Page:Ballads, Stevenson, 1890.djvu/24

 In silence hearkened the king, and closed the eyes in his face,

Harboring odious thoughts and the baseless fears of the base;

In silence accepted the gift and sent the giver away.

So Támatéa departed, turning his back on the day.

And lo! as the king sat brooding, a rumor rose in the crowd;

The yottowas nudged and whispered, the commons murmured aloud;

Tittering fell upon all at sight of the impudent thing,

At the sight of a gift unroyal flung in the face of a king.

And the face of the king turned white and red with anger and shame

In their midst; and the heart in his body was water and then was flame;

Till of a sudden, turning, he gripped an aito hard,

A youth that stood with his ómare,8 one of the daily guard,

And spat in his ear a command, and pointed and uttered a name,

And hid in the shade of the house his impotent anger and shame.

Now Támatéa the fool was far on the homeward way,

The rising night in his face, behind him the dying day.

Rahéro saw him go by, and the heart of Rahéro was glad,

Devising shame to the king and nowise harm to the lad;

And all that dwelt by the way saw and saluted him well,

For he had the face of a friend and the news of the town to tell;

And pleased with the notice of folk, and pleased that his journey was done,

Támatéa drew homeward, turning his back to the sun.

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