17 MARCH 1900, Page 11

POETRY.

VOX MILITANTIS.

ON the wide veldt, beneath the vaster sky, The graves of battling Boer and Briton lie. By day the sunlight watches o'er their sleep, By night the stars their solemn vigil keep.

Cold, calm, and brilliant, from that awful height They ask : "Were ye so weary of the light ? Ours the slow mons, yours the flying day, Why reckless fling its noon and eve away ?"

And lo, the answer : "Nay, but life was sweet, Death a grim horror that we loathed to meet, But Duty spurred us to the foremost place. And Honour beckoned with a shining face."

B. PAUL NEUMAN.