As I walked out one evening Walking down Bristol Street, A crowd flowed over London Bridge, So many, I had never seen.

From each slow, dragged-out face Within the crowd, I saw A multitude of happy fools And frowning sages, making laws.

And I saw the Godless seen, Vagabonding like a rat. The trickles out the drain Mindlessly pulling it all back.

Its hard work to find the truth As the laurel leaves come curling, In shadows beneath the stone;
Like joy, a law that’s never servile.

And I watched the river flow, Taking minutes with its flow. Somewhere just beyond a cut, I saw summer begin to glow.

• T E Lawrence