The Death Of Santa Claus
July 6, 2023Snow
July 6, 2023221b
Here dwell together still two men of note
Who never lived and so can never die:
How very near they seem, yet how remote
That age before the world went all awry.
But still the game’s afoot for those with ears
Attuned to catch the distant view-halloo:
England is England yet, for all our fears–
Only those things the heart believes are true.
A yellow fog swirls past the window-pane
As night descends upon this fabled street:
A lonely hansom splashes through the rain,
The ghostly gas lamps fail at twenty feet.
Here, though the world explode, these two survive,
And it is always eighteen ninety-five.
Vincent Starrett
Vincent Starrett (1886-1974) was an American writer and poet who is perhaps best known for his mystery novels and his association with the literary group, the Chicago Renaissance. He was a prolific writer and produced many works of fiction and non-fiction over the course of his career. Starrett was also a noted book collector and an expert on the works of Arthur Conan Doyle, and he wrote extensively on the subject of Sherlock Holmes. His poetry was characterized by a keen sense of observation and a love of language.