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8 May: "I Sing the Battle" by Harry Kemp

I Sing the Battle By Harry Kemp

I SING the song of the great clean guns that belch forth death at will.
"Ah, but the wailing mothers, the lifeless forms and still!"

I sing the song of the billowing flags, the bugles that cry before.
"Ah, but the skeletons flapping rags, the lips that speak no more!"

I sing the clash of bayonets, of sabres that flash and cleave.
"And wilt thou sing the maimed ones, too, that go with pinnedup sleeve?"

I sing acclaimed generals that bring the victory home.
"Ah, but the broken bodies that drip like honey-comb!"

I sing of hosts triumphant, long ranks of marching men.
"And wilt thou sing the shadowy hosts that never march again?"

5 comments:

  1. Perfect contrast to the glorifying of war. What the movies and books often leave out.

    Well not so much that they leave it out. But the cause and glory or outcomes surpass the horrors.

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