by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936)
The deserter
Language: English
"What sound awakened me, I wonder, For now 'tis dumb." "Wheels on the road most like, or thunder: Lie down; 'twas not the drum." Toil at sea and two in haven And trouble far; Fly, crow, away, and follow, raven, And all that croaks for war. "Hark, I heard the bugle crying, And where am I? My friends are up and dressed and dying, And I will dress and die." "Oh love is rare and trouble plenty And carrion cheap, And daylight dear at four-and-twenty: Lie down again and sleep." "Reach me my belt and leave your prattle: Your hour is gone; But my day is the day of battle, And that comes dawning on. "They mow the field of man in season: Farewell, my fair, And, call it truth or call it treason, Farewell the vows that were." "Ay, false heart, forsake me lightly: 'Tis like the brave. They find no bed to joy in rightly Before they find the grave. "Their love is for their own undoing, And east and west They scour about the world a-wooing The bullet to their breast. "Sail away the ocean over, Oh sail away, And lie there with your leaden lover For ever and a day."
Text Authorship:
- by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936), "The deserter", appears in Last Poems, no. 13, first published 1922 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by (Agnes) Elisabeth Lutyens (1906 - 1983), "The deserter", 1934-6, from Six songs [text not verified]
- by Daniel Gregory Mason (1873 - 1953), "The deserter", published 1927 [soli, chorus, and orchestra], from Songs of the Countryside [text not verified]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-08-18
Line count: 36
Word count: 204