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333

SONNET XV
THERE AND HERE

[_]

On December 21 and 22, 1910, two English officers, Captain Trench and Lieutenant Brandon, were tried at Leipzig, for espionage. They received a singularly fair and generous trial.

Here, ceaseless discord, clash of class and class,
Ministers kicked by Socialistic feet
Or hoofed by Redmond's lambs that roar and bleat,
Now with mild accents, now with lungs of brass.
There, as from this distracted land we pass,
Militant order, tranquil and complete:
A German Army and a German Fleet
Backed by Crown, nobles, peasants, people, en masse.
There, a fair judgment given by generous men
Who, safe and unassailable at home,
Conscious of strength, can hold an even way:
While, here, our furious anti-patriots foam
And gnash their teeth like vicious curs at bay,
Or plot with Lloyd-George in some miners' den.
December 23, 1910.
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