The Children
These were our children who died for our lands: they were dear in our sight.
??We have only the memory left of their home-treasured sayings and laughter.
??The price of our loss shall be paid to our hands, not another’s hereafter.
Neither the Alien nor Priest shall decide on it. That is our right.
??But who shall return us the children?
At the hour the Barbarian1 chose to disclose his pretences2,
??And raged against Man, they engaged, on the breasts that they bared for us,
??The first felon-stroke of the sword he had long-time prepared for us —
Their bodies were all our defence while we wrought3 our defences.
They bought us anew with their blood, forbearing to blame us,
Those hours which we had not made good when the Judgment4 o’ercame us.
They believed us and perished for it. Our statecraft, our learning.
Delivered them bound to the Pit and alive to the burning
Whither they mirthfully hastened as jostling for honour.
Not since her birth has our Earth seen such worth loosed upon her.
Nor was their agony brief, or once only imposed on them.
??The wounded, the war-spent, the sick received no exemption5:
??Being cured they returned and endured and achieved our redemption,
Hopeless themselves of relief, till Death, marvelling6, closed on them.
That flesh we had nursed from the first in all cleanness was given
To corruption7 unveiled and assailed8 by the malice9 of Heaven —
By the heart-shaking jests of Decay where it lolled on the wires —
To be blanched10 or gay-painted by fumes11 — to be cindered by fires —
To be senselessly tossed and retossed in stale mutilation
From crater12 to crater. For this we shall take expiation13.
??But who shall return us our children?
1 barbarian | |
n.野蛮人;adj.野蛮(人)的;未开化的 | |
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2 pretences | |
n.假装( pretence的名词复数 );作假;自命;自称 | |
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3 wrought | |
v.引起;以…原料制作;运转;adj.制造的 | |
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4 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
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5 exemption | |
n.豁免,免税额,免除 | |
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6 marvelling | |
v.惊奇,对…感到惊奇( marvel的现在分词 ) | |
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7 corruption | |
n.腐败,堕落,贪污 | |
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8 assailed | |
v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 );困扰;质问;毅然应对 | |
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9 malice | |
n.恶意,怨恨,蓄意;[律]预谋 | |
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10 blanched | |
v.使变白( blanch的过去式 );使(植物)不见阳光而变白;酸洗(金属)使有光泽;用沸水烫(杏仁等)以便去皮 | |
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11 fumes | |
n.(强烈而刺激的)气味,气体 | |
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12 crater | |
n.火山口,弹坑 | |
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13 expiation | |
n.赎罪,补偿 | |
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