THE DROUGHT!
From The Australiad, a Poem.
Bv Science told—a burning dryness came
Throughout the land ; grass and stalky maize Universal felt the parch’d up, arid soil ;
Then pin’d the quenchless kine, the rambling sheep, And ev’ry lapping beast that roved the woods. All were seen grazing o’er the winding creeks,
And mountain gulleys, and the springs in vain. In the hot, blazing air, now drooped the birds, And there were seen the doleful dying quails, And roselles golden, with glittering hue, And wailing emu, and proud jetty swans,
And ev’ry domestic bird to housewife dear, And lastly man felt the wrath of Heaven And pray’d—but not in vain.
T. P.
Yeap drought and flood have been iconic symbols of the Australian environment since settlement days. That is, until last year, when the green party declared they were actually caused by CO2 emissions.
(And in case anyone in wondering, no, recent droughts and floods have not been any worse than those that occurred 50 or 100 years ago or longer.)