THE ARMY OF A DREAM
SONG OF THE OLD GUARD“And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft and its branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be the same.“And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick. Their knops and their branches shall be the same.”—Exodus.“Know this, my brethren, Heaven is clearAnd all the clouds are gone—The Proper Sort shall flourish now,Good times are coming on”—The evil that was threatened lateTo all of our degree,Hath passed in discord and debate,And,Hey then up go we!A common people strove in vainTo shame us unto toil,But they are spent and we remain,And we shall share the spoilAccording to our several needsAs Beauty shall decree,As Age ordains or Birth concedes,And,Hey then up go we!And they that with accursed zealOur Service would amend,Shall own the odds and come to heelEre worse befall their endFor though no naked word be wroteYet plainly shall they seeWhat pinneth Orders to their coat,And,Hey then up go we!Our doorways that, in time of fear,We opened overwideShall softly close from year to yearTill all be purified;For though no fluttering fan be heardNor chaff be seen to flee—The Lord shall winnow the Lord’s Preferred—And,Hey then up go we!Our altars which the heathen brakeShall rankly smoke anew,And anise, mint, and cummin takeTheir dread and sovereign due,Whereby the buttons of our tradeShall all restored beWith curious work in gilt and braid,And,Hey then up go we!Then come, my brethren, and prepareThe candlesticks and bells,The scarlet, brass, and badger’s hairWherein our Honour dwells,And straitly fence and strictly keepThe Ark’s integrityTill Armageddon break our sleep …And,Hey then up go we!
“And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft and its branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be the same.
“And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick. Their knops and their branches shall be the same.”—Exodus.
“Know this, my brethren, Heaven is clearAnd all the clouds are gone—The Proper Sort shall flourish now,Good times are coming on”—The evil that was threatened lateTo all of our degree,Hath passed in discord and debate,And,Hey then up go we!A common people strove in vainTo shame us unto toil,But they are spent and we remain,And we shall share the spoilAccording to our several needsAs Beauty shall decree,As Age ordains or Birth concedes,And,Hey then up go we!And they that with accursed zealOur Service would amend,Shall own the odds and come to heelEre worse befall their endFor though no naked word be wroteYet plainly shall they seeWhat pinneth Orders to their coat,And,Hey then up go we!Our doorways that, in time of fear,We opened overwideShall softly close from year to yearTill all be purified;For though no fluttering fan be heardNor chaff be seen to flee—The Lord shall winnow the Lord’s Preferred—And,Hey then up go we!Our altars which the heathen brakeShall rankly smoke anew,And anise, mint, and cummin takeTheir dread and sovereign due,Whereby the buttons of our tradeShall all restored beWith curious work in gilt and braid,And,Hey then up go we!Then come, my brethren, and prepareThe candlesticks and bells,The scarlet, brass, and badger’s hairWherein our Honour dwells,And straitly fence and strictly keepThe Ark’s integrityTill Armageddon break our sleep …And,Hey then up go we!