"On the march, reading in his carriage, it was [Napoleon's] practice to toss overboard the books that failed to please him; and thus handsome volumes bearing his arms were distributed all over Europe, later to find their way into the sales catalogues of London and Paris booksellers." --Vincent Starrett, Books and Bipeds (1947)


   "Journey to the Volcano Palace"

lawn, cordial from nightfall
the wind's own talisman
a espair grammatical
to the final arabesque

take the burning nozzle
of word theocracy
take away the grassy words
on an ice-parded zephyr

ruggedized paradox
doublure · pallid ouzel
into Alexandria
atop a pillbug



"Not what the stars have done, but what they are to do, is what detains the sky." --Emily Dickinson, quoted in Starrett


Rudolph Hausner on MySpace.