THE LAGGARD KNIGHT

            TOO late! The mighty dragon’s crest of gold
                Lies cloven on the cavern’s sparry floor;
                And flameless now the throat whence never more
            Shall blighting fume on blast of fire be rolled.
            But he, my Friend, lies lifeless—in his hold
                The venomed tongue his dying valour tore
                For triumph’s token—with the monster’s gore
            Sanguine, and stifled in its scaly fold.
            And diamond and emerald lie blent
                The ruby and the amethyst amid;
                And treasury is mine more opulent
            Than catacomb e’er stored, or pyramid;
                But, ah! the deed illustrious I meant
                Rebukes the deed inglorious I did.

                                                                                                R. GARNETT