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I do not know the name of the spider ofcoldThat searches the whole of heaven for shipsand menBut the timbers cracked and the sea walkedinto the holdWhen the weaver of that white web hadceased to spin ....to the sardonic humour ofNever since the stringy barks stiffened totelegraph polesAnd froze their flowers in porcelain has acrow been knownTo nest in a tree at Crow's Nest ....Stewart's poems about people are not asconvincing to me. They are either about legendaryheroes, unreal, like the fiery missionaryFather Vogelsang, or the legendary man fromAdaminaby, or creamy mysterious moon-likewomen. On the more mundane level, theybecome closely identified with nature, animallike,whether in the dingo-like figure of thehermit-like dosser, or in the sonnet "Familiars",where Stewart half-humorously sees the spiritof his friend David Campbell as a fox and hisown as an anteater, nose to the ground, or inthe light sketch about the adolescent who buysleopard-skin underpants to prove his own daring.The people are transformed into ideals orforced into postural attitudes—with the exceptionof bottle-nosed Jock in Glencoe, they remainunconvincing as people.While there are poems in this book thatstand out as being far superior in thought, careand depth of meaning (my favourites are"Silkworms", "Glencoe" and "Rutherford"),and others that remain simply light verse, thewhole book is full of the excellent qualities ofhumour, clarity, vivid lyricism and a joyouspositive delight in grandeur. I would quibbleonly over the arrangement of the poems inreverse chronological order—it seems illogicalto me to have to work backwards to trace thedevelopment of the poet. Yet the book is attractivelypresented and its two hundred andforty poems a mass of enjoyable readingmaterial. For those who wish to understandDouglas Stewart the book is invaluable."Property is the fruit of labour.Property is desirable.It is a positive Rood in the world."Alirabam Lincoln,25 March 1864.REMPTON, MORRILL & CO.REAL ESTATE AGENTSBefore efFecting any new, or renewingany existing INSURANCE,you should consultFBI INSURANCES(W.A.) PTY. LTD.INSURANCE BROKERS31 HAMPDEN ROAD, HOLLYWOOD86 4819who are happy to extend their bestwishes for the continuing success of"Westerly".Arranging Insurances atLLOYD'S LONDONand Leading CompaniesPERTH, AAELBOURNE, SYDNEY,BRISBANE, ADELAIDE, HOBARLLAUNCESTON.WESTERLY, No. 1, MARCH, 1 968 55