H .
0 . Meredith .
We lived
and
watched
the
children
grow
With
vermin
in
their
hair ,
With
hollow
cheeks , with
foreheads
low ,
With
eyes
that
looked
despair ;
One
after
one
they
learned
at school
That honesty
will
pay ;
One
after
one
they
found
the rule
Broken
upon
life's way .
And
now
they
brought their shillings
back ,
Their
shillings
five
or
seven ,
And hope
once
more
had
found
a
crack
To
shine
on
us
from
Heaven .
Our
spending
grew
and
counted
up
To
two
pounds
ten
a week ;
Each
body
had
daily
bite
and
sup,
And
each
grew
almost
sleek .
It couldn 't last, the
children
moved
And made
their
scattered
beds ,
Their mother
died
and
I
had
proved
Too
hard my vigour 's
threads.
With
hair
gone
grey
and
muscle
stiff ,
Eye
dim
and
hearing
slow
,
I
stand
at
fifty
on
the
cliff
And
feel
the surf
below
.
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