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Taxman

George Mackay Brown

Seven scythes leaned at the wall.
Beard upon golden beard
The last barley load
Swayed through the yard.
The girls uncorked the ale.
Fiddle and feet moved together.
Then between stubble and heather
A horseman rode.


George Mackay Brown

from Fishermen with Ploughs (Hogarth Press, 1971), and included in The Collected Poems of George Mackay Brown (John Murray, 2005)

Reproduced by permission of the Estate of George Mackay Brown

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celebration death farming short poems
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George Mackay Brown1921 - 1996

George Mackay Brown found his inspiration in the eternal cycle of life, and the 'ceremonies of fishing and agriculture' on Orkney.
More about George Mackay Brown

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