 | St. Augustine's Holiday and Other Poems |  |
II.
[The coast descended to the brook of reeds]
“And the coast descended unto the river Kanah (brook of reeds),
southwards.” (Joshua xvii. 9.)
The coast descended to the brook of reeds,
The river Kanah, southward. In the stream
The armour of Manasseh used to gleam,
Marching right up to do those daring deeds
Upon the Canaanite. Wave to wave succeeds,
O ancient river, age succeeds to age.
I ask thee nothing of the battle's rage,
Or how the hewing of the forest speeds
In the land of giants. Only I would know,
Do those old reeds within thy channel quiver,
Making a music when the breezes blow?
And do their mottled lances slant as ever?
Do they outlive man's strength—God's weakest things,
Of older race than all our lives of kings?
| St. Augustine's Holiday and Other Poems | |