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Part II A Game of Chess The Chair she sat
in, like a burnished throne, Glowed on the
marble, where the glass Held up by
standards wrought with fruited vines From which a
golden Cupidon peeped out (Another hid his
eyes behind his wing) Doubled the
flames of sevenbranched candelabra Reflecting light
upon the table as The glitter of
her jewels rose to meet it, From satin cases
poured in rich profusion; In vials of ivory
and coloured glass Unstoppered,
lurked her strange synthetic perfumes, Unguent, powdered, or
liquid--troubled, confused And drowned the
sense in odours; stirred by the air That freshened
from the window, these ascended In fattening the
prolonged candle-flames, Flung their smoke
into the laquearia, Stirring the
pattern on the coffered
ceiling. Huge sea-wood fed
with copper Burned green and
orange, framed by the coloured stone, In which sad
light a carved dolphin swam. Above the antique
mantel was displayed As though a
window gave upon the sylvan
scene The change of
Philomel, by the barbarous king So rudely forced;
yet there the nightingale Filled all the
desert with inviolable voice And still she cried,
and still the world pursues, 'Jug Jug' to
dirty ears. And other
withered stumps of time Were told upon
the walls; staring forms Leaned out,
leaning, hushing the room enclosed. Footsteps
shuffled on the stair. Under the
firelight, under the brush, her hair Spread out in
fiery points Glowed into
words, then would be savagely still. 'My nerves are
bad to-night. Yes, bad. Stay with me. 'Speak to me. Why
do you never speak? Speak. 'What are you
thinking of? What thinking? What? 'I never know
what you are thinking. Think.' I think we are in
rats' alley Where the dead
men lost their bones. 'What is that
noise?' The
wind under the door. 'What is that
noise now? What is the wind doing?' Nothing
again nothing. 'Do
'You know
nothing? Do you see nothing? Do you remember 'Nothing?' I
remember Those are pearls
that were his eyes. 'Are you alive,
or not? Is there nothing in your head?' But O O O O that
Shakespeherian Rag-- It's so elegant So intelligent 'What shall I do
now? What shall I do?' 'I shall rush out
as I am, and walk the street 'With my hair
down, so. What shall we do to-morrow? 'What shall we
ever do?' The
hot water at ten. And if it rains,
a closed car at four. And we shall play
a game of chess, Pressing lidless
eyes and waiting for a knock upon the door. When Lil's
husband got demobbed, I said-- I didn't mince my
words, I said to her myself, HURRY UP PLEASE
IT'S TIME Now Albert's
coming back, make yourself a bit smart. He'll want to
know what you done with that money he gave you To get yourself
some teeth. He did, I was
there. You have them all
out, Lil, and get a nice set, He said, I swear,
I can't bear to look at you. And no more can't
I, I said, and think of poor Albert, He's been in the
army four years, he wants a good time, And if you don't
give it him, there's others will, I said. Oh is there, she
said. Something o' that, I said. Then I'll know
who to thank, she said, and give me a straight look. HURRY UP PLEASE
IT'S TIME If you don't like
it you can get on with it, I said. Others can pick
and choose if you can't. But if Albert
makes off, it won't be for lack of telling. You ought to be
ashamed, I said, to look so antique. (And her only
thirty-one.) I can't help it,
she said, pulling a long face, It's them pills I
took, to bring it off, she said. (She's had five
already, and nearly died of young George.) The chemist said it would be all right,
but I've never been the same. You are
a proper fool, I said. Well, if Albert
won't leave you alone, there it is, I said, What you get
married for if you don't want children? HURRY UP PLEASE
IT'S TIME Well, that Sunday
Albert was home, they had a hot gammon, And they asked me
in to dinner, to get the beauty of it hot-- HURRY UP PLEASE
IT'S TIME HURRY UP PLEASE
IT'S TIME Goonight Bill.
Goonight Lou. Goonight May. Goonight. Ta ta. Goonight.
Goonight. Good night,
ladies, good night, sweet ladies, good night, good night
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