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John Wyeth’s World War I

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On this day, 103 years ago, WWI ended and set the template for the rest of the murderous 20th century. One of the poets who chronicled the war was the American John Allan Wyeth. His collection of poems ā€œThis Man’s Army: A War in Fifty-Odd Sonnetsā€ was well received but faded from view, as sometimes happens. Here’s one of the sonnets. It’s remarkable:Ā 

HarbonniĆØres to Bayonvillers: Picnic

A house marked Ortskommandantur—a great

sign Kaiserplatz on a corner church,

and German street names all around the square.

Troop columns split to let our sidecar through.

ā€œDrive like hell and get back to the main road—it’s getting late.ā€

ā€œYessir.ā€

The roadway seemed to reel and lurch

through clay wastes rimmed and pitted everywhere.

ā€œYou hungry?—Have some of this, there’s enough for two.ā€

We drove through Bayonvillers—and as we ate

men long since dead reached out and left a smirch

and taste in our throats like gas and rotten jam.

ā€œWant any more?ā€

ā€œYes sir, if you got enough there?ā€

ā€œThose fellows smell pretty strong.ā€

ā€œI’ll say they do,

ā€œbut I’m too hungry sir to care a damn.ā€

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