The Tithe Machine

7/25/2019 The Tithe Machine

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S H U N

E L

H ER


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COLLECTED POEMS

1981 - 1989

CONTENTS

The

Tithe

Machine (1981 - 1984 )

The per-ch 1

The t i the machine 2

The chur-ch bel l 3

Dog's dsing 4

The

valley

5

Winter- quar-ter-s 6

Village gr-een 7

Rehear-sal 8

Estuary 9

A cr-unch

of

gear-s 10

The gr-eat exhibition 11

~ p baitcercher 12

Vesper- 13

Docker-'s dr-earns 14

~ ~

New

Country 1985

Fields of th is t le 16

The owl 17

Sticks

and

tucf

18

The beater- 's pr-ayec 19

Wor-ds

fr-om

the bank 20

The

badger se t

21

Under- the bridge 22

f Pasternak had taken th is train 23

The marsh below

the

lock 24

The fishermen's r-etur-n 25

The house of vanitye 26

Black

lea f and seed 27

The leachings 28

New year 's eve 29

The measure of brightness 30

The moon over Henley 31

The new country 36

Burial in a country churchyard 37


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T H E

TIT H E M C H I N E

98 1

98

5


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CONTENTS

The Tithe Machine (1981 - 1984 )

The

pecch

1

The t i th mnchine 2

The

church

bell 3

Dog s cising 4

The

valley

5

Wintec quactecs

6

Village green

7

Reheacsal 8

Estuary

9

A cr:unch of

geacs

10

The gceat

exhibition

11

T ho ba

i

t eel t-

t

ef" 1 2.

Vesper: 13

Docker s dreams 14


5/44

The perch

2

yards

from where the

willow

fe l l

Gills

thrash

an i l legal

net

Halters of

a

r iver s

mane

an and fish

plunge into

shadowy

field

2

yards

higher the new bridge is

raised

First born of

dr i l l , pick

and shovel

From a

hatchery of

sand

The f i rs t arch

is

spawned

of

brick and metal

Next morning

whilst

he reins the cat t le in

I t stands.

Bait

to his motorcycle wheels

For

in raising

the

dark nights

catch

he dreamed

Of catching al l

the

s i lver clouds

of

England.


6/44

The

t i the

machine

As a boy

of ten my f a t h e ~ held

his

f i ~ s t h o ~ s e

Meekly he followed plodding c o u ~ s e

y g ~ a n d f a t h e ~ t

f o ~ t y

had held many m o ~ e

F ~ o m

stable to

f ie ld

and

back

to

s t ~ a w

In a dank

stable m e m o ~ y

kicks t the d o o ~

Stablelad s

names

f ~ o m

dead

c a v a l ~ y w a ~ s

~ i d l e s

and s t ~ a p s g ~ o o m s h e a ~ t s on the f l o o ~

The eyes bound up l ike fetlocks n gauze

His

body t ~ e m b l e s w h e ~ e once t had

sweated

The steam m a c h i n e ~ y s

gone

the

h a ~ d

hand

is soft ly ~ e s t i n g

n

a nail

the

h o ~ s e c o l l a ~ s hang

l ike

stomachs spil l ing

The

top f ield is b u ~ n i n g

he cannot

see t

The ash fal l ing a ~ o u n d us

Soft as ~ a i n .


7/44

The church

bel l

Rings

I look out

Your

soft shivers

Green

Brush

my

father s hand

As he

pushes

the root

home

Through

black

soil

Like

black

paint

Another broody evening

alone

With words

nd friendly thunder

Out on the

i l ls

They

have cut

through the

chalk

The tarmac is

being

laid

Rings

again

Time

to

make

my

way

Lines

taught

Down the trench


8/44

Dog

s

rising

Man and dog

Sliding

Through

s t i l e

and

straw

A

red machine

Deep

in i t s

nest

Chokes down electr ic

l ight

Man and dog

Along a path

Beneath

sluiced t rees

Rain squirting from a black

t in

roof

nd ditching

t rees

Stubble

nd tyres

They climb

Man

breaks

the hedge

Dog

chasing hare

They both ride the pill ion

wheat

To the

shed

4


9/44

The valley

lowers are

brought

to the country

I

s t r i e

with the servants

Hooves

disappear

in

wet

earth

Reins

are

made

of

leather

In

the

orchard

the

crop ripens

wind

looses

apples from branches

before

the ladders

are properly positioned

red and white blossom remembered

To open the window I l i f t the la tch

and

push

There

is

an angel on

the

lawn this

morning

I

smile


10/44

Winter

quarters

Boots

crunching grass

I

arr ive

at the huddle

of cat t le

Water

drips

from

lol l ing

tongues

Salting

the

trough with

sp i t t l e

Numb

fingers udder

red

Tumble the bales

OVer

the r a t t l e of the

s teel

gate

nd

the f ie ld s

rim

of

bri t t le

reeds

The

weir is roaring

water f i l led chest brimming

Catt le fed I thread the bridge

rms beating

l ike

crows

From

the

t a l l

t rees slapping

I scrape boot af ter

boot

Breath

tracing

the

panes

frozen patterns

nd glimpse the

flame of

summer wood

In

a

grate

darkly glowing

Coot

hugging bank

Pike

twisting

root

Each

holds i t s

own winter

quarter

This

is

mine

This vase

of rushes

Gathering

dust

above

the

f i re .


11/44

Village green

A journey

A circle away

A

mansion

ivy-towered

In the l ight

t

burns

Red and green

Four

windows

Facing

south

Across a

village

green

Blue and gold

Reflections

Fledgling thoughts

Rippling west


12/44

Rehearsal

Knock, knock

The room I enter is wide

Of white i l ls

Which once upon a time

Held the

sea

In

i t

A table and

chair

Smoke in a spl in te r sun

Over

Bleached floorboards

nd

dust

In the

room s grate

Ashes and

sand

A

feather

that

smoulders

Stravinsky

Geneva

Somewhere

else


13/44

Estuary

Pull

the

rope

t ight

the

boat f loats

river

s

returning

mu sl ides

water

sp l l s

timbers discover weight

eyes

closed

arms spread

n w

water sheds

her eyes follow

the heron

across

the

water cress

bed.


14/44

crunch

of

gears

Doors gasping

Windows

t ight

on the

latch

Silence

Measured by r i l l smack

tumble of bricks askance running down

suburban

pattern of

steeple and

track

Breaking

the

tunnels

Funnelled thunder swerves

shudder

engine

Sliding through

walls

Winter

hangs signals

The wireless branch

Sudden

crunch

of gears

Soft leaves

Falling hard

wo eyes swivel in two sockets

Descend but do

not

rest

What

heaps

Rusts


15/44

The

great

exhibition

wo

jays in

t ic tac

spinning

Cresting waves of lace curtain

and linoleum

Two-stepping tarmacadam s

invention

A

century s f i rs t mast

The

barge of the crystal palace

This gaping

hole

Where

the machinery ploughed into the past

The smell of smoke

Of

ashes


16/44

The baitcatcher

Squelching by

A cl t ter

of clean

bucket

and

spade

Delving deeply

In

troughs of

weed

Wet wood and

spray

He

stoops

to

prise

The worm from the

rake

Ploughing

on

The

gravel face of fenland

Gently

st i r r ing

Sal t

seeping

Through

the chipped

teeth

To parched tongue beneath

The sea s tares

Fresh

water inland

Starts

to

pour

Through chalk and f l in t

Above i t

l l

The

union

t t ters

Tired

grass

Swallows shadow

So many

distances

oasts to travel

12


17/44

Vespec

I sucvey with ink the

actecial

coad

The houc s l i t

By the hum

of

automobile

wings

cound m

n

entice nat ion s

motion

Of spun leaf and spinning wheel

In

my mind s

eye

Slows to

zeco

The

f i s t

london bcick comes to hand

flash

of low octobec sun

Illuminates a dack steeple

The

pecfect

specimen

I

ceach foc

my

jac and pin

y

notebook

and pencil

3


18/44

Docker s dreams

I

l ive

under

rooks

In

a

i ty of bridge and water

Mortar guides fin

to

sea

wo

or three

hover

In

breezes

of sound

Like branches afloat

in

A reach

Salt , cargo to peck

1983

Up north I have

heard

The

salmon

are

leaping

14


19/44

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Alan Cornelius,

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3

0

,

Jill Dawson,

~

Rupert

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and

many

more

_. . .

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plus:

JETHRO ~ A R K ~ ;

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The Tithe Machine