Out of the wood of thoughts that grows by night
To be cut down by the sharp axe of light,--
Out of the night, two cocks together crow,
Cleaving the darkness with a silver blow:
And bright before my eyes twin trumpeters stand,
Heralds of splendour, one at either hand,
Each facing each as in a coat of arms:--
The milkers lace their boots up at the farms.
_Seumas O'Sullivan_
James Starkey was born in Dublin in 1879. Writing under the pseudonym
of Seumas O'Sullivan, he contributed a great variety of prose and
verse to various Irish papers. His reputation as a poet began with
his appearance in _New Songs_, edited by George Russell ("A. E.").
Later, he published _The Twilight People_ (1905), _The Earth Lover_
(1909), and _Poems_ (1912).