W.B. Yeats (1865–1939). Responsibilities and Other Poems. 1916.
17. The Player Queen
(Song from an Unfinished Play)M
‘How young it is, how young!’
And made a golden cradle
That on a willow swung.
‘When I was brought to bed,’
And all the while her needle pulled
The gold and silver thread.
And made a golden gown,
And wept because she had dreamt that I
Was born to wear a crown.
‘I heard a sea-mew cry,
And saw a flake of the yellow foam
That dropped upon my thigh.’
The gold into my hair,
And dream that I should carry
The golden top of care?