Stephen Crane Poems

Black riders came from the sea.
There was clang and clang of spear and shield,
And clash and clash of hoof and heel,
Wild shouts and the wave of hair
...

I HEARD thee laugh,
And in this merriment
I defined the measure of my pain;
I knew that I was alone,
...

Once, I knew a fine song,
- It is true, believe me -
It was all of birds,
And I held them in a basket;
...

I looked here;
I looked there;
Nowhere could I see my love.
And -- this time --
...

A slant of sun on dull brown walls,
A forgotten sky of bashful blue.

Toward God a mighty hymn,
...

I was in the darkness;
I could not see my words
Nor the wishes of my heart.
Then suddenly there was a great light --
...

Charity thou art a lie,
A toy of women,
A pleasure of certain men.
In the presence of justice,
...

Fast rode the knight
With spurs, hot and reeking,
Ever waving an eager sword,
"To save my lady!"
...

God lay dead in heaven;
Angels sang the hymn of the end;
Purple winds went moaning,
Their wings drip-dripping
...

Behold, from the land of the farther suns
I returned.
And I was in a reptile-swarming place,
Peopled, otherwise, with grimaces,
...