 | The poems of Thomas Bailey Aldrich |  |
62
THE WORLD'S WAY
At Haroun's court it chanced, upon a time,
An Arab poet made this pleasant rhyme:
An Arab poet made this pleasant rhyme:
“The new moon is a horseshoe, wrought of God,
Wherewith the Sultan's stallion shall be shod.”
Wherewith the Sultan's stallion shall be shod.”
On hearing this, the Sultan smiled, and gave
The man a gold-piece. Sing again, O slave!
The man a gold-piece. Sing again, O slave!
Above his lute the happy singer bent,
And turned another gracious compliment.
And turned another gracious compliment.
And, as before, the smiling Sultan gave
The man a sekkah. Sing again, O slave!
The man a sekkah. Sing again, O slave!
Again the verse came, fluent as a rill
That wanders, silver-footed, down a hill.
That wanders, silver-footed, down a hill.
The Sultan, listening, nodded as before,
Still gave the gold, and still demanded more.
Still gave the gold, and still demanded more.
The nimble fancy that had climbed so high
Grew weary with its climbing by and by:
Grew weary with its climbing by and by:
63
Strange discords rose; the sense went quite amiss;
The singer's rhymes refused to meet and kiss:
The singer's rhymes refused to meet and kiss:
Invention flagged, the lute had got unstrung,
And twice he sang the song already sung.
And twice he sang the song already sung.
The Sultan, furious, called a mute, and said,
O Musta, straightway whip me off his head!
O Musta, straightway whip me off his head!
Poets! not in Arabia alone
You get beheaded when your skill is gone.
You get beheaded when your skill is gone.
| The poems of Thomas Bailey Aldrich | |