With all the grain of Babylon To cultivate, to make us strong And hidden here behind the walls Are shoulders wide and timber on 'Till the war came 'Till the war came A terrible autonomy Has grafted onto you and me Our trust put in the government They told their lies as heaven-sent 'Till the war came 'Till the war came And the war came with a curse and a caterwaul And the war came with all the poise of a cannonball And they're picking out our eyes by coal and candlelight When the war came, the war came hard We made our oath to Vavilov We'd not betray the solanum The acres of asteraceae To our own pangs of starvation When the war came When the war came And the war came with a curse and a caterwaul And the war came with all the poise of a cannonball And they're picking out our eyes by coal and candlelight When the war came, the war came hard With all the grain of Babylon With all the grain of Babylon