The wounds are dark and red—
All jagged-red in Blighty:
And untamed hearts are red
Where, stretching bed on bed,
Lies lax each weary head,
In Blighty.
The walls are blank and white—
All fresh and white in Blighty:
And cheeks are gaunt and white,
Where through the endless night
They fight the second fight,
In Blighty.
Outside the skies are blue—
Soft, cloud-flecked blue o’er Blighty
But clear, relentless blue
Of purpose steeled anew
Lies there revealed to you
In every eye in Blighty.
The shades of red an’ white an’ blue
Mean rather more to me an’ you,
Than just parades an’ bands an’ such
And hollerin’ loud an’ talking much.
WHEN NURSE COMES IN.
(Convalescent stage.)
The stories sure are rich and rare,
They’d strike you blind, they’d turn your hair,
They’re dark as coal down in the bin—
Till Nurse comes in.
The language is an awful hue,
Astreak with crimson shades and blue;
’Twould scorch a mammoth’s leather skin—
Till Nurse comes in.
Words run the gamut of the trench—
They beat old Mustard Gas for stench,
They rise with oscillating din—
Till Nurse comes in.
The cussin’s quaint and loud and strong,
Imported stuff, that don’t belong
In dictionaries fat or thin—
Till Nurse comes in.