Page 16 - eMuse Vol.9 No.06_Classical

ture folk.”
The barman soon had all his customers back, he’d called them with
a coo-ee.
It echoed through gum tree, the wattle and pine, past billabongs
right to the sea.
But then through the door came the crims of the bush, the fox, pig
and cat that were feral.
Their taste buds were dripping when they spied the feast; the crea-
tures now faced a new peril.
The skinks knew their lives were in danger from cat, the field mouse
and bush rat scared too,
Koala and possum were fearful of fox, the top-knot screeched,
“What shall we do?”
Goanna sat sombrely sipping his ale and glared at the folk milling
Routing The Enemy “We’re Aussies, you know, so we’ll stand up and fight, we’ll not give
round,
an inch of our ground.”
by Pat Cannard © The fox, pig and cat bared their teeth in a snarl, which frightened
the hell out of roo,
The bar door swung open and customers came adorned in their He touched on the scar that the pig’s fangs had caused in a previ-
workaday gear. ous hullabaloo.
On vocals and screeches they all had a claim as they breasted the Then he drew himself up and put up his mitts, “C’mon, it’s our duty
bar for a beer. to fight,
The wallaby fronted the barman and said, “I’ll have rum with a We can’t let the ferals take over our lands, let’s go! You can nip,
small tot of Coke”. scratch and bite!”
The king brown slid on to the stool at the end and leered at the “We’ll never give in to those feral galoots,” shouted roo as he raised
other bush folk. up a fist.
“I’ll have a small Guinness to honour St Pat,” he said with a grin on “Agreed!” said the magpie. “Me too,” said the crow, “We’ll fight till
his face. no more they exist.”
“It’s his fault, you know, that I’m sitting right here, he chased us It took them some time but they’d finally won, they had routed the
away from his place.” pig, cat and fox;
The cockatoo laughed and then said with a grin, “Watch out for the Australia’s bush creatures now felt they were safe in the trees and
kooka’s strong beak, hollows and rocks.
If you rile him enough he will grab hold of you and toss you far out They hoped they could stay in their own habitat for ever and ever,
in the creek.” but soon
The eagle and kite with their wings spread out wide had control of The chainsaws and bulldozers came roaring across destroying this
one end of the bar. precious cocoon.
The eagle in loud tones was heard to declare, “A beer for us both The machines had replaced the crims of the bush, the pig, fox and
– we’ve come far.” cat that were feral.
The galah and the budgie sat quietly there, admiring the eagle and The noise and destruction the bush creatures faced had created a
kite. new kind of peril.
They looked at the beaks and the talons on show, and envied their They couldn’t attack with just rip, scratch and bite, and soon the
strength and their might. land was laid bare.
Those icons adorning the Oz coat of arms, the emu and grey kan- Australia had lost an asset so priceless, the bushland, a treasure
garoo, so rare.
Held court with a devil from way down in TAS, an echidna and small The barman now grieved with the bush creatures gone, mostly
potoroo. killed by the bulldozer blade.
The bar door swung back and in swaggered one of whom they all He mourned for the loss of the trees now mown down, and deaths
were afraid. of the friends he had made.
“A hunter,” they screeched, and fled for their lives, “He’s here on a Nothing was left of the logs and the nest, or the grass where the
kidnapping raid.” kangaroos grazed,
The shingle-back lizard was too slow to move and was grabbed by Just bare barren earth the machines had laid waste, the flora and
a big hairy hand. fauna erased.
He opened his jaws and poked out his tongue, but for this the man So what of the future for our great southern land, when animals
hadn’t planned. and birds disappear?
He then dropped the lizard, and stepped back with fright, for never When the magpie is silent, kookaburras don’t laugh; no more the
had he ever seen bellbirds we’ll hear.
A tongue that was bluer than skies up above. His face turned a pale What a sterile existence if all that we have is a forest of concrete
shade of green. and steel,
“Begorrah, I’ve been round the world many times, but this is the We’ve let down the creatures, the innocent lives, sacrificed to a
first time I’ve met monetary deal.
A lizard that scared me like this feller has, or made me heart race
like a jet.”
He backed out the door and the barman just laughed at the fear on
the face of the bloke.
“He’ll never again dare to darken my door to hassle the bush crea-
16 eMuse May 2020