 | The Complete Poems and Collected Letters of Adelaide Crapsey |  |
An Early Christian Hymn “How doth the Heathen rage”
How doth the ramping Roman rage
These peaceful vales among;
How wide the swathe his comment cuts,
How fatal is his tongue.
These peaceful vales among;
How wide the swathe his comment cuts,
How fatal is his tongue.
We may not smoke, we may not drink,
Our work he holds in scorn;
Of joy bereft, of use despoiled,
He leaves us all forlorn.
Our work he holds in scorn;
Of joy bereft, of use despoiled,
He leaves us all forlorn.
A cultured bunch, we hang our heads
While he our faults reveals;
And yet, O Lord, we often write
Our Lectures for ourselves.
While he our faults reveals;
And yet, O Lord, we often write
Our Lectures for ourselves.
Protect, O Lord, thy simple sheep,
These peaceful vales among;
Protect them from the Roman ramp,
The raging Roman tongue!
These peaceful vales among;
Protect them from the Roman ramp,
The raging Roman tongue!
| The Complete Poems and Collected Letters of Adelaide Crapsey | |