"Such, such were the joys
When we all, girls and boys
In our youth time were seen
On the Echoing Green."
Till the little ones, weary
No more can be merry
The sun does descend
And our sports have an end
Round the laps of their mothers
Many sisters and brother
Like birds in their nest
Are ready for rest
And sport no more seen
On the darkening Green
This is an odd line, in which there is a transition. If the Green is ‘Echoing’ it should surely refer to the next community celebration. But maybe, from the point of view of the old people, this is the reality.
The Echoing Green