27 MARCH 1953, Page 40

Old Men at Peking

Graybeards their long faded gowns worn lightly Take the air of early evening as it cools The foot of the Tartar Wall. A few climb To stand among the rubble where ten men have marched abreast And look with level gaze Beyond the confines. All of them undo Cloth wrappings from the cages in their hands, That the direct last daylight may evoke From each bird its song. W. A. B. GARDENER.