The War Horse

[BrianH]

Although I am familiar with much of the poetry of the first world war. I hadn't come across this tribute to the silent heroes before. Lieutenant Fleming is not renowned for his poetry as some serving officers are and you may think, as I do, that he is greatly influenced by Kipling. I found the poem moving and thought that some on the nforum would like to share it.

Shortly after this poem was received from France by the American Red Star Animal Relief, Lieutenant Fleming was killed in action.


THE WAR HORSE

By Lieutenant L. FLEMING, British Expeditionary Force, France

WHEN the shells are bursting round,
Making craters in the ground,
And the rifle fire's something awful cruel,
When you 'ear them in the night
(My Gawd! it makes you fight!)
An' yer thinks of them poor souls agoing 'ome,
When you 'ear the Sergeant shout
"Get y 'r respirators out,"
Then you looks and sees a cloud of something white.


The gas is coming on
An' yer knows before it's gone
That the 'orse wots with you now won't be by then;
Yer loves him like yer wife
An' yer wants to save 'is life,
But there ain't no respirators, not for them.
I was standing by 'is side
On the night my old 'orse died,
An' I shan't forget 'is looks towards the last.
'E is choking mighty bad,
An' is eyes was looking mad,
An' I seed that--'e--was dying--dying fast.


An' I want to tell yer 'ow
It's the 'orses gets us through,
For they strains their blooming 'earts out when they're pressed.
We was galloping like 'ell
When a bullet 'its old Bill,
I c'd see the blood a-streaming down 'is face,
It 'ad got 'im in the 'ead,
But 'e stuck to it and led
Till we comes to ''Action right,''
An' then 'e fell.


I 'adn't time to choose
I 'ad to cut 'im loose,
For 'e'd done all 'e c'd afore a gun.
When I looks at 'im again
'E was out of all 'is pain,
An' I 'opes 'is soul will rest for wot 'e done.
If it 'adn't been for Bill
We should all 'ave been in 'ell,
For we only got in action just in time.
Ain't it once occurred to you
Wot the 'orses there go through?
They 'elps to win our fight an' does it fine.


When 'is blood is flowing 'ot
From a wound what 'e's just got
An' 'is breath is coming 'ard an' short an' thin.
'E can see the men about,
Getting water dealed out,
But not a drop is brought to comfort 'im;
Tho 'is tongue is parched and dry,
'E can see the water by,
But 'is wounds are left to bleed,
An' 'e can't tell us 'is need,
So 'e's just got to bear 'is pain--an' think.


There are 'eroes big and small,
But the biggest of them all
Is the 'orse wot lays a--dying on the ground.
'E doesn't cause no wars,
An' 'e's only fighting yours,
An' 'e gives 'is life for you without a sound.
'E doesn't get no pay,
Just some oats, and p'r'aps some hay;
If 'e's killed, no one thinks a bit of 'im
"E's just as brave an' good
As any men wot ever stood,
But there's mighty little though or 'elp for 'im.

 

[Epona]

Look back on our struggle for freedom,
Trace our present day's strength to its source;
And you'll find that man's pathway to glory
Is strewn with the bones of a horse.

(unknown?)

 

[krizon]

Jilly Cooper wrote a book a few years ago called 'Animals at War' or 'Animals in War', Brian, which is as far as I know the only tribute the 1,000,000-odd animals which were killed on active service ever received.

A pigeon received, if I recall correctly, the VC or similar for flying several very successful missions from England to France and back with vital messages. When I hear people refer to them as 'flying rats' and 'vermin', I like to put 'em right, since there is no doubt that the pigeon messenger service, through shot and shell, arriving back with feathers often blasted off, saved what Cooper noted were thousands of lives.

As for the poor mules and horses, they got stuck in the mud of hellish places like Flanders fields, just like the poor dear boys, and died. Sometimes they suffered terribly, like your poem's hero, yet they're very much overlooked in the appalling litany of war dead.

Cooper's book's well worth trying to track down, though, for a sensible and unmushy factual read, accompanied by some excellent photos.