"Huntsman", he said - a sudden thrill
Through all the listener ran,
To hear a creature of the wood
Speak like a Heathen man -
"Last of my race, to me 'tis given
The future to unfold,
To speak the word which never yet
Spake fox of mortal mould.
"Then print my words upon your heart,
And stamp them on your brain,
That you to others may impart
My prophecy again.
"The manly sports of England
Shall vanish one by one;
The manly blood of England
In weaker veins shall run.
"The sports of their forefathers
To baser tastes shall yield;
The vices in the town displace
The pleasures of the field ...
"Base churls shall mock the mighty names
Writ on the roll of time;
Religion shall be held a jest,
And loyalty a crime.
"No word of prayer, no hymn of praise
Sound in the village school;
The people's education
Utilitarians rule.
"Nor harvest feast nor Yuletide
Shall farm or manor hold;
Science alone can plenty give
The only God is gold.
"The homes where love and peace should dwell
Fierce politics shall vex,
And unsexed woman strive to prove
Herself the courser sex.
"Mechanics in their workshops
Affairs of state decide;
Honour and truth - old fashioned words -
The noisy mobs deride.
"The statesmen that should rule the realm
Course demagogues displace;
The glory of a thousand years
Shall end in foul disgrace.
"The honour of Old England,
Cotton shall buy and sell,
And hardware manufacturers
Cry 'Peace! - lo, all is well'.
"Her army and her navy
England shall cast aside;
Soldiers and ships are costly things,
Defence an empty pride ...
"The footsteps of the invader
Then England's shores shall know,
While home-bred traitors give the hand
To England's every foe.
"Disarmed before the foreigner,
The knee shall humbly bend,
And yield the treasures that she lacked
The wisdom to defend.
"But not for aye - yet once again
When purged by Fire & Sword,
The land her freedom shall regain
To manlier thoughts restored.
"Taught wisdom by disasters,
England shall learn to know
That trade is not the only gain
Heaven gives to man below.
"The greed for gold departed,
The Golden Calf cast down,
Old England's sons shall rise
The altar and the Crown.
"Rejoicing seas shall welcome
Their mistress once again;
Again the banner of St. George
Shall rule upon the main.
"The blood of the invader
Her pastures shall manure,
His bones unburied on the fields
For monuments endure.
"Again in hall and homestead
Shall joy and peace be seen
And smiling children raise again
The maypole on the green ..."
|
