Page 55 - Issue 1_2018_Neat

To Australian Terriers

Silver for my shrewdness, for my wit:
A black nobility to go with it;
Tan for the earth, for strength; a richness of tan
Which proves my kingship as gold proves a crown.
Another time, and in another place
I did not need to boast about my race.
I have heard of the distant generation
Which bred me in a new, triumphant nation.
On warm shark-lipped shores my sires ran wild,
And in my blood still runs a sandy child
That likes the sun. At night sometimes, in dreams,
I can remember snakes by savage streams
And how I stood by the mines, looking like gold
Myself, as I glittered on guard in the rocky field,
Or kept the sheep on their steep and tortuous ways.
This is the legend, then, of my works and days.
I have come to a country where I am not known.
But you shall see me. I will have my crown.

David L. Posner The New York Times February 10, 1958