Walter Murdoch (1874–1970). The Oxford Book of Australasian Verse. 1918.
By Agnes L. Storrie58 . Twenty Gallons of Sleep
M
That somewhere or other you keep
In your vasty cellars, O wealthy one,
Twenty gallons of sleep.
Dreamless, and deep, and mild,
Of the excellent brand you used to keep
When I was a little child.
Your clarets and ports of Spain,
The liquid gold of your famous hock,
And your matchless dry champagne.
I’ve drunk both well and deep;
Then measure me out, O merchant mine,
Twenty gallons of sleep.
Of the innocent, baby kind,
When the angels flutter their wings aloft
And the pillow with down is lined.
Of every vintage pressed;
If I’ve felt the sting of my honey bees,
I’ve taken it with the rest.
As I sowed I was bound to reap;
Then measure me out, O merchant mine,
Twenty gallons of sleep.