English poem

Of the Great White War

During the years when the white men fought each other, I observed how the aged cried aloud in public places Of honour and chivalry, and the duty of the young; And how the young ceased doing the pleasant things of youth, And became suddenly old, And marched away to defend the aged.

And I observed how the aged Became suddenly young; And mouthed fair phrases one to the other upon the Supreme Sacrifice, And turned to their account-books, murmuring gravely: Business as Usual; And brought out bottles of wine and drank the health Of the young men they had sent out to die for them.

More by Thomas Burke

Of a Night in War-Time
Of Inaccessible Beauty
Of Politicians
Of Shop Windows
Of Two Dwellings
Of Worship and Conduct
On a Saying of Mencius
One Service Breeds Another

All 40 poems by Thomas Burke