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Walter de la Mare - The Fool Rings His Bells
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Come, Death, I`d have a word with thee; 
And thou, poor Innocency; 
And Love — a lad with broken wing; 
And Pity, too; 
The Fool shall sing to you, 
As Fools will sing. 

Ay, music hath small sense, 
And a tune`s soon told, 
And Earth is old, 
And my poor wits are dense; 
Yet have I secrets, — dark, my dear, 
To breathe you all: Come near. 
And lest some hideous listener tells, 
I`ll ring my bells. 

They`re all at war! 
Yes, yes, their bodies go 
`Neath burning sun and icy star 
To chaunted songs of woe, 
Dragging cold cannon through a mud 
Of rain and blood; 
The new moon glinting hard on eyes 
Wide with insanities. 

Hush! . . . I use words 
I hardly know the meaning of; 
And the mute birds 
Are glancing at Love! 
From out their shade of leaf and flower, 
Trembling at treacheries 
Which even in noonday cower. 
Heed, heed not what I said 
Of frenzied hosts of men, 
More fools than I, 
On envy, hatred fed, 
Who kill, and die — 
Spake I not plainly, then? 
Yet Pity whispered, "Why?" 

Thou silly thing, off to thy daisies go. 
Mine was not news for child to know, 
And Death — no ears hath. He hath supped where creep 
Eyeless worms in hush of sleep; 
Yet, when he smiles, the hand he draws 
Athwart his grinning jaws 
Faintly their thin bones rattle, and . . . There, there; 
Hearken how my bells in the air 
Drive away care! . . . 

Nay, but a dream I had 
Of a world all mad. 
Not a simple happy mad like me, 
Who am mad like an empty scene 
Of water and willow tree, 
Where the wind hath been; 
But that foul Satan-mad, 
Who rots in his own head, 
And counts the dead, 
Not honest one — and two — 
But for the ghosts they were, 
Brave, faithful, true, 
When, heads in air, 
In Earth`s clear green and blue 
Heaven they did share 
With Beauty who bade them there. . . . 

There, now! he goes — 
Old Bones; I`ve wearied him. 
Ay, and the light doth dim, 
And asleep`s the rose, 
And tired Innocence 
In dreams is hence. . . 
Come, Love, my lad, 
Nodding that drowsy head, 
`T is time thy prayers were said!
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