Interlude - A Dirge Of Joy
Henry Lawson
Oh! this is a joyful dirge, my friends, and this is a hymn of praise;
And this is a clamour of Victory, and a pćan of Ancient Days.
It isn\'t a Yelp of the Battlefield; nor a Howl of the Bounding Wave,
But an ode to the Things that the War has Killed, and a lay of the Festive Grave.
\'Tis a triolet of the Tomb, you bet, and a whoop because of Despair,
And it\'s sung as I stand on my hoary head and wave my legs in the air!