On the Downs, in the Weald, on the Marshes,
I heard the Old Gods say:
ยHere come Very Many People:
ยWe must go away.
ยThey take our land to delight in,
ยBut their delight destroys.
ยThey flay the turf from the sheep-walk.
ยThey load the Denes with noise.
ยThey burn coal in the woodland.
ยThey seize the oast and the mill.
ยThey camp beside Our dew-ponds.
ยThey mar the clean-flanked hill.
ยThey string a clamorous Magic
ยTo fence their souls from thought,
ยTill Our deep-breathed Oaks are silent,
ยAnd Our muttering Downs tell nought.
ยThey comfort themselves with neighbours.
ยThey cannot bide alone.
ยIt shall be best for their doings
ยWhen We Old Gods are gone.ย
Farewell to the Downs and the Marshes,
And the Weald and the Forest known
Before there were Very Many People,
And the Old Gods had gone!
