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Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts
British writers on peace and war
Women writers on peace and war
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Mary Elizabeth Coleridge
Lilies and Doves
(May 1902)
Bring not the lily hither; she is pale,
And we have bought with blood the end of strife.
She lives a day; and then her glories fail.
The peace we died for shall outlive our life.
Make not the dove an emblem; she has wings
And she will fly: ’tis not her cooing song
That shall proclaim the concord whence there springs
Stern peace – a joy inflexible and strong.
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