The complete poetical works and letters of John Keats/On hearing the Bagpipe and seeing 'The Stranger' played at Inverary
On hearing the Bag-pipe and seeing 'The Stranger' played at Inverary
'On entering Inverary,' Keats writes to his brother Tom, July 18, 1818, 'we saw a Play Bill. Brown was knocked up from new shoes—so I went to the Barn alone where I saw the Stranger accompanied by a Bag-pipe. There they went on about interesting creaters and human nater till the Curtain fell and then came the Bag-pipe. When Mrs. Haller fainted down went the Curtain and out came the Bag-pipe—at the heartrending, shoemending reconciliation the Piper blew amain. I never read or saw this play before; not the Bag-pipe nor the wretched players themselves were little in comparison with it—thank heaven it has been scoffed at lately almost to a fashion.'
Of late two dainties were before me plac'd
Sweet, holy, pure, sacred and innocent,
From the ninth sphere to me benignly sent
That Gods might know my own particular taste:
First the soft Bag-pipe mourn'd with zealous haste,
The Stranger next with head on bosom bent
Sigh'd; rueful again the piteous Bag-pipe went,
Again the Stranger sighings fresh did waste.
O Bag-pipe, thou didst steal my heart away—
O Stranger, thou my nerves from Pipe didst charm—
O Bag-pipe thou didst re-assert thy sway—
Again thou, Stranger, gav'st me fresh alarm—
Alas! I could not choose. Ah! my poor heart
Mum chance art thou with both oblig'd to part.