Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, ON AN EMPTY CAGE, by LEWIS MORRIS (1833-1907)


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

ON AN EMPTY CAGE, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: The lilacs in the court were sweet
Last Line: Say, was it better to be free?
Subject(s): Freedom; Liberty


THE lilacs in the court were sweet,
The high sun climbed to golden noon,
And blithely down the tree-fringed street
The sparrows chirped a merry tune.

Whom thou, a golden darling dear,
Didst greet with long roulades and trills,
Like those that charm the list'ning ear
Which some high-pitched soprano thrills.

Mean folk indeed of husky throat
And humble garb; not theirs as thine
The graceful form, the amber coat,
The sweet spontaneous fancies fine.

But thou wert prisoned, they were free.
Though thine the never-failing seed,
The tepid bath, the fresh-plucked weed,
'Twas, oh! with those gay bards to be.

Ay! tho' black monsters fiery-eyed
Amid the thick-leaved shades might hide,
And, noiseless, pounce and snatch away
To instant death the helpless prey.

'Twas freedom that thou wouldst, not life,
When boldly through the open door
Thy weak wings fluttered to the strife,
And weal and ease were thine no more.

Thy girlish mistress stood in tears,
And all the summer evening long
Strained weary eyes and watching ears
To see thy plume and catch thy song.

In vain upon the balcony
Thy old home welcomed, opened wide;
Our grief, our calls thou didst deride;
Thou wouldst not heed, thou wouldst be free.

Nay, once thou didst flash by again,
While after thee that lawless crowd
With vulgar chirpings coarsely loud
Mocked thy fine operatic strain.

Then fell the night, and all was still,
And, when the morning dawned, no more
Thy waking note our ears might fill,
Tho' still we kept the open door.

And thou, where art thou? Did swift fate
Snatch thee? A parable to me,
Thy song, thy flight, thy open gate!
Say, was it better to be free?





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