September in Australia

"September in Australia"
by Henry Kendall
First published in	The Sydney Morning Herald
Country	Australia
Language	English
Publication date	19 September 1867
Lines	64
Full text
The Poems of Henry Kendall/September in Australia at Wikisource

"September in Australia" (1867) is a poem by Australian poet Henry Kendall. ^[1]

It was originally published in The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper on 19 September 1867, ^[2] and was subsequently reprinted in the author's single-author collections and a number of Australian poetry anthologies. ^[1]

Critical reception

Critic Carmel Gaffney called this poem "the most successful of Kendall's poems that include plaintiveness for past loves and memories, and that combine positive and negative aspects of the landscape in such a manner that a single mood dominates." She went on to note that, by combining these aspects and by "celebrating the differences of 'shadow and shine' as splendid manifestations of the season, Kendall manages to transcend his sorrows." ^[3]

Publication history

After the poem's initial publication in The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper in 1867 ^[2] it was reprinted as follows:

• The Leader, 28 September 1867 ^[4]
• The Australasian, 28 September 1867 ^[5]
• Leaves from Australian Forests by Henry Kendall, George Robertson, 1869 ^[6]
• Poems of Henry Kendall by Henry Kendall, George Robertson, 1886 ^[7]
• A Century of Australian Song edited by Douglas Sladen, Walter Scott Publishers, 1888 ^[8]
• An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens, Angus and Robertson, 1907 ^[9]
• The Golden Treasury of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens, Angus and Robertson, 1909 ^[10]
• The Oxford Book of Australasian Verse edited by Walter Murdoch, Oxford University Press, 1918 ^[11]
• Selections from Australian Poets edited by Bertram Stephens and George Mackaness, Cornstalk Publishing, 1925 ^[12]
• Australian Bush Songs and Ballads edited by Will Lawson, Frank Johnson, 1944 ^[13]
• Rose Lorraine and Other Poems by Henry Kendall, W. H. Honey, 1945 ^[14]
• Poets of Australia : An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by George Mackaness, Angus & Robertson, 1946 ^[15]
• An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by George Mackaness, Angus & Robertson, 1952 ^[16]
• Selected Poems of Henry Kendall edited by T. Inglis Moore, Angus and Robertson, 1957 ^[17]
• From the Ballads to Brennan edited by T. Inglis Moore, Angus & Robertson, 1964 ^[18]
• The Poetical Works of Henry Kendall edited by Thomas Thornton Reed (1966) ^[19]
• Silence Into Song : An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by Clifford O'Brien, Rigby, 1968 ^[20]
• A Treasury of Colonial Poetry, Currawong, 1982 ^[21]
• Cross-Country : A Book of Australian Verse edited by John Barnes and Brian MacFarlane, Heinemann, 1984 ^[22]
• Henry Kendall: Poetry, Prose and Selected Correspondence edited by Michael Ackland, University of Queensland Press, 1993 ^[23]

See also

• 1867 in Australian literature
• 1867 in poetry

References

1. "Austlit — "September in Australia" by Henry Kendall". Austlit. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
2. ""September in Australia"". The Sydney Morning Herald, 19 September 1867, p3. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
3. Henry Kendall : The Muse of Australia edited by Russell McDougall, University of New England, 1992. "Chapter 7: Aspects of Kendall's Pastoral Muse" by Carmel Gaffney, pp150-151
4. ""September in Australia" by Henry Kendall". The Leader, 28 September 1867, p26. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
5. ""September in Australia" by Henry Kendall". The Australasian, 28 September 1867, p391. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
6. "Leaves from Australian Forests by Henry Kendall". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
7. "Poems of Henry Kendall by Henry Kendall". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
8. "A Century of Australian Song edited by Douglas Sladen". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
9. "An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
10. "The Golden Treasury of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
11. "The Oxford Book of Australasian Verse edited by Walter Murdoch". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
12. "Selections from Australian Poets edited by Bertram Stephens and George Mackaness". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
13. "Australian Bush Songs and Ballads edited by Will Lawson". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
14. "Rose Lorraine and Other Poems by Henry Kendall". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
15. "Poets of Australia : An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by George Mackaness". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
16. "An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by George Mackaness". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
17. "Selected Poems of Henry Kendall edited by T. Inglis Moore". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
18. "From the Ballads to Brennan edited by T. Inglis Moore". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
19. "The Poetical Works of Henry Kendall edited by Thomas Thornton Reed". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
20. "Silence Into Song : An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by Clifford O'Brien". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
21. "A Treasury of Colonial Poetry (Currawong)". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
22. "Cross-Country : A Book of Australian Verse edited by John Barnes and Brian MacFarlane". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
23. "Henry Kendall: Poetry, Prose and Selected Correspondence edited by Michael Ackland". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 29 January 2026.