
by James Stephens (1882 - 1950)
Barbarians
Language: English
I pause beside the stream and hear The waters talking all the way ; If I had a proper ear I could tell you what they say. The lovely tree against the sky, Which the first sun rests upon, Has a message for my eye, If I had a proper one. On the heath I met a wind, It whispered to me as I stood ; If I had a proper mind I could answer, so I could. I am deaf and dumb and blind, No reply can I invent When a stream, a tree, a wind Asks am I intelligent.
Authorship:
- by James Stephens (1882 - 1950), "Barbarians", appears in Songs from the Clay, first published 1915 [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 Walter Byron Mourant (1910 - 1995), "Barbarians", copyright © 1963 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-01-22
Line count: 16
Word count: 101