Snapdragon
All around the Salt-tree bush
The girls ran from the dragon
One tripped up, he grabbed her tusch
Snap! goes the dragon
Half a pound of honey words
Half a lump of sticky curds
Half a mind to catch more birds
That’s the way the loving goes
Trap! goes the dragon
Round and round kitchen table
The girl ran with the flagon
Till “… killing me”, his fable
Snap! goes the dragon
See them in the garden bed
With big mouths and all unwed
Appetite and empty head
That’s the way the action goes
Crap! goes the dragon
This is where the slayer stepped
This was where true heart was kept
This is where the mother wept
Snap! goes the dragon
Chased around the Salt-tree bush
The girls tied up the dragon
He lost his mind, he had it cush
Now, “Open up”,—pills will push
Snap! goes the dragon
They stroked him down, told him shush
“Here comes the paddy wagon”
“For all the girls you thought to moosh
We’ll break your neck—send it whoosh!”
Snap! goes the dragon
Madam: Archbishop Fisher (July-August 2024) does not resist the attacks on his church by the political, social or scientific atheists and those who insist on not being told what to do.
Aug 29 2024
6 mins
To claim Aborigines have the world's oldest continuous culture is to misunderstand the meaning of culture, which continuously changes over time and location. For a culture not to change over time would be a reproach and certainly not a cause for celebration, for it would indicate that there had been no capacity to adapt. Clearly this has not been the case
Aug 20 2024
23 mins
A friend and longtime supporter of Quadrant, Clive James sent us a poem in 2010, which we published in our December issue. Like the Taronga Park Aquarium he recalls in its 'mocked-up sandstone cave' it's not to be forgotten
Aug 16 2024
2 mins