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:
- English Poetry. Madison Julius Cawein. Hymn to Spiritual Desire. Мэдисон Джулиус Кавейн.
- Илья Зданевич – Ослиный Бох
- My Heart Was Full by Stevie Smith
- Владимир Маяковский – Неразбериха
- Олег Бундур – Уроки
- one_almost_might.html
- The Heart That Is Pining by Timothy Thomas Fortune
- On Receiving A Laurel Crown From Leigh Hunt poem – John Keats poems
- As the Time Draws Nigh. by Walt Whitman
- This Moment, Yearning and Thoughtful. by Walt Whitman
- To G.A.W. poem – John Keats poems
- Sonnet Of Motherhood VIII poem – Zora Bernice May Cross poems
- Survivor by Roger McGough
- The Loss Of The Eurydice poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems
- At Long Last
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
- Address To The Scholars Of The Village School Of — by William Wordsworth
- Address To Kilchurn Castle, Upon Loch Awe by William Wordsworth
- Address To A Child During A Boisterous Winter By My Sister by William Wordsworth
- A Wren’s Nest by William Wordsworth
- A Whirl-Blast From Behind The Hill by William Wordsworth
- A Prophecy. February 1807 by William Wordsworth
- A Night Thought by William Wordsworth
- A Night-Piece by William Wordsworth
- A Narrow Girdle Of Rough Stones And Crags, by William Wordsworth
- A Flower Garden At Coleorton Hall, Leicestershire. by William Wordsworth
- A Farewell by William Wordsworth
- A Character by William Wordsworth
- Upon a Lady’s Fall Over a Stile, Gotten by Running From Her Love by William Wycherley
- To his Indifferent Mistress by William Wycherley
- The Poor Lover to His Rich Mistress about to Marry His Coxcombly Rival by William Wycherley
- Sleep and Death by William Wycherley
- On a Sea Fight, Which the Author was in, Betwixt the English and Dutch by William Wycherley
- Love and Wine by William Wycherley
- In Praise of Laziness by William Wycherley
- Drinking-Song, A. To a Formal, Proud, Sober Coxcomb by William Wycherley
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.