Foliage: Various Poems

NIGHT WANDERERS

     They hear the bell of midnight toll,
     And shiver in their flesh and soul;
     They lie on hard, cold wood or stone,
     Iron, and ache in every bone;
     They hate the night: they see no eyes
     Of loved ones in the starlit skies.
     They see the cold, dark water near;
     They dare not take long looks for fear
     They'll fall like those poor birds that see
     A snake's eyes staring at their tree.
     Some of them laugh, half-mad; and some
     All through the chilly night are dumb;

     And cough like giants, deep and hoarse.