The gallows in my garden, people say,
\nIs new and neat and adequately tall;
\nI tie the noose on in a knowing way
\nAs one that knots his necktie for a ball;
\nBut just as all the neighbours–on the wall–
\nAre drawing a long breath to shout “Hurray!”
\nThe strangest whim has seized me. . . . After all
\nI think I will not hang myself to-day.<\/p>\n
To-morrow is the time I get my pay–
\nMy uncle’s sword is hanging in the hall–
\nI see a little cloud all pink and grey–
\nPerhaps the rector’s mother will not call– I fancy that I heard from Mr. Gall
\nThat mushrooms could be cooked another way–
\nI never read the works of Juvenal–
\nI think I will not hang myself to-day.<\/p>\n
The world will have another washing-day;
\nThe decadents decay; the pedants pall;
\nAnd H.G. Wells has found that children play,
\nAnd Bernard Shaw discovered that they squall,
\nRationalists are growing rational–
\nAnd through thick woods one finds a stream astray
\nSo secret that the very sky seems small–
\nI think I will not hang myself to-day.<\/p>\n
ENVOI<\/strong><\/p>\n Prince, I can hear the trumpet of Germinal, Chesterton deals lightly with his own depression, helping us deal with ours<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[143],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6490","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-poet"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nThe tumbrils toiling up the terrible way;
\nEven to-day your royal head may fall,
\nI think I will not hang myself to-day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"