SELECTED VERSE

Waikato Times, Volume 127, Issue 21230, 28 September 1940, Page 11

SELECTED VERSE

WIND IN THE CORN

The corn shut out the world And made one of its own, And the wind rattled the curled Dry blades, and the husked ears, thrown Against the bang-board, sounded far away . . . One glance, straight up, had shown A strip of sky, a goose-wedge pointing south. The waggon seemed to sway With the wind, and all around Was the wind’s sound Beating against the breath and holding words in the mouth. The boy looked at the man And rubbed at dust in his eyes And then husked on—with a plan To find the wider skies, Like wild geese going over . . . going away. His voice came with surprise. “The waggon is like a ship in a windy sea!” And his father turned to say, “It is going straight ahead!” And then he said, “ You think of a lot of things . . . that used to trouble me.” —Glenn Ward Dresbach “

SENTINELS

In bright and serried ranks, their sole Duty to stand up straight and tall, These trusty hollyhocks patrol Our friendly cottage wall. One with a free and tranquil sky, They mark no militant frontier, Blooming as though to testify That peace has dwelling here. —Helen Frith Stickner.

WORLD

Let me beware of the word that too readily, too proudly springs from the heart pledged to particular air, to a single speech. Over-long has ground been severed from ground by passionate song, and far over-long substantiation for self been found in the glorifying of selfhood’s soil. To the nature and not the name of things let me be loyal: let me try at this hour to remember that no bird sings, 'in fealty, to one plot of sky.