 | Leaves of grass (1872) |  |
2
4
But the sweetness of mercy brew'd bitter destruction, and the frighten'd monarchs come back;Each comes in state, with his train—hangman, priest, tax-gatherer,
Soldier, lawyer, lord, jailer, and sycophant.
5
Yet behind all, lowering, stealing—lo, a Shape,Vague as the night, draped interminably, head, front and form, in scarlet folds,
Whose face and eyes none may see,
368
One finger, crook'd, pointed high over the top, like the head of a snake appears.
| Leaves of grass (1872) | |