i saw the vision of armies

i saw the vision of armies;

and i saw

as in noiseless dreams

hundreds of battle-flags

borne through the smoke of the battles and pierced with missiles

i saw them

and carried

hither and yon through the smoke

and torn and bloody;

and at last but a few shreds of 'the flags left on the staffs

and the staffs all splintered and broken. i saw battle-corpses

myriads of them

and the white skeletons of young men

i saw them;

i saw the debris and debris of all dead soldiers

but i saw they were not as was thought;

they themselves were fully at rest

they suffered not;

the living remained and suffered

the mother suffered

and the wife and the child and the musing comrade suffered

and the armies that remained suffered.