THE FAIRY RINGS
Here on the greensward, ’mid the old mole-hills,
Where ploughshares never come to hurt
the things
Antiquity hath charge of,—Fear instils
Her footsteps, and the ancient fairy rings
Shine black, and fresh, and round—the gipsy’s fire,
Left yesternight, scarce leaves more proof
behind
Of midnight sports, when they from day retire,
Than in these rings my fancy seems to find
Of fairy revels; and I stoop to see
Their little footmarks in each circling
stain,
And think I hear them, in their summer glee,
Wishing for night, that they may dance
again;
Till shepherds’ tales, told ’neath the leaning tree
While shunning showers, seem Bible-truths to me—
Aye, almost Scripture-truths!—My poorer mind
Grows into worship of these mysteries,
While Fancy doth her ancient scrolls unbind
That Time hath hid in countless centuries;
And when the morning’s mist doth leave behind
The fungus round, and mushroom white as
snow,
They strike me, to romantic moods inclined,
As shadows of things modeled long ago:
Halls, palaces, and marble columned domes,
And modem shades of fairies’ ancient homes,
Erected in these rings and pastures still,
For midnight balls and revelry; and then
Left like the ruins of all ancient skill,
To wake the wonder of mere common men.
John Clare
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