
largest part of him was a
and reading and w riting at
large, rea sonably wel l shaped, high
night certa inly sustai ned Alec in his later more solitary
bridged nose.' 55 Alec also remembered 'the
years, but Toolangi also provided much of the material
extraordinary thinness of his hands, which seemed
for Alec's most accomplished col lection of stories, the
almost translucent, toward the end of his life ' 56 As
semi-autobiographica l Tanglefoot Tales. The title links the
a 17-year-old Alec deliberately kept his conversations
collection to Toolangi, which is on ly a few mi les south
with Dennis brief lest he interrupt the composition of a
of Mount Tang lefoot; but it is clearly also a reference
masterpiece; but despite Alec's reticence Dennis always
to the 19th century children 's classic Tanglewood Tales.
seemed keen to talk and Alec wo uld come to regret th is
Nathaniel Hawthorne's sequel to Wonder Book featured
lost opportunity. In time the famous poet became Alec's
'Greek myths reto ld with a modern, free, half reali stic
hero as he worked hard to develop his own writing, but
and half fanciful tone' and would certain ly have been
Dennis died before Alec became more serious about his
read by Alec in his childhood. Tanglefoot Tales is not
literary pursuits.
exclusive ly a chi ldren 's book, but its strong appeal is its portrayal of Toolangi during the period of Alec's
C.J. Dennis biographer Alec Ch isholm records that
own childhood. It recalls the excitement of chi ldhood
Toolang i had a positive influence on the poet's output.
adventure and discovery.
Probably, indeed, he was finding life in the peace
Alec later explained that he had always been
of Toolangi refreshing after his drab experiences
interested in writing, but on ly developed his ab ilities later
in Melbourne, and doubtless he was absorbing,
in life: 'When I was young it didn't come to anyth in g.
consciously or otherwise, a useful body of "local
I knew what I wanted to say, but I couldn't get it into
colour " 57
words properly. It was mostly after I retired . I'm getting better and more able all the time.' 58 He certainly made up for lost time publishing five books of prose and poetry Tanglefoot Tales (1989), Gossamer: Light Verse (1990), Real Things Like This (199 1), Flickers and Glows (1991) and Freight Weights: In My Rhyming Verse (2003 )
pag e
23
Toolangi (Stringy-bark place)
Lovely lines sweetly drawn trace Toolangi's high rim, eucalypts lace the dawn, fertile /arms tat and trim.
Higlzland watershed heights, 1.\1.yers Creek to bay scene,
According to Dorothy Scott, Tanglefoot Tales is about the extraord inary idyllic nature of childhood and
Yea to Murray's delights,
of being captured in the moment: 'He resonated w ith
we 're the spine in between.
that notion of chi ldh ood; he was ve ry much a child at heart.' Real Things Like This is a co llecti on of stories written as the 'boyhood diary jottings' of the fictional
If you want fragrant a1r
character Toby Thomas Blunden; w ithin its pages 'the
and pure creek at tlze source,
wise hand of the mature man is evident in the writing of the boy.' 59 Gossamer.· Light Verse is Alec's first collection of
then you '11 get your /air share
poetry and covers subject matter ranging from political,
as a matter of cou1·se.
philosophical and romantic to nostalgic and sentimenta l. Flickers and Glows is more definitely an adu lt book
and contains some rather more suggestive, even erotic,
To you Port p/,,.illip folk,
stories.
it is places like ours
In his final years, Alec decided to work on one
that you need to invoke
more book of poetry: Freight Weights is a remarkable
to be safe in your towers.
achievement for a man in his nineties and contains over 250 poems. It is perhaps not quite as consistent in quality as the earlier and more se lective Gossamer and many of
T/,,.ere's a war1·anty here,
the poems are quite obscure; Alec asked publisher Sue
in the hills that we've got,
Thompson if any should not be included, but she was reluctant to exclude any, as they all sa id something about
c/'leris/,,.ed guarantee clear,
a complex and enigmatic man . Alec's octogenarian (and
in the eyes of our lot.
nonagenarian) literary flourishing was quite remarkable, summed up nicely by Alec's own assessment: 'Late maturing quince, lush peach beyond his reach. ' 60
p a ge
24
Mr Sewell of Toolangi
T/,e cieu· /ram Alec's /rant c/oor
ALEC'S \ 'lSIO~ FOR TEA,\ !STERS' HILL A~D HIS
sitting on the couch and the desk in his living room was
writing sustained him in his later years; they provided the
always strewn with papers. Those who knew about
daily purpose and stimulation that he had often lacked
Alec's wealth noted he was reluctant to spend money
as a younger man:
on himself; there were relatively few outward signs of his wealth, which was partly inherited, but certainly
It often takes people a long time to get started on something, but some people, once they get started, they won't knock off until it's done. There is so much I've got to do - I want to do - I'm trying to hang on. Most people are afraid of when they'll die, and they want assurance of another life, and it's a natural thing. But I'm completely unafraid. 61 Friends of Alec recall that in his later years he was an
expanded through a combination of wise investment and simple living. Many who knew him were very surprised to learn of the extent of his wealth when details of his bequests were announced after his death. At times, Alec actually felt somewhat vulnerable because of his wealth, which explains his relative secrecy; he was anxious that his wealth might fall into unsafe hands and not be used effectively to achieve his philanthropic objectives
early riser; he was always up by 5.30, spent some time in the garden each day and would often write until well
The main luxury that Alec afforded himself later in life was a prestigious motorcar: he once walked into a
after midnight. To sustain this regime Alec often needed
showroom and bought himself a Honda Prelude on the
a sleep during the day and would take one whenever
spot; he told Roy Buzza he had done so because 'he
and wherever needed. Elizabeth Sykes. who lived on
couldn't justify a Masserati.' He later traded the Honda
a farm near Alec, once found him lying down on the
for a BMW, which was his last car. Old friend Alex Demby
concrete driveway: 'I thought he was dead. I went up
recalls that Alec became 'Toolangi's worst driver.' Alec
and said are you all right. He said he was just a bit tired
had the BMW for eight years and it then took Roy Buzza
so he thought he would have a sleep.'
twelve months to convince him to stop driving; Roy's
Alec lived very simply; he wore the same old clothes each day, but always wore a suit when he went to town. His house was very modest: although it had been extended on one or two occasions it was the same 'Hut' that the family had improvised when its original home was burnt down in 1916. He spent a lot of time
approach was to sow the seeds of the idea but let Alec think it was his own. Alec was understandably reluctant to sacrifice his independence by giving up driving: his weekly visits to Healesville, where he had lunch at the RACV Club, and his regular trips to Melbourne to discuss his investments were an important part of his life in later 25
years. Taking a different tack, Alec's stockbroker Trevor
Toolangi Primary School, which he had attended briefly
Montgomery suggested that it was high time he got
himself in 1917; he often helped out financially with
himself a chauffeur; but the final straw was when Alec
school projects, particularly in the garden, and donated a
ripped the sump out of his car driving over a fallen rock.
silver cup as a trophy for the school's annual 'Marathon.' It was only after Roy Buzza informed the school that Alec
To those who knew Alec as a kind, eccentric man,
had spent over $1,000 on the trophy that the council
living simply on the hill at Toolangi, his financial acumen
decided it must insure it.
was not immediately obvious. There is no doubt, Alec was fiercely independent and resisted any
however, that he had a shrewd eye for investments and managed his share portfolio wisely. When Isabella Sewell
suggestions he should have home help; he was
died in 1958, she left her two sons a share and property
unconcerned with outward appearances. According to
portfolio worth nearly £25,000. If Alec were an average
Dorothy Scott:
investor, his half of this inheritance might have grown Alec's values were deeply embedded in the nature of
to approximately $1.5 million at the time of his death. Given his bequests in 2003 amounted to more than $7.5
his being; he would enthuse about words and was
million, we can safely assume that his investments were
almost childlike in his enthusiasm. His garden, his
considerably more successful than average. His fortune
literature and creating a haven in a heartless world
would certainly have been significantly supplemented by
for children were his loves; meals and other practical
his own savings (especially since he lived at home with
concerns were inconveniences that got in the way of
his parents until they died), but the size of his bequests
his passionate pursuits.
indicates he was no financial novice and inherited his A good example of Alec's lack of concern for
mother's financial ability.
practicalities was his commitment to the publication of From 1978 until his death, Alec's stockbroker was
his final book of poetry, Freight Weights : Sue Thompson,
Trevor Montgomery of JB Were, who recalls that Alec
who assisted Alec with the publication, recalls that
contacted him about once a fortnight and frequently
'he couldn't think of anything else while it was being
visited Melbourne for a meeting and a meal and always
published.' In a similar way, Alec's constantly developing
stayed at the RACV. Trevor remembers that, although
plans for Teamsters' Hill occupied his mind more often
Alec was not entirely financially literate and did not
that household chores. He wanted to ensure he left no
read company reports, he often reflected on wider
stone unturned in creating a paradise for children; it
macroeconomic trends and read the financial pages of
was a fantasy that he nurtured and which nurtured him.
newspapers. His success in managing his own finances
In his last years Alec was wonderfully supported by the
stemmed from his ability to accurately judge people,
ever-loyal Roy Buzza who not only worked in the garden
rather than a specifically financial expertise. Alec knew
every Saturday, but supported Alec in a variety of other
that solid growth in his investments would ensure the
ways: he did his shopping, he bought him new clothes
realisation of his philanthropic objectives, so he always
and he helped him organise his finances. In the quarter
considered Trevor's advice carefully. He did not use
of a century Roy worked for Alec as gardener, the two
dividend reinvestment plans, preferring to take the
became close friends; Roy refused any increase to his
cash and invest it where he thought it appropriate.
1978 rate of pay and soon drew pride from the fact that
Nevertheless, Alec was generally fairly quick in his
he, too, was contributing to Alec's remarkable vision .
judgements and his meetings with Trevor usually involved
Despite the fact that many were concerned about the
a brief discussion of his portfolio, followed by an in-
way Alec was living at home, friends resisted the idea
depth discussion of Alec's latest poem or short story
of moving him to an aged care facility. Toolangi had become a centrally important part of Alec's life; to take
Alec spent a lot of time thinking about what he
him away from there would have been to undermine a
would leave when he died, which, to many, seemed like an odd way to live a life; but although his football oval
crucially important connection with his childhood, his mother, his very identity. Alec only left Toolangi for the
was rarely if ever used, there was no lack of interaction
last few months of his life.
with children. Many children in Toolangi were employed Alec told Roy Buzza that he had two main regrets
in Alec's garden; Roy Buzza was usually the foreman and directed numerous youngsters in raking leaves and
in his life: first, that he sold his shares in Poseidon too
other tasks. After the swimming pool was installed, local
early; secondly, that he voted for Gough Whitlam in
children would often visit in the warmer months; Alec
1972. Despite these regrets, he consoled himself that he
would usually remain inside writing, but it must have
could have done worse: he could have sold his shares in
given him some satisfaction to see children enjoying the
Poseidon too late; and he could have voted for Whitlam a
paradise he was creating. Alec was also generous to the
second time! Alec Prentice Sewell died on 6 August 2003.
page 2 0
Legacy Happy are tlwy who live in the dream of their own existence, and see all things in the light of their own hope; to whom the guiding star of their yout/1 still sl1ines from afar, and into wl10m the spirit of the world lws not entered! They l1ave not been 'lntd by tl1e arcf1ers
1 1
nor l1as the i,·on
entered tlwir souls. The world l1as no
IN HIS EA RLY 19TH CENT URY ESSAY 'ilI ND AND
Motive' the English writer William Hazlitt wonderfully expressed all that Alec Prentice Sewell appreciated and loved about childhood. When quoting it in Gossamer:
f1and on tl1em.
Light Verse, Alec wrote 'This piece of Hazlitt has been with me from a tender age, and means more to me each
William Hazlitt. 62
year that passes.' Alec looked to ch il dhood because his own adu lt life had not been as rewarding as he may have hoped: he rarely found satisfaction at work; a lifetime companion and family passed him by; and he was at times a lost soul. With the wisdom of age he found a purpose and it focussed on youth - the part of his own life that he remembered most fondly. Alec's legacy is in many ways a type of symbolic fatherhood the play equipment inscribed with verse; the child-size football oval; the stories of his own youth in Tanglefoot Tales; or the fictional adventures of Toby Thomas Blunden in
Real Things Like This. In so many of his pursuits Alec w as immersed in a sentimental w ay in an extraordinarily idealised view of chi ldhood. Although Alec's plans for Teamsters' Hill were sincere and heartfelt, they did not fit with modern child welfare practice. Alec had proposed an orphanage in the mountains - a refuge from a heartless world; but in the early 21st century such institutions no longer exist Children at risk are placed in foster families and are usually returned to their families; they also need to be located near their famil ies to facilitate these reunions. Very few children are now in permanent care; and they are usually the most troubled children or adolescents, for whom Teamsters' Hill w ould not be an appropriate home. In his last years Alec began to understand this; with the help of many he rethought his vision and rewrote his will to reflect modern practice. Although it w as necessary for Alec to adapt his original vision, it
.Alec Pr entice Sewe ll
still reflects the spirit of his original approach. His w ill includes three philanthropic objectives. page
27
Former Executive Secretary of The Ian Potter Foundation, Professor Dorothy Scott, who helped Alec adapt his ideas of ch il d welfare into a mode rn context, proposed the Sewell Gifts be divided into three categories Gifts for Children, Gifts for Nature and Gifts for Literature. The latter two categories we re not specifically A lec's idea, but Professor Scott beli eved they would be a fitting memorial to Alec's life and loves. According to the Foundation 's gu idel in es: Gifts for Children 'will support initiatives to benefit chi ldren under the age of 12 years who are at risk of com ing into State care or who are currently in State care'; Gifts for Nature 'wil l guide chi ldren towards a love of, and respect for, the environment'; Gifts for Literature 'will support projects wh ich are designed to nurture a love of literature (in particular, poetry) and the natural world in children under 12 years of age who are living in disadvantaged circumstances.' A year after the inauguration of the The first objective relates to his property at Toolangi. Prior to his death Alec transferred ow nership of
Sewell Gifts, the Ian Potter Foundation has allocated almost $200,000 to six worthy projects; the largest
Teamsters' Hill to Angl icare Victo ri a, the welfare arm
gift to date w ill finance the expa nsion of th e Roya l
of the Angl ican Church. In his will he also bequeathed
Botanic Gardens education program, including the
$2.5 million to Anglicare Victoria for the construction
construction of an Activity Shelter. Other Sewell Gifts
and maintenance of 'a new residential fac il ity for the
w il l support programs for the benefit of blind children,
short and long term accommodation of up to 12 ch ildren in need.' Rather than permanent accommodation (as
grieving children and ch ildren from low socio-econ om ic backgrounds.
Alec had originally envisaged), the property will provide In his retirement, Alec derived satisfaction from
respite care for foster families.
knowing that he would leave a lasting legacy; he knew
Alec also made provision of $400,000 in his wi ll
he was ach ieving someth ing worth wh il e as we ll as
for a scholarship at Hai leybury College. He specified
honouring the memory of his own family:
that it should be awarded to an all-round student, who could not otherwise afford to attend the school. The
All 1ny fa1nily see111 to have
scholarsh ips sta rted in 2005 and are awarded for the last three years of school in g, w ith the amount awarded depending on the recipient's financial situation. It can
done scnnetb_in~ pretty good. \Vl1ilc I
amount to up to three quarters of the fees.
had c1lways worl:.!cd,
I never
Q'ot tl1at job that I wanted and wa~
Alec bequeathed the rema inder of his estate (in
a sort of lost soul; so I thought the
excess of $4.5 mi llion) to Th e Ian Potter Foundation; he asked that the Foundation apply the funds according to its own charitable objectives, but requested it 'give preference to charitable organisations w hich direct their efforts towards the maintenance, education, we lfare and benefit in life of needy children in Austral ia.' In 2004 The Ian Potter Foundation inaugurated the 'Sewell Gifts':
best tl1ing [ place
could do is 1nal~e tl1is
for deprived l:.!icls.
... ([ decided) I 1nigl1t as well put in 4 a late run on tl1c rails.
The Governors of the Foundation have chosen to His property at Toolang i, t he schola rsh ip at Haileybury
honour his memory with gifts in his name for the benefit of needy children in Australia under the age
and the gifts administered through Th e Ian Potter Foundation now stand as evidence that his 'late run on
of 12 years, in recognition of Mr Sewell's life-long
the rails' was overwhelm in gly successful and that his
concern for the welfare of children in our society Mr Sewell's love of literature and nature will also be
efforts w ill contin ue to benefit countless ch ildren in t he future.
recognised 63
p a ge
28
Acl~nowledgements
Rebecca Bennett, Jim Brown, Jenny Bullock, Roy Buzza, Alex Demby, Lachlan Donaldson, Chris Foley, Andrew Gilmour, Charles Goode, Trevor Hart, Niall Holden, Bryn Jones, Bernard McGrath, Clive McPherson, Trevor Montgomery, Leonie Mugavin, Bob Pocket, Jeff Prentice, Mark Richmond, John Rose, Kay Roworth, Dorothy Scott, Petra Smillie, Elizabeth Sykes, Sue Thompson, Bill Waters, Keith White, Jan and Vic Wil liams, Alexandra W illiamson and Peter Yule .
The Author: Samuel Furphy is a Master of Arts graduate of the University of Melbourne. His research and teaching experience includes Australian history, British colonialism and 20th century world history. While working part-time on his PhD thesis - a biography of pioneer Victorian squatter Edward M. Curr - he has also worked as a freelance professional historian. His recent publications include a company history entitled Se/bys the Science People: A History of H.B. Selby Australia Limited (2005).
page
20
References
1
2
3
4
5
Alec Prentice Sewell, 'Sewell,' in Freight Weights (Kilsyth, Victoria: Roundabout Publishing, 2003), 71.
31
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 19.
32
The Haileyburian, May 1927, 33.
Alec Prentice Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales 2nd Ed. (Melbourne: Subsidy Press, 1991) 1st Edition, 1989, 78.
33
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 22.
34
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 75.
35
Lloyd, Rutherglen : A History of Town and District, 229.
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 75.
36
The Haileyburian, May 1927, 6.
37
Information regarding Alec Sewell's career with the National Bank of Australasia was kindly provided by
John V. Hurley, 'Sewell, Sir Sidney Valentine' in Australian Dictionary of Biography 11, 569.
6
Alec Prentice Sewell, Interview for 'Listen To Older Voices,' Healesville Community Radio, 2001.
7
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 75.
8
Brian Lloyd, Rutherglen: A History of Town and District (Wangaratta: Shoestring Press, 1985), 146, 156.
38
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
39
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 123-4.
9
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 107-8.
40
A. P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 121 .
10
Lloyd, Rutherglen: A History of Town and District, 75-6.
41
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
11
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 108.
42
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
12
The official records of births for James and Mary Prentice are incomplete, but various sources suggest the total of ten children. The sons recorded in Births Deaths and Marriages records include James (1858), William (1860) and Thomas (1875); but, elsewhere there are references to
43
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
44
Alec Prentice Sewell, Gossamer: Light Verse (Melbourne: Subsidy Press, 1990), 16.
45
Alec Prentice Sewell, Flickers and Glows (Melbourne: Subsidy Press, 1991 ), 1.
Alexander and Robert. Isabella (1877) is the only daughter included in official records, but family members recall she had four sisters. The gap in the official records between 1860 and 1875 is most unlikely, suggesting the other six children were born in this period. 13
14 15
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 77. A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.' A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 94.
Bernard McGrath, Manager, National Australia Bank Group Archives, 16-18 Parsons Ave, Springvale, 3 171, Victoria.
46
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
47
A. P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 96.
48
A. P. Sewell, 'Sweet Cradle' in Gossamer: Light Verse, 4.
4
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 96.
9
50
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 39.
51
Mountain Views, (date uncertain) 1990.
52
Alec H. Chisholm, The Life and Times of CJ. Dennis (Melbourne: Angus and Robertson, 1982), 2-3.
16
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 111.
17
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
53
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 16.
18
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 1.
54
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 18.
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 1.
55
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 15.
20
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 3.
56
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 18.
21
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 4 .
57
Chisholm, The Life and Times of CJ. Dennis, 52.
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 23.
58
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
23
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 27.
59
A.P. Sewell, Real Things Like This, back cover.
24
A .P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 11 - 12.
60
A.P. Sewell, Freight Weights, 13.
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 86-7.
61
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 24-5.
62
William Hazlitt (1778-1830), 'Mind and Motive,' quoted in A.P. Sewell, Gossamer: Light Verse, vi.
19
22
25 26
27
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 91.
28
Alec Prentice Sewell, Real Things Like This (Melbourne: Subsidy Press, 1991 ), vi.
63
The Ian Potter Foundation, 'Guidelines for Sewell Gifts' (2004).
29
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 27-8 .
64
A.P. Sewell, 'Listen To Older Voices.'
30
A.P. Sewell, Tanglefoot Tales, 33-4 . p age
30