the idea of nothingness

“What’s the good of Mercator’s North Poles and Equators,

 Tropics, Zones, and Meridian Lines?”

So the Bellman would cry: and the crew would reply

 “They are merely conventional signs!

“Other maps are such shapes, with their islands and capes!

 But we’ve got our brave Captain to thank:

(So the crew would protest) “that he’s bought usthe best —

 A perfect and absolute blank!”

"The Hunting of the Snark"

An Agony in Eight Fits

Lewis Carroll

illustration Henry Holiday