A DEAD STATESMANI could not dig: I dared not rob: Therefore I lied to please the mob. Now all my lies are proved untrue And I must face the men I slew. What tale shall serve me here among Mine angry and defrauded young?from EPITAPHS OF THE WAR 1914-18 Rudyard Kipling
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A DEAD STATESMANI could not dig: I dared not rob:Therefore I lied to please the mob.Now all my lies are proved untrueAnd I must face the men I slew.What tale shall serve me here amongMine angry and defrauded young?from EPITAPHS OF THE WAR 1914-18 Whether this is true or not, it is clear that the poem was written in reaction to the war. The speaker is asking himself what he should do when he is suddenly confronted with the dead bodies of all his friends. Should they be left alone to rot? Or would it be better to dig them up and pretend that nothing had happened? There are many different answers in the poem, but ultimately, there is no right answer.

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  5. A DEAD STATESMANI could not dig: I dared not rob: Therefore I lied to please the mob. Now all my lies are proved untrue And I must face the men I slew. What tale shall serve me here among Mine angry and defrauded young?from EPITAPHS...
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