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:
- Justice by Rudyard Kipling
- Dedication poem – Lord Alfred Tennyson poems
- hoppity.html
- Илона Грошева – Мой друг Евгений
- A Tribute to Henry M. Stanley by William Topaz McGonagall
- Suppressed Stanzas of “The Vision” by Robert Burns
- They Thought Her Crazy by Mary Etta Metcalf
- Pay your last respects by Vinaya Kumar Hanumanthappa
- Laughter In The Senate by Sidney Lanier
- Владислав Крапивин – Тяжелый толчок и вспышка у глаз
- politeness.html
- Quest for Thee by Vanessa Perkins
- A Consolation to Cuckholds by William Wycherley poems
- Robert Burns: Behold, My Love, How Green The Groves:
- Sleep by Rabindranath Tagore
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
- The Moon’s the North Wind’s Cooky by Vachel Lindsay
- The Moon is a Painter by Vachel Lindsay
- The Merciful Hand by Vachel Lindsay
- The Master of the Dance by Vachel Lindsay
- The Little Turtle by Vachel Lindsay
- The Lion by Vachel Lindsay
- The Light o’ the Moon by Vachel Lindsay
- The Leaden-Eyed by Vachel Lindsay
- The King of Yellow Butterflies by Vachel Lindsay
- The Jingo and the Minstrel by Vachel Lindsay
- The Illinois Village by Vachel Lindsay
- The Hope of the Resurrection by Vachel Lindsay
- The Hearth Eternal by Vachel Lindsay
- The Haughty Snail-King by Vachel Lindsay
- The Ghosts of the Buffaloes by Vachel Lindsay
- The Gamblers by Vachel Lindsay
- The Flower of Mending by Vachel Lindsay
- The Flower-Fed Buffaloes by Vachel Lindsay
- The Fairy Bridal-Hymn by Vachel Lindsay
- The Empty Boats by Vachel Lindsay
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.