Idylls and Lyrics of The Nile By H. D. Rawnsley |
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| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
| IX. |
| X. |
| XI. |
| XII. |
| XIII. |
| XIV. |
| XV. |
| XVI. |
| XVII. |
| XVIII. |
| XIX. |
| XX. |
| XXI. |
| XXII. |
| XXIII. |
| XXIV. |
| XXV. |
| XXVI. |
| XXVII. |
| XXVIII. |
| XXIX. |
| XXX. |
| XXXI. |
| XXXII. |
| XXXIII. |
| XXXIV. |
| XXXV. |
| XXXVI. |
| XXXVII. |
| XXXVIII. |
| XXXIX. |
| XL. |
| XLI. |
| XLII. |
| XLIII. |
| XLIV. |
| XLV. |
| XLVI. |
| XLVII. |
| XLVIII. |
| XLIX. |
| L. |
| LI. |
| LII. |
| LIII. |
| LIV. |
| LV. |
| LVI. |
| LVII. |
| LVIII. |
| LIX. |
| LX. |
| LXI. |
| LXII. | LXII SHOOTING THE CATARACT |
| LXII. |
| LXIV. |
 | Idylls and Lyrics of The Nile |  |
142
LXII SHOOTING THE CATARACT
We heard the mighty river roar,
But safe in Moussa's dext'rous hand
Were swirled ashore,
To find the naked village band
Jet-black against the yellow sand.
But safe in Moussa's dext'rous hand
Were swirled ashore,
To find the naked village band
Jet-black against the yellow sand.
Their chieftain bids them stand in rank;
How many will the stranger pay
To leave the bank,
And let the torrent bear away
Body and soul, if need be? say!
How many will the stranger pay
To leave the bank,
And let the torrent bear away
Body and soul, if need be? say!
All at a piastre ahead
Shall shoot the cataract this noon
Alive or dead!
The white lord grants a white lord's boon,
They shout, and doff their shark-skin shoon.
Shall shoot the cataract this noon
Alive or dead!
The white lord grants a white lord's boon,
They shout, and doff their shark-skin shoon.
143
Then on along the shore they race:
This, with a log whereon to ride,
Of swiftest pace
His water-horse he will bestride
And gallop down the foaming tide;
This, with a log whereon to ride,
Of swiftest pace
His water-horse he will bestride
And gallop down the foaming tide;
And that, without a horse of wood,
Will with the torrent dare to strive,
Into the flood
With nothing but a flag will dive
To tell us he is still alive.
Will with the torrent dare to strive,
Into the flood
With nothing but a flag will dive
To tell us he is still alive.
And by them run the baby boys,
With little bellies bladder-tight;
Their father's joys,
They laugh,—the cataract has no fright
For babes accustomed to the sight.
With little bellies bladder-tight;
Their father's joys,
They laugh,—the cataract has no fright
For babes accustomed to the sight.
Then with a leap and with a yell,
Like creatures of some riverkind,
Their bodies fell
Into the whirlpool: I was blind,
A sudden fear possessed my mind.
Like creatures of some riverkind,
Their bodies fell
Into the whirlpool: I was blind,
A sudden fear possessed my mind.
But in a moment thro' the spite
Of furious waters, head by head,
Leapt into light;
I saw the flags flash into red,
As down the cataract they sped.
Of furious waters, head by head,
Leapt into light;
I saw the flags flash into red,
As down the cataract they sped.
144
Spurned from the flood or sucked beneath,
And nerved with more than natural force
They fenced with death;
Proud riders of the wooden horse
They went in triumph down the course.
And nerved with more than natural force
They fenced with death;
Proud riders of the wooden horse
They went in triumph down the course.
My brain nigh whirled, my ears were stunned,
But half-mile away, where sand
In stillness sunned
Its golden breast, the swarthy band
Swam safe and shining-wet to land.
But half-mile away, where sand
In stillness sunned
Its golden breast, the swarthy band
Swam safe and shining-wet to land.
| Idylls and Lyrics of The Nile | |