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Wilfrid Scawen Blunt - Esther, A Sonnet Sequence: X
Work rating: Low

An instant, just an instant, and no more,
 And it was gone, and I with eyes unsealed
 Saw the bald pageant stripped to its thought`s core,
 And naked there to my scared eyes revealed.
 Upon a throne which filled the upper space
 Two female monsters sat, the first a girl
 Marked like a leopard with pied arms and face,
 And restless eyes aflame and teeth of pearl.
 Her as we ventured near, I heard awhile
 Say she was hungry, and a gleam like blood
 Lighted her lips and died in a fierce smile.
 A woman`s hand behind me in the crowd
 Clutched at my arm, and through the booth there went
 A shiver of half fear, half merriment.
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