William Montgomery Clemens, 1860-1931

He was a genealogist.
Newspaper guy.
Biographer.
Nephew of Mark Twain. Samuel Clemens.

The oldest book in
My possession is his creation, 1899.
“A Ken of Kipling.”
In it he describes Rudyard Kipling’s
Intense yearning for knowledge.
Interviewed by uncle Samuel, rookie columnist.
Animals, jungle atmosphere, dangers
Dialects, soldier life, Empire.

A huge legacy of
Colloquial brilliance.
Tommy do this
Tommy do that
For sake of your Queen and Country.
Though getting little credit for the doing
And few bob.

Nature and jungle
Mystifying
Readers in cities, factories
Households.
Smoky and gray.
Taken away with
Mowgli, Gunga Din, Road to Mandalay
and the like.

Twain saw Kipling as
The greatest of souls.
Humble, inquisitive, happy.