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made to the Paddocks were paid for in part by his father William but anything else it would seem was to be paid for by Eric. With Eric joining the company after his travels to New Zealand he had to make do on an office salary Though he was given shares and other income from the company however he was not made a director until after his father died. His partners fared better for James Comben died some twenty years before and so his sons took over their half of the company. Constance Wakeling had experience in secretarial work and had picked up office management ideas before she married and we feel she backed Eric to become a director and take his turn at the tiller but William would not make him a director until after William died.

From letters and photographs we have of Eric and Constance marriage to 1951 (when William died).it is clear the furniture and fitting at the Paddocks were of a very cheap quality. It was only after Williams death that the quality furniture and carpets arrived and these came from what Eric had been left by his parents Later Pamela and I realised just why the Wedding Settlement which William Wakeling had given to Pamela was so important.

One Sunday morning in 1936 Rodney, Pamela’s young brother, was playing in the garden. His nurse, Anne Gibbons had gone to church but when she return she found Rodney had got himself wet through. Nobody seemed to know whether he had fallen in the pond or had been splashing about in puddles. Nurse Gibbons changed him into dry clothes and everything seemed to return to normal Rodney showing no ill effects. From his socking.

The following Wednesday Rodney awoke tired and was allowed to stay indoors playing with his nurse. As he was still tired she put him to bed at teatime.

That day Constance had been out with her sister Marion and on her return Nurse Gibbons told her that Rodney was not his usual self and had gone to bed. Constance did not see him. Later that evening Rodney awoke crying and nurse found he had been sick, Constance was called to see him and she decided to call Dr. Tudor Edwards the family doctor. The doctor suggested someone should stay with Rodney through the night. Nurse Gibbons stayed with him comforting him on the several occasions he was sick.

Constance visited them a few times then took over while nurse rested. But she did not get much in the way of rest for within an hour she was called to see Rodney who had now become much worse. The doctor was called again and he arrived with a qualified nurse assistant Who put Rodney in an oxygen tent while Pamela who had woken up was told not to go into Rodney’s room. But she did go in and Pamela was glad she had defied the order. She was never to see her brother again for Rodney died the following morning from pneumonia. From that moment Constance had all his photos and clothes taken away and his name was never mentioned again. Pamela did tell me of him and said her father attended to his grave regularly. One day I saw Mr Wakeling at the grave so joined him but did not discuss his son.

According to Nurse Gibbons she often heard and saw Eric crying in his room holding his photo or some part of his clothing. Constance would not talk of her son to Eric but went to Syd for consilation as we have found in the many love letters she had kept from him.

Horace Comben gained his Bachelor of Science and became an Associate Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers while working as a civil servant. He left the Civil Service when he took up his directorship of Comben & Wakeling 1926. His

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