Page 163 - 8th-language-english-2

I stopped to watch a man strike at the trunk,
Of a tree grown strong through many centuries.
His quick axe sharp and glittering, struck deep,
And yellow chips went spinning in the air.
Not to be republished

And I remember how I liked the sight
Of poise and rhythm as the bright axe swung.
A man who fells a tree makes people watch,
©KTBS
for glory seems to crowd upon the axe.

I know the answer to the chance reproach:
How old the tree was, and how dangerous,
How it might fall, how timber in a stack
Had more good in it than a growing tree.

But I saw death cut down a thousand men
In that tall lovely legacy of wood.
glossary :

strike : deliver or inflict a blow on
trunk : the main stem of a tree as distinct from its
branches

glittering : shining
spin : turn or cause [a person or thing] to turn round
sight : view, scene

poise : stable and balanced state

swing : move or cause to move with a curving motion
glory : fame, praise
reproach : blame

timber : wood prepared for use in building, carpentry etc.

stack : a pile or heap
legacy : something handed down by predecessors,
a gift left by will

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