Page:The witch-maid & other verses (1914).djvu/65

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BURNING OFF



BURNING OFF

They're burning off at the Rampadells,
    The tawny flames uprise
With greedy licking around the trees:
    The hot breath sears our eyes

From cores already grown furnace-hot;
    The logs are well alight;
We fling more wood where the flameless heart
    Is throbbing red and white.

The fire bites deep in that beating heart,
    The creamy smoke-wreaths ooze
From cracks and knot-holes along the trunk
    To melt in greys and blues.

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