Sodom By The Sea

[Kenneth2816]

Fire was the god of Coney Island.
At night, the search lights on
the tower of Dreamland could
be seen for fifty miles at sea.

Topsy the elephant was a bit
rogue. The promoters billed her as
the first American born elephant,
but even that wasn't true.

She did kill a man who gave her
a lit cigarette to eat, picked another
up with her trunk and threw him
after he jabbed her with a pitchfork.

Her handler got drunk, rode her
down the streets to the Police
station and she almost broke
the door in. That was the end.

In 1903, Edison's men ran two
leads from the powerhouse. Topsy
would not comply when they tried
to lead her to the arena where
people paid a quarter to watch.

One of the first movies, Edison's
men filmed her electrocution
with the newly patented motion
picture camera. For years, parents
mock- threatened their children
with being "Topsyed".

* This was during the "Current Wars' of the early 20th century, between AC and DC pitting Edison vs Tesla.

[BobBradshaw]

I love historical poems that come alive. And that’s what happens here, in both location and time period. A vivid poem, Ken. I like it a lot.