University of Virginia Library

Search this document 

expand section 


20

[VIII. A wounded deer leaps highest]

A wounded deer leaps highest,
I 've heard the hunter tell;
'T is but the ecstasy of death,
And then the brake is still.
The smitten rock that gushes,
The trampled steel that springs:
A cheek is always redder
Just where the hectic stings!
Mirth is the mail of anguish,
In which it cautions arm,
Lest anybody spy the blood
And “You 're hurt” exclaim!