'Twas the soul of Judas Iscariot, So grim, and gaunt, and gray, Raised the body of Judas Iscariot, And carried it away. And as he bare it from the field Its touch was cold as ice, And the ivory teeth within the jaw Rattled aloud, like dice. As the soul of Judas Iscariot Carried its load with pain, The Eye of Heaven, like a lanthorn's eye, Opened and shut again. Half he walk'd, and half he seem'd Lifted on the cold wind; He did not turn, for chilly hands Were pushing from behind. The first place that he came unto It was the open wold, And underneath were prickly whins, And a wind that blew so cold. The next place that he came unto It was a stagnant pool, And when he threw the body in It floated light as wool. He drew the body on his back, And it was dripping chill, And the next place he came unto Was a Cross upon a hill. A Cross upon the windy hill, And a cross on either side, Three skeletons that swing thereon, Who had been crucified. And on the middle cross bar sat A white Dove slumbering; Dim it sat in the dim light, With its head beneath its wing. [Illustration: 0097] And underneath the middle cross A grave yawn'd wide and vast, But the soul of Judas Iscariot Shiver'd, and glided past. The fourth place that he came unto It was the Brig of Dread, And the great torrents rushing down Were deep, and swift, and red. He dared not fling the body in For fear of faces dim, And arms were waved in the wild water To thrust it back to him. 'Twas the soul of Judas Iscariot Turned from the Brig of Dread, And the dreadful foam of the wild water Had splashed the body red. For days and nights he wandered on, Upon an open plain, And the days went by like blinding mist, And the nights like rushing rain. For days and nights he wandered on, All thro' the Wood of Woe; And the nights went by like moaning wind, And the days like drifting snow. 'Twas the soul of Judas Iscariot Came with a weary face-- Alone, alone, and all alone, Alone in a lonely place! He wandered east, he wandered west, And heard no human sound; For months and years, in grief and tears, He wandered round and round. For months and years, in grief and tears, He walked the silent night; Then the soul of Judas Iscariot Perceived a far-off light. A far-off light across the waste, As dim as dim might be, That came and went like the lighthouse gleam On a black night at sea. 'Twas the soul of Judas Iscariot Crawl'd to the distant gleam; And the rain came down, and the rain was blown Against him with a scream. For days and nights he wandered on, Push'd on by hands behind; And the days went by like black, black rain, And the nights like rushing wind.