Hunt and Lee, comps. The Book of the Sonnet. 1867.
XV. After Visiting the Field of WaterlooWilliam Wordsworth (17701850)
A
Of rainbow colors,—one whose port was bold,
Whose overburdened hand could scarcely hold
The glittering crowns and garlands which it brought,
Hovered in air above the far-famed spot.
She vanished, leaving prospect blank and cold
Of wind-swept corn that wide around us rolled
In dreary billows, wood, and meagre cot,
And monuments that soon must disappear;
Yet a dread local recompense we found;
While glory seemed betrayed, while patriot zeal
Sank in our hearts, we felt as men should feel
With such vast hoards of hidden carnage near;
And horror breathing from the silent ground.