A moment, and the silent guests
Sat pallid as their dinner vests.
A moment more and, root and branch,
That mansion fell in avalanche,
Story on story, floor on floor,
Roof, wall and window, joist and door,
Dead weight of damnable disaster,
A cataclysm of lath and plaster.
Siloam did not choose a sinner—
All were not builders at the dinner.
Edinburgh: Printed by T. and A. Constable Ltd.