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THE
MYTHOLOGY OF PLACE:
JAMES
K. BAXTER'S OTAGO WORLDS
Lawrence Jones
I
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| The
Brighton World |
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Page 2
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Surrounding Horse, not made by him, existed the sky,
the earth, the sea, and other less clearly defined creatures, serenely
melancholy, neither glad nor sorry that Horse existed. Yet Horse's happiness
depended on an intimate contact with this world of substance. . . . By
contact with the world of substance Horse had access to a sacred power.
. . . This power adhered to particular places and particular people. In
his childhood Horse had experienced its manifestation on certain cliff-faces
and on the banks of creeks, especially where flax or toe-toe bushes grew
freely. His father conveyed it strongly, by the capable strength of his
hands, and by the smell of burnt gum-leaves he often carried on his person.
As the primitive paradise of childhood fell apart , Horse had been led
by meditation and example to look for the signs of this power in women.
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