<html xmlns:tei="http://www.tei-c.org/ns/1.0"><body><h1 align="center" class="head">A Ride in France</h1><p class="byline"> "O. C. PLATOON" <br xmlns:exist="http://exist.sourceforge.net/NS/exist" xmlns:html="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40"/><span class="smallcaps">IN The Manchester (England) Guardian</span></p><div class="stanza"><p class="line">TROTTING the roan horse </p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Over the meadows, </p><p class="line">Purple of thistles,</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Purple of clover;</p><p class="line">Over the clay-brown path,</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">All through the grass-lands,</p><p class="line">Glory of meadow flowers,</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Over! Come over!</p></div><div class="stanza"><p class="line">On to the highway winding o'er the hill,</p><p class="line">White willow-bordered, grassy--banked;</p><p class="line">On through a village ruined and broken.</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:%">Grass grows in the rubble-heaps, </p><p class="line" style="text-indent:%">Poppies fill the courtyards, </p><p class="line" style="text-indent:%">Swallows build in broken walls,</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:%">And everything is still.</p></div><p class="line" style="text-indent:%"></p><div class="stanza"><p class="line">While at the corner-walk, O horse of mine,</p><p class="line">A Christ hangs from a crucifix beside a broken shrine.</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:%"></p><p class="line">On to the path at the side of the white road, </p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Cantering, galloping, breasting the rise;</p><p class="line">Any road, every road, each is the right road, </p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Facing the east, the sun in my eyes.</p></div><p class="line" style="text-indent:%"></p><div class="stanza"><p class="line">Trotting the roan horse </p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Over the meadows,</p><p class="line">Purple of thistles,</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Purple of clover;</p><p class="line">Over the clay--brown path,</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Back through the grass--lands,</p><p class="line">All through the meadow flowers;</p><p class="line" style="text-indent:5%">Over! Come over!</p></div></body></html> · Great War