The bearer of evu tidIngs, When he was halfway there, RClnembered that evil tidings Were a dangerous thing to bear. So when he came to the parting Where one road led to the throne And one went off to the mountains And into the wild unknown, He took the one to the mountains. He ran through the Vale of Cashmere, He ran through the rhododendrons Till he came to the land of Pamir. And there in a precipice valley A girl of his age he met Took him home to her bower, Or he might be running yet. She taught him her tribe's religion: How ages and ages SInce A princess en route from China To marry a Persian prince Had been found with child; and her army Had come to a troubled halt. And though a god was the father And nobody else at fault, It had seemed discreet to remain there And neIther go on nor back. So they stayed and declared a village There in the land of the Yak. And the child that came of the pnncess Estabhshed a royal line, And lus mandates were gIven heed to Because he was born divIne And that was why there were people On one Himalayan shelf; And the bearer of evIl tidmgs Decided to stay there hImself. At least he had this ill common WIth the race he chose to adopt: They had both of them had theIr reasons For stopping where they had stopped. As for his evil tidings, Belshazzar's overthrow, Why hurry to tell Belshazzar, What soon enough he would know? | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...EPITAPH FOR A SOLDIER by DAVID IGNATOW WHISPERS OF HEAVENLY DEATH by WALT WHITMAN MADISON CAWEIN by MARGARET STEELE ANDERSON TO ANNE (2) by GEORGE GORDON BYRON A SCOTCH SONG by THOMAS D'URFEY FAMILIAR GRIEF, INTIMATE JOY by ANNA BUNSTON DE BARY HIS LORDSHIP'S INVITATION by ROWLAND EYLES EGERTON-WARBURTON |