I Hear an Army
I hear an army charging upon the land,
And the thunder of horses plunging; foam about their
knees:
Arrogant, in black armour, behind them stand,
Disdaining the rains, with fluttering whips, the Char-
ioteers.
They cry into the night their battle name:
I moan in sleep when I hear afar their whirling
laughter.
They cleave the gloom of dreams, a blinding flame,
Clanging, clanging upon the heart as upon an anvil.
They come shaking in triumph their long grey hair:
They come out of the sea and run shouting by the
shore.
My heart, have you no wisdom thus to despair?
My love, my love, my love, why have you left me
alone?
Published in The Glebe (vol. 1, no. 5) in February 1914. Special Des Imagistes number.
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