 | The souls of the children |  |
“Though the mills of God grind slowly,
Yet they grind exceeding small;
Though with patience he stands waiting,
With exactness grinds he all.”
H. W. Longfellow.
Yet they grind exceeding small;
Though with patience he stands waiting,
With exactness grinds he all.”
H. W. Longfellow.
1
THE SOULS OF THE CHILDREN.
By CHARLES MACKAY.
I
“Who bids for the little children,—Body, and soul, and brain?
Who bids for the little children—
Young and without a stain?
Will no one bid,” said England,
“For their souls so pure and white,
And fit for all good or evil
The world on their page may write?”
2
II
“We bid,” said Pest and Famine,“We bid for life and limb;
Fever, and pain, and squalor
Their bright young eyes shall dim.
When the children grow too many,
We'll nurse them as our own,
And hide them in secret places,
Where none may hear their moan.”
III
“I bid,” said Beggary, howling,“I bid for them, one and all!
I'll teach them a thousand lessons—
To lie, to skulk, to crawl!
They shall sleep in my lair, like maggots,
They shall rot in the fair sunshine;
And if they serve my purpose,
I hope they'll answer thine.”
3
IV
“And I'll bid higher and higher,”Said Crime, with wolfish grin,
“For I love to lead the children
Through the pleasant paths of sin.
They shall swarm in the streets to pilfer,
They shall plague the broad highway,
Till they grow too old for pity,
And ripe for the law to slay.
V
Prison and hulk and gallowsAre many in the land,
'Twere folly not to use them,
So proudly as they stand.
Give me the little children—
I'll take them as they're born,
And feed their evil passions
With misery and scorn.
4
VI
“Give me the little children,Ye good, ye rich, ye wise,
And let the busy world spin round,
While ye shut your idle eyes;
And your judges shall have work,
And your lawyers wag the tongue,
And your gaolers and policemen
Shall be fathers to the young.
VII
“I and the Law, for pastime,Shall struggle day and night;
And the Law shall gain, but I shall win,
And we'll still renew the fight:
And ever and aye we'll wrestle,
Till Law grow sick and sad,
And kill in its desperation
The incorrigibly bad.
5
VIII
“I, and the Law, and Justice,Shall thwart each other still;
And hearts shall break to see it;—
And innocent blood shall spill!
So leave,—Oh, leave the children
To Ignorance and Woe—
And I'll come in and teach them
The way that they should go.”
IX
“Oh, shame!” said true Religion,“Oh, shame that this should be!
I'll take the little children;
I'll take them all to me;
I'll raise them up with kindness
From the mire in which they're trod;
I'll teach them words of blessing,
I'll lead them up to God.”
6
X
“You're not the true Religion,”Said a Sect with flashing eyes;
“Nor thou,” said another scowling,
“Thou'rt heresy and lies.”
“You shall not have the children,”
Said a third, with shout and yell;
“You're Antichrist and bigot—
You'd train them up for hell.”
XI
And England, sorely puzzledTo see such battle strong,
Exclaimed, with voice of pity,
“Oh, friends, you do me wrong!
Oh, cease your bitter wrangling;
For, till you all agree,
I fear the little children
Will plague both you and me.”
7
XII
But all refused to listen;Quoth they, “We bide our time;”
And the bidders seized the children—
Beggary, Filth, and Crime;
And the prisons teemed with victims,
And the gallows rocked on high;
And the thick abomination
Spread reeking to the sky.
| The souls of the children | |