Whispering in Wattle -Boughs
by Adam Lindsay Gordon
OH, gaily sings the bird! and the wattle-boughs are stirred
And rustled by the scented breath of Spring;
Oh, the dreary wistful longing! Oh, the faces that are thronging!
Oh, the voices that are vaguely whispering!
Oh, tell me, father mine, ere the good ship crossed the brine,
On the gangway one mute handgrip we exchanged,
Do you, past the grave, employ, for your stubborn reckless boy,
Those petitions that in life were ne’er estranged?
Oh, tell me, sister dear—parting word and parting tear
Never passed between us: let me bear the blame—
Are you living, girl, or dead? bitter tears since then I’ve shed
For the lips that lisped with mine a mother’s name.
Oh, tell me, ancient friend, ever ready to defend
In our boyhood, at the base of life’s long hill,
Are you waking yet or sleeping? Have you left this vale of weeping,
Or do you, like your comrade, linger still?
Oh, whisper, buried love, is there rest and peace above?—
There is little hope or comfort here below;
On your sweet face lies the mould, and your bed is strait and cold—
Near the harbour where the sea-tides ebb and flow.
All silent—they are dumb—and the breezes go and come
With an apathy that mocks at man’s distress;
Laugh, scoffer, while you may! I could bow me down and pray
For an answer that might stay my bitterness.
Oh, harshly screams the bird, and the wattle-bloom is stirred;
There’s a sullen weird-like whisper in the bough:
‘Aye, kneel and pray and weep, but HIS BELOVED SLEEP
CAN NEVER BE DISTURBED BY SUCH AS THOU!’
A few random poems:
- The Eve Of St. Agnes poem – John Keats poems
- Вергилий – Скопа
- Николай Заболоцкий – Мир однолик, но двойственна природа
- Владимир Высоцкий – Неужто здесь сошёлся клином свет
- Николай Гумилев – Канцона (Лучшая музыка в мире)
- Burning The Letters by Sylvia Plath
- Christmas in India by Rudyard Kipling
- Robert Burns: The Banks Of The Devon:
- Love Of Life poem – Alfred Austin
- Владимир Бенедиктов – Сослуживцу
- Николай Гербель – Зной
- Epistle to Dr. Blacklock by Robert Burns
- The Lament Of Yasmini The Dancing Girl
- Федор Тютчев – Как летней иногда порою
- Young Man’s Song by William Butler Yeats
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
- William Gilmore Simms – William Gilmore Simms
- Ode–Shell The Old City! Shell! by William Gilmore Simms
- Morris Island by William Gilmore Simms
- Hast Thou A Song For A Flower by William Gilmore Simms
- Flight To Nature by William Gilmore Simms
- Blessings On Children by William Gilmore Simms
- Hymn To Woden by William Lisle Bowles
- Hope, An Allegorical Sketch by William Lisle Bowles
- Epitaph On H. Walmsley, Esq., by William Lisle Bowles
- Elegy Written At Hotwells, Bristol by William Lisle Bowles
- Distant View Of England From The Sea by William Lisle Bowles
- Death Of Captain Cooke, by William Lisle Bowles
- Battle Of Corruna by William Lisle Bowles
- Avenue In Savernake Forest by William Lisle Bowles
- At Tynemouth Priory by William Lisle Bowles
- At Oxford by William Lisle Bowles
- At Malvern by William Lisle Bowles
- At Dover by William Lisle Bowles
- Approach Of Summer by William Lisle Bowles
- Abba Thule’s Lament For His Son Prince Le Boo by William Lisle Bowles
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.