Captain R.V. Agius, killed October 26th, 1917
26th October 1927
Found in the prayer book of Alfred Agius
I wonder did the rain beat down that day,
Ten years ago, the last he was to see?
And did this gusty wind howl mournfully
Across the swamp where his young body lay?
His earth returned to earth, but never clay
Could clasp his rainbow spirit. Swift and free
It calls across the arching years to me,
And we keep tryst beside the Eternal Way.
I grieve not for the days we should have shared,
Of other griefs and hopes I have my meed
No cycle of the months could further speed
The memory of all he did and dared.
I lack no love that he might have bestowed,
His love immortalised upon the wing
Nor stained nor drooped by earthly revelling
Still beckons me, that halt beside the road.
The words he would have said my lips must say,
The message, and the answer, I must give,
I soothe the smart where’er his memories live,
The tears inevitable, I wipe away.
For thy spent body, Dick, share mine with me!
My heart to beat for both, my pulse to thrill
With loyalties that bind our spirit still;
And death may vaunt his empty victory.