Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE LAST SIGNAL, by THOMAS HARDY


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE LAST SIGNAL, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Silently I footed by an uphill road
Last Line: As with a wave of his hand.
Subject(s): Barnes, William (1801-1886); Poetry & Poets


(11 Oct. 1886 - A Memory of William Barnes)

SILENTLY I footed by an uphill road
That led from my abode to a spot yew-boughed;
Yellowly the sun sloped low down to westward,
And dark was the east with cloud.

Then, amid the shadow of that livid sad east,
Where the light was least, and a gate stood wide,
Something flashed the fire of the sun that was facing it,
Like a brief blaze on that side.

Looking hard and harder I knew what it meant -
The sudden shine sent from the livid east scene;
It meant the west mirrored by the coffin of my friend there,
Turning to the road from his green,

To take his last journey forth - he who in his prime
Trudged so many a time from that gate athwart the land!
Thus a farewell to me he signalled on his grave-way,
As with a wave of his hand.





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net