The Widow's Uniform – Part 14 of 15:

The Widow's Party

Stunning in its use of metaphor (the "widow's party" being a Victorian soldier's byword for a bloody campaign) this piece, like "Soldier, soldier" is self-evidently more song than poem. The "Johnnie…" refrains are genuinely difficult to read in plain speech. Note also the sardonic last stanza: so much again for Kipling as blind imperialist…