When Night is almost done－1
And Sunrise grows so near
That we can touch the Spaces－
It's time to smooth the Hair－
And get the Dimples ready－5
And wonder we could care
For that old－faded Midnight－
That frightened－but an Hour－
And Sunrise grows so near
That we can touch the Spaces－
It's time to smooth the Hair－
And get the Dimples ready－5
And wonder we could care
For that old－faded Midnight－
That frightened－but an Hour－
(F.679/J.347)
[1] Night:: night-soil, excrement collected by night for manure. done:: cleaned.
[2] Sunrise:: midnight-carts carry away night-soil before dawn.
[3] touch the Spaces:: toilets are touchable after the cleaning.
[4] smooth the Hair:: after being frightened by the bad smell.
[5] get the Dimples ready:: their faces are rigid too after an hour's work and smell.
[7] Midnight:: midnight-cart, used to transport night-soil (OED 5).
[8] an Hour:: time to clean the night-soil.
Old Jeremy Collier has given some good hints to the lovers of nature ". . . A midnight cart or a dunghill would be no ornamental scene. Nastiness and dirty conversation are of the same kind. For words are a picture to the car, as colours and Surface are to the eye. ─ The Monthly Mirror (1809)