The Last Leap
by Adam Lindsay Gordon
ALL is over! fleet career,
Dash of greyhound slipping thongs,
Flight of falcon, bound of deer,
Mad hoof-thunder in our rear,
Cold air rushing up our lungs,
Din of many tongues.
Once again, one struggle good,
One vain effort;—he must dwell
Near the shifted post, that stood
Where the splinters of the wood,
Lying in the torn tracks, tell
How he struck and fell.
Crest where cold drops beaded cling,
Small ear drooping, nostril full,
Glazing to a scarlet ring,
Flanks and haunches quivering,
Sinews stiffening, void and null,
Dumb eyes sorrowful.
Satin coat that seems to shine
Duller now, black braided tress
That a softer hand than mine
Far away was wont to twine,
That in meadows far from this
Softer lips might kiss.
All is over! this is death,
And I stand to watch thee die,
Brave old horse! with bated breath
Hardly drawn through tight-clenched teeth,
Lip indented deep, but eye
Only dull and dry.
Musing on the husk and chaff
Gathered where life’s tares are sown,
Thus I speak, and force a laugh,
That is half a sneer and half
An involuntary groan,
In a stifled tone—
‘Rest, old friend! thy day, though rife
With its toil, hath ended soon;
We have had our share of strife,
Tumblers in the masque of life,
In the pantomime of noon
Clown and pantaloon.
‘With a flash that ends thy pain,
Respite and oblivion blest
Come to greet thee. I in vain
Fall: I rise to fall again:
Thou hast fallen to thy rest—
And thy fall is best

A few random poems:
- Владимир Британишский – Глухарь
- The Soldier poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems
- Михаил Лермонтов – Воля
- Danse Macabre by Sylvia Plath
- Grammer’s Shoes by William Barnes
- Art Therapy and Loss
- Владимир Маяковский – Стихотворение это
- For the Lute by William Somervile
- Fleeting Thoughts by Mac McGovern
- Love Sonnet XXV poem – Zora Bernice May Cross poems | Poetry Monster
- Morning Express by Siegfried Sassoon
- Insolent Storm Strikes At The Skull by Sylvia Plath
- Feelings of A French Royalist, On The Disinterment Of The Remains Of The Duke D’Enghien by William Wordsworth
- With A Copy Of Shakespeares Sonnets On Leaving College
- Владимир Степанов – Мышь и кошка
External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
Batty Writing – the bat’s idle chatter, thoughts, ideas and observations, all original, all fresh
Poems in English
- Imitation Of Spenser poem – John Keats poems
- Hyperion. Book III poem – John Keats poems
- Hyperion. Book II poem – John Keats poems
- Hyperion. Book I poem – John Keats poems
- Hyperion, A Vision: Attempted Reconstruction Of The Poem poem – John Keats poems
- Fragment. Where’s The Poet? poem – John Keats poems
- Fragment. Welcome Joy, And Welcome Sorrow poem – John Keats poems
- Fragment Of “The Castle Builder.” poem – John Keats poems
- Fragment Of An Ode To Maia. Written On May Day 1818 poem – John Keats poems
- Fragment: Modern Love poem – John Keats poems
- Faery Songs poem – John Keats poems
- Extracts From An Opera poem – John Keats poems
- Epistle To John Hamilton Reynolds poem – John Keats poems
- Endymion: Book I poem – John Keats poems
- Dedication To Leigh Hunt, Esq. poem – John Keats poems
- Dawlish Fair poem – John Keats poems
- Character Of Charles Brown poem – John Keats poems
- Calidore: A Fragment poem – John Keats poems
- Ben Nevis: A Dialogue poem – John Keats poems
- Asleep! O Sleep A Little While, White Pearl! poem – John Keats poems
More external links (open in a new tab):
Doska or the Board – write anything
Search engines:
Yandex – the best search engine for searches in Russian (and the best overall image search engine, in any language, anywhere)
Qwant – the best search engine for searches in French, German as well as Romance and Germanic languages.
Ecosia – a search engine that supposedly… plants trees
Duckduckgo – the real alternative and a search engine that actually works. Without much censorship or partisan politics.
Yahoo– yes, it’s still around, amazingly, miraculously, incredibly, but now it seems to be powered by Bing.
Parallel Translations of Poetry
The Poetry Repository – an online library of poems, poetry, verse and poetic works
Adam Lindsay Gordon (1833 – 1870) was an Australian or British-Australian poet, horseman, police officer and politician. He is considered to be one of the first national Australian poets.