| Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). A Victorian Anthology, 1837–1895. 1895. |
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| Two Sons |
| | | Cosmo Monkhouse (b. 1840) |
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| I HAVE two sons, wife— | |
| Two, and yet the same; | |
| One his wild way runs, wife, | |
| Bringing us to shame. | |
| The one is bearded, sunburnt, grim, and fights across the sea, | 5 |
| The other is a little child who sits upon your knee. | |
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| One is fierce and cold, wife, | |
| As the wayward deep; | |
| Him no arms could hold, wife, | |
| Him no breast could keep. | 10 |
| He has tried our hearts for many a year, not broken them; for he | |
| Is still the sinless little one that sits upon your knee. | |
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| One may fall in fight, wife— | |
| Is he not our son? | |
| Pray with all your might, wife, | 15 |
| For the wayward one; | |
| Pray for the dark, rough soldier, who fights across the sea, | |
| Because you love the little shade who smiles upon your knee. | |
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| One across the foam, wife, | |
| As I speak may fall; | 20 |
| But this one at home, wife, | |
| Cannot die at all. | |
| They both are only one; and how thankful should we be, | |
| We cannot lose the darling son who sits upon your knee! | |
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