“My breeches! O my breeches!”

That night I saw them in my dreams,

How changed from what I knew them.

The dews had steeped their faded threads,

The winds had whistled through them;

I saw the wide and ghastly rents

Where demon claws had torn them;

A hole was in their amplest part,

As if an imp had worn them.

I have had many happy years,