Ballad of Reading Gaol by Oscar Wilde
page 21 of 27 (77%)
page 21 of 27 (77%)
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Still hems him round and round,
And a spirit man not walk by night That is with fetters bound, And a spirit may not weep that lies In such unholy ground, He is at peace--this wretched man-- At peace, or will be soon: There is no thing to make him mad, Nor does Terror walk at noon, For the lampless Earth in which he lies Has neither Sun nor Moon. ___ They hanged him as a beast is hanged: They did not even toll A reguiem that might have brought Rest to his startled soul, But hurriedly they took him out, And hid him in a hole. They stripped him of his canvas clothes, And gave him to the flies; They mocked the swollen purple throat And the stark and staring eyes: And with laughter loud they heaped the shroud In which their convict lies. The Chaplain would not kneel to pray By his dishonored grave: Nor mark it with that blessed Cross |
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