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:
- Deftly, Admiral, Cast Your Fly by W H Auden
- Everlasting Wander by Rixa White
- Ольга Седакова – И меня удивило
- The Prison Of The Past
- Lonely Burial by Stephen Vincent Benet
- Don’t Need Anything by Pat Mullan
- Indian Weavers by Sarojini Naidu
- Song—Behold, my love, how green the groves by Robert Burns
- Is Resume Writing Really That Important?
- Corn A-Turnen Yollow by William Barnes
- On Presenting to a Lady a White Rose and a Red on the Tenth of June by William Somervile
- Dead On Arrival by Preethi Saravanakumar
- Ольга Берггольц – Кирову
- God’s Abdication by Snowdon King
- I See so Deeply Within Myself by Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi
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
- Федор Сологуб – Я дорогой невинной и смелою
- Федор Сологуб – Я часть загадки разгадал
- Федор Сологуб – Высока луна Господня
- Федор Сологуб – Выйди в поле полночное
- Федор Сологуб – Вы не умеете целовать мою землю
- Федор Сологуб – Всё зеленее и светлее
- Федор Сологуб – Волна морская – веселый шум
- Федор Сологуб – Водой спокойной отражены
- Федор Сологуб – Во внутреннем дворе отеля
- Федор Сологуб – Во мне мечты мои цветут
- Федор Сологуб – Вильгельм второй
- Федор Сологуб – Ветер в трубе
- Федор Сологуб – Веет ветер мне навстречу
- Федор Сологуб – В норе темно и мглисто
- Федор Сологуб – В моём бессилии люби меня
- Федор Сологуб – В моих мечтах такое постоянство
- Федор Сологуб – В моей лампаде ясный свет
- Федор Сологуб – В мантии серой
- Федор Сологуб – В лунном озарении
- Федор Сологуб – В лесу живет проказник неуёмный
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.