We Then Come To The Sheep, "For Giles Was Shepherd Too," And
Here There Is More Evidence Of His Observant Eye When He
Describes The Character Of The Animals, Also In What Follows
About The Young Lambs, Which Forms The Best Passage In This
Part.
I remember that, when first reading it, being then
little past boyhood myself, how much I was struck by
The vivid
beautiful description of a crowd of young lambs challenging
each other to a game, especially at a spot where they have a
mound or hillock for a playground which takes them with a sort
of goatlike joyous madness. For how often in those days I
used to ride out to where the flock of one to two thousand
sheep were scattered on the plain, to sit on my pony and watch
the glad romps of the little lambs with keenest delight! I
cannot but think that Bloomfield's fidelity to nature in such
pictures as these does or should count for something in
considering his work. He concludes:-
Adown the slope, then up the hillock climb,
Where every mole-hill is a bed of thyme,
Then panting stop; yet scarcely can refrain;
A bird, a leaf, will set them off again;
Or if a gale with strength unusual blow,
Scattering the wild-briar roses into snow,
Their little limbs increasing efforts try,
Like a torn rose the fair assemblage fly.
This image of the wind-scattered petals of the wild rose reminds
him bitterly of the destined end of these joyous young lives - his
white-fleeced little fellow-mortals.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 274 of 298
Words from 75255 to 75518
of 82198
