A poem by Alec Derwent-Hope (1907–2000)
by Alec Derwent Hope
What pleasures have great princes? These: to know
Themselves reputed mad with pride or power;
To speak few words — few words and short bring low
This ancient house, that city with flame devour;
To make old men, their father’s enemies,
Drunk on the vintage of the former age;
To have great painters show their mistresses
Naked to the succeeding time; engage
The cunning of able, treacherous ministers
To serve, despite themselves, the cause they hate,
And leave a prosperous kingdom to their heirs
Nursed by the caterpillars of the state;
To keep their spies in good men’s hearts; to read
The malice of the wise, and act betimes;
To hear the Grand Remonstrances of greed
Led by the pure; cheat justice of her crimes;
To beget worthless sons and, being old,
By starlight climb the battlements, and while
The pacing sentry hugs himself for cold,
Keep vigil like a lover, muse and smile,
And think, to see from the grim castle steep
The midnight city below rejoice and shine:
“There my great demon grumbles in his sleep
And dreams of his destruction, and of mine.”

A few random poems:
- Владимир Маяковский – Сказка для шахтера-друга про шахтерки, чуни и каменный уголь
- Владимир Высоцкий – Возле города Пекина
- Sting by Muralidharan Mudaliar
- The Essay on Liberty by Abraham Cowley
- Sonnet 29: When in disgrace with Fortune and men’s eyes by William Shakespeare
- The Princess And The Goblins by Sylvia Plath
- English Poetry. Charles Wesley. Hark! A Voice Divides the Sky. Чарльз Уэсли.
- Love Sonnet XXI poem – Zora Bernice May Cross poems
- Feeling Lucky to Be Irish
- The Fall of Rome by W. H. Auden
- On A Miser, 3 (From The Greek) by William Cowper
- Answer Copy Verses Sent Me Jersey
- Tryin’ On Clothes by Shel Silverstein
- Николай Карамзин – Тацит
- Василий Жуковский – Из альбома, подаренного Ростопчиной (Пушкин)
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
- How Do You Produce Original Articles?
- Create Wealth With Creative Thinking
- How to Earn Money Writing and Selling Books
- In the Philippines, August Is a Celebration of Buwan Ng Wika
- Christopher Okigbo – Looking Back at His Short-lived Life and Taking Stock of His Poetic Legacy
- Mary’s Son – A Tale of Christmas – An Inspiring Read
- Most Memorable Mother’s Day Gift Ideas
- Proactive Responses to Recession – 7 Creative Ways to Make Extra Money With Real Estate
- Love Expression in Marriage
- Family Caregivers Have Promises to Keep
- Follow My Directions, Please: A Fun Christian Preschool Activity
- Creative Self Sabotage – 5 Favourite Sabotage Techniques Of Creative Artists & How To Avoid Them
- Is Resume Writing Really That Important?
- Literary Cubism – A Non-Structured Structure For Twenty-first Century Storytelling
- Los Able Minded Poets Music Review
- How to Choose a Federal Resume Writing Service
- The Truth About Propolis Benefits
- Insights Into History, Culture, & Creativity of Sri Lanka – Explore the Cultural Triangle
- The Columbian Exchange Beginning With Spanish Colonization
- 3 Inspirational Quotes That Encourage You to Be Yourself
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
Alec Derwent-Hope (1907–2000) was an Australian poet and essayist known for his satirical slant. He was also a critic, teacher and academic.