CECIL CHESTERTON.
CONTENTS
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
| [The King’s Bride] | to face [page 18] |
| [Truce] | ““ [43] |
| [The Horseman] | ““ [57] |
A SONG OF THE OPEN ROAD
THE old Earth-Mother calls us,
And we hearken unto her cry,
For we dare not question her bidding
Lest we sicken and droop and die.
The spirit of change is burning
As a fever in heart and brain.
In the ranks of the Free Companions
We must take to the road again.
We have lain in the tents of the Dwellers;
We have ta’en of their drink and food;
We, that were weary, have slumbered,
Have slumbered and found rest good.
We have kissed the lips of their maidens,
From their kin we have chosen our brides;
But the summons has come from the Mother,
And no one who hears it abides.