The arrest of Oscar Wilde at the Cadogan Hotel
He sipped at a weak hock and seltzer
As he gazed at the London skies
Through the Nottingham lace of the curtains
Or was it his bee-winged eyes?
To the right and before him Pont street
Did tower in her new built red,
As hard as the morning gas light
That shone on his unmade bed.
"I want some more hock in my seltzer,
And Robbie, please give me your hand -
Is this the end or the beginning?
How can I understand?"
"So you've brought me the latest Yellow Book:
And Buchan has got it now:"
Approval of what is approved of
Is as false as a well-kept vow.
"More hock, Robbie - where is the seltzer?
Dear boy, pull again at the bell!
They are little better than cretins
Though this is the Cadogan Hotel."
"One astrakhan coat is at the Willis's -
Another one's at the Savoy:
Do fetch my Morocco portmanteau,
And bring them on later, dear boy."
A thump and a murmur of voices -
("Oh, why must they make such a din?")
As the door of the bedroom swung open
And two PLAIN CLOTHES POLICEMEN came in:
"Mr. Woilde, we 'ave come for tew take yew
Where felons and criminals dwell:
We must ask yew tew leave with us quoietly
For this is the Cadogan Hotel."
He rose, and he put down the Yellow Book
He staggered - and, terrible-eyed,
He brushed past the plants on the staircase
And was helped to a hansom outside.
Henry may have been the 'little dark-eyed chap' (he was only 157 cm tall) that became a favourite of Wilde's during his incarceration at Reading, noted in his letters. He was a petty thief, but lived on into the 1950s, ending his days as a gardener. Wilde sent him money after he was released.
2 comments:
Adore. Such a sad, strange story. Such stories remind us that freedom does not come freely. Thanks for sharing.
Yes, race, gender, orientation, social class. It never ends, uff.
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