Oh! Could I but the powers that be
Persuade to listen to my plea
Why cannot God all men combine,
In friendship, trust and love divine?
Why must predominance be sought?
Empires won and battles fought?
With half the world in misery
What purpose then such agony?
Why should not men contented be?
To live at peace on land and sea?
And ending racial dominance,
Give blessed life due prominence?
What use to poor working man
A realm however wide the span?
Just leave him there to dwell in peace
With wife and child ambitions cease.
Does national glory aid his need?
His wants supply; his belly feed?
‘Neath gilded glitter of a lie
Still many vital truths will die.
There sitting by his fireside
Writes wealthy, selfish hot head pride
My comrades we shall never yield
‘Till corpse glut that bloody field.
We'll teach our youth this noble skill
The way to slaughter and to kill
A peace! Ridiculous indeed;
Let's save our self-respect and bleed.
‘Tis blessed duty, he'll persuade
Be sure it's but a masquerade!
What cares he for his fellow kind?
He casts no sorry look behind.
Is there a man of intellect,
Who will uphold this murderous sect?
What of the household dead?
Have deeds and memories thus fled?
The armies march with heads held high
But surely ever wondering why
To question is beyond the means,
Of these poor physical machines.
Oh! Hopeless hope end all fray
To prove to man the safer way
Although his sense may show him how
His vanity will ne'er allow.
By riches, spoils and promised might
Persuaded still the peoples fight
If civilized we're said to be
‘Tis cloak to hide atrocity.
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem