WHEN the horns wear thin And the noise, like a garment outworn, Falls from the night, The tattered and shivering night, That thinks she is gay; When the patient silence comes back, And retires, And returns, Rebuffed by a ribald song, Wounded by vehement cries, Fleeing again to the stars-- Ashamed of her sister the night; Oh, then they steal home, The blinded, the pitiful ones With their gew-gaws still in their hands, Reeling with odorous breath And thick, coarse words on their tongues. They get them to bed, somehow, And sleep the forgiving, Comes thru the scattering tumult And closes their eyes. The stars sink down ashamed And the dawn awakes, Like a youth who steals from a brothel, Dizzy and sick. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...DESIRE by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON SHE WEEPS OVER RAHOON by JAMES JOYCE STREET-CRIES: 2. THE SHIP OF EARTH by SIDNEY LANIER SPOON RIVER ANTHOLOGY: MANY SOLDIERS by EDGAR LEE MASTERS THE NEW APOCRYPHA: BUSINESS REVERSES by EDGAR LEE MASTERS |