Poetry: Lay Your Weapons Down, Young Lady by Piaras Feiritéar

Lay your weapons down, young lady.
Do you want to ruin us all?
Lay your weapons down, or else
I’ll have you under royal restraint.

These weapons put behind you:
hide henceforth your curling hair;
do not bare that white breast
that spares no living man.

Lady, do you believe
you’ve never killed, to North or South?
Your mild eye-glance has killed at large
without the need of knife or axe.

You may think your knee’s not sharp
and your palm is soft;
to wound a man, believe me,
you need no knife or spear!

Hide your lime-white bosom,
show not your tender flank.
For love of Christ let no one see
your gleaming breast, a tuft in bloom.

Concel those eyes of grey
if you’d go free for all you’ve killed.
Close your lips, to save your soul;
let your bright teeth not be seen.

Not few you have done to death:
do you think you’re not mortal clay?
In justice, put your weapons down
and let us have no further ruin.

If you’ve terrified all you want
lady who seek my downfall,
now — before I’m buried in earth —
your weapons, lay them down.

What your surname is, young lady.
I leave to puzzle the world.
But add an ‘a’ or an é
and it gives your Christian name away…