John Reed

To Lincoln Steffens

Somewhere I read a strange, old, rusty taleSmelling of war; most curiously namedThe Mad Recreant Knight of the West.Once, you have read, the round world brimmed with hate,Stirred and revolted, flashed unceasinglyFacets of cruel splendor. And the strongHarried the weak ...Long past, long past, praise God,In these fair, peaceful, happy days.

Somewhere I read a strange, old, rusty tale

Smelling of war; most curiously named

The Mad Recreant Knight of the West.

Once, you have read, the round world brimmed with hate,

Stirred and revolted, flashed unceasingly

Facets of cruel splendor. And the strong

Harried the weak ...

Long past, long past, praise God,

In these fair, peaceful, happy days.

The Tale:Eastward the Huns break border,Surf on a rotten dyke;They have murdered the Eastern Warder(His head on a pike).“Arm thee, arm thee, my father!Swift rides the Goddes-bane,And the high nobles gatherOn the plain!”“O blind world-wrath!” cried Sangar,“Greatly I killed in youth;I dreamed men had done with angerThrough Goddes truth!”Smiled the boy then in faint scorn,Hard with the battle-thrill;“Arm thee, loud calls the war-hornAnd shrill!”He has bowed to the voice stentorian,Sick with thought of the grave—He has called for his battered morionAnd his scarred glaive.On the boy’s helm a gloveOf the Duke’s daughter—In his eyes splendor of loveAnd slaughter.Hideous the Hun advancesLike a sea-tide on sand;Unyielding, the haughty lancesMake dauntless stand.And ever amid the clangor,Butchering Hun and Hun,With sorrowful face rides SangarAnd his son....Broken is the wild invader(Sullied, the whole world’s fountains);They have penned the murderous raiderWith his back to the mountains.Yet though what had been meadIs now a bloody lake,Still drink swords where men bleed,Nor slake.Now leaps one into the press—The hell ’twixt front and front—Sangar, bloody and torn of dress(He has borne the brunt).“Hold!” cries, “Peace! God’s peace!Heed ye what Christus says—”And the wild battle gave surceaseIn amaze.“When will ye cast out hate?Brothers—my mad, mad brothers—Mercy, ere it be too late,These are sons of your mothers.For sake of Him who died on Tree,Who of all creatures, loved the least—”“Blasphemer! God of Battles, He!”Cried a priest.“Peace!” and with his two handsHas broken in twain his glaive.Weaponless, smiling he stands—(Coward or brave?)“Traitor!” howls one rank, “Think yeThe Hun be our brother?”And “Fear we to die, craven, think ye?”The other.Then sprang his son to his side,His lips with slaver were wet,For he had felt how men diedAnd was lustful yet;(On his bent helm a gloveOf the Duke’s daughter,In his eyes splendor of loveAnd slaughter)—Shouting, “Father no more of mine!Shameful old man—abhorr’d,First traitor of all our line!”Up the two-handed sword.He smote—fell Sangar—and thenScreaming, red, the boy ranStraight at the foe, and againHell began....Oh, there was joy in Heaven when Sangar came.Sweet Mary wept, and bathed and bound his wounds,And God the Father healed him of despair,And Jesus gripped his hand, and laughed and laughed....

The Tale:

Eastward the Huns break border,Surf on a rotten dyke;They have murdered the Eastern Warder(His head on a pike).“Arm thee, arm thee, my father!Swift rides the Goddes-bane,And the high nobles gatherOn the plain!”

Eastward the Huns break border,

Surf on a rotten dyke;

They have murdered the Eastern Warder

(His head on a pike).

“Arm thee, arm thee, my father!

Swift rides the Goddes-bane,

And the high nobles gather

On the plain!”

“O blind world-wrath!” cried Sangar,“Greatly I killed in youth;I dreamed men had done with angerThrough Goddes truth!”Smiled the boy then in faint scorn,Hard with the battle-thrill;“Arm thee, loud calls the war-hornAnd shrill!”

“O blind world-wrath!” cried Sangar,

“Greatly I killed in youth;

I dreamed men had done with anger

Through Goddes truth!”

Smiled the boy then in faint scorn,

Hard with the battle-thrill;

“Arm thee, loud calls the war-horn

And shrill!”

He has bowed to the voice stentorian,Sick with thought of the grave—He has called for his battered morionAnd his scarred glaive.On the boy’s helm a gloveOf the Duke’s daughter—In his eyes splendor of loveAnd slaughter.

He has bowed to the voice stentorian,

Sick with thought of the grave—

He has called for his battered morion

And his scarred glaive.

On the boy’s helm a glove

Of the Duke’s daughter—

In his eyes splendor of love

And slaughter.

Hideous the Hun advancesLike a sea-tide on sand;Unyielding, the haughty lancesMake dauntless stand.And ever amid the clangor,Butchering Hun and Hun,With sorrowful face rides SangarAnd his son....

Hideous the Hun advances

Like a sea-tide on sand;

Unyielding, the haughty lances

Make dauntless stand.

And ever amid the clangor,

Butchering Hun and Hun,

With sorrowful face rides Sangar

And his son....

Broken is the wild invader(Sullied, the whole world’s fountains);They have penned the murderous raiderWith his back to the mountains.Yet though what had been meadIs now a bloody lake,Still drink swords where men bleed,Nor slake.

Broken is the wild invader

(Sullied, the whole world’s fountains);

They have penned the murderous raider

With his back to the mountains.

Yet though what had been mead

Is now a bloody lake,

Still drink swords where men bleed,

Nor slake.

Now leaps one into the press—The hell ’twixt front and front—Sangar, bloody and torn of dress(He has borne the brunt).“Hold!” cries, “Peace! God’s peace!Heed ye what Christus says—”And the wild battle gave surceaseIn amaze.

Now leaps one into the press—

The hell ’twixt front and front—

Sangar, bloody and torn of dress

(He has borne the brunt).

“Hold!” cries, “Peace! God’s peace!

Heed ye what Christus says—”

And the wild battle gave surcease

In amaze.

“When will ye cast out hate?Brothers—my mad, mad brothers—Mercy, ere it be too late,These are sons of your mothers.For sake of Him who died on Tree,Who of all creatures, loved the least—”“Blasphemer! God of Battles, He!”Cried a priest.

“When will ye cast out hate?

Brothers—my mad, mad brothers—

Mercy, ere it be too late,

These are sons of your mothers.

For sake of Him who died on Tree,

Who of all creatures, loved the least—”

“Blasphemer! God of Battles, He!”

Cried a priest.

“Peace!” and with his two handsHas broken in twain his glaive.Weaponless, smiling he stands—(Coward or brave?)“Traitor!” howls one rank, “Think yeThe Hun be our brother?”And “Fear we to die, craven, think ye?”The other.

“Peace!” and with his two hands

Has broken in twain his glaive.

Weaponless, smiling he stands—

(Coward or brave?)

“Traitor!” howls one rank, “Think ye

The Hun be our brother?”

And “Fear we to die, craven, think ye?”

The other.

Then sprang his son to his side,His lips with slaver were wet,For he had felt how men diedAnd was lustful yet;(On his bent helm a gloveOf the Duke’s daughter,In his eyes splendor of loveAnd slaughter)—

Then sprang his son to his side,

His lips with slaver were wet,

For he had felt how men died

And was lustful yet;

(On his bent helm a glove

Of the Duke’s daughter,

In his eyes splendor of love

And slaughter)—

Shouting, “Father no more of mine!Shameful old man—abhorr’d,First traitor of all our line!”Up the two-handed sword.He smote—fell Sangar—and thenScreaming, red, the boy ranStraight at the foe, and againHell began....

Shouting, “Father no more of mine!

Shameful old man—abhorr’d,

First traitor of all our line!”

Up the two-handed sword.

He smote—fell Sangar—and then

Screaming, red, the boy ran

Straight at the foe, and again

Hell began....

Oh, there was joy in Heaven when Sangar came.Sweet Mary wept, and bathed and bound his wounds,And God the Father healed him of despair,And Jesus gripped his hand, and laughed and laughed....

Oh, there was joy in Heaven when Sangar came.

Sweet Mary wept, and bathed and bound his wounds,

And God the Father healed him of despair,

And Jesus gripped his hand, and laughed and laughed....

Back to Index Next