211
AN_
DYL OF THE SUN
A N D
O TH E R PO EMS .
O RR lN CE D E SMAN STEVENS .
HO L YOKE , MAS S .
G riffith , Axtel l Cady C ompany .
1 8 0 1
COPY R IGH T , 1 891 ,
BY 0 . C . STEV ENS .
CONTE NTS .
Idy l o f th e S un40 Com m o n M an
T he M usic o f GravesT he Ch r istm as T ab leT h e Two D isco ver ies
T h e V al kyr ies
T h e D ead D ayT he L aggardT he Two Claim ants
T h e L ast PrayerT he Wonderfu l l Vo rkm en
T h e T ram pD em ocracyT he Sub jec t S p iri t,T he Whole T ru t hL ove in the L igh tT he L ost ClueA gain st. the W indA P rayer to M orningT he M odelA n A rrow h eadPeace i s b ut Weakness o fM orning SongT h e Bri degroom
T he L ost F lowerA H om ely F aceT he L eaderT he Perm anen tT he V ei lT he Sout h Winds .
T h e B lind B irdS ongL am en tM i sgiv ings
A n A pologueN o B eauty T h ereT o H . M . A .
T o J . E . L .
T he RunnerO l d N ew -Y ear’ s D ay
COA ’TE N TS .
B razi lT h e T alking T ests the S ong"O pposedM idnunn ner
Be tween th e E arth and S un
M y S ongstressL o ve
’
s Ret rospec tT o a N ob le. Wom an
W h ite CloverS econd C h ild h oodL ove S onnetT o
S leep’ s S tained mas s
M em o rv
T he [Tueq ual L overs
AN IDYL O F TH E SUN
A N 1)
O TH ER PO EMS .
ERRATA .
46 , l ine 2,for read
7 3 , l i ne 6 , for besides read beside.
98 , l ine 8 , for diso rd'
ezz’ read
1 0 5 , l ine 1 5 , for Izas read hast.
AN lD Y L O F TH E SUN .
ARDO . Above th e wh ite crown of ou r sacred tree,
Whose roots are watered by th e seven streams
Wh ic h i ssue from one fount,le t u s ret i re
And let th e rad iance of i ts lum inous leaves,
Which fu rn ish l ight to earth,afford u s shade .
And we wi l l leave una ided,fo r awh i le
,
Our dear compan ions of th e forcefu l r i tes,
And mingle new with s impler,anc i ent j oys .
See 1 as I k iss thy lov ing l ips again,
That n ew,red rose hang qu ivering on i ts stalk
,
Before the window of that far earth h ome .
T I N TA . And I wil l th ink of thee,and breathe thy name
,
To give i t deeper fragrance .
ARDO . I wil l take th y hand
In mine,and hold i t long and restfu l ly
,
To make th e flower cl ing fi rmly to it s stem,
Unt i l some lover asks i t as a mate
To h is beloved ’s heart .
TINTA . I give th ee thanks,
0 lover,hu sband
,prince
,that thou dost yet
Give though t to me,and st i l l th e jo y dost find ,
10 A A’ [D YL OF TH E S UN .
Which thou d idst pu t into my heart on earth .
For when I see those seven chromatic bands
The symbols of the seven solar powers
So c l ear upon thy rad iant wh ite arm,
And then look down upon mine own,to find
One only sh in ing d imly in it s p lace,
I sorrow inconsolably and wou ld
That al l th e glories wh ich beset m ine eyes
Were changed for store of common,earth ly tears ,
Which may not be found here . Sti l l dost thou stoop,
As ever thou hast done,to g ive me love .
ARDO . Tinta,there i s no h igh or low to h earts
They ever rock upon th e same sea- level,
Feel th e same t ides,and in the frequent calms
,
Moor the i r l igh t kee ls with raptu re side by side .
Speak not of tears in al l th is wizard world
There i s no craft sman who can make a tear
Nor in th e universe,might there be found
E ssence so fine,hue so immacu late
(Not even if we sought amid the dreams
And v is ion -daring purpo ses of gods)As m igh t be mou lded into fi tt ing tears
For thy pu re eyes . Think nevermore of grie f "
G rief is a cripp le who can never move,
Save when supported by two subj ec t h eart s,
One on each side . Ah,sweet
,apostate sou l
,
One cannot mou rn withou t another ’s a id
And I alone migh t a id thee and I wi l l not .
A N l D Y L OF TH E S U N . 1 1
Again I say,
I love thee be thou glad
T INTA . Oh , that word love , when spoken by thy l ips ,Doth shape i tse l f into a trumpet ’s cu rves ,Through wh ich the vo ic e of some far de ity
Doth storm the last earth rampart of my heart ,And take i t prisoner to a death le ss th ral l
Now, fi rst I look upon th ee withou t fear
,
Since thou didst shore for me,with th ine own breast ,
The boundless stream wh ich bore me h ith erward
Whereon the earth danced l ike a w ithered leaf,And al l th e stars seemed wh irl ing molecu les
Of phosphorescent frenzy . Now,
I dare
To note how thou art changed 5 how thy new l ife
Seems l ike a crysta l sheath upon the old,
H id ing no lov ing l ine,bu t add ing to it .
I t i s as though th ine older,le sser form
,
Compressed by mu sc le bands,wh ic h grooved the arms ,
Girt close the struggl ing waist,and t ightened down
The m ighty shou lders ’ buoyancy,
Had l igh tly,when the corded thongs were cu t
,
By force of it s d ivine,expansive energy
,
Sprung up to i ts balk ed sta tu re,and revealed
I ts natural maj esty al l unrestra ined .
As now I gaze,thy broad
,brigh t bosom seems
A golden stream,deep in whose l igh ted depths
,
Are imaged clearly al l the godl ike deeds
And tender favors o f’
o’
erhanging arms ,With shadowy
,d im shapes assoc iate
,
A N l D Y L OF TH E S U /V.
O f future fondness brooding in thy heart .
Upon its peacefu l currents are m ine eyes
Borne on,with wonder
,to the wh irlpool face ,
Which draws mine own into i ts bl issfu l charm .
Here,in a sp ir i t trance
,I trave l round and round ,
Tapering the large de l igh t down to a po int ,That I may ever again look away .
0 speech d iv ine that,l ike a cleans ing storm ,
l )oth sweep from seraph l ips al l vestiges
O f fau lty human uses , and leaves bare
The prints of love alone . Thy l ips are changed ,Yet are th e l ikeness of the l ips I kissed
With freedom on the earth . So sent ient
I n every point thy l igh t—absorbing face,
V is ion doth never weary thy calm eyes,
But leaves them fresh for form ing lov ing looks
E l se m igh t I never look upon th ee thu s .
ARDO . R em em brest thou , dear Tinta , how ,on ea rth
,
A l it t le th ing grew larger when advanced
Close to th e eyes ? and canst thou now bel ieve
That,the vast spaces of material th ings
D i spelled between u s,and thy very self
Brough t near my sp iri tual v i s ion,there i s room
For my glad s igh t to pass thy broadened beauty ?
Nay then it stops in th ee,and is fi l led up
,
Contented , to i ts farthest boundarie s
Th inkest thou that th e d iver finds the pearl
As lovely in its shady place,as when
A N 1 1 ) Y]. O F TH E S U /V.
The sun shal l d ry th e moistened gem in h i s hand ,Above the water ? Shal l not th e obscu re ,But match less fabrics of nigh t ’s labrato ries,When se t in morning ’s open gal le r ie s
,
E xtract new wonder from our stricken si ght 3
0 thou who wert the fai rest thing on earth
By bath ing in ou r i ridescent st ream s ,Thou hast imparted to thy gathered grace
The mermaid ’s dripping beau ty . Scarce I dare
To look upon one p lace,so dangerou s
I t s v iolent sp lendor to my care le ss eyes,
Re laxed and rest ing ; but , secu re , I tu rn
Them to th ine own,wh ich he l ike peace fu l i sl es ,
Twinned in a sea of glory,and now st i l led
By the soft wavele ts of th y sooth ing l id s
To an enchanted peace . How vast th e space
From those young worlds to th e old grizz led earth
Toward wh ich th ey tu rn l
TINTA . My wonder cannot cease,
When I look down upon the earth,and see
How changed sh e seems . See now,how du ll sh e is
As she doth bl ind ly stagger on between
Those c lose and c ou sinly d iv in it ies,
Twil ight and D awn . How earnest ly th ey strive
To rou se the memories of an earl i er l ife
Of star- l ike energy See,how the wind
l )oth beat her heavy temples,and thescourge
Of l ightning ’s pass ion strik es h er sensel ess back
14 A N l D Y L OF TH E S U /V.
E ven the sleeping Titan in her heart
Starts va inly in her dreams,and fitfu l ly
Doth struggle,though unconsc iou s Bu t , alas
The stupor l ingers . Now she dumbly tu rns ,Unti l th e sunrise warms th e very spot
Where we fi rst loved . There m ust be fee l ing i/zere
ARDO . O sunri se of th e earth , what i s thy pain
How dost thou mou rn for al l that thou dost m iss ,E ach morn ing
,from th e open t reasu ries
Heaped bv th e last day ’s potent indu stry 1
What traveler of the sh ining,si lv ery road
O f l ife and love,when he fal l s headlong down
The frequent chasms dug by Night and Sleep,
Drops noth ing from h is bru ised and ach ing hand ?
0 how may one fi t on the broken sta lk
O f yesterday,new flowers of th is day ’s happ iness ?
How may h is span of love reach far as that of l ife ,When darkness h inders not the one
,but coi ls
The other back upon weak memories "E ver, on earth , i s day
’s love- ripened fru it
Pecked by the Vu lture N igh t I
TiN TA But one who loves,
Wil l sl eep so l igh t , and keep h er h eart so wh ite ,That no nigh t bi rds shal l find th ere any perch
And day shal l add i tse lf to day,and love
Stretch far and flawless .
ARDO . Yes , when that one be as thou .
But yet , how bl ind and weak we were , at best
A N l D Y L OF TH E S UN .
How h idden from ou rse lves ou r sp iri tual i t ies
And how we a ided ou r own hindrances
O ften , when thou d idst offer me , with sm i les ,Thy righ t hand ’s t reasu res
,I wou ld seiz e th e le ft ;
O r when the very symbol of thy sou l
Sat on thy si lent l ip s , mine own have broke
The holy th ing with m issi l e word s ; and when
Thy solar -work ing heart bu i l t round mine own
Halos to bless i t,
I have broken th rough .
O ft in th e wh ite fl ower of thy love I saw
O nly the earth honey ; from thy purest word ,Have tu rned to k i ss the l ip ’s red sta in
,and thu s
Defrauded thy sweet heart . And many t imes
Those star songs that do sound alone th rough l ips
( )f fortunate moments,hav e been fi ercely scorned ,
For those coarse st ra ins,whic h onl y may be struck
F rom strings of sensuou s days .
TINTA . But,even then
Thou lovedst me as now ;’twas ever pla in
E rror ’s tortuou s path led ever to that goal .
The widening c i rcle s in th e troubled deeps
Sprung from a golden stone . Pain cold not p luck
The one wh ite feather from her raven wings
And every horrify ing th ing was wreathed
With v isions of thy name . And many t imes
The i ron bal l of inconsiderate speech,
iy the swift fervor of love’s afterthough t
,
Was melted ere i t struck ; whi le , frequent ly ,
1 6 A N l D YL OF TH E S UN
I wronged th ee with mistaken est imates
O f th ine own worth . That m ighty wi l l of th ine
Seemed often bu t th e body ’s u rgency,
The downward plunging of th e waterfal l ,I nstead of the strong geyser ’s l iv ing leap
Yet wou ld I see th e ra inbow of thy love
Upon i t,and feared not .
St i l l bl ind were we,
And bl ind rema in ou r fel lows of the earth .
Yet naugh t gropes there but man ; th e flying c loud
Keeps wel l i ts path at m idnight ; th e l ith e stream
Makes it s long pract iced leap from rock to rock,
When darkness d rapes wi th doubt th e changing
As su rely as when sunl igh t l ead s ; each fl ower
Finds i ts own place upon th e popu lousstalk,
And fi l l s th e secret channel s of t he ai r
With flowing fragrance and the whole earth ’s
Dense barriers tu rn not th e emera ld streams,
Which hasten to th e“
founta ins of th e trees ;But man must trembl ingly and in the dark
Contest h i s sp i ri tua l foot ings ; be content
To touch,with bl ind and bafiied finger
- t ips,
Only some earth ly th ing h i s sp i ri t -mate
Has worn upon her h eart to wander round
And round the sh rine wherein sh e lonely kneel s
Bu t find no entrance door on any side
Nor h ear th e name of that d ivini ty
She worsh ips da ily in her wh i spered prayer .
IN l /H’
I, TH E S UA ’. 1 7
H i s senses seem bu t sheaths of some d iv ine
And vibrant energies l ike promontories ,Which j u t into the deeps of th e d iv ine ,Are the vast c loud - heaps o ’er h is stormy thought ,Where in h i s sp iri t -vo ice i s fai ntly heard ,Like mu ffl ed thunders vague ly terribl e
The cold,c lay hand le s of the infinite ,
Alone meet everywhere his'
own clay hand 5
T I NTA . But love,the subt le , incondensable ,
Doth flow abou t h im,l ike an atmosphere
And golden -winged bird s fly evermore
From sou l to soul , with myst ic messages
Not whol ly written in unmeaning signs .
hu sband of th e two - fold unity I
Had I not learned,wh il e yet upon the earth
,
The outl ine of th ine inne r worth iness
And guessed the beau ty of thy sp iri t face,
Could I have traced thee here But when lone D eath
With strange inversion of ofli c ial power,Did come and k il l th e whole material world ,To make thee l ive the pla iner in my heart
Saw I not th ere th e very image of thyse lf ?
Thy luminous face tu rned h ither,and thy hand
Stretched backward after m ine ? And when I walked
Across the earth ly ru in Death had made,
And fol lowed thee in space,no need to ask
“Where went th e spi ri t stronger than the earth
With solar fl igh t and backward turn ing face ?
IR —l .V 1 0 17 . OF TH E S U /V.
No need to seek the s ignal plumes le t fal l
From thy flame wings along the unknown way I
Thy d istant goal I knew before I d ied
And I bu t tu rned my longing eyes that way ,And
,on the currents of e theria l l i fe
,
D id simply float aga in into th ine arms .
ARDO . O swee test drift tha t ever comforted
Those awfu l t ides Wonder of woman ’s love
That i t had power to gu ide thee safely h ere,
And charm the deeps to render up the ir charge,
While st i l l such rayless vo ids de lay th e ir currents,
Such drear,dead space s Oh I for th is one hou r,
Would I l ive myriads of darkened years
Upon the earth , in caverns unexplored
By al l save N igh t,and where the baffl ed s igh t
Withers away in her black float ing sand
O r be enc losed in countless folds of rock,
Bent for the purpose or be ages wh irled
Upon the t rackless,u
‘
nprogressing wheel
O f some air vortex Bright were that deep cave,
Where I migh t tunnel through the stagnant years
To find thy l igh t Unfeared the rocky cel l
Wh ich opened at thy fee t And there were peace
With in the wh irlpool,i f the last revolve
Should draw thee in
I t i s a grace unmatched
In al l I nfin ity ’s love- laborings,
That ou r superior rites are not a l lowed to one
20 A N l D Y L OF TH E S UN .
The nak ed blade of vi s ion,yet unfleshed
I n the warm body of materia l th ings ,Back to i ts scabbard of the inner l i fe ,They stop
,appal led
,before that awfu l v iew
O f darkened ru ins , l ike a dead star’s face ,
Of ray less peaks and chasms probeless, black ,And mi sts of m i sery ensh rouding al l .
0 I am glad that I may ever l ive ,Where many sp iri ts
,in t he neighboring space ,
Pass my weak thought along from point to point ,And speed its travels to the unseen God
May l inger in the midst of th i s abounding l i fe,
Wh ich crowds th e sky up to i ts noblest a rch,
And bid s it cal l upon the watch fu l stars
To c loser stand , and c ross the ir uprigh t spears ,Lest someth ing shou ld escape the i r care .
TINTA . O Ardo,as thou spokest of those sou l s
So far from God , becau se they are alon e ,I t seemed as though some smal lest stalk of fear
,
Long with ered in the h eart,had suddenly
Shot forth a sh ivering,black flower
,that cast
A s h adow on it s open fount of peace .
0 l et me lay my head upon thy breast
That I may not forget th ee for th e length
O f one brie f moment I Now I fee l secu re,
And can aga in commune unfrigh ted with thee .
When from th is dear and sovere ign seat of v is ion,
All v is ible th ings seem subj ec t to my sigh t,
A N ID I’I. OF TH E S UA’
. l
I am not ch iefly glad that I can look
So fa r away th rough th i s transparent a i r,
And ’cross th ese sh immer ing fie lds of ra inbow-harvests ,Where flowers seem only as expanded gems
With stems of lengthened pea rl that I can see
Unto the farth est verge of th i s sph ere opu len t .
Whereon,mayhap
,some busy si ster stands
And di ps her ever dripp ing cup of flexile gold
Into th e nearest spring,to quench the th i rst
O f some exhau sted p i lgrim from a world
Whose founts are s lowly fa i l ing nor,i n sooth,
That my strong sigh t fl ie s on beyond al l spheres
Like th i s,to where a world l ie s spread
As I may guess by those broad,wondrou s rays
Wh ich match the mountain peaks upon ou r own
So brigh t , so l im it le ss , that al l th e se orbs
Wh ich form ou r lum inou s community,
Are but d im tapers at h er massive gates ;Nor i s th i s s igh t most dear
,that i t w i l l go
D own and st i l l down— so far,th e fal l ing sta rs
Have never reached th e p lace— and d im ly t race
The shadowy boundarie s of those orble ss sou ls,
Whose be ing is so large,so unrestra ined
,
T hat the ir least deed i s vaster°
than our sun,
And no world yet i s bu i lded strong enough
To bea r th e bea t ing of the i r strenuou s h eart s,
O r broad enough to make a worthy stage
For the ir explo i ts bu t mostly give I pra i se,
A N l D YL OF TH E S UN .
That,whether thy h eart tu rns in my love ’s breezes,
O r th e pu re j u ice s of my sun - l i fe ’s passion
Fal l in th e cha l ice of thy wa it ing wish,
O r miss i t,
I do see and know the tr y /Ir.
And if thy sp iri t dons i ts sh ie ld of reverent awe ,And tu rneth inward to the seven Powers
That l ie,concentric
,round the fiery globe
Where in ou r namele ss and inv is ible King
D wel ls in h i s long creat ive lonel in ess,
I know,and cease to babble of th e th ings
Wh ich make the gladness of ou r ou tward l i fe .
ARDO . Wondrou s c la i rvoyancy of woman ’s love i
And ch ief of wonders , that such regal g ift
Shou ld be indentu red to a single h eart,
And that h eart m ine 1 Oh , my c lear eyes ,That seemed up
- rounded on the earth,to let
The fai rest th ings sl ip off th em unobse rved,
And now impression of supernal l ive s
Take from al l s id es I— though they may pla inly see
How H eat and Ligh t are wedded in one ray,
To be the sun ’s resp lendent almoners
Mav see the ind raft of that un i l lum ined dust
Attr i t ion ’s t ribu te from those ravaged world s
Where tha t fa i r twa in has been again d ivorced
Though I may look far th rough our severa l pla ins
O f l i fe down to that glowing,central sphere
Wh ich i s ou r sovere ign ’s home,and see thereon
B right flashes of imperfect images,
A 1V l D Y L OF T H E S UN .
Fire h ints and burn ing,fl ee ting flush of shades
As i f the god with in,had
,in a careless hour
Thought fitfu l ly of h imsel f, and j eopard ized
The awfu l sec ret of h is sh rouded l i fe
Yet how thy love i s interblent w ith m ine ,That see I not . The myst ic t ie was wrought
E re l igh t was given to th is shutt le h eart ,Or by th e artificer ’
s shad ing hand
Was cunningly concealed . But if to -day
Thy love hath such a power,what wi l l i t be
When i t may work in al l th e seven hues ?
Now, as I speak,t hy loving though t doth prin t
Upon the subtle substance of th i s ai r
So sens it ive to lovers— al l th e host
O f upsto red grace s fu l ly perfected ,And fi lmy marvels of incept ive a rt ;So that I seem the only c i t iz en
O f Love ’s e therial,bl i ssfu l cap ital
,
Bu il t by beni gnant spe l l upon the peaks
O f h ighest moments buoyed aloft by j oy
Bu t le st I lose my way in those bright stree ts ,D o thou unmake them by a gentle though t
A lien to A R UO . Wherefore te l l m e now ,
What thou wi lt do the rest of th i s long day
To further tra in th y finely-working hand ?
First,wil l I take a steal thy , potent charm
Unto a heart upo n the earth unloved ,That i t shal l so bewilder
,daze and draw
24 A ZV l D Y L O F Tf l ’i S U/V.
Some random love -prospec tor , hap ly near,That he shal l see th e fl i tt ing
,coaxing shapes
Which I commingle with it s d iamond deeps .
And,after
,I wil l le t selec ted rays
l ’ass freely through my open,love—c lear heart ,
And with accret ion o f resi st le ss fi re ,Burn into noth ingness the barriers
Between attracted souls . And what wi l t thou ?
ARDO . I wil l instruct Desire to c irc le round thy head,To take h is cou rse from th ine own gent le thought ,And wing an even fl igh t with i ts wh ite plumes ;And I wil l strive to -day and every day
,
To so d iscumber m ine own heavy l ife
O f every sta in of gu il t or se lfi sh though t ,And so ass ist my brothers at l ike work
,
That th is l igh t - loaded orb may l ightly vau l tInto a h igher place
,and j oyously
E xpand , unh indered ,to a nobler cu rve
,
And make more room for seraphs ; constantly
Wil l I look th rough the armories of the sun,
Confer with foremost breth ren,c losely search
Our lum inous arch ives ’ every crowded leaf,
And down into the d immest plac es of th e h eart
Urge on the que st— study the faintest s ignsYea , I wil l even waken Prophecy I
To learn th e secret of a large r ray,
By wh ich our gi fts m ight grow to greater siz e.
T IN I‘A . Then , husband , we wil l ever j o in ou r hands
.4N [ D Y /Z OF TH E S UA’.
To fash ion every gi ft ; thou shal t be stow
Its centra l core and ampl itude of form ,
And I wil l borrow of my purest j oy,
. To add th e ou tward beau ty . But,awh i l e ,
L et u s st i l l ta rry h ere soon , ve ry soon ,The double yolk of th i s sec lu sion ’s sh el l
Shal l a l t er to th e broad,unrest ing wings
O f common l i fe ; and wh i le I keep my head
A l itt le longe r on th is breast st i l l m ine,
Tel l me th e story thou hast p rom ised oft
To tel l me when my h eart was wel l prepared .
A R D o . As thou desi rest ; l i st en Long years ago ,Before the oldest m in ist rant now h ere '
Had h i s brigh t bi rth u pon some d istant world ,"
I‘
is sa id a splend id apparit ion streamed
Into our l ightning - vaporou s atmosphere,
St il l sh in ing with pu isan t l ight u nd immed
When very near . I t was a sp iri t born
O n that far orb incontinent o f l igh t,
Whose fu l lness overflows in c i rc l ing band sO f flam ing energy , which make i t seem
A prison - star bu i l t round with wa ll s of fi re .
H i s name was V ivero— for it i s st i l l prese rved
Beh ind the pri son bars of wh it est l ip s
Whose wh i spe red ut terance seems i t s very gho st
And a s he c love h i s way with slow,spent wings
And face that reeked with to i l of h i s long fl igh t’Twas but a pa ss ing
,starry m ist upon it
‘
20 A N 1 0 17 , S UN .
The startled watchers from the i r a iry he ight s
Forgot the ir office,cou ld bu t gaze in awe ,
As did the whole sun people si lently .
No be ing of such m ien,none c lad as he ,
Had ever come before unto the sun ;H i s statu re equalled eas ily th e he ight
Of that strange p i l lar of translucent gold
Some earl ier race d id bu ild upon ou r sph ere ,Which we have seen at sunrise from the earth
H i s wings spread ou t l ike i sland s of the sea ,Pu l sed by the sea into a crimson flu sh
No shadow-moth had ever found a perch
Upon h is rad iant face,whic h bl ind ing shone ,
As if the l ight,o
’
erflowing from the eyes ,Suffused i t wi th a glamor of the grace
Wh ich we are taugh t to gather in th e sou l
F o r inner v ision downward from the ch in,
The mighty veins of h is unh indered neck
Were slu ices round of l igh tning—driven fi re ;And all th e vast recumbence of h i s form
Seemed l ike a val ley p lucked from parad ise,
Wi th al l i t s mighty,s i lver tentac les
Stil l c l inging to its und ismembered mass,
And mill ion - t inted h erbage undi stu rbed .
As near he came the poi son - stricken ai r,
Which ti l l that day had been a motele ss sh een,
Writhed with convu lsions of a moth er ’s pangs,
Brought forth from qu ick gestat ions unperce ived
M
.
28 A N [D Y]. OF TH E S UN'
.
The lofty V ivero had,one by one ,
Acqu i red the u se of al l the seven Powers ,And bore the c ircl ing emblem o n h i s a rm .
Proud ly,but vaguelv, spoke he of th e past ,
O f Titan st rifes and angel hero isms
But from the fata l fabric of h is speech ,H i s spel l - instructed l isteners ever bu i l t
Visio ns'
o f sta rs despoi led and temples sacked ,O f shadowy forms d isl imbed and sph eres unrol led
In plains of even,uninsp ired l igh t
,
To break the weak delu sion that a ( iOd
Lived in thei r sec ret cores . int,dav by day ,
Did V ivero ’s h eaven -chal lenging des ire
D raw h im st i l l inward toward s th e flawless home
O f ou r benignant Lord unt i l,at last
,
H e passed beyond the farth est boundary
O f reverent l i fe,and stood unharmed and proud
With in th e regions of bold b lasphem y .
Beh ind , the horror of th e watch ing host s
Closed l ike a parted wave before h im shone
The star of sta rs unchanged onward he went,
Unt i l the l engthened si lence,wh ich i s n igh t
Upon the sun,began ; but st i l l advanced
That st rong adventurer . The new day came ,But slow and feebly
,as
’twere st ricken old,
And could not bear th e daring enterpri se
D evolved upon i t low the waters sank
In al l the springs ; th e current s of th e st reams
A N [ D YL OF T/IE S UN .
Ceased flowing,and the sou lfu l flowers strewn
Upon the i r banks,down to the water ’s edge
Drooped plaint ive ly and al l th e sun race moved
AVith langu id steps and sad abas‘
ed head ,As though the ir strength was gone
,and hope bes ide .
Sti l l watch ing towards the c lose of that wan day
“ 1th desecrated eyes and st ifl ed hearts ,They saw that arch - in truder pause
,and tu rn
O ne moment towards them with a scornfu l sm ilc .
Then spread h i s gloriou s wings and rai se h is hands
Tha t were enfeoffed wit h“sinfu l sovere ignty ,
And,l ike a winged avalanch e in a i r
,
Hu rl h imse lf stra igh t upon the awfu l goal .
O h i then as i f to spare th e o ’
erstrained sigh t ,A wonder happened for that gaz ing hos t
For scarce ly had the impiou s V ivero
Chosen h i s cou rse,and fixed h i s forc efu l a im .
When 10 l h e vanish ed l ike the th innest flake
O f tenuou s snow upon a sea of fi re .
Long days th ey watched i n va in for any sign ;
They knew not whether h e d id reach and pierce
The glowing cover of that orbic shrine,
O r had been quenched forever from the world .
One morn,when Mus ic ’s c ircu it was aga in
Complete,and truant Peace once more rest ra ined
With in th e magic l ine,they saw on h igh
,
Above the ir rescu ed world,a smal l
,dark c loud
A th ing not seen before in sola r skies ;
29
30 A N l D YL OF TH E S U /V.
And as i t floated o’
er
'
their rad iant head s
There shone upon i t seven blended rings
O f sacred co lors , of such wondrous s iz e ,They knew they were the same that V ive ro
Had worn upon h i s arm . They watched the cloud
Fal l s lowly down into the ne ther deeps,
Bearing that pu re,immortal emblem st i l l
Upon its fo lds,unt i l i t sank entombed
Into that darkened world we cal led the moon
When we su rveyed i t from the earth and St i l l
That fadeless c irc le t may he often seen
Coi led round that starry grave in largest woe
O r, sh red le ss , groping in the wastes of storms .
O’t is a wondrou s tal e 3 What o ther or b
Hath such a h istory that its excess,
Wh ich l iveth o n lv i n remembered speech
Holds stories such as th is ? Poor V ive ro
Were i t no wrong to our be loved L ord,
H ow I cou ld pi ty th ee 2 int gods are stern
To gu i lt of arrogance ind they forgive
Thei r erring people an y faul t but th i s .
Tell me , dear teacher , sha l l we ever see
That be ing we adore — I mean not here,
Nor so on , but shal l we ar'r r see our L ord ?
In some far t ime,and from some d istan t sph ere
,
I f that inv io late ve i l were d rawn away,
Should we dare look,with fu rt ive
,t im id eyes
,
Downward upon h im ?
A /V 10 V], OF TH E S UN . 3 1
ARDO . Nay,a nearer plac e
Crave I for thee and me 2 Be reverent,
But fear thou not,nor overstretch th ine awe
For I bel ieve that ou r great Sovereign ’s sh i eld
l )oth slowly waste between the cross ing heat
O f h i s own central and our ou tward zeal
That i t doth furn ish'
stu ff for ou r good deed s ,And wh en al l good is done
,wil l fade away
And leave reveal ed the perfect one with i n,
Who henceforth shal l rema in as one o f u s .
But now,refresh ed
,we must once more to work
Put on thy sandal s of embalmed flame ;Bind up agai n th e loosened amber fi lament s
U f th ine abundant ha ir,le st thou appea r
Too gloriou s amongst th ine e lder si sters
Let go the h idden rudder o f th ine eyes,
Which makes them ever keep the i r cou rse toward s me ;And I will p luck Love ’s pharos from mine own
,
Which thou art sa i l ing by . And now those eyes
T0 0 long reduced to v is ions of one sou l,
Again must gauge themselves to mu lt i tude s ;And from the verges of d i spers ion ’s d eeps
,
Stra i n afte r gods . Now take my hand and come
We wil l away to my most prec iou s spring,
And thou shal t drink one draugh t from mine own hand,
And there together wi l l we,s inging
,mix
Such potent l iquor for th e earth ’s d ry cup,
That none shal l be th ere more ath i rst for j oy,
And al l be thence informed of our sweet love .
TH E CO MMO N MAN .
Behold he da ily does th e worl d ’s wide wi l l ,Makes what i s good
,and masters what i s i l l ;
Lives not obl iv iou s of earth ’s blessed ways ,Nor clogs h i s progress with d i sordered davs .
H i s st rength is a s the braces of the sky ,And as the salt sea ’s breath h i s bravery
H i s own worth knows he and its t rue intent s ,Although he counts not its const itu ents .
H i s arms are round and fu l l with deeds unwrought ,H i s shou lders mighty and abased by nought ;For they can hear
,nor press u pon th e heart .
What cowards cast th ere with elud ing art .
ju st ice and mercy do in h im concu r ;H i s t ru th is as the .day
’
s diameter ;Ai nd Peace between h i s eves doth have her seat
,
L ike to a queen between two handmaid s sweet .
What man has ever done he doeth now
Be i t to forge , to bu i ld , to sow or plow
And round the forefront of h i s last act sh ine
The cumulate beaut ies of the long des ign .
TH E COAIM ON M A A ’.
Not in the new alone doth beauty sleep,
For o lden things a h igher import keep ;That stream is pu rest wh ich doth longest flow
,
And what i s best wil l aye the farth est go .
The common man is slow sees not afar ;Must keep h i s ey es where e r h is fu l l hands are
E nj oys the common hues of near-by th ings
Stops at th e blu e of myst ic qu iverings .
H i s goals are near,and one the sun each day
Drops warm with l i fe and not too far away
Bu t ere th e n igh t he grasps th e baub le sweet,
And i ts sun-warmth i s blent with h is h eart ’s h eat .
Yet not th e slave of despot day i s h e,
But the free servant of th e Centu ry
And though sh e wears h er ve i l upon her face,
H e somet ime s fee ls h er hand ’s imperial grace .
H e sees th e measu re of h i s last ing migh t
In every work h i s hand concludes arigh t
And each resu l t h i s wi dening sp i ri t frees ;The houses h e has bu i lt bo ld but h is fam i l i es .
H i s l ip s have s imple songs,wh i le Music ’s art
Doth only st i l l th e groves about h is h eart
That when her chosen chantress s ings , at last ,N O rival songs shal l ’gain st t hat stra in be cast .
34 TH E COM M ON“
M A N .
Not from rare moment s ’ tenuou s chal ices ,Flame-fi l led and flash ing with infinities,But from a common cup of cumbrou s c lay
Drinks h e the last ing j oys of h is long day .
N 0 fai rie s l ight upon h is steps attend ,But giant
,heavy-handed forms
,that bend
And pou r fo r h im th ick l iqu ids , amber-c lear ,Slow drip of sweets long stored from some dream year .
Yet there is set with in h is heavy frame
A secret t ru th wh ich hath on earth no name
And though h i s l ip s shal l speak wise th ings and t ru e,
H is words have one side dark and give no c l ew .
He i s the keeper of al l permanenc ie s
On h i s acceptance wait d iscoverie s
Though one shou ld force a gift from H eaven ’s h eigh t,
The common man alone can keep i t brigh t .
He has long le isu re,ye t h e waste s no t ime ;
H e waxes old,bu t st i l l enj oys h is prime
And what anoth er in despa i r has sough t,
H e finds,at last
,withou t one troublou s th ough t .
Behold h e da i ly does th e world ’s wide wi l l ;Makes what i s good
,and masters what i s i l l ;
And wh en th e race ha s reached i ts earth ly span,
The comm on shal l appear th e perf ect man .
TH E CHR ISTMAS TABL E .
Now bring the ample table out ,And have the c loth wel l l aid
3i nd load the board , i f so thou canst ,With what thysel f hast made ;That every guest
Shal l find the best
For which h is heart has prayed .
Then set thou,at th e table ’s head
,
A chair o f sable sta te
And le t each one,with reverence say
“ Come Christ,here is no hate
And the Den ied,
The Cruc ified ,Shall leave H i s c ross
,though late .
But set thou,at th e table ’s foot
,
A chair of equal grace
That the new Christ of perfect l i fe
May see,with sh ining face
See,from some heigh t
,
I ts spotless wh i te,
And come and take h i s p lace .
TH E TWO D ISCO V ER IES .
’Twas wit h such eyes
As every mortal hath,
When c lear su rprise
Lightens th e path,
That she beheld
H i s sp i r it ri se
That sh e d id see
I ts august s iz e
Match ing nobil i ty .
"I
‘
was only as
The others saw
The man he was,
That she,with awe
,
Beheld L ove pass .
I I"Twas with the s igh t
The few possess
Who see the righ t,
Who know to ble ss
That she beheld,
38 TH E TWO D IS COVE R /E S .
After th e glory waned ,The glory st i l l
That there remained ,After the th ri l l
,
The consc iou s h eart
To know and c la im,
From h is great deed apart,
The m an i n shame .
’Twas not what oth ers see
That now she saw,
Splendor and maj esty,
Th ings withou t flaw ;But
,with a finer s igh t
Than takes the swi ft d el ight,
When in fu l l V iew,
Grand Love goes by
She subtly knew
P lain Love who wa ited n igh .
TH E VA LKYR I ES .
Directors o f the lau nched death
Rece ivers of the latest breath I
How d id ye choose the guests for Od in ’s hal l ?
O n whom were your fi rst favors wont to fal l ?
Who ’er i t be tha t answereth ,
Say why ye chose a k ing and why h is th ral l .
Loved ye the most who sl ew the most ?
Was that fi erce one you r chosen ghost,
Whose bat tle axe always the deepest went
Whose bloody spear was aye the farthest sent ?
Who,be ing dead
,st i l l made h i s boast
,
And cheered the weary fl igh t wi th fu ry yet u nspent ?
Had ye no though t for h im whose blade
Shone l ike a th ing that hath no shade,
And fi rmer temper took at every blow,
From subtle cu rrents wh ich therewith d id flow
And not alone the hand obeyed,
But st ruck most r ighteou sly,th e gu i lty foe ?
And spared ye any in that t ime
Of bru ta l deed , of blood and grime ,
40 T H E
For that they were beloved by lad ies fa ir,And sent sweet songs across th e trumpet ’s blare ?
Nay seemed it not a crime,
To h inder tho se whose loves were al l t he i r care ?
How choose ye now your sacred dead ?
Where once was war is peace instead .
Have you r own heart s not gathered newer clews,
See ing how earth ly ma ids th e l iv ing choose ?
Are not you r wh ite l ips turned more red ?
Have not you r eyes been purged with sweeter v iews ?
Yea I hath not Od in,you r great Si re
,
Been tu tored to a new desire ?
Hath not some signal from a human hand
Start led the warders o f that ghostly land
That now a new and softer fi re
They burn,with reverence
,al l a long th e strand ?
TH E DEAD DAY .
I made a tryst with a com ing day ;A day ye t far away
And I sa id
I wil l meet thee, O day , on the h i l l s
When thy glory the east overfi l ls.
Let thy s isters be fo re thee regre t
And thy s isters beh ind thee despa i r
For I ’ l l br ing thee a j oy wh ich the world cannot fre t ;I wi l l show thee th e worth wh ich the heavens dec lare
A po ff ert lzca r t wil l I bear .
But the red o f her com ing tu rned gray ;For I was far away
And she said“ Let me d ie with th e longing that k i l l s
Wh ich through the dead heart ever th ril ls l ”
Then upon the low bierwas sh e set ,And borne th rough the sh ivering a ir
,
By her maidens al l darksome and wet ;While wai l s of defeat were st i l l echoing there
,
And a broken heart was in prayer .
TH E LAGGARD .
Soi
swift passed by h im th e peop le,so se ldom looked
they around,
They saw not th e face of the laggard , whose fee t on the
covetous ground
Found rest and a l ingering l ightness and del igh t as of
last ing good,
And slower and slower proceeded unt i l i t seemed that
he stood .
But hurried the many onward in broken masses and
groups,
And the hollows and empty spaces of the ir frenz y’
S
serpent - loops
Seemed spectral hearts of exc itement wi th the ir fever
and force pul sed o ut
The ir bi rth the death o f a moment , th e ir death the birthof a shou t .
At ease the lo i te rer fo l lowed,untouched by the st rug
gl ing throng,
For mult i tudes feel a repu ls ion from souls that are
si lent and strong
And noth ing is half so defended as the s imp le peace ofth e heart
,
44 TH E LA GGARD .
H i s heart was a de l icate l i fe-boat with a roseate sai l
unfurled ,And sav ing one j oy undim ini shed i t sa i led the whole
of the world .
Their desire was a passionate c rav ing to feel al l th e
forces that are,
So long as was left on the ir sp iri t s one spot for sensat ion
to Scar
Whi le to fathom the single impres sion and it s subtle
folds unwind ,Was enough for h is t ruer longing , enough f o r h i s single
m ind
For he kn ew that h is spac ious be ing , unloosed to it s
farthest curve,
Lacked room for that one reve lat ion,t hough h e held i t
al l in reserve .
The fu tu re to them was a st ra igh t th read spun from the
m ists of the past,
Which,miserly
,marked ou t before th em the way wh ich
they traveled so fast
And the present had no ex istence,or seemed
,past any
dispute,
But the l itt le l ine that lapses ’tween the rai sed and
lowered foot
Wh ile t ime to the leal - h ea rted laggard had no d ispers ion
o f soukCou ld only, starl ike , around h im its widen ing c irc le s
rol l ;
TH E LAGGARD . 45
And th e growing plane of i ts orbi t was the present unto
h im,
Where l i fe in a lu strou s glo ry stretch ed calmly away
to it s r im .
But th e running‘
l ine of the i r hast ing,l ike th e chain in
the deep,cool wel l
,
At last drew speech from the s i lence wherein such
sp ir i ts dwel l
And turn ing about to th e nearest h e showed them the
peace of h i s face,
And by the power of h i s purpose ch ecked the speed of
the i r fevered pace .
Then suddenly ended the ir rav ings,with th e shock of a
sharp surprise,
As a storm migh t hal t in i ts fu ry with qu ick reverence
in i ts eyes,
I f right in i ts path there sh immered,with no watchmen
stat ioned around,
A co lony'
o f gloriou s ange ls j u st arr ived to inhabit the
ground .
And these are the words h e u ttered unto such as l ingered
anear,
Amazed and afraid and att racted and half unwi l l ing
to hear .
Why haste ye on Change ’s worn p in ions to th e eyry
of lu st ing and madness ?
Why float in th e storm -winds of laugh ter to th e dreary
expanses of sadnes s ?
46 TH E LAGGA R D .
Do ye have the deep heavens for you r h ast ing , as t h e
birds in the ir j oyous proj ect ion ?
Are the white doves of H eaven abandoned , with the i r
burdens of mystic reflect ion ,To the c lutch of the hawk or the falcon or some othe r
feloniou s captu re ,While the heart that is look ing and longing shal l m iss of
i ts infinit e raptu re ?
Can the racers of commonest c rav ing run as fast as th e
coursers etherial
Which the heart sends afar i n i ts calmness,and gu ideth
with re ins immaterial ?
Ye bu t fol low false bi rds of i l lu sion from the nests of
your own l iv ing treasures
And ye gather from fa l sehood ’s begu i lement that wh ich
falsehood ’s memory measu res .
Ye are fol lowing vanish ing p ic tu res and dancing shadows
and splendors
By a mock sun scornful ly scattered,when the spiri t
,
unwitt ing,su rrenders
Both the earth and the sky of its be ing,where the forces
c reat ive are h idden
And the th ing ye m igh t form into beau ty,unto h ideou s
shapes shal l be bidden .
L ike as golden whee l s ye are wh irl ing o ’e r h ighways
po lu ted by pass ion ,And the mud -drops ever th rown forward seem to you of
an exqu is ite fash ion
TH E LA GGA RD . 47
Were they drops from the car of old Neptune ere th e
waters of ocean were bi tte r,
Or a shower from a c loudle t begotten where the m ists
with d iv ini ty gl i tte r,Ye cou ld not more eage r pu rsue them or struggle th e
harder to catc h them
And th e th ings th at with th em are m ingled to i l lum ine
and v is ibly match them,
Are the float ing sparkle s and rel ic s of your though t ’s
fi rst pure creat ions,
Comminuted and mangled in fol l y and left for th e
laughte r of nat ions"
But what is the gain of your hast ing -al l you r c raving
and env iou s mal ice ?
Doth not v io lence sp i l l wi thout scruple the sweets of the
spi ritual chal ice ?
Yet al ly you rse lve s with th e wh irlwind,le t rio t fecundate
th e sp i ri t ,And the th ing that is brought forth in frenzy , though ye
shuddering strive not to rear i t,
Shal l for ages ravage you r be ings,uproot ing and smit ing
and rend ing,
Unt i l th ere is l eft a mere desert,and death or dark
horror impend ing .
But i f what ye are seek ing i s prec iou s,and it seemeth
dearer and dearer,
Wil l th e smoked glass succor you r v is ion ? or your
breath on the pane mak e i t c learer ?
48 .T H E L A GGA A’D .
Have ye fear that some others shou ld gather your
del ights ere your hearts have possessed them ?
Then,in truth
,were th ey yours by the i r nature , from
the demons themselves ye cou ld wrest them I
Oh unseemly these struggles and racings, when to lov e
is the whole that i s needed
Since the heart knows to carry you farth er than the fee t
of man e ’er proceeded .
Doth befit your false fury a be ing , who hath th rough the
empyrean wh itened,
And o’
erflown the sun in h is sp lendor nor endured that
h i s garments were brightened ?
Who hath dared to th e hazardou s borders of the regions
starless and rangeless,
Where the breezes so friendly to fly ing l i e as dead at th e
feet of the Changeless ?
Fear ye now to repose in th e ether wh ich is st i l l in you r
spir its ’ recesses,
And i f lu l led to the st i l lness of H eaven,with th e passage
of angels st i l l blesses ?
D o ye fear, unle ss always i t’s flash ing
,that th e h eart ’s
fiery lightnings shal l with er,
And when summoned to shatter some darkness be too
feeble to carry you th ither ?
But , behold how th e passionate pat ience of th e flower
by the roadside there growing,
In the colorless a ir finds and fixes th e shy sweets that
forever are flowing
TH E LA GGARD. 49
Let u s s it down there in th e coolness and su rround i t in
reverent wonder
We can love that flower together and migh t fa i l to so
love what is yonder
We shal l hear i f we peaceful ly l i st en,as th ey cord ial ly
signal each other,
’Cross th e d reary space s of c lamor,in such tones as
noth ing can smother,
The bright band of immacu late lovers,with a sweet and
solemn insi stence,
Mou ld ing ever to trumpet ing act ions th e clear meta l of
perfec t ex istence .
And at n igh t shal l we tent u s secu re ly in th e st rength
wh ich belongs to endurance,
And the l ight of th e undying sp iri t shal l bu rn for th e
p ilgrim ’s assu rance
And shal l frigh ten the forces of darkness,wh ile aga inst
a l l th e tempest ’s assa i l ing,
From th e heart ’s st i l l recesse s shal l i ssu e counter-blast s
of command never fa i l ing
And soon shal l th e lover-gues t find us,
— shal l approach
and the sleepers awaken
And th e fear i n the heart st i l l abid ing,from its loosened
beats shal l be shaken .
THE TWO CLA IMANTS .
Two spi rits late were po ised above th i s land ,Mother of Nat ions
,Spiri t of th e World
And l ik e a mist ac ross th e h eavens ’ sh een
Spread the effect of counter-work ing wi l ls .
For not agreement ’s sweet convergences
T0 some effulgent embouchure in a i r,Had brough t these m igh ty be ings face to face
Bu t d iscord ’s h idden snare at c ross ing ways .
A skyey winter grew about the spot ,And the ch i l led l ight fel l th rough the boreal a i r ,In ghostly flakes wh ich drifted round the i r feet .
And she,th e Moth er of Nat ions cal led
,did hold
A chart of States before her,and across
The fold ing glory of her v iv id dress
Less ample than the other ’s though i t seemed
F l ickered dark l ines that made a ghast ly web,
And seemed reflections of the sh i fting boundar ies
Wh ich c ircumscribed her daughters ’ earth ly rea lms .
Her eyes also seemed weary with th e chaseO f those elu sive l ines wh ich were as seams
Upon the mended vestments of th e earth,
And when she spoke,the crysta l waves of speech
5 2 T H E T IVO CL A /J/A ZVTS .
Then answered her the strong World Spi ri t thu s“ Thy boasted righ t hath never been denied
And,yet
,meth inks
,thou hast asserted it ,
As though that perfect - sa i l ing orb had been
A sink ing wreck,and some swift a id of th ine
Had gained a cease less righ t of salvage to it .
Yet hath thy doubtfu l c la im been e ’er al lowed,
Opposed by none , though acqu iesence made
A grief too large for Sorrow ’s greate st gauge .
What hast thou done with th is vast priv i lege ?
What,save to weave thy web of boundaries
Around a world des igned for l iberty ?
Thou cou ldst not even see thy spheric prey,
E xcept as i t d id , cu rve by curve , revolve
Across thy narrow sigh t thou cou ldst bu t be
A slow explorer there,and
,one by one
,
Inscribe the parts u pon thy needfu l c hart ;O r catch thei r ou tl ines on thy su l l i ed robes
More spac iou s than thy narrow vis ion was .
And thou d idst qu ickly drive lorn wa ifs of space
Down through the earth ’s c lear a i r and through
ways
O f earth ly generat ion to become
Thy misbegotten offspring,and the bane
Of man enmeshed for them What righ t hadst thouTo cu t th e bond of human uni ty
,
And put th e separate ends with in thei r hands,
To tangle them with enm ity ? Bu t know
TH E TWO CLAIM AN TS . 5 3
Now,for I say i t , that thou hast done i l l
Thou hast ou tl ived thy righ t To me doth fal l
Thy forfe i ted estate Go now, d ism iss
Thy ch i ld ren from the ir p laces to again
Roam restless th rough blank space as ye t unstrewn
Wi th worlds . ”
Now for a long space d id I hear no word ,And then the other spoke the untried speech
O f pa in .
“ O States and E mpires of th e earth ,Ye are my ch i ld ren slow - transformed ,In th e vast womb of Cycles
,into shapes
Which bear my image —ye are very fru i ts
O f my materni ty What mother else
Hath reared in such alarms her progeny ?
How in you r separate and remote abodes
Have I protected,e ’er unfai l ingly
,
All you my nu rsl ings how,from th e fi rst hou r ,
Have I endeavoured to tear wholly off
All ta int of former vagrancy in space,
And train you to the regions defini te
Of sol id and enduring happ iness
How have I run to sh ie ld you at al l t imes
When spitefu l demons have made war on you,
What side have I left withou t sav ing guard ?
Though they have m ined the qu iet earth and dropped
Germs of convu l sions th ere,to rend apart
Your rocky fastnesse s ; though they have bent
54 TH E TWO CLAIM AN T S .
The mounta ins to a bow,to launch at you
The ir frozen thunders,or have stamped
The soft a i r hard,to hurl w ide furies down
Upon your heads ; yea , though most imp iously
They have unloosed those sei zures d ire o f strange
And dreadfu l malad ies,wh ich spread ’mongst men
Destruct ive frenzies — yet i t was my j oy
To ever be with you . But al l my fl igh ts.
Around you r cheri shed realms,have left no loops
O f l iv ing concord wh ich a hosti l e word
O f tyrant - sp iri t breaks not 1 Nought remains
But t hat far fel lowsh ip of space,wh ich seems ,
To those who have bu t played at human love,
Only as sol i tude . I canno t hold you I
Ind ia who dro opest so the head ,And thickenest th e a i r into a du sk
,
With the dark fragrance of thy favored flower,
For m id -day dreams ; wake not for my farewel l
O wou ld that I m ight j o in thee in that sleep
Which feeds alone upon sweet memori es,
And wil l not pass at touch of present grie f,
Though grief shou ld tu rn i tse lf to burning suns .
And thou I tal ia,who sitt’st a t ease
Upon the sun -ward s ide of thy vast ru ins,
And id ly watchest swarms of l i t tl e fo lk
At play before th ee ; hop’st thou sti l l
, 0 ch i ld ,For future h eroes to del igh t those eyes
TH E TWO CLAIM AN TS .
Which only sh ine for demigods ? Nay,tu rn
Thy face around and chase the migh ty sh ade s
Who fly from th ee I Haste now,and fare thee wel l I
Farewel l to th ee Britan ia , . eve r young I
Thou who hast made a never- end ing pact
With dawn and sunset,equ i -d istant powers
,
To keep the i r h eart -hu es on thy face at noon ;Who hast pu t port ions of th y realm far off
,
To show how eas ily thy regnant wi l l
Can leap the vast and host i le intervals,
Or to enj oy perpetual,interchange
Of sweet sa lu tes with the remote— th e dark
And train the heart to tender prophec ies
Oh,boundless woe I that t hou must now forsake
These eyes and go where ne ither sound of vo ice
Nor d ivinat ion may take hold of th ee .
And now to thee Columbia,I speak
,
Subl ime and dreadful offspring of mine age I
Thou wild,unfil ial ch i ld I Keepest thou st i l l
That face turned from me ? H id est i t fo r shame
That sorrow hath no faint impression there,
Or art thou e ’en unconsc iou s of my vo ice ?
I feel a mystery of reverence
Creep,l ike a vapor
,o ’er th e luc id streams
Of th e affect ions,darkening the ir cou rse
But vagu e and doubt ing guesses of thy though t
Haunt the vast spaces of my unfi l led l i fe,
And bid me st i l l to love thee,though in fear .
5 5
5 6 TH E TWO CL A I/WA N TS .
Now let Farewel l drop her dark cu rta in down
Between thy secret and my augurie s
Yet wou ld I,that
,in some far
,sec ret t ime ,
Welcome migh t r ing that cu rta in up again,
And show thee true protagoni st of earth .
Now al l my ch i ld ren whom I have not named,
Farewel l I farewel l I Fade,s ink away I henceforth
Ye are but ghosts — wan spectre s wh ich wil l haunt
A ll drear domains of space,and on the a ir
O f that new world I soon shal l go to seek ,Work dim alarms and subt le sh iverings . ”
Soon as the griev ing sp irit ceased her pla int,
The Spirit of th e World,with p i ty moved
,
Spoke thu s “ O'
erring siste r , be consoled I
Let such a change go o ’er thy sudden globe
Of woe,as thou shal t see pass pleasantly
Around the c ircles of th e qu ickened earth,
When I shal l speak to i t . Soon shalt thou see
How sh runken man hath sore offended u s,
Who had the power to see h i s de st iny .
And thou shal t find new j oy,when he doth turn
H i s perf ect face unto th ee thou shal t know
The beauty of a human face,when al l
The glory wh ich has sett l ed round the heart
Shal l rise l ike wh ite flame th rough the eas ‘ed l ife,
And pour immortal graces in th e fount
O f sm i les ; when al l th e sun-glow d rench ing earth ,
TH E TWO CLAIM AN T S .
And all th e crimson fervors of its h eart,
Combine in fert i l e j u ices wh ich shal l feed
No growing th ing,except .th e flower of song
,
Which reaches ever to man ’s sacred l ips .
There i s bu t o ne humani ty and man
Yea I every man— must have the whole of earth,
To be h imse lf as whole . Thou hast done i l l,
To so d iv ide men into host i le groups,
That each mu st keep h is eyes fixed on the f ew ,
And no one is a l lowed to tu rn h i s face
Toward the s low- shap ing wonder,tru e Mank ind
,
And force that darksome giant to d isc lose
The perfec t image worn upon h i s heart .
Thou hast restra ined th e i r s igh t to vort ic es,
Whose ou ter rim is boundary of th e i r state,
And al l whose lessening ci rc les end,at last
In the sunk centre - point of selfi sh appet i te .
But I wil l tra in men ’s v i s ion to the curve s
O f earth,and
,l ike a sea-fowl o ’er the waves
,
Shal l i t,with d ip and rise
,fly ’c ross the land
And I wil l teach them to restore th e earth
To i ts fi rst beau ty,and to add the i r own
Unto i t ; ye t wil l te l l them that al l space
I s the irs ; and that they must so fl ing th emselves
Into that larger realm,and so transfuse
I t with th e i r buoyant ble ssedness,that soon
,
Their l i tt le earth shal l seem a flowery bal l
Wh ich t rooping sp irits carry in th e i r hands .
Ct
TH E LAST PRAYER .
To the bare summit of a wooded h i l l ,Close to the chu rch whose al tars he had served
The years s ince manhood had dethroned the gods
Of pagan infancy , went h eav i ly
An old pr iest,sorrowfu l of heart and sore
With frequ ent recoi l of unanswered prayer .
There,fo r a long t ime
,stood he si lently
,
With eyes that turned them many t imes around
The circ l ing scope of sky,as i f th ey wound
Some l ight coi l of th e h eart ’s expectancy
Round the inc luded world to prison i t,
Or hold i t for h is l e i su re ’s after- search .
At length,with tearfu l face uprai sed
,h e spoke .
God,I have waited with st i l l l ip s
,for fear
M ine own words m igh t irreverently invade
The chambers of m ine ear,and c la im the space
Th ine own wou ld share with none,unless d ivine .
Now speak , I pray Thee , lest m ine ear do feed
So long on si lence that no sound aga in
Have power to waken it I
How many yearsHave but the wasted echoes of Thy voic e
60 T l LA S T P/i’A Y E A’
.
Mine ears grew weary with the lengthened chase,
And E cho was aggrieved for want of new ,
Sweet words ? But I have p it ied her, and brought
The strong restorat ives of lu sty shou t
And robust laugh and song such as th e street
D oth often feed her wi th .
And I have prayed
To E cho before now,what t ime mine ear
Was strained with striv ing for Thy d istant vo ice,
Think ing that sh e migh t take some subtle sound
O f message wh ich mine ears took not,and wou ld
Repeat i t louder unto me .
O (j od,
I know Thou a r t .
’ al th ough Thou shunnest me,
And speake st not,nor show ’
st Thy face ; bu t yet
I thank Thee I am no ph i losopher I
I do not care to make a name to stamp
My ignorance on ; I wou ld not undertake
To placard mysteries and th ink th em better known .
To bu ild a wal l a round the night,wou ld not
Make any star more brigh t ; and why then bui ld ?
I cannot stop to m ake Thee ere I speak,
O r make excuse for Thee as one who lacks
Some godl ike qual i ty men may d isc ern ;I wou ld not v iew the shadow of mysel f
,
Thrown forward on the bank of mingled glooms
TH E LA S T P l i’A YE R .
That i s th e futu re,and pay homage to i t ;
I wou ld not so m isprize Thee as to cal l
Prev is ion o f th e perfect se lf,t rue God
Nor wou ld I so d i spers e Thee th rough the world
That Thou art robbed of that sweet attr ibu te,
Dearest to man,th e personal l i fe o f sel f ;
I only feel Thee God,and see Thy power
Work ing superiorly bes id e m ine own .
There may be h igh er Gods than Thou le t be
That makes the need of Thee no less for earth
Where Thou art dom inant . Yet know I not
What righ ts and offices exc lu sively
Are Th ine in th i s commingling l ife I fai l
To d isentangle,fai rly
,Th in e from mine
,
When,in h is every task
,Thou deign
’
st to be
Co -laborer with man I cannot find,
With in me,or withou t
,or anywhere
,
The simple,pure
,e therial e lement
Of God,d issoc iate
,and H i mse l f alone .
I cannot see Thee ; bu t Thy presence h ere
Moves on some subt le r sense than sigh t,wi th touch
,
Broader t h an mine own be ing— larger far
Than natu re wh ich su rrounds and only seems
But as Thy finger on me ; t i l l t h e sou l
Th ri l l ing with al l the beaut ies of th e world
Assures i tse l f of Thee exu l tant ly .
62 TH E LA S T PE A Y E R .
Yea,God
,I know that Thou art beau tifu l I
The faded images of Thee wh ich men
Have drawn upon the surface of the rough
Conglomerate of the ir m ingled hopes and fears,
How can I own them ? how can I revere
The phantom shapes of s ickly ecstasi es,
Where in some human worth doth often d ie,
To leave a ghost to figure as a God ?
How less than hate those color-c lad conce it s
Wh ich stare at me so bo ld ly from the walls,
When I reh earse Thy sacred mysteries,
And touch the symbols of Thee,in th e hu sh
Between loud heart -beats ? E ven in the free
And bound less treasury of sweet t h ings
Where now I stand,I dare not contemplate
These earth ly charms and sky dependenc ies,
As types of Thee or any part of Thee ;Th ink ing
,mayhap
,the flowers
,fi elds and bird s
And c loud accompaniment of t he days
Progress ive pagentry, might c loser be
Unto the beau ty of th i s human h eart,
Than unto Thee— for I do here maintain
That man has h is own beauty e ’en as God
But my best witness to Thy beau ty,stand s
The sou l interpret ing each beau teou s th ing
As bu t a gu ide to Thee,al though Thou yet
Dost h ide Thysel f before me as I seek .
But dost Thou so love si l ence that no word
TH E LA S T PRA YER.
May be vouchsafed to me,who wait so long ?
Live there th en other Gods to ta lk with Thee,
And canst Thou not forsake,for but th is once
,
The long entrancement of the ir speech to say
One word to me,who hearest bu t earth ly words ?
I s ’t th en that th e large import of Thy words
Ou t- reaches the d ivided day of man ,And that to hear Thy bri efest utterance
,
Mu'
st one l ive on uninterrupted ly,
In a broad plane of open consc iou sness,
Whi le n ight and sleep,forced back by migh t of se lf
,
Mount slowly in black dri fts on e i th er hand ?
Or i s Thy vo ice d ispersed in separate tones,
Throughout th e whole of natu re,so that each
That ut te reth sound in al l t he l iv ing world,
Doth speak the wo rd '
o f God ? 0 t hen recal l
The scattered and d isordered fi lament s
Of fluent speech , and reunited , pou r
T hewhole supernal flood upon my sou l,
Though there be s i lence in both earth and H eaven,
And speech comes never more from these old l ips I
I t i s bel ieved that Thou aforet ime spoke
To chosen men,who heard Th ee reverent ly
Del iver now one word to me,that I
May show Thee how those patriarcha l saint s
D id shorten h earing to a vu lgar mark
And offered Thee contempt of common ear ;
64 TH E LA S T PRA YER .
For I wi l l l i sten to Thee as a god ,Although my speech is spott ed o ’er wi th earth I
Shal l I bel ieve th e sacred h istorie s ,Which say that T hou d id st real ly speak to t/rem ,
I f Thou refusest now to speak to m e ?
Had olden men the watchword to God ’s hou se,
And I and other men of th is new t ime,
Not ga in admiss ion for communion there ?
Was then Thy speech a favor of Thy grace ,O r qu ick concess ion to d iscovery
O f sec ret , subterranean ways to Thee ?
Lingers there yet,with latent potency
,
Am idst the debris of d i srupted speech
Some magic rel iquary of old word s
Which once were fitly u sed to summon God with ?
What lack I th en of that su ffic iency
Which pleasedst Thee in them ? I s i t aga inst
O r f o r u s of to -day,that what was thought
Thy very word,hath m ingled with th e world
These many thou sand yea rs ? th a t I have heard
I t th ree score years and more,and reverent ly
H ave worn my l ips with i t,dost Thou adj udge
Me now less worthy o f an aud ience ?’Twere better
,Thou hadst newer spoken then
Dos t Thou att ribu te i t as gu i l t to me,
That when my l ips have u ttered forth th e words
Al leged of Thee,I d id not v is ibly
Pu t on th e aspec t of d iv ini ty
TH E LA S T PR A YE R .
The awfu l sp lendors of a god that grew
More godl ike in th e work o f put t ing tru th
O f Heaven in earth ly words— to th en and there ,Perform the m irac le of making speech
Of man transp ierc e man ’s sh ie ld of habitudes,
And reach the sou l,as reached i t that fi rs t word
That th rough the c learness of the v irgin ai r
D id fal l upon i t ? Nay,I cou ld not help
That men should see th e common man that stood
Beh ind Thy words,and give a care less ear
Unto Thy m in ister I I cou ld not help
That men shou ld come as i f to see Thy face,
And only see some unetherial l ight
Upon the far s ide of the ir s ins,and shamed
Thee,being sat i sfied th at i t was God I
Yet be not wroth with me,Thy serv itor
For the i r insens ibi l i ty ; or that
They left th e du st upon me of dead hearts I
St il l s i lent,God I or dost Thou speak in va in ?
I s th en my “sou l so bounden to mine ear,
That i t s choked channels stop Th ine ample vo ice ?
Nay,now I am as one d isbod ied qu ite I
I have no past I I am become a ch i ld,
With fl igh t of eagle added I from the wh ite
Sel f—l igh ted burning of my ris ing heart,
E xperience,l ik e a smoke
,doth rol l away
,
And every fond remembrance of o ld joys
6 6 TH E LA S T PRA YER .
Doth d ie to send an incense unto Thee I
I make clear space around m y naked sou l ,That Thou mayst drop one word into th e void I”
H ere ended h i s wi ld prayer ; and fol lowing ,Was no sound manife st of any kind
,
Save only h is own sobbing as i f awe
O f that assuageless grie f held al l t h ings mute .
At last th e old man tu rned h i s wh ite face down
Toward s th e great c hu rc h he had ascended from,
But recognized i t not for fo re ignne ss
Then down the h i l l ’s remoter s ide d id pass .
68 TH E WON DERFUL LVORKM E N .
The ir sp i ri t s ’ to i ls d id never stop,
And when the ir rude tools th ey la id by,
They se ized the ones th e ange ls drop
When they draw near th e Dei ty .
E terna l power flowed away
From th ei r greati
hearts on every s ide ;The labor of the ir hands by day
,
Was bu t the d rift upon that t ide .
The li fe they knew was unconfined,
And so su rpassed th e frame that de lves,
That they appeared to human—k ind
As cord ial comrades of th emselves .
N O weight of se lf was on the i r hands,
And l igh t as l i fe th e ir potent touch
For Nature hears th e heart ’s commands,
And al l th ings earth ly y ie ld to such .
And al l the varied implements,
Which fel t each day the i r noble grasp,
Answered the fi rm hand s pure intents,
And knew at once the'
do uble c la sp .
These workmen never to i led for bread,
Though l iv ing bread they never lacked
I t grew where ’er th e i r labo r led,
And sent a stalk from every ac t .
TH E WON DERFUL l VOR A’
tI/E N .
They worked for j oy,for wel l th ey knew
That j oy but marked the ir sp iri t s ’ sway
And i f they took th e wages due,
They took that th ey m igh t th row away .
They worked becau se the i r h eart s were strong,
And others seemed more weak than th ey ;They worked to lessen every wrong
On-k indred heart s that h eavy lay .
They worked to break the bands of need ,That drew th e fai re st sou l s awry
They worked to subst i tu te,with speed
,
The le i su re of love ’s sunbeam t ie .
A
They worked to fash ion s i len t road s
From ou t the i r pent h earts ’ deaden ing d in ;That from the i r far-off
,blest abodes
,
Th e peacefu l sp ir it s m igh t come in .
How great th e j oy,as th ese men meet
,
Flows ful l into th e i r be ings ’ core I
E ach as h i s ne ighbor he doth greet,
Feel s al l th e perfect j oy of fou r .
They know each oth er at fi rst sigh t,
And the i r embrace endureth long ;They hear each other w it h del ight
,
And each doth tel l h is tale in song .
69
7 0 TH E WON DERFUL WORKM E A’.
SON G OF TH E SH IP-CARPENTER .
H ere me well I dear brothers th ree
My craft i s good and my heart i s free
I bu i ld sh ips of firm est plank,
And many have stroked the sink ing sea,
But never yet one sank .
Many voyages have I gone
Upon each sh ip before ’twas done
Many a t ime have spread the sai l s,
And travel led swifter than the sun,
Afar t i l l ocean fai l s .
There was no crew upon the deck
I only,manned my seem ing wreck
Unbu i lded yet to perfec t form
No rock beneath the wave cou ld check,
Nor ever any storm .
Thu s afloat each vesse l grew,
Sea and storm tried each p iece new ;And the i r p rotec t ion fi rst was given
,
And love was sworn and pledges t ru e,
Before a bol t was d riven .
The winds and waves accept my float ;Their nature brea the in every boat
,
Breathe speed and scorn of docks
TH E WON DERFUL WORKM EN . 7 1
And many gentle gu ides devote,
For risk of rocks .
Upon the apex of th e sea,
Where al l th e waves do wel l agree
To not abandon any shore,
But flow each way impart ial ly
There often do I moor .
And al l th e waves I t i e togeth er,
Tie with a loose and lov ing tether
Wh ich yet shal l ho ld l ik e bands of stee l,
In summer or in winter weather’Neath my sh ip ’s keel .
Then speak I to th e wi l l ing waves,
And tel l them what my sad heart craves
And bid them say to every beach,
A sh ip shal l come that noth ing saves,
Bu t hath a gift for each .
And bid them cry to al l sou ls th ere,
To hasten with cont inuou s care,
To find the fre igh t that ne ’er was told
By hand that hurts or makes despa ir,
Into a vesse l ’s hold
The freigh t wh ich once a sh ip of state,
First bore away from H eaven ’s gate
7" YHE WON DERFUL fVORK/VIE N .
Life ’s love - enc irc l ing zone
Bu t lo st upon some shore of hate,
The p lace unknown .
T H E SON G OF T H E WEAVER .
My work i s weav ing,and my k in
Are those who weave and those who sp in
Bu t most of al l my k indred are
The lo om less weavers near and far ,Whose fabric s pu re and bright and th in
,
Would c loth e a hope or robe' a star .
There ’s one who weaves th e rain - bow wreath
Which dying fu ries do bequeath
To the depart ing storm -c loud ’s h ei r ;And one who weaves th e flushes rare
,
Which fl icker o ’er flam e’
s lambent sheath,
And ’cross th e rest less l ightning ’s la ir .
Beneath the moon ’s low canopy,
Some slumberous weave rs l ie
I n dreams th ey weave the raiment brigh t,
By fairy worn and favored sprite,
As down to earth th ey rad ian t fly,
To consecrate the fane of night .
Another, the dawn weaver, weaves
The sacrific ia l d ress th e earth rece ives
When comes in person the adored one
TH E WON DERFUL IVOR A’M E N .
To tend h i s al ta r of th e sun ;And pen itence aga in ach ieves
Day fresh a s th e fount o f H el icon .
And one there i s,who
,near the sk ie s
,
Weaves glamou rs for al l lovers ’ eyes,
And weaves,oh
,wondrou s art I besides
,
White v is ions of th e sanct ifi ed
Wh ich swifter than th e eagle s ri se,
And widen as th e heavens are wid e .
E ach i s my comrade,each my teacher ;
The sun al so,the downward - reach er ;
Who blends in Natu re ’s cease less loom,
The earth ’s sad shade with h i s own bloom
And helpeth most the pale beseecher,
Who kneeleth in her western room .
And though I may not weav e as th ey,
Yet work I in my c loth each day,
Some cunn ing threads wh ich ne ’er were spun
By flower-whee l from th e heart of th e sun ;And many subtle p lans I lay
,
That al l my c loth be fai rly done .
I wou ld that al l who shal l i t wear,
Might fi nd that i t w i l l never tear
That every h eart wh ich beats below
The fabri c I have woven so,
7 3
74 TH E . [WON DERFUL IVORK'
M E N .
Shal l touch th e spring and fee l th e snare
And swift ly al l th e others know .
From Morning ’s face or E vening ’s mask ,I take new v irtue for my task ;
And better th reads I often gain
Where saints have wept or angel s la in
And every gentle th ing I ask
For floss from its soft ske in .
Al th ough I can , with al l my care ,Weave not what pu re immortal s wear
,
I yet may form the fabric meet
To l ie beneath the ir hovering feet
And that shal l k eep me from despa i r,
Unt i l I d ie,i f death be fl ee t .
SONG OF T H E F ARM ER .
I n the hou se of th e fol iate forces ,I am only a favorite servant
Bu t my serv ice is free as the water -cou rses,
And my love for my lords i s fe rvent .
See these arms and these h ands that in seasons unnum
bered
My masters wi th treasu res have cumbered
Strong to swing l igh t ly the ir ponderous doors,
St rong to sweep often th e ir measu rele ss floors
And with ease l can manage the broad furrow- shut te r,
Through wh ich the i r fringe-flowing draperie s flutte r .
7 6 TH E WON DERF UL
From the i r seats in th e shade of the moon
Or on the wh ite wings of th e noon ,With greet ings and grace magisteria l ,They come
,when they hear the l igh t fal l
Of the seed , as th e i r subtle recal l .
Confused i s the wh ir of t he ir answering wings,
And count less the gifts wh ich every one brings
All pou red in d i sorderly masse s around,
For Confu sion st i l l makes th e fi rst c la im to th e
ground
But I am the foe of the mad Miscel laneous,
And oppose with my weapons extemporaneou s
And I hou se l ike a sh epherd the al l holy Kinds,
The images pure of infini te Minds .
Bu t ev il gets mixed with the i r gloriou s fre igh t ;As they sweep through the regions of far- spread ing
hate,
They catch from its seas th e venomous drift,
And defi le i n its froth th e most sac red gift ;But I hear
,as I l ist to th em speed ing along
How they heal i t wi th blessings and purge i t w ith song .
Bu t alas I how fate fu l and past th ei r pu re knowing,
That the ir sacred touch i s somet imes too glowing I
That th e th ri l l of the heart and the speed of the though t,
May oft on the earth -dest ined fabric s be wrough t I
But I know , and I labor wi th m igh t and wi th zeal ,
TH E IVON DERFUL WORK'
M E IV'
. 7 7
To draw from the gra in what makes th e brain ree l
To draw from the fru i t what shal l blast wit h de l ight
Since the bl i ss to th e gods may to u s be a bl ight ;But strive as I may
,they wi l l never endure
That a mortal shal l su l ly what th ey have made pure .
Far d ifferent th e harvest take from my lords,
Ineffable motions and rav ish ing words ;The m any i n one i s revealed in each act
,
And mult ip l ies ev er each rad iant fact ;E ach face I behold of that seraph band
,
Speaks th e love of a legion,and each sac red hand
Thril ls wi th th e touch of the v ibrat ing w ire
Wh ich soweth th e songs of some angel ic cho ir ;E ach word is a poem
,each sound a swee t song
,
And each blessing seems dropped from a glorified
throng .
And learning of them,I interpret th e world ;
I see in each bu'
d how the petal s are curled
From each flying sound I loosen a tr il l
From each drop of dew l ibat ions I sp il l ;E ach kerne l of corn
,which in fol iage flows
,
Bears th e ear on i ts currents with close topaz rows
Al l the least -valued th ings have the ir halos of glory,
And the commonest word conveys a ful l story
E ach star that revolves on its del icate cogs
Wh ich ne ’e r with th e load of i ts mysterie s c logs
7 8 TH E IVON D E R F U L
Cou ld people th e sky with as splend id a host ,I f a l l who now roam there were hopelessly lost
Through the portal of o ne the m any appear ,And the many may bloom though th e portal be sere
And the barren and dead into verdure wi l l start,
When gathered by Love and sown on the heart .
T H E M ASON ’
S so xo .
When winds the i r stormy d redges dropped to earth,
Deepen ing the channe ls of th e ir furiou s flow ;And each cloud monster
,round h is m igh ty girth
,
Tigh tened h i s gl it tering gi rd le for a blow ;There was a sound of many mortal s fal l ing
,
And solemn -voiced I heard the sad earth cal l ing °
My enep l ies prevai l , my ch ildren d ie
Winds,ra ins
,heat
,cold
,my armless breast attack
\nd all the rest l ess energies that fly,
G rudging the peace wh ich they must ever lack,
Murder th e dear ones whom I love alone,
And those who know my vo ice ’s large,low tone .
O bu ild me homes that evermore shal l hold
Those who come to me I bu i ld me treasu re -vau lts,
Straigh t as the sun ’s sheer prec i p ice of gold I
Strong as th e sky tha t ne ’er i ts stars defau lts I
Pure as th e new moon ’s curv ing waterfal l,
That breaks in s i lvery m ist i l lu siona l I”
TH E WON DERFUL WORKM EN .
The vo ice was p lead ing,yet i ts power such
,
That with th e wh irlwind ’s sp iral draft,
Fell on m y' heart
’
s calm atmosphere i ts touch ,And drew it to th e summit of my c raft ;
Th is was my cal l as from a sacred tongue,
And I became a mason wh ile st i l l young .
When fi rst th e scaffold ’s narrow ledge I walked,
I seemed awakened to some old de l igh t,
Vague and mysterious,wh ich my senses balked ,
Yet d imly p ic tured to th e inner sight ;Sun
,clouds
,the Winds and wing
‘
ed wanderers ,Were to the steed beneath my heart as spu rs .
But down I looked upon the grave,st i l l earth ,
Whose sol i tude d id seem to cover prayer ;And
,l ike a fert i l e loam
,gave ready birth
To qu iet verdu re wh ich I found most fa ir
In va in sough t winds to blow my love away ;Though i t were du st
,yet on my heart ’
t ou ld stay .
So to my wal l I c leave and wi th i t r ise,
Til l I am h igher than the trees ee ’r c lomb ;D etec t what th ey hold upward to the sk ies
,
And learn,besides
,how keeps her crysta l home
E ach wing ‘ed inmate of th e a i’
ry spaces,
Where noth ing su l l ie s and where naught defaces .
And I have bu i ld ed many homes and fai r ;Have often led my hollow squares of stone ,
80 TH E IVON D E R F U I. WORKM EN .
I n many a charge against th e foes of ai r,
And conquered room to chamber peace alone
For i f the space we win hold not repose,
"Fwere better that no place we shou ld inc lose .
O f every home , I love the most to bu i ldThat one for wh ich some loving pa i r shal l wai t
In every other enterprise unsk i l led
To lead young Love with in the unpassed gate
But qu ite as sacred as where brides shal l l ie ,I s where the good are born
,and where they d ie .
But h igher than my wal l s of brick or stone,
I bu i ld l igh t st r uctures based upon my heart
Reach ing as h igh as ever bi rd hath flown,
Bright as d issolveu stars in every part
And rock ing on th e pu lses of m y days ,Softly as shadows on the waterways .
There i n doth l ie as in a wizard palace,
A sweet,young spi rit
,sunk in charmed sleep ;
So lu l led by craft of elemental mal ice,
Since I refused to hear th e winds that sweep
But I shal l ki ss and cure that charmed brow ,
When earth shal l loose me from my early vow .
CON CLU S ION
Thus sang they through th’e lessen ing l igh t ,And reared upon the p i l lared stra in
,
To sh ie ld them from the growing night
The choral dome of a refrain
TH E WON DERFUL WOR A '
A/E N .
Which was not shaped o ’er meager word s,
Nor ribbed by speech in any part
But bore aloft,l ike song of bi rds
,
The perfect arches of the h eart .
So far was sped that fou rfold song,
So h igh that blended music wen t,
E ach seemed precentor of a throng
O f those whose song i s never spent ;
But pours unwast ing through the a i r,
Through space unreached by other power
And aid s th e human vo ices rare,
Which only holy Love doth dower .
Such migh t was in that s inging band
Such migh t may perfec t song d isp lay
That though the n ight lay on th e land ,Where those men stood ’twas l igh t as day .
I know not whence that l igh t was sh ed
I only saw the quench less glow
Wheth er from some cele st ial head,
That s tart l ing,lum inou s force d id flow
O r whether music ’s essence i s
A steady,wh i te and l impid flame
,
That fades whene ’
r i t go es amiss,
Through earth ly h earts of darkened aim
8 1
82 TH E WON DERFUL WORKM E /V.
I know not,though I somet imes dream
That lov ing h earts may keep the day
And keep a l ive th eir fiery gleam,
I f long in music ’s draft they lay .
But in that l ight,where ’er i t sprung
,
I saw revealed a wondrou s sigh t
Before each heart of those who sung,
Lay fu l l d i sp layed i ts secret migh t .
And far across the land there stretched
T he‘
perfec t product of each craft
As i f the craftsman ’s dreams were etch ed
Upon a migh ty s i lver shaft .
Oh,earth and sea and man were dressed
,
As they were never dressed before I
Unless i t were,when they expressed
The l ife that leaped from every pore .
The sh ips that l ived upon the sea’
,
Seemed waves that broke not when up-cast
The sai ls that with th e wind s agree ,Were fl owers that bloom upon the mast .
The fi elds before th e farmers ’ feet,
Had verdure that for e ’er abides
The harvests that th e whole year greet,
Were fattened in the solar t ides .
TH E TRAMP
Some ch i ldren p layed before me in the street,
And,in my thought
,they tripped o ’er si lver wires
H eart - fash ioned of the past,and music sweet
Ro se from the stones in m ists of rare desi re s ;When 10 I with shou t of “ Tramp I they ran away
,
To take e lsewhere thei r never-a l ien play .
The tramp came slowly in th e ch i ldren ’s wake,
As though he walked,with awe
,on holy ground
,
And in those empty realms o f joy d id shake ,Aghast at having slain such happy sound .
Come back I” he cried,
“ people again th is place I
Come back, 0 Joy, with al l thy rad iant race I
”
He nearer came,and I beheld h im plain
A slender figu re,finely wire -drawn
,
As if to carry messages of pain
A face that seemed a qu ivering,wh ite dawn
And eyes l ike beacons on a dangerou s coast,
That l igh ted bu t th e sh ip s already lost .
But coming near,h e turned h is eyes on me
,
And th ere appeared such largeness in h i s looks
TH E TRAM P . 8 5
As could not l i e in se lf’s smal l boundary ;And
,l ike th e sunfi sh in the sunny brooks
,
Inqu i ry swam with in those rest less eyes,
And doubt upon them dropped her floating l ies .
H e paused and spoke to me,st i l l stand ing there
,
With vo ice that sank before th e feared reply,
And st ranger word s were n ever sa id,I swear I
Since earth fi rst shuddered at a human cry .
“ I seek,
” he sa id,
“ what othe rs do no t need
If thou dost know it s place,O th ither l ead I
“ Far have I come , s ince I began th e search
My days seem strung,l ike beads
,upon the way
And yet,I fear me
,that beyond death ’s perch
Must l i e the goa l for wh ich I ever pray .
I know I have not passed i t on the road,
For everywhere want ’s c ry haso
been my goad .
“ And ever have I quest ioned those I met,
For t id ings of th e th ing for wh ich I sought ;Have asked th e laborer with h is face of sweat
,
The idler in h i s dreams that come to nough t ;The old
,beneath the shadow of the i r aims
,
The young,who scarce are schooled in the i r j oys ’ names ,
“ E nter,I said
,
“ strange man,for rest and food ,
And tel l me,after
,al l thy wondrou s tale .
The strong flow of my heart to Hunger ’s brood ,
86 T H E TRAM P .
Sweeps food from mine own l ips,as by a gale
I am not weary,and my tale i s brief ;
And thou shal t h ear i t for m ine own re l i ef.
Twere better to be born on some bare rock,
Or’neath the c lamorou s cyclone ’s dervi sh feet
O r by the doors at wh ich the l ightn ings knock ,O r in th e poi soned p lace
“
where serpents meet ;Than draw from Wealth
’
s hot teat of bl i stering sand
Her dead—sea mi lk,by the S irocco fanned I
“Wealth is a fortress bu i l t against th e sun
An ambush set for angels a d efence’
Gainst the world ’s love an op iate cord ia l won,
When H eaven ’s face wou ld be the watcher ’s recom
pense
A draft from Styx a duc t from that black st ream
To irrigate the regions of a dream .
I was born rich and al l a father ’s ga in
Was stored away,with al l th e marks effaced
O f h is strange inst ruments— once printed pla in,
And every purpose and resu l t there traced
The weal th was but a cavern home for me,
Beneath th e sunny he igh ts of indu stry .
I l ived as in a cave my treasu re vau lts
Seemed fi l led by secret channels reach ing up
To where creat ive labor never halt s
TH E TR A /kI P .
Seemed dra ining stealth i ly h er humble cup
The very drops upon my cavern wal l
Were but th e ooze of labor ’s pressing th ral l .
“ And when I sat withou t that dark recess,
I saw the workmen passing to the h e igh ts,
With lowering brows and bod ies comfortle ss,
And hand that hardens slowly ere i t sm ites
And bearing banners oft i nsc ribed wit h “Want,
Which they turned towards me with a frequent tau nt .
I f down I trave led to th e shaded deep,
I found there bu t the ghost of th e despoi led
People whose names were wh i spered in my sleep,
As hav ing once upon my treasu re to i led
Til l I cou ld find on every co in and“ stone
Some other ’s name — on none cou ld see m ine own .
O h,why is wealth establ i sh ed were i t i s
,
Al l to i l above,and everywant be low ?
Why can it not be bu il t in realm s of bl iss,
Beyond th e h eights wh ich toi l doth crown l ike snow ?
But yet,i f i t were there
,
’twou ld fade in mist
For in that holy air wealth never cou ld ex i st .
I had not learned to cl imb the lo fty steep,
And saw but horror in th e vale be low
I knew not where the v ines of pleasu re creep,
O r where th e summer draws her breezy bow
88 TH E TRAM P .
Across th e s i lvery streamlet ’s t ightened strings ,And through the v iol of th e pine t ree s ings .
“ Oh,wealth i s l ike a lone ly
,mate l ess bi rd ,
That d ip s i t wings not in the common a ir I
Deep in the earth i ts heavy fl igh t i s heard,
Where only i t and reck less m iners dare
What company for me in al l th e land,
When al l arou nd me had a d ifferent hand ?
I seemed a dam upon the s treams of j oy
A l igatu re upon a rounded ve in
Or cl ot that m igh t th e baffl ed h eart destroy ,That i t with l i fe shou ld never beat aga in
Yet al l t hat flowed before m ine a l ien face ,Was marked for others in an other place .
“ And why was I not there? Why was I placed
So near the fountain,that i ts forcefu l flo zv
Swept al l th ings past ere ever I cou ld taste ?
So near to Nature,that her m igh ty bow
Sent al l h er arrows far above my head,
And al l h er blessings far beyond me sped I
“ But I can give, I though t , i f not reeeirre ;And I wi l l d raw my bow of generous deed
,
And every arrow shal l some want reprieve,
Til l one doth drop the th ing wh ich most I need
And if i t be what makes none other poor,
Then shal l I take i t,and it sha l l endu re .
TH E TRAM P . 89
With eager hand I brought my treasures forth,
And spread them in the sigh t of al l who passed
What way so e ’
er they traveled,sou th or north
O r east or west whatever greet ing cast
To each I offe red what he most d id crave ;So long as one had want
,I nought wou ld save .
“When al l was gone my weary ques t began,
To fi nd,somewhere
,the good none el se d id need
And as I j ou rney,everyth ing I scan
Nor doubt bu t tha t I shal l at last succeed ,Although my way has ever been among
Th e th ings to wh ich some private want was hung .
H e tu rned away,and wou ld not be restra ined
I bowed my head,as i f before a grave ;
For wel l I knew th e land had ne ’er conta ined,
Nor ocean borne upon h i s h ighest wave,
The prize he sough t I bu t yet I knew,indeed ,
H e soon would find what others do not need .
DEMO CRACY .
N o t on the c ru st of earth,Democracy
,
Wert th ou begotten I but wi th in the core
O f some fai r, glowing world , al l sea
And sunny mot ion to the bound le ss shore,
Whereto i ts balanced waves d id s ing and flow,
Poised bl i ssful on i ts cent ral un i ty
T h ere wert thou born there d idst thou freely grow,
Thou perfect infant,mothered by a world
Whose crowded l ive s,from every part
,
D i scharged thei r j oys u pon th ine even heart
And round i ts spheric longings cu rl ed,
That made th ine earthward fl igh t
Sweet th ings of sacred l igh t .
Before man ’s foot had touch ed th e earth ’s hard marge ,I t had advanced its h igh
,wh ite peaks
,
To make for th ine a welcome large,
In sign of what it mutely seeks
And thou,as tender as a foam - ch i ld born
On H eaven ’s sea when su rgefu l Mu sic speaks,
O r l ike the image on i ts bosom worn
When it i s st i l led to the star—pebbled shore,
92 DEM OCRAC Y .
As h is new shadow from the sun was spu rned .
And wh i le bewi ldered and afraid he lay,
H e saw aloft a hatefu l bird of prey,
That,l ik e an auger
,bored wi th sp iral wings
The clear a ir towards h im and h i s swee t heart-spr ings
And from the clouds he heard the houseless thunder,
And wild beast s raging in th e forest under
But Natu re ’s qu iet explanat ions made
With song of bird and sunl igh t ’s a id,
And flowers stat ioned ju st beyond the shade,
H e knew not,s ince he was not brave
For Beauty even shuns a slave .
Art thou unmoved,Democracy ?
So l i st lessly thou m ovest toward the Spot .
H as the cold strangled thy d iv in ity ,O r h eat engaged in some mal ic ious plot
,
To foi l thy fleetness ? or,in sudden freak
,
Hast thou th e swift wind chased,that now so weak ?
But 10 I I wronged thee,s ince thy gloriou s face ,
O f earthly weariness reveals no t race
But th ere before thee in the untried way,
R i se foes whose strength i s l i tt l e le ss than th ine
Who c la im o ’er man the fi rst de lu sive sway
And must oppose thee and thy though ts d iv ine .
There stand Oppression,Hatred
,Igno rance
,
And Fear, th e phantom ,with h i s looks askance
Bu t on thy face one only image l ies
DEM OCRA C Y .
"
I’
is that of Pi ty writ ing thy resolve
And thou dost look in longing toward the sk i es,
To find th e spot where shal l aga in revolve
Man ’s golden world,wi th man h imself restored
H i s lord ly head no longer lowered .
Hark I does that sacred v is ion turn to song ?
O holy Pythoness , was that a ch ant
Wh ich from thy laugh ing l i ps rose u p so strong,
That Tumult ’s tangle were a break er scant
For that fu l l flood,wh ich cou ld not be confined
By aught save mu s ic of a nobler k ind ?
Like seraph s ’ songs heard round the ir perfect sph eres,
The w i ld stra in flows I E arth ’s captu red h i l l s
No more keep guard I th e l igh tn ing’s broken spears
Strik e down the airy powers of host i le wi l l s I
The free winds aid,and sco rnfu l ly rej ec t
A ll oth er messages bu t th ine protect,
Unti l they s tr ike th e ears of m en enslaved,
And tu rn aga in to vi s ion I Men are saved I
And now,thy foes elu ded
,I behold
Thee m ingl ing watch fu l ly among men
Confus ion fol lows on th y footsteps bo ld
And thou dost sm ite th e despot, O rder , when
H e only ranges men in graded rows,
To walk in single fi le and not oppose
The mandate of th e foremost man in l ine .
And thou dost te l l men not to look on one ;
94 DEM OCRA CY .
But turn th e ir eyes wh ere ’er th e sun doth sh ine
To show a man or wh ere there now is none,
I f onl y once h i s shadow th ere h as la in .
And thou dost sh ow that fear ’s th e only s ta in
Wh ich cannot be wash ed off of human hands
That man ’s fu l l sou l h ath room for no commands
And that h i s brow had not been left so bare,
I f bu t Subj ect ion ’s name were to be printed th ere .
Where hast t ho u learned that look of wrath fu l scorn ?
Has t th ou seen brawls afore t ime among gods ?
Oi H eaven desecrated , wh en some demon -born
Intruder,sm ite s th e seraph h e defrauds
Of h is exa l ted righ ts ? Or hast thou seen
An aweless seraph do some common task,
Nor raise h i s ey es when near h im gods unmask,
And leave unbared th e ir glory—shedd ing m ien ?
For when thou seest man sord id,cheat ing
,raging
,
And ch iefly,when before thee
,man str ikes man
,
Thy fea tures show no longer mercy ’s p lan
Bu t mark a pass ion that i s long assuaging
Bu t when thou seest a man erect
A pal try structu re wh ich h e ca l l s a th ron e,
For h is lone seat,and calm ly doth expect
Mank ind to be it s base of l i fe less stone
Th en laugh ter loosens bu t thy l ight contempt,
At what from seriou s care i s wel l exempt
Thy hand bu t ri ses and th e th ing is gone .
DEM O CRA CY .
Thou speakest not to al l bu t fi rst dost choose
Thy t ru sty confidants men of rese rve,
O f hearts world -modeled,and of th ews
That might have bent a mountain to it s cu rve,
Yet wou ld have feared to crook or cramp
The slender column of anothe r’s wil l,
Firs t ra ised to hold the insp i red lamp
Of consecrated though t in m ists o f i l l .
To them thou needest no interpreter ;For thou dost eve r speak the i r anc ient speech
,
Which they h ave learned where de i t ies confer,
And st il l doth echo in the sou l of each .
How dost th ou tu tor th ese,th ine own elec t ?
What grace bestow from th ine abundant store ?
Dost thou the ir h ardened l imbs with charms pro tect,
O r on the ir eyel ids dreamy lo t i ons pou r ?
Nay I th ou dost s imply show that one free sou l
Ou t-weighs the whol e of Natu re ’s beady bowl,
I f base submission mixes with the drink ;And teachest th ese devoted ones to th ink
I t good to perish for th e i r cowering race,
96
And crowd the i r bound less l ive s into a moment ’s space .
I s Death ’s th y servic e then ? d idst thou appear
To only show the mortal how to d ie,
And from h is latest , l iv ing though t to rear
The standard of a di m etern ity ?
To leap at one strong bound al l l i fe ’s extent,
96 D E A/OCR A CY .
And dwel l one fi ery moment on it s verge,
And then spring l igh tly to h is bani shment
I nto th e dark abyss— th e unseen su rge
And hold ing in h i s hands upraised,
A l i t t l e snow snatched from l ife ’s h ighes t peaks, .
O r winter rose by icy breezes glazed ,To charm away the demon vu lture -beaks ?
Thi s i s thy m ission then ? Nay,never so I
But th e free sp iri t housed in every man,
Thou wou ldst,fu l l—statu red and res ist less
,show
To feeble thou sands who cou ld never scan
I t s noble image in the ir sh runken thought,
Nor u se th e powers to th ei r fingers brough t .
But in th e splendor of a great man ’s death,
The darkened p laces of th e m ind are l igh t ;And with th e flutter of h is l a test breath
,
The earth i s shaken by a th ing of migh t ;And the world -cu rrents wh ich were lately c hoked
,
Break down all dams wh ich se lfi sh strength hath made,
O r wrongfu l pu rpo se ha th invoked
To stop the stream of Nature ’s equal a id ;And in the qu iet of th e afterflow,
Thy vo ice i s h eard again ; and thou dost teach
That Natu re i s d i st ru stfu l,and cl oth countermand
E ach perfec t gift,unle ss th e whole shal l reach
The dest ined port of every empty hand
That though a man may rise to h i s fu l l h e igh t,
DEM OCRA CY . 7
To lend her momentary a id,she knows
To pu t h im st rai gh tway from mate ria l s igh t,
Til l man no longer sha l l a man o ppose
That there ’s no sceptre save the unc logged arm,
Nor any crown bu t that wh ich fi ts a ll h ead s
With equal grace - reflec ts to none a harm,
But glory of enfranch ised eyes i n s tead,
And bounds dominion by i ts c i rc l ing l ine
That Freedom i s th e l igh t o f th e D iv ine,
The sou l ’s t rue gladness and it s starry glow
That man shou ld pa l /re, i f Freedom may not go
Shou ld scorn a seat,though gods shou ld pass th e place
,
I f he migh t not be free to tu rn away h is face.
Yet,O thou godess, one ignoble art
Thou teachest I for thou goest among those
Who gather up the overflow of Nature ’s h eart
Who watch whene ’er th e careless hand s unc lose ,And drop th e ir h old ings and who steal thy catch ,With ready bas ins and expert d i spatch ,The very drops wh ic h fal l from l ip s that prai se
The sweet el ix i rs of laboriou s days
T0 such,and to the ones who save with greed ,
The flying atoms from th e sharpening blade
O f efl'
o rt’gainst th e wh irl ing stone of need ,
Thou sayest a th rifty word,and givest a id
To count and to d iv ide the shameful gains
Oh I sh ow not thy wh i te fingers last ing sta ins ?
Better,0 stooping one , hadst thou , instead ,
98 DEM OCRA CY .
Cal led up a flood at c lose of every day,
Wakened a wh irlwind from i ts sp ira l bed ,And washed and blown the s ta ined hoard away I
O Democracy,rec la im th is erring crowd I
Show thyse lf to th em in th y pri st ine m igh t I
Unfold the grace wherewith th ou art endowed
Ra i se thy maj est ic form to i ts fu l l heigh t I
Set stra ight thy struggle - torn, diso rded dress I
Take up the symbol of a hum an heart
Carven from gold and purged of i t s d istre ss,
Which l ies upon th e ground th ere wh ere thou art,
And very near thy fee t I Sing thou again I'
O s ing of Jo y and Tru th and Love I expla in ,That j oy is l ike a sea whose t ides do dash
On th e broad beaches of a race,and not
On capes of favored beings cra sh I
O take from off man ’s h eart Fear ’s fingers hot,
And turn i ts t remors to th e p leasant th ri l l
O f music I Show,that though Joy counteth hearts,
Whene ’er she opens her fine t reasu ries,
Natu re,more wary
,counts bu t honest hands
,
E re sh e permi ts th e lessened gifts to pass "
And say or sing where Natu re doth conceal
The gath ered glories of fecundate t ime,
Wh ich she orda ineth never to reveal,
Til l al l men gather in some gent le c l ime
And round the spot a perfect c i rc le shape,
Lest one smal l gap should le t th e whole escape I
100 TH E S UB 7 E CT S PIRIT
’Twas a wondrou s dwel l ing of substance fine,
O f a changefu l form and a fickle hue,
With as many rooms in it s st range design
As the h eart has plac es for pleasu res new .
But th e hou se was empty except for o ne
And the shadows wh ich h is choked heart d id spi l l
For th e structu re was bu i lt by h is hands alone,
And was girded around by h is s ingle wi ll .
And th is ghostly hou se where she d imly dwelt
With the lord sh e served with abased head ,Would d i late with the l eave of i ts magic be lt
,
O r sh rink to the smalle st space instead .
But expand or d im in ish,however i t m igh t
,
The bounds of her slavery never were crossed
And the sway of another to her seemed righ t,
Since the way of a separate l i fe was lost .
Oh I a piteou s sight was th i s he lpless slave
As she flitted abou t in an a imless way
B l l t only advanced where her master d rave,
And only rema ined where he bid her stay .
Yea I her hand in the wake of h is own hand moved ,And her deed was h is doing
,wh ile ever h is need
But her own need unto her d im thought proved ,And her pain wi th h i s own pa in fu l ly agreed .
TH E S U B j’E CT S PIRIT . 10 ]
H er voic e only fi l led th e old mou ld of h is speech,
And the dross in ' th e draught of h is eyes,
Alone fed the eyes th e blank days d id leech
With the drou thy l ips of a fal se sunrise .
I f alone she was le ft wi th her phantom househo ld,
While he flung h is glad h eart ’gainst the upper
most sky,
With a wild,free wing and a j oy unto ld
,
Her own wings qu ivered she scarce knew why .
H is exhausted emotions rev ived in he r heart,
And sh e fondly bel ieved he r own heart was al ive
And the music that from h is tense be ing d id start,
To repeat on slack str ings she d id strive .
There i s such a de l igh t in a sou l ’s free play ,That one i s not sad who can merely repeat
The motions that p ic tu re that consummate way,
And the mere im itat ion seem s wondrou sly sweet
Just as if some imperia l flower shou ld grow,
Whose shadow i tse l f was a d im,dusky bloom ,
And sent from the wel ls of i t s hal f- smoth ered glow
The del icate h int o f a subtle perfume .
Now had passed a long t ime s ince a prisoner came
Th is weak,wronged sou l to he r pri son—house wierd ,
And sh e lov l ier grew notwith stand ing h er shame ,And unto h er l iege more and more was endeared .
102 TH E S UB_
‘
7E CT S PIRIT .
For ’t i s easy to love what resideth so nigh
To the love -beat ing heart,that i ts echoes return
The loud stroke of sel f wi th each lover-swee t c ry
Wh ich leaps from the heart wh ich has sel f ye t to
learn
H i s love was as sure her own love to find,
As the rainbow i s su re to come up with the ra in,
For i t bowed bu t th e m ists of h is masterfu l m ind,
And its hues were entwined l ike the l inks of a
chain .
But the world - heart true has a world -old cure
For a h eart ens laved and a heart that sways,
And the t ime soon comes when i t wil l not endure
That a l ie shal l d i sco lor th e deep s of th e days .
Then she sends her t ides wh ich are ch ristened death
The wh i te,keen t ides wh ich d i sso lve al l dece i t
,
And tu rn to the stuff of the l ightest breath
The bonds that her t ru th and her love defeat .
And these t ides arose on th i s mate le ss pa i r,
And the shadows shrank and the falsehoods fe l l,
Til l be tween the flood and the crysta l a ir
Were two naked sou ls and a broken spel l .
Then at fi rst , l ike to two leash ed darts , th ey fly
Straigh t u p from that s il ent and wave less waste,
104 TH E S U By E CT S PIRIT
And apart,and as dead
,t h ey were c arri ed away .
By the winds that sp rung from that tenantless world,
With the ir sad,sh in ing wings al l in d isarray
,
And their wh i te breasts up,they were therefrom
wh irl ed
And were left to drift in th e vast unknown,
Past the drift ing moon or a fixed star,
Ti l l rece ived on some sphere of a lower zone,
They migh t l iv e again in tha t world afar .
TH E WHO L E TRUTH .
“ For Anthony,my husband
,was i nscr ibed
The packet found u pon th e woman ’s breas t,
When women came in prompt apprent icesh ip
Of death , to dress her fitly for th e grave
And,underneath
,was added , “ To be read
At once,and p laced aga in where i t was found .
With in,th e wretched man fi rst read these l ines
“O blameless man , t ru e friend , wise counsel lor,Look once upon the face that thou has loved
,
After th e t ruth is known,and in the wh ite
,
Soft sp l endor of thy heart ’s benignity,Let th e dark flake of th is my secret si n
Be melted and consumed or i f thou must,
St i l l yet recal l from that white,helpless face
A l l th e fond,fa i th fu l looks wh ich thou has le t
The l i e there snare from th ee,le st there remai n
Some li tt le spot not fal se,some sl igh test t rac e
Of olden sm ile upon i t,to front God with .
Thou th oughtest not when thou assu ringly
D id st k iss th e last breath forth from th ese weak l ips
For so I see my l ife shal l pass away
That thou d idst sow a seed in that black ground,
106 TH E WHOLE TRUTH
From wh ich shou ld sp ring such bitter, bl igh ting words
As are here writ . But nay I i t i s not so
Though I being dead yet speak,I speak not now
With l ips that have lea rned ph rases or bestowed
Translat ions of th e heart ’s black - let ter past
To fal se impress ion of new happiness
But I do now announce the very son],
As one deprived of every earth ly th ing,
And standing in the s ingle element
O f h igher worlds where noth ing do th exi st
Whereby a fals ehood may be signified .
”
H ere fol lowed a long space unwri tten on,
A s though she fain wou ld le t h is fancy bu ild
A gradual sta i rway of h is r i sing dread
Unto the awfu l h e ights of h er next words .
The fol lowing sheet began abruptly thu s“ L ove i s a bal l of sh rouded fi re le t down
Invisibly between love ’s cand idates
Thy subtle in st incts only gave th ee power
To draw the covering from th e s ide towards me,
So that dark - lanternwise,i t only shone
Upon my heart,and left th ine own obscu re .
Thou cou ldst bu t s ing the morning song of love
The sun rose later . Thou cou ldst early wake
Love ’s ange l tented o ’er the qu iet heart,
But she d id waken bl ind,and d id mistake
Thy hand for that of h er tru e mate,unt i l
TH E WH OLE TRUTH
A sp iri t wi th a strange and potent spe ll,
That may be u sed but once a de ity
Who shows h is ichor-ve ined breas t,h is arms
Force- t i ssu ed out of l igh ts incomparable,
And world -em pic tured palms to one marked sou l
Tha t i s a lover, when that common word
Slips from its rags of u se and shows pure fl esh .
’Tis one that shows the o ld d iv in ity
I s stronger than the new humanity .
Such seems me that I had . When fi rst he stood
Ins ide the room where I sat si lently,
I t seemed he was a messenger for me
And I fe l t wronged when he looked not my way,
But spoke to others unconcerned ly .
Yet,as he talked , the fai ry oars of speech
Sent subtle ripple s th rough the sea of sound
To my ears only— music ’s mysterie s
And fine,del ic iou s sympath ies .
Later,when he fi rst spoke to me
,i t seemed
There was a sudden l igh t turned on,and th rough
The cavern world,where in I long had l ived
,
Went myriads of sprite s along the wal ls,
Waking embedded gems wh i le I though t speech
Had ne ’er before been put to such a u se,
But l ike some strange u tens i l of th e gods,
Left carelessly on earth,grotesque ly fa lse
Had been men ’s doubtfu l,ch i ld ish touch
,unt i l
The wonder fel l into h i s hands,and now
,
The t ru e i ntent— righ t touch,and th u s
TH E WHOLE TRUTH 109
I wil l no t try to trace
The days that fol lowed,nor make v i sible
The d ifferent beau ty of each passing face
Let th i s be al l with song and seraph voice
E ach d id announce to my enraptu red h eart
The new force thril l ing th rough the universe .
E i th er th e world sank round it,or my sou l
Rose l ightened of some coarser element
I fel t as though some secret agency
Was work ing ’gainst th e earth ’s at tract ive power ;The sun and stars seemed forc ibly to draw me
The l ight,free winds and wonders of the ai r
D id make me of the ir mov ing company .
B efo re, I had enj oyed some l i t t le th ings I had
Close pressed against my c la im -dec laring heart
Bu t now was al l d iffu sed and whol l y free,
Yet was th e whole enj oyed unceas ingly
And day became al l sunrise,and the n ight
Was dayl igh t starred .
There was a strong sou l near
To hold m ine own,inv inc ibly
,against
The vo id around,where in th e single sou l
,
Unless so hedged,i s oft t imes d issipate .
H ere was the one th ing I so oft had lacked
The c lose qu icks i lver to th e pure glass
O f being,mak ing i t a m irror wh ich
Reveal s that coy and covert wonder,S elf .
1 10 TH E WHOLE TRUTH
Blame not o ’
erm uch,i f in th i s v iv id l i fe
Of our two sp ir i ts , so prec isely set
I n correspondence that each l igh test though t
Was echoed back in happy emphasi s,
That the plain u tterance and attributes
Of others not so su re ly re- inforced ,Should be but faintly fe lt and soon effaced .
But slowly d id a change grow man ifest
A change so fine,impalpable indeed ,
That twi l ight ’s ra re and subtly-mov ingmi st sCou ld scarce have noted i t by sorcery .
Would a cloud ’s shadow weight a swal low ’s wing ,And make a seriou s acc ident of fl ight P
80 l i t t le was ou r coming i l l fi rst fel t .
I t mu st be that some facu l ty of love
I s baffl ed in our mortal atmosph ere,
E re Imi tat ion can find any room
To set her earth ly m irrors in,and fl ing
Into the m ingled lucence of two sou ls,
Dim,haunt ing shadows of the incomplete
H ints of th e human,common
,fal l ible
,
And maddening phantoms of the world ’s wi ld way .
The bond was not so close that fore igners
Crossed not th e boundarie s of our crystal world,
But rather were brough t in,because of want
In our own fai ry popu lace wh i le these
Were driven fort h . I t seemed my lover now
1 12 TH E WHOLE TRUTH
But ever was I c lose ly canop ied
With echo of that sad conju ring cry
Yea I i t was wri t upon the wal ls , and lay
Upon the floor to th ri l l my very feet
Whene’
er I walked . Some wizard wall d id shu t
Th is one though t from al l other though ts,unt i l
I t seemed a bu rn ing i sland in a mental waste,
And only one cou ld bu i ld th e saving mole,
To bind i t back unto th e cont inen t
O f universal though t and sani ty
And be was ever at my door in wai t .
But qu ick ly wi l l I tel l the rest that fe ll
D isgu i sed I met h im e ’er th e day was near,
And rode afar,before th e glowing moon
Had coyly pu t her morning wimple on
Rode swift ly down the eastern slopes o f n ight
And up the grand crescendo of the dawn
Unti l we reach ed an unknown wood,and there
Upon i ts margin d id awai t the day .
Then spoke he,and hi s sweet
,expressive eyes
D id seem to fol low al l h i s forcefu l word s
To my heart ’s door,as m ight
,in sooth
,attend
Some holy handmaids on d iv inity .
‘For th is one day,
’ h e said,
‘I wou ld that thou
Shou ldst love me only and exc lu s ively,
Unt i l al l other loves,al l other men
,
The world i tse l f to misty softness turn,
TH E WHOLE TRU TH.
Becom ing but th e unseen fragrance shed
From out th e v is ible,red rose of love .
Then I wil l show thee my heart openly ,And I wil l teac h thee
,sweet
,to reconstruc t
The world in qu ivering forms of i t s own longings . ’
Then as th e sun was ris ing,tenderly
,
With sm ile s he mooted where the day began
Whether th e place might be the upper r im
O f the sun , or lower ; whether her fi rst fl igh t
Was over or beneath that bu rn ing sphere
One doubt ing moment— then we faced the wood .
At m idday,look ing through the trees
,he said
,
‘See how the sun doth a id th e stooping day,
Lift ing the arches of h er c rystal cave,
That,stand ing at fu l l h e igh t
,her haloed head
May touch the mark of noon .
’ At n igh t he sa id,
Watch ing the sun go down,
‘See,as he s inks
,
That qu ick,black dragon of the sea of n ight
Leaps upward fiercely to h is droop ing breast . ’
And speak ing so,h i s last k iss l ikewise sank
Below the fl u shed horizon of my l ips,
Which nevermore in al l my l ife shou ld glow
With passage of those burn ing spheres of love,
Sun - ri sen in h i s h eart,sun- se t in m ine .
I saw not that they soon shou ld r ise again,
E j ec ted from the s ick ened heart,and stained
With i ts red blood,l ike dreadfu l portents
,cross
1 13
1 14 TH E WHOLE TRU TH
The dul l,bare sk ies of hatefu l after-days,
I n c ruel i terat ion of my sin .
What need to speak of the return ? What need
To speak h i s name ? h e named h imsel f anew
For that one day,and swore h is old name was not fi t
To mate with such a j oy and cal led the new
To H eaven,that in the fi rst amaze of death
H e migh t be greeted by it,and so caIled forev er .
Be ing at home,at fi rst there was no change in me
You came not back,my lover came not near .
The l ife with in,st i l l h eavy and o
’
ercharged
With dangerou s chem ic fu lm inants wh ich gave
E xplosive splendor to i t,st i l l control led
,
As stronger than the steady l igh t ou tside .
That lawless,dar ing day
,too large at fi rst ,
Dilated wi th the growth of t ime,unt i l
I t seemed ’twou ld ever dome the temple bu i l t
Of common days , and through its riot -wrought
And crystal-prisoned hues and traceries,
Give colors and del ic iou s l ight to l ife .
But ’twas a day misp laced and overstra ined
With bu rden of too strong sign ificance .
One day alone,can crown th e whole of l i fe ,
And that,th e last
,wh ich Death shal l hold for u s
,
And help u s work our final fanc ies on .
My lover came not near,and i t grew hard
To hold that magic vau lt of inte rwoven j oys
1 1 6 TH E WHOLE TRUTH
That lone and deviou s h ighway of su rprise
Between the hedges of my close-se t looks,
Which h e had laid before unto the marge
Of my unwatchfulness . Nay,th en ’twould seem
That only in th e common,open avenues
,
Cou ld he again come near me al l th e world
Had been transfu sed with ou r wi ld,bu rn ing love ,
And there no more remained the unseen th ings,
I l lu sive beau ty,dear obscuri ty
,
And shy , ve i led essence of del ightfu lness ,To work surprise with
,but with bold accla im
Of every sent ient th ing and rabble cry
O f gu i lty memorie s, would h i s approach
Be coarsely heralded .
And then I knew
H e wou ld not come aga in ; that he wou ld wai t ,Til l in th e fine and stai nless elements
O f some new world , h e’d work that wonder o ’er
And find me subtly -consc iou s,yet su rprised .
And then a new mood mastered me,and gave
A new sign unto my c la i rvoyant heart .
H e wou ld not come aga in ; he the refore must
Be going farther from me every hou r ;And al l th is ebb of l igh t and spl endrou s l i fe
,
Was but h is footstep far with in th e dark .
How , what ou r two sou l s had made right , was now
A growing gu i l t to my unaided sou l,
TH E WHOLE TR U I H .
And cou ld not be enforced to rad iancy
By its lone l ight I Oh , how inexorably
Condensed in pain and reso l idified
Th e actual world to o l d fami l iar shapes,
Wh ich had d isso lved and been etherial ized
I n ou r love ’s fervency I How far from me
Must h e have traveled certa inly,to make
Those mountains take aga in material ways I
How far,before that bare fi e ld
,half way down
The ir p l iant side,seemed not th e open page
Of some Titan ic regi ster,where in
A ll float ing wonders of th e a i r inscribed
Thei r names,in pass ing
,bu t again became
The h ighest record of the t ide of to i l I
How far,before that h ighway ’cross th e vale
Let pass d im memories of th e common flood
That flowed th ere ere h i s coming struck away
Al l footprint s save h is own,and l i fted up
A purged way towards th e h eavens I But how
H ow very far,was he before th e wal ls
O f my own room unvei l ed the p ictu red th ings
Upon th em,and revealed
,close to my eyes
,
You r portrai t hanging there with l i fe in i t I
You tel l me I was sick when you came home ,And that wh ic h fol lowed
,from th e hour I saw
You r face come back unh indered to the wal l,
Was but th e natu ral sequence of theshock
1 18 TH E WH OLE TRUTH
Wh ich flung the eerie flam beaux of the mind,
From the i r prec i se adj ustment with the sight
Confused ly upon i t . Yet,how smal l
The exposi t ion for so vast a fact I
No I No I for those few weeks of earth ly t ime
My sou l was recommitted to th e elements,
And l ived out eons of maj est ic su ffering .
Ages I lay bes ide a stream of fi re,
With bo th sta ined hands plunged in to bu rn them pure
For centuries,my l ips d id spou t hot springs
,
And st i l l remained unclean for longer t ime
Than earth ’s m ost l engthened records mark,
I groped through gloomy space,i n wild
,waste search
For someth ing nameless bu t imperat ive
And every star I neared grew dark and sank
As though it were a stone,t i l l I wou ld rend
My breast , and with my frenz i ed fingers
Tear away the coverings of m y ou traged heart ,To let a black stream forth wh ich only drained
An ever-fi l l ing s in , and poured i ts fatal t ide’Cross count less leagues of sky immacu late
,
To mingle with th e M ilky Way and tu rn
I ts lustrou s cu rrents to another Styx .
At last,upon some dread and desolate strand
,
Amid the wrecks of stars and dreary drift
Of noble enterprises cast ’gainst sp ite,
I t seemed that I d id d ie or fal l asleep
The next I knew,Was you beside my bed
,
Physic ian - l ike,with fingers on my pu l se .
120 TH E WHOLE TR U TII .
Fear ’s ev i l sorcery or s imply there
Was j u st uncovered by that passing flood
Some h idden force imbedded in the mind
When 10 I th ere lay a th ing unseen before’Twas new dece i t I se ized i t and dece ived .
First‘
th ought I of th at magic room wh ich you
Had left me guard ian of wh i le you were gone,
The chamber of our coupled l ive s,enriched
With j o int c reat ions of converging m inds
Now,l ike a hol low she l l
,i t lay despoi led
Upon that shore from wh ich love ebbed away ,Hold ing but ghostly murmurs of the past .
How qu ickly I invented counterfe i ts,
To garn i sh over those weird,empty wall s I
Afraid,that by some subtly-knowing smil e
,
Some remin iscent look or secre t word ,You might make qu ick demand of my fal se h eart
,
To show some bauble of the scattered charge .
How cunningly I strove to cheat you r eyes ,And baffl e al l th e cunning of the heart
,
By my assumpt ions and false att itudes I
O ft- t imes I wou ld cloth e common th ings in Love ’s
Habi l iments say,
‘This and th is i s Love,
And thu s have I seen Love look many t imes
Mal igning Love with false resemblances,
Lest you might real ly know how fai r sh e was,
And what a fal se pretender then was I .
TH E WHOLE TRUTH. 1 21
From then to now my aim has been . to dupe
To break the truth and shape the parts to l ies
But every l i e that showed smooth face to you,
Did have a sharp s ide pressed agains t my heart .
Say,
’twas not al l in vain I say that from out
Those black and bit ing mists of nox iou s thought,
One pure drop o f joy was yet d ist i l led ,To give you j u st one moment ’s blessedness
And I wil l swear each l ie was very good,
And H eaven shall hold it e ’en as righteou sness I
But what shal l I say ti me abou t my s in,
The love,and that Wh ereto it l ead ? The love
,
T lza t v‘yas of God the error compreh ends
The form it took . The common,human mou ld
Who has prepared i t and conceal ed the th ing
Under i l lu s ion and th e subtle net
Of myst ic longings towards the infinite ?
I own not that I loved my love too much
My fau l t was that I loved h im not enough
Our neighboring sp iri ts cou ld not qu ite bu rn th rough
The barri ers of coarse,earth ly habitude
And through th e charred and shapeless apertu re,
Caught only broken v iews and fickle fal lac ie s
Of s igh t,i n p lace of ful lest revelat ion
O f each immortal countenance,with al l
I ts t ru e,d iv ine exp ress ion unm istakable .
A l itt l e more of love,
—he wou ld have seen
122 TH E IVH OL E TR U TII.
You r shadow on my face he wou ld have seen
M ine eyes had been indentu red unto th ine
To give them j oy he had not fa i led to know
That al l th e twice -enk indled and abound ing l ight,
Wherein ou r h earts d id l ie,l ike ruby spri tes
That bath e i n floods of b leachen pearl , shou ld fal l
On thee for yet a l i t tl e t ime,unt il
Thy heart d id feel the double love in i t,
And be adv ised thu s,soon and pa inlessly ,
Of that fu l l l ife of h ighest excel lence
Which we had found withou t thy h eart ’s consent,
O r contribut ion of i ts sl igh te st beat ,But yet was drained of its supremest j oys
To pay a wrongfu l tr ibute to th ee . Then
Thou hadst been fortifi ed against the loss
O f fau l ty fel lowsh ip,by see ing ri se
The lum inou s shadow of the needed one
Thou wouldst go search for .
Pardon me,lone man
,
That I have been but only pi ty ’s shade
Bes ide thy lonel iness I give me th i s praise ,That there was gri e f wi th in my grief
,becau se
Your h eart d id topple l ike a leaning tower,
Being unpropped by other,fel low heart I
God wi l l not blame me that I cou ld not love,
Bu t that , what t ime I loved , my rad iant love
D id not so beat on th ee,and thee i l lume
,
LO VE IN TH E L IGHT
0 Love,stand forth from the midst of th e others
,
Who are mim ick ing thee with i rreverent eyes,
And th e shadow-gloom of whose h inderance smothers
The l ight that of righ t on thy sweet face l i es .
But vermil ion the cumbrou s shadow of one i s,
And i t heav i ly droop s t i l l i t l ie s in thy way
And it c lasps th ee low down as at earl iest sunri se
The low-kneel ing Dawn clasp s th e wh ite knees of Day .
I s i t t ru e,as they say
,that th e drift of t he sp ir it
Has heaped thy wh it e breast s l ike the sands on th e
beach,
When the hot land -winds blow o ’er i t and sear i t ?
Do the bones of ou r heart ’s dead l ie there and bleach ?
Nay, rather declare , as thy sm il ing avouches,They are sacred guests of th ine innocency
,
Who are rest ing in peace on their ivory couches
There are th ree of yo u now whom I see .
L OVE IN TIIE LIGHT. 1 25
Th ine eyes are no t domes of the imp iou s temples
Whose al tars with sinfu lest sacrifice reek ;But
,instead
,they are only th e sweetest examples
Of ho l iest h e ight and sun -po inted peak,
Where the fearless exp lorer easi ly ral l i e s
The fa iry - l ike tra in of h is sou l ’s ret inue,
That has l ingered too long in the s lumberous val leys,
Where the fol iage droops with a sweet-scented dew .
Like ripple s of wm e in an over-fi l led beaker
Are thy l ips that rev ive al l that s ickens in me ;Not as qu icksands are they to the Infin ite- seeker
Who i s lured by the p ink shel l s cast from the sea .
Thy brow doth resemble th e far,west horizon
When the sun has left nough t bu t h is breath in th e a ir,
Whi le anothe r sun lays h is eth erial dyes on
The changeable m ists interfusing thy hai r .
How thy breath doth d issolve,l ike a sky -fi l tered ether
,
The smoke -breath of Passion st i l l near to thy feet I
Which i s th ick from th e fi re s wh ich mortals bequeath her,
When they d ie with th e ir h eart ’s flame st i l l incomplete .
Oh , how animate I art thou though thou art stand i ng ,And my slow heart exu l teth to keep pace with th ee,
126 LOVE IN TIIE LIGH'
T .
As thou trainest my feet to obey thy command ing,
And old Lethargy taketh h is mantle from me .
E l ix i rs do fl ow in th e founts of thy be ing ;And thy heart i s th e sh eath of a del icate star
,
Which di st i l led fi re ’s essence ever i s free ing,
And beat ing to concurrent galax ies far .
How d ivine i s thy power I wh ich so easily fo ileth
The art of thy foes and pain ’s sharpest pangs
And when round us the N igh t l ike a b lack serpent c o ileth ,With what cunn ing of hand thou drawest t he fangs I
And h is scaly sk in thy magic art tu rneth,
By an instant touch,to th e swan ’s neck of Day
,
Where supernal j oy i ts wh ite l igh t ever burne th,
Til l i t seemeth the curve of a heavenly way .
O f al l who have v i s i ted u s from a far sphere,
Thou alone doth reta in thy natural dress
And bringest th e glow of thy untarni shed star-gear,
Wh ich lose th no l ight in th e dark-o f d istress .
For thou only cou ldst carry beau ty ’s vast burden
Through the measu reless fl ight and the infinite space,
Til l thou gaines t a world for thy unequal led guerdon,
And givest an infinite j oy to a race .
TH E LO ST CLU E .
Can sound he l inked to sunbeams ? or the hearts
Of men be tethered to a god ’s desire ?
Surely,some god hath passed too near
,and I
Must ever fo l low,charmed and dream i ly
,
As in h i s wake the drafted stars m igh t ro ll .
Or i s th is though t a mask of madness only ?
May i t not be a phosphorescent fi lm
Over th e shal low sea whereon I float,
H id ing the h ideou s monsters of my brain ’s
Profound d isease,unt i l th ey are fu l l grown ?
What man before,so daring that he scorned
The pole - star’s fixed and serv i le ind icator ?
Den ied that there was north or sou th or east
O r west to human dest iny,but made
H i s l i fe th e flam ing center of a bold
And rad iant purpose,which i nsphered in l ight
Al l human k ind ?
The l i ly of my hope,
I t seems,had risen h igh above it s root
,
And spread the petal s o f i t s vast intent
Upon th e waters of some l i fe d iv ine
TH E LOS T CLUE .
My thought has been to do some mighty deed,
Wh ich wou ld includ e al l men in it s effects ,And show a man ’s fu l l power unto men .
That dream I had so very long ago,
When I seemed stand ing by the loud sea ’s shore
And a soft,subtle vo ice
,not l ike m ine own
Nor i ssu ing from the h eavy l ips,and yet
Pulse-driven from the vocal h eart,d id flow
Away from me unlessen ing, unt i l ,On - swel l ing to most d istant worlds
,i t drew
Sweet answers from them was i t th en,I ask
But the mere ph antom of nigh t-feeble eyes ?
O r rath er of such stable elements ,And of such large extent as fronts unharmed
The fu l l pu issance of th e wak ing l ife ?
Where ’er th is pu rpose had i ts secret r ise,
I t now is stabl i shed on each sovere ign peak
And prom inence of strong material l i fe,
With bed - rock of e xperi ence underneath .
1 find each man is l ikened unto al l,
And dare not doubt bu t that th ere i s a way
For each to send impress ion of h imsel f
Unto the rest . And therefore have I made
Long search among the myst ic agenc ie s
Wh ich,widely scattered and unused
,weigh down
The gl immering floors of inner consc iou sness,
For h int of that,— the universal vo ice
The universal deed,wh ich I requ i red .
129
1 30 TH E LOS T CL UE.
Again,for long hours have I
,anxiou s
,sat
Beside th e gate of the Unseen,with none
Save those twin - s i sters who its warders are,
Si lence and Sol i tude,for company
Wh i le th ey wou ld cast upon my qu iet heart
The ir shadows l ined with l ight etherial,
And,wi th a world —obl iviou s touch
,wou ld c lose
E ach open pore and earth - sta ined aperture
Wh ich migh t leak exce llence but al l in vain
For I was st i l l unhelped in my design .
Then I have passed long t ime ’mongst men to watch,
In stealth,the i r meetings and voice- interchange
,
Habits of speech and speech ’s acc idents,
Con tac t of common word , or the bl ind touch
Of unaccustomed rage for some dim S ign
Of that se lf- l igature wh ich leash ed the ir th ough t
Unto an aim so near , or that repu lse
O f counteract ing wi l ls wh ich st ifled it
Bu t noth ing have I ga ined save strength of hope .
And though I st i l l can speak bu t brokenly,
Or act bu t weakly as the others do ,Yet have I found it good to make the search .
1 32 A GAIN S T TH E PVIN D .
There i s breath for a song I
There i s h eart for a race
Qu icker meet
The new sweet,
Or the wrong I
How fl ie s from the mind
What maketh one bl ind I
From the heart,
The cau ses of fear I
A fresh start I
Now the end is so near .
Gods inv i te
Whom th ey sm ite
Give a cheer I
A PRAYER TO MO RN ING .
Morn ing,sole fugi t ive of earth ’s F irst Day
,
Who dwellest st i l l i n th e Beginning,
Between th e l igh t and darkness h id away
Pursu i t bu t fe ints and flushes winning
A simpl e boon I ask,in s imple lay ;
Waken n o t al l who now in slumber l i e,
But spare thou some,and
,Morning pass th em by .
What i s the ch arm wherewith thou wakest man ?
D rain’st thou the stars to water h is dry heart I
O r do th ine eyes wh ich sunsets never scan ,By simply bidd ing
,make th e n ight depart ?
Whate ’er th y power i s,be th is thy p lan
Search thou al l hearts wh i le ye t in sleep the y l i e,
I f some are st i l l aweary,pass th em by .
Sleep hath so brief a t ime to work her wi l l
G r ief works so fast,and hath such length ened days
Though to the sorrows which th e heart o ’
erfi l l
Night sa ith “ Ye are but phantoms,t ruant fays ,
Come I fol low me unto my home ’s dark s i l l,
Yet shal l some wak ing eyes bu rn as with lye
Morning,in mercy
,s imply pass them by .
134 A PRA YER T O M ORN IN G .
But th ere are some who,wakened
,look so far
,
That day seems bu t a l igh t spot at the ir feet
Whose hearts are bru i sed aga inst the sunset ’s bar,
And sleep i s dea th unto some v ision sweet,
And blots th e h ope of th ings wh ich never a re
To such,a double gift do not deny ,
Or, Morning , show th em grace and pass them by .
And,Morning
,take thou heed I there be a few
Who find the flood of s leep a shal low stream
Whose sou ls are st i l l erec t as fi rst th ey grew,
And are not al l submerged as others seem ;One such I know ; and , i f thou dost not v iew
Some spo t awake whene ’er thou drawest nigh,
Then,Morning
,weep and slowly pass me by .
1 36 TH E M ODEL .
The forms of free -winged puri t ies,
Which flutte r, shadow-wise,
Round secret- hold ing eyes,
Conceal ing al l th e ir ec stas i es .
Nay I they shal l win in faery races,
And snatch the ve i l s from angel faces,
Nor anywhere be bl ind
For eyes not bent in backward glances,
A forward force of see ing find,
Which,past th e common
,st i l l advances
Into the land wh ere s igh t i s unconfined
Where hol i est tru th s are ever common,
And sweet sc enes summon .
Doth now she see or dream ?
From wh ich s ide of th e sou l
D o these scenes rol l ?
For i t doth seem,
That as a babe upon her mother ’s breast
Sh e l i es in infant i le content
And for her nou rishment
As beau ty ’s holy eu charist
That mother passes back and forth h er hand,
And wondrou s p ic tu res in her s igh t do stand
And wh i le she st i l l i s see ing,
The sigh t grows into be i ng
Ti l l she i s twin with her who feeds
And,s i sterly
,th ey wander now at wi l l
TH E l k/OD E L . 1 3 7
In gloriou s meads
Pass groves who se coolness has no damp or ch i l l,
And streams whose waters do so smooth ly gl ide,
That images that fal l there e ’er abide .
But in her heart a si lent sorrow grew ,
Because,among the rad iant be ings there ,
Some d id not look on h er,nor knew
H er pre sence,nor
,with what despair,
H er heart d id beat her beau ty i n the i r faces ,Or fl ing before the i r feet h er newest graces ;Ti l l near she seemed to death
When her companion said unto her “ See I”
And far away she saw,with bated breath ,
One com ing towards her potently
A gloriou s m ien he had,and
,o ’er h is h ead ,
A star blazed wh ich i l lumed h i s way
And coming stra igh t to h er he calmly said“ I see th ee as thou a r t
,and
,from th is day ,
Thou art m ine own and shal l be seen of all ,Since thou art seen by Love who i s perpetual .
Sure ly she d id dream ;F o r now the j oyous pa inter comes to her,Hold ing a canvas whereon naught doth err ,And al l her beaut ie s beam“Waken thou perfect one
,
H e said,
“ the work i s done
See I
I have painted thee .
AN ARROWH EAD .
Sole rel ic of a race wh ich once was here,And broke earth ’s o lden sol it udes before
A gentler peop le gained her friendl y ear ;With lengthened h istories art t hou wri tten o ’er
Thou who wert wrough t to bear in flinty text
A passioned moment ’s keen and forcefu l score
With what hast t hou death ’s du sky hol lows vexed,
That back upon the summ its of the world
These ghost ly shape s are numerously hu rled I
0 wild , fi rst ch i ldren of earth’s ec stas ies I
Brood of a bi rd who bu i lt h er nest in storms
Whose lu l labies were roared from o ff th e seas ,O r thunder-dropped from tempests to the arms
O f boi sterou s spi r its ne ighboring in woods
The though t of you old Natu re ’s h eart new-warms,
And cal l s her from those ca lm and sil ent moods,
Where in,with finer forces
,sh e doth now create
The modern man who knows to conquer hate .
Where hast thou la in concealed these hundred years,Dark p iece of fl in t ? who bent t h e bidding bow
PEACE lS BUT WEAKN ESS O F SPlR lT
Peace i s bu t weakness of sp i ri t
Rest bu t th e sleep of dec ision
Sleep but a death - fal l or near i t,
Div in it i es ’ scorn and derision .
I s a l l you r desi re conceded
By the powers o f giv ing and keep ing ?
You r longing never impeded ?
A road to be traversed wi th leaping ?
Bui ld thou th y bed at i ts end ing,
On th e fu rth er s ide of deny ing
Rest t/zere,and gods wh i le attend ing
,
Shal l guard and hal low thy ly ing .
MO RN ING SO NG .
Wake"wake,my dreamer
,wake
Let Sl eep no longer s lake
H i s th i rst in thy fu l l h eart,
But,sat isfi ed
,depart
,
For my l ips ’ sake
Wak e I Wake I
R i se I r i se I th e day i s near I
Long since,each crimson p ie r
Was bu i l t for her pu re arch
L ist I hearest thou not the march
Below the ski es ?
R i s e I R i se I
0 le t th e Day ’s swift race
Begin from thy pure face I
And let that be her goal,
To make my gladness whole I
No m inu te waste I
Haste I Haste I
TH E BR I DEGRO OM .
H ere I si t,locked safe
'
in my room again I
How wel l I have fooled th em,priest
, Jack and’Ligh t
By the seat in the elm and the uncloaked pane,
Was I tru ly as one at the rite
Though I marvel to th ink I endured the stra in .
She is m ine and not h is by Love ’s own law,
Since her j oy wou ld last i f she came to me .
Though for me she th inks she cares not a st raw,
H er eyes are so ve i led that she may not see
The righ t of my c la im and h is false t i tl e ’s flaw .
But I ’ve married her fast i n sp ite of them all ;E ach promise I made ere h i s slow tongu e spoke
And ere he had sl ipped on her finger smal l
Th e ci rcle t of gold,with a myst ic yoke
,
I had girded her sp iri t beyond recal l .
And a husband ’s fa i th I wi l l keep with her,
Though another roof is above her h ead
From my chair th i s nigh t I wil l never st ir,
Lest i f once I shou ld l ie on my bride less bed
Hot tears those magic espou sal s shou ld blur .
TH E LO ST FLOWER .
I cannot say how fi rst I knew
O f that lost flower
Whether old legend left some c lue
In ch i ld ish hour,
Which I have fol lowed as I grew
O r other flowers of some great loss
Have wh ispered e ’en m ine ear across
Yet well I know that once was snatch ed
From earth ly fie lds a flower unmatched .
And I have heard or dreamed or guessed
I t thu s befell,
That of all flowers the fi rst,the best
O f fi eld or del l,
Was borne from reach of human quest ;A migh ty prayer which once was prayed
,
Like that by Laodamia made,
Wrought th is great marve l o ’er th e earth
And d immed for after t imes i ts worth .
A woman by her hu sband ’s tomb,
I n ceaseless grie f,
So sent her longing th rough the gloom,
TH E LOS T FLOWER.
So sough t rel i ef,
That al l th e flowers then in bloom
Did,sorrowing
,with her knee l
,
And urged h er iterate appeal“ Send h im not back a long the sk ies
,
But give one word from Parad ise .
”
The gods were moved,but fi rst demand
Desp ite th e i r cri es
The fai rest member of th e i r band,
For sacrifice
And they tu rned not th at dread command .
Thus was th ere taken,for al l t ime
,
The sweetest flower of purest c l ime,
To be translat ed to a word
Which by one sou l a lone was heard .
A HO ME LY FACE .
A homely face I sometimes meet
A woman ’s face that shou ld be sweet
Pa in ’s spectra l hand doth touch my heart,
And vagu e tones from i ts hol lows start,
As I pass by,with swifter fee t
,
The homely face that shou ld be sweet .
Dark ly I feel,as down the street
Some fairer face I chance to meet,
That h ighest wrong was somewhere done,
Upon that hapless,pass ing one
(A wrong that’gainst th e sou l doth beat) ,
Which home ly made what shou ld be sweet .
The hand div ine knows no defeat,
And st i l l doth fash ion al l th ings meet
But what most fa ir i t doth create,
I s set with in an earth ly state ,Where beau ty e ’er must beau ty greet
,
I f fai r shal l last what shou ld be sweet .
The face starts fa ir bu t if i t meet
With l ife ’s coarse forms ’twi l l th em repeat
And loath some labor,sord id aim
,
And hateful touch of deeds of shame,
Shal l make and mou ld wi th cunning fl eet,
The homely face that shou ld be sweet .
148 TH E LEADER.
Behold the foe,he said
,wh i le from afar
Came sounds of singing and sa lu tes of friends,
And soon a host l ike to themse lves drew near,
And every man a friend ly hand extends .
Again the leader spoke,and on h is face
Benignant sm ile s bu i l t garri sons of peace,
And old command was blent with newer grace
And wi th h is words al l l ingering murmurs cease .
A short march leadeth he who finds a foe
For man in man there is but one long course
I t l ie s the way tha t al l mankind mu st go "
Up I and away again wi th double force .
T H E P ERMAN EN T .
What th ing shal l last
The tree that slowly mounts in l igh t,
Til l th e span of a thou sand years i t shows,
And grasps from the last hou r ’s blaz ing he ight
Some priz e it saw when i t fi rst arose
More swift ly goes
I t shal l not last .
What th ing shal l last ?
Temples and monuments of e ld,
Symbols of fa ith both in gods and men,
H ave fal len and gone with the names they h eld,
And perfidy wanders where they have been ;Now darkens Then
These d id not last .
What th ing shal l last ?
Tempered in flame and su re of seat
And h i s grani te brow in scorn left bare,
The mounta in waits bu t th ere shal l beat
Time ’s change - sharp moments,and shal l wear
I t past repai r
That shal l not last .
1 5 0 TH E PERM ANEN T
What th ing shal l last
A sacred gift that one day rose
From the sou l I loved , when my love was told
A sm i le ? a look ? Let h im name it who knows,
But i t blent w ith my being,and behold I
Grows never old
Th is th ing shal l last .
TH E SO UTH WINDS .
From the centre of the year,From the sun -warmed h eart of growth
From th e to l l of i ts beat anear,The weary wind s come loth
Having no rest from thei r year- long labors,
Nor any re lease from the ir fragrant loads,
String-voiced with a murmur of tabors
Caught in the long,slow forest roads
Down-drooping with moistu re,smitten with song
,
Come they northward along .
From the depth s of l i fe they spring ;From the l ips of spring as breath
From th e lord of earth th e ir k ing,
Words of to i l th ey bring and a wreath
For to i l i s constant where th ey come from,
But Natu re ’s toi l,not man ’s
,I mean ;
Since often man has an id l e palm
When Nature herself i s bu s iest seen ;For Natu re and Sloth seem there in league
,
And Nature ’s to il is man ’s fat igue .
TH E S OUTH WIN DS . 1 5 3
But Natu re wearie s towards th e North
The weary winds,with fal ter ing fee t
,
Come and draw the whi te c loth forth
From the workman ’s task st i l l i ncomplete
They cal l to th e workman,
“ Renew thy strokes I”
Whi le th e streams in p i ty cry back Hu sh I
And trees beh ind the ir mask ing c loaks,
Grow mute before th e wild-birds gu sh
Man’s so le reply i s a sound of tool s
H i s sad heart owns that Labor ru les .
TH E BL IND B IRD .
A strange th ing happened to me one day ,As I walked afi eld in th e early May
I saw a bi rd al l i n crimson and black,
Who fol lowed with ease a wh ite bird ’s track,
While th e wh ite bird sang as though lead ing the way .
The second bird,al l in c rimson and black
,
Had no song of h is own as h e fo l lowed the track,
But often some stra in of the sweet,singing gu ide
H e repeated with awe,in a gentl e aside
,
As the tunefu l strokes of h i s wings grew slack .
But j ust as he passed,al l in c rimson and black
,
Fatigued, to th e ground he fel l downward , alack I
In my hand I took h im,with p iteou s m ind
,
And 10 I I behe ld that my fai r bird was bl ind
My bird who had fol lowed th e white bi rd ’s t rack .
LAMENT
Oh , what is th e earth’s endeavor
,
That i t ’s work i s year ly repeated ?
And what is man ’s,that forever
The work of h is hands is defeated
And the goal h e strives to at ta in
Must be reached again and again ?
0 Labor, 0 cruelest Master I
Why sendest thy angels of wast ing
Thy agents of woe and d isaster
Corru pting the fru it at the tast ing
And sett ing a term to the plants of the fie ld,
And weav ing ru in with al l that they yie ld ?
M lSG lVlNGS .
Like part ing lovers
Thy l ips part
Lik e gent le rovers
Loth to start .
By breath of pass ion
Never cu rled
In thoughtfu l fash i on
O ften furled .
I f k isse s find them,
Like a breeze,
Shal l th ey unwind t hem,
I f they p lease ?
O r furth er bind th em
In the i r ease ?
I f from th ei r sl eep ing
They are st i rred,
Does ’t fo l low weeping
Shal l be heard ?
I f love doth sever
Lips peace- locked,
By sigh s and fever
Are they rocked ?
Shal l i t be m ine
To trouble th ine ?
AN A PO LOGU E .
The seer gave unto the supp liant
A tender plant having a double root
Blessed h im as was h i s righteou s wont ,And sa id
,
“ Plant wel l,and great shal l be th e fru i t .
The seeker ’s prayer had been for happ iness
Th i s g ift the sole response the seer made
But since,
’twas said,h e did al l j oys possess
,
The suppl iant was glad that h e had prayed .
Then he departed thankfu l to h is home,
And crossed h is fi elds and found a lonely spot ,Where richest h erbage showed the fert i le loam ,
There set h i s p lant most carefu l ly I wot .
With stea lthy frequency h e sough t the place ,T0 watch the plant le t ’s steady growth
But none he told he wou ld i ts ripening grace
For h im alone— to pluck and feast on both .
A wondrous growth the cu riou s plant revealed,
And soon became a great and shape ly tree
So great . h e feared i t cou ld not be concealed ,And some one e lse its fa i ry fru it m igh t see ;
NO BEAUTY TH ERE .
I s there a p lace where darkness doth not lay
Her dewy mesh to snare th e earl i est ray
Where p lants stand ever bare of that swift - fru it,
Which needs no aid
Of petal- spade
Abou t its root
Then may one say and swea r
That Beau ty was not th ere ,I f he wou ld hope to sh i rk
A l l blame for h i s poor work
That earth was bare
Of al l th ings fai r,Where h e l ived lone with care .
Hath earth some hol low where the air-streams fai l
And perish,that th e flowers spread no sa i l
Unt i l a vamp ire mou ld
Consumes the fru i ty fre ight
Stored in each fragrant hold ?
Whoever l iveth th ere
May say and swear“ I t was my doom
To see no flowers bloom
Upon the air .
N O BEA UT Y THERE . 1 6 1
I f one hath never seen a fai r girl ’s eyes
Bu rning love -beacons,t i l l th e red waves rise
To pu t such fi res ou t ;Nor stooped some tender words to hear
,
And st i l led h is heart for very fear
I ts beat wou ld pu t them al l to rou t
Why,h e may urge the weak excu se
,
“ There ’s noth ing love ly for my use
How cou ld I work or rhyme
In such a cl ime
there a sky where c louds shal l never spral l
In sunl igh t ’s dreamy thral l,
On seamless , easy floors ?
Nor wake to float
I n luc id rote,
A flush with th e j oy that soars ?
Then le t one loud ly cry,
“ Pardon each id le year ;Art wi l l not flourish here
,
And here l ive
I s there a land where eyes can never c lose
E xcep t in s leep,and sleep bring no repose ?
Where the large sp i r i t wh ich the day has fi l led ,Has al l th e flying v iews
Which entered at those sp iral avenues ,By darkness sp il led
1 62 N O BEA UT Y THERE.
E re they have rest ed wing
Then let one say for do ing nought,
I have l ived there and l ife has taugh t
No song to s ing .
”
Perhaps th ere be some house of sob or sigh ,The sh rinking stars wil l not pass by ;
Or pass refusing
Thei r c la i rvoyant mu sing,
And thei r holy att ribute s ?
I f thou dost dwel l in such,
0 si lent , heavy one ,Was there not st i l l th e sun
,
Of sl ender,pleasant touch
Or dost thou grope where th e communion l ight
The universal speech of al l th ings bright
Tel l s not the river what th e heavens say
Tells not each tree h is brother’s h istory,
With qu ie t voice and sweet prol ix ity,
Nor carries subtle greet ings far away
Then mayst thou lack th e po et’
s'
speech ,
And tru th fu l ly declare,
“ Oh I there was noth ing fai r
With in my reach .
O r hast thou a lways dwelt i n caves,
Where day about the th reshold raves
1 68 S ON NE TS .
TO J. E . L .
Disease,that
,l ike a cu riou s ch i ld
,doth break
The pebble s of ou r l ives,hath broken th ine
And hath behe ld the wh ite - faced fragments sh ine,
Beni gnant in the l ight of God,and take
Immortal beau t ie s for the fracture’s sake
As broken heavens of nigh t the i r stars resign,
Which through the day ’s completeness make no sign .
But ~
rare th e blow wh ich shal l such glories make,
Though blows shou ld shatte r every l ife that l ies
Upon the narrow beaches of th is world ;Oh I I would rather give to some glad eyes
,
One moment of thy gleaming,th en be hurled
Back to the ocean of eterna l fu l lness,
Than l ive,a rayle ss whole of pol i sh ed du l lness I
S ON N E TS . 1 69
TH E RUNN ER .
(DIED JAN UARY z rsr,1 884)
O wait , fl eet runner of the unseen track,
With snowy feet unso i led by what they smi te
So l igh tly in th ei r exqu isi te , pu r e fl ight
Wait for me only,t i l l I learn the knack
O f running free ly at thy swal low back I
For I am breath less,t i red
,and mine eyes
Are so unu sed,dear one
,to th ese brigh t sk ies .
Temper thy speed,tha t I may never lack
Thy footfal l ’s s inging sound nor fa i l a t last,
To have my heart beat so responsively ,That m ine own feet may fee l th e ecstasy
O f th ine th en fly thou slow or fly thou fast ,I shal l o ’
ertake thee,though I fal l asleep
I shal l o’
ertake th ee early,though I creep .
1 70 S OIVN E T S .
O L D N EW YEAR ’S DAY .
Pale,pat ient day I I doff the hat to th ee
,
In p i ty of thy mute unnot iced woe .
Who,see ing thee so humbled and so low,
Thinks of the t ime when thou,sweet deputy ,
Sto odst forth alone the New Year fi rst to see
And serve , as she unwound her ve i l of snow,Flu sh ing in al l th e Ch ristmas afterglow
,
And glad of face,behe ld humanity ?
Now when for twelve days sh e hath moved along
The common path s of earth,hath seen j oy d ie ,
Love lessen,wrath arise and d im the sky
,
And with her gift of l i fe,men do ing wrong
In mourn ing garb,grie f-drawn and tear-grimed
She fi rst mee ts thee and asks thy p i ty ’s grace .
1 72 S ON N E TS .
TH E TAKING TESTS TH E SO NG .
I f one wou ld learn th e worth of h i s own song,
I t s formal beau ty and essent ia l m igh t
Or wou ld behold with consecrated s ight ,I t s p lace of i ssu e and the holy throng
Which st i l l unto that pu re abode belong
Let h im unlock,with some soft
,minor key
,
That chamber of h is voice where h i s h eart be ,And mingl ing with its store the frequent
,broad dipthong
Of tender chords as sole accompaniment
Go sing to one song- deaf from very birth
The sorrow wh ich constra ins h im or the mirth,
Unti l th e ir sp i r it s are sufl‘icient blent
Let h im look after at the deaf one ’s face
I f that i s St i rred,h is song hath
,su rely
,grace .
S ON N E T S . 1 73
O PPO SED .
Two hapless spir it s were as east and west,
Where,l ik e opposing stars brigh tening the ir darts ,
Th ey sent th e pass ion of th e ir scornfu l h earts
Across the careless earth,peace - lover blest
,
Stat ioned between and migh t i ly at rest .
0 Hate,why doth thy dumb immensity
D iv ide so soon th e sou ls t hat angry be ?
Why mu st i t be so far from breast to breast ,When the ir opposing beats give a reco i l ?
Why may no power bu t Pain swim the abyss ?
Ah I i f the sound our tears make when they fal l
M ight cro ss,or sigh s repentant l ips d ism iss
B e ferried,somehow , to th e other shore ;
Who knows,but sou ls th emselves m igh t soon pass o ’er ?
1 74 S ONNE TS .
M lD SUMMER .
Th is i s th e balance of al l growing th ings
And Natu re now inspects her yel low scales
Po ised upon si lence,and secu re from gale s
Against man ’s to i l and care th ere fa irly swings
The equal valu e of h is harvest ings,
In perfect p la in of equal counter-weight
As E ast and West when skies immacu late
Unclasp each h eavy cloud that to them cl ings .
The mute alarm s of Natu re ’s noting cease
She doth remember al l the spring- t ime songs
Which freely fe l l,and counteth the ir increase
The scale d ips gently to th e heart that longs,
Loaded with au tumn ’s overp lus of cheer,
With hopes fulfi l led,heart-calms and courage c lear .
1 76 S ON N ET S .
BETWEEN TH E EARTH AND SUN .
n .
0 sun and earth I th e spaces that d ivide
Your shores are fu l l o f rad iant voyagers,
H eaven-deserters and star-frequenters ;The glori es that upon your breasts abide
,
Are bu t th e wreckage of that sacred t ide
Sh reds from the garments of that c rowded l ine
Th e l igh t i s bu t thei r banner ’s beau teou s sh ine
Th e winds bu t answer to the i r onward gl ide
Th e varied hues that h ourly fal l and fade,
Are only flashings of th e ir search ing eyne
And heat th e force th ey cannot al l confine,
Since i n the ir hearts a boundless force is la id
Music is echo of their onward flow,
And love , the subtle , death less undertow .
S ON N E TS . 1 7 7
MY SO NGSTRESS .
I cannot love those bird s of shal low song
And painfu l consc iou sness,that perch aloft
,
And l ight ly,s ince th e sun is warm
,the a i r i s soft
,
Rehearse some common melody so long,
The sleep -curled ear heeds not th e no isy th rong
That beat i ts c lo istered ways with pebbly feet
I hate those birds of tau t,bow- string concei t ,
Who force afar,al ike on weak and strong
,
The i r sharpened stra in s but I love wel l the oneWho bro odeth mute ly in th e impat ient a ir,Bridging al l space with si lence
,t i l l most fa ir
,
Immorta l songs get m ingl ed with her own
Then fl ie s away to some dark cypress bower,And soft ly sings as one who counts h er store .
1 78 S ON N ETS .
LO VE ’S RETRO SPECT .
When fi rst I walked before thy strange abode,
I marve l i f th e ho l low of thy hand did no t
Appal l th ee,with a knowledge th en begot
,
O f sudden empti ness that seemed a load ;O r yet i f l ike a m any
'
stranded goad ,The fingers d id not meet th e st ricken palms
,
And l ips then sta rtled from the ir though tless calm s,
With keen present iment of another mode,Rend suddenly th e fabric of a smile
H ung from th e ir arch es . Fai le th every sign,
Found in the earth ly,seen in the d iv ine
,
I f th en the runnels of thy hea rt,so smooth erewh ile
,
Paused not acu tely,at a spasm ’s stroke
,
As if with double currents th ey d id choke .
180 S ON NE TS .
TO A NO BLE WO MAN .
Goodness,dear lady
,wh ich flows often d im
Through subterranean ways of other l ives,
Springs to the l igh t and pu re re freshment gives
In thee . But how may I th at goodness l imn ?
Since force of Springs by acc idental r im
I s measured not,how fair so e ’
er i t be,
But by the c louds wh ic h gather from the sea
I ts a iry globes to strew with fingers sl im
Upon the carefu l s ieve of earth . As long
As seas shal l toss upon the ir wakefu l beds,
And clouds shal l watch beside thei r storm - swath ed
heads,
T0 take from open hands— no longer strong
E scap ing treasures shal l th y good endure,
Unmixed with brack ish taste,or sta in impure .
S ON N ETS .
TO A NO BLE WO MAN .
11
As far as music strays beyond its inst rument,
O r heat beyond the boundari e s o f flame
As far as wrong ou t - runs d im - sighted blame,
Or fragrance springeth past th e pu re extent
Of flowers s t i l l c losed,nor make the sl igh test rent
In the ir scarce -wove apparel ings of l igh t ,Or far as beau t ie s stre tch beyond the sigh t
So far,upon the p in ions of a pure intent
,
Thy goodness doth proj ec t its subt le force,
Beyond the compass of th e l iv ing fact
Breaks from the word,ou t-runneth e ’en the act ,
O’
ertaking too th e sm ile upon it s cou rse
And meets with nought wh ich shal l not swift obey ,Becau se in th ine own heart obedience lay .
8 1
182 S ON N ETS .
TO A NO BLE WO MAN .
III
Kindness enfolds thy sp i r i t ’s grac iou s form ,
As heaven ’s blu e transparency a star
No drop of ac id shal l such fabric mar,
Nor shal l i t ever come to any harm
From beak of flame or talons of the storm
And Hate shal l throw her v itr iol at thy face
And make no scar for to thy lofty place
Cometh no hu rt nor even vagu e alarm
Secure thou restest where no foes impugn,
Like some fa ir,foam - l ik e c loud
,beheld at even ,
Alone,far u p the ample beach of heaven
There where the sun d id meet the fatal noon
To show supremely to ou r uptu rned eyes,
How high th e luc id t ides of day d id ri se .
184 S ON N E TS .
SECO ND CH I LDHO O D .
Bees c irc le round unopened flowers,and seem
To bu i ld new barriers about th e old,
The fairy dwel lers th ere again to hold,
When sunl igh t ’s ransom doth the i r sou ls redeem,
And every cu rven rafter, board and beam
Of the i r pu re pri sons , tu rneth to a door,Their marble wal ls bend backward to a floor .
Thus we,approach ing slow the l i fe supreme
,
Find sleep expanding only to a dream
By the fi rst rending of the wal ls of sense
The ful l awak ing and the sigh t immense
And last inspired touches to th e theme
These fol low when we cross the second l ine
Where p layful spiri ts throw the ir shadows fine .
S ON N ETS . 185
LO V E SO NN ET
How doth thy flu te- toned sp i r i t mod ify
A l l u tterances o ’
erstrained that d isappear
With in the rose-rimmed orifice of th ine ear I
Ah,how I long that instrument to try I
And blow the sounds of my humanity
Into that artery of perfect song
So fee lingly,no heart ’s recurrent thong
B e needed to give pu lses or veloc ity .
For every tone shou ld have i ts central h eart
Of passion and omnipotence of fl ight
Th en wou ld I learn to touch each key aright ,That there shou ld i ssu e forth but fa ir report
Of regions d immed for h oly myster ies
For love,for music and mute ecstac ies .
186 S ON N E T S .
Thy worth adorneth my unworth iness,
As flowers of lovel iest dreams th e steep
E nvirons of the dark abyss of sleep .
Thy love ’s brigh t l i ly,l ike a pure caress
,
Floats on the waters of my l ife ’s d istre ss,And by the thread of thy tru e womanhood
Is holden to th e firm am ent of good
Thereunder fixed wh i l st from it s go lden dress
The winds of hate bu t smooth each petaly fold .
O I sacred flower,that wastest so thy sheen ,
By ever-watch fu l h eavens art thou seen,
And thought a star unri sen— unforetold,
Whose august path,as yet unbu i lt
,shal l r ise
From earth ’s low level s to the h ighest sk ies .
1 88 S ON N E TS .
III
What,sayest thou , would my l i fe be withou t thee ?
"l
’
wou ld be the sun ’s ray fal l ing dark and ch i l l
A summer nigh t that would no dew d ist i l ,Or summer morn with no bird melody
An E ast that m igh t sleep on impass ive ly ,Whil e passed the unfe l lowed sun her c lose - shu t gate
,
I n solemn sp lendor and impress ive state
A sea that sh ou ld not feel eternal ly
A keeled foot or Morning ’s flash ing sk irts
Upon her vacant and appal l ing floors,
Nor ever cast a wave upon her hungry shores
A world wh ere love i s deadly,kindness hu rts
Waters where in the swan doth s ink,th e l i ly d rown
,
And flowerless fi elds that look forever brown .
SLEEP ’S STA IN ED GLASS .
Th is seems th e spot I la id me down upon ;There is th e tree my eyes last id led w ith
,
Awai t ing sleep .
'
I t h ink I must have dreamed .
O Sleep I O wondrou s s i lver coronal
Of th e dark-faced Fat igu e I Away I Away I
I wou ld not wear the flash ing c irc le t now,
For al l th e d reams that ever gemmed i t when
It l igh tly lay on love ’s too -ble ssed head .
Thou dost reveal too palpably and c lear
The weakness of th i s heart — too soon dost show
The deep,dark hol lows p i tt ing what I th ough t
The smooth and perfect sphere of Natu re
And with the ra i l le ry of demoniac sou l s,
Dost point ou t al l th e rents wh ich mar
The garment of that l i fe I though t so whole .
What strange and th robbing sights I have beh eld I
I wou ld forget,bu t I am driven to recal l .
I t seems to me that I lay watch ing the slow sun
Arch h is way downward m igh t i ly,
When,suddenly
,a du sky vapor rose
A nd stood between us,and pu t slowly ou t
1 90 S LEEP ’S S TAIN ED GLA S S .
Huge,sh apele s s and unp i ty ing hands
,wh ich se ized
H i s s lender rays and tu rned them back upon himself,
Unti l th e ir whetted flame t ips d id consume
H im u tterly and then the form dissolved,
And,d iss ipate in finest du st
,arose
Towards th e bare heavens,and d id overspread
Them l ike a fi lm and al l th e h eavens sh rank
As from the touch of drought . Thereat the stars
Appeared,but al l so changed I scarce ly knew th em
And a new dread appal led me as I saw
Their unfami l iar shapes ; and I beheld
Wi th awe that th ey no longer kept with fear
The sacred level of th e sky,but they
E merged and stood out bold ly prominent
And they d id seem like palm s and th rough the wide,
Disparted branches,shaken by the swel l
O f th e i r own swift expansion,gleamed th e i r fai r
,
Smooth , slender stalks , fa st rooted in the deeps
Of the Inv is ible .
Then suddenly
New energie s bu rs t v iolently forth
Around me everywhere the eart h assumed
An altered mot ion and the trees,with c loven trunks
Out- spread l ike wings , fl ew past me l ike huge falcons .
My prostrate form was winnowed by the shock s
O f an impass ioned longing to partake
The new del irium and pu rsue th e fugit ives .
1 92 S LEEP ’ S S TAIN ED GLA S S .
Been born upon the rim of earth,had d ied
,
And then been duly sepu lch red with in i t
And al l th e d istant phantoms ceased the ir weird,
Mysterious movements , and in unison ,Turned the ir wan faces towards me wh ile a few
Ra ised banefu l , beckoning fingers,wh ich arou sed
Such strong,convu lsive struggle s
,such concu ssion
O f th e eternal , e lemental Noes
With in me,that I woke am id the d in
O f vast exp los ions , loud , reverberant ,And found me ly ing here a l ive .
MEMO RY .
A F RAGM E N T .
H ere le t me rest with in th is qu iet grove I
These trees,l ik e belted sold iers
,shal l k eep watch
Around me wh i le I sleep . Oh,how th i s day ’s
H ard up-and -down of feet
,has shaken ou t
A l l my cru sh ed l i fe ’s brigh t grains,th rough dou ble si eves
,
Upon the dusty road,l eav ing beh ind
But husky coats of bran to fi l l t he sh rine
O f sleep I Oh,that a wind wou ld rise
,and blow
I t al l away ere I awake I
(Spirit s appear over th e head of the sleeper, and move
abou t in th e performance of some mysteriou s funct ion .)
F I RST SPIRIT .
H e sleeps too long I
H e draws too near I
O sweetest s inger of ou r th rong ,Go bend above h is ear,
And sing an earth—remembered song
O f love , to hold h im here .
M E /k/OR Y .
SECON D SPIRIT.
0 great i s th e power of Sleep ,And weary the to i l of n ight
Then only agi le sp i ri ts weep
For hands grow weary with so lemn rite,
From Sleep ’s broad door to keep the l ight,
Where mortals l i e with strained sight .
TH IRD SPIRIT .
H i s eyes are beamless ,Bu t h is sigh t i s c lear
H i s sl eep i s dreamless,
And he comes so near .
O swiftest sp iri t of ou r tra in
Haste I haste I to the th roned year
And fal l upon thy k nees and cry,
0 back into h i s sou l again
Send awfu l Memory I”
Memory (approach ing )I am th e s low pu rsuer
Of the rap id mind ;I am the qu ick renewer
Of th e undefined,
Sweet image - lu re,
That fl ie s to weave and wind,
And backward bind
E yes st i l l impure .
196 M EM OR Y .
Lie in a draugh t that sucks them from the spot .
Th e present and the near are as the dead ;Naugh t seems al ive
,except the past —th e old
Oh,I have drunk the l iquor of some v ine
Wh ich tra i led o ’er graves I or s ipped the witches’ wine
O f wild grapes born and nu rtu red upon ru i ns I
O r H i story doth wander here to muse,
And hav ing found me as I lay asleep,
Hath plunged her wi th ered hands with in th e vase
Of fresh,exuberant you th
,and passed
,by steal th
,
Them dripping ov er my closed eyes,to wake
Al l aged and faded th ings to l i fe,though age
And bligh t and death wrink le the sapped Present .
My eyes are sunken in my head — so far
Contracted from the i r na tura l cu rves,th ey l i e
Be low th e leve l of th e l iv ing day ;Yea I on the bottom of the sea of vi s ion
And see the many sigh ts long fal len there .
But yet , there are no wreck s of olden scenes
Strewing the si l ent floor of th ese strange depth s ;Noth ing i s broken
,ground or worn away ,
By the soft serges of the upper stress
And beat of l i fe ; a l l hath th e same c lear l ines
As when the sharp,su re blades of my young sigh t
Carved them from Natu re . E ffortless and free,
My mind seems swimming in it s fi rst brigh t v iews ;And al l have beauty printed on them plain
,
Like the ra ised let ters of th e bl ind .
TH E UNEQ UA L LO V ERS .
Hold thou thy l ife more fi rmly,carel ess one I
I t l eaves thy hand too l ight ly,and too oft
Doth play the truant to i ts sober nu rse
Si tteth withou t th e th reshold of i ts rest
Too often , in th e eager sun of longing
Hangeth on thy face,as ready
,at a word
,
To leap into mine own and perish there .
A l it tle farther from me,dangerou s girl I
Bind those strong,supple eyes or si t thou down
That th ey may sooner t i re,from l i ft ing up
Their glances . Set those lawless hands to ho ld
E ach other,lest the i r slender fingers braid
Themselves with mine and si l ence those smal l feet
Whose strokes upon the floor d isclose the j o ints
Of my hard -wrought resolve,and penetrate
The feeb le fabrica t ion with the ir wedges .
Leave thy heart only free for th is sad hour
D ischarge it s dangerou s ret inue of beau ty
For hearts a lone can grasp and str ive wi th pa in ,
And I shal l need th y young heart ’s help for m ine .
Thou art my ward and ye t thy keeper needs
O ne key to guard thee safely from h imsel f ;
198 TH E UN EQUAL LO VERS .
The key of thy d i sl ike ; but thou dost wear
I t ou t of sigh t,and leavest never c losed
The doorway of my care , and in and ou t
Pass freely,laugh ing at my fears yea I oft
Wil l seat thee in th e warder ’s room and smi le
To see h im try to fi t h is c lumsy keys
Of stem ness to th e u sele ss lock .
D id ever prisoner before so treat
Gruff jailo r ? or a bold offender turn
Sweet comrade of the offended in the ac t ?
And yet thou s it test h ere,audac ious one
,
Secu re and confident,in th i s c lose room
Of musty records,near th e ou ter door
Whic h opens on the carele ss mul t i tude,
And guardest i t so fondly , that th e du st
Doth sett le on the latch . So thou,with in
The violated chamber of my care,
Art free ; and I am capt ive of thy swee t ,Wild
,wayward love . Alas I what sacrifice ,
That the bright folds of love,too soon unrol led
From thy fleet you thfu l heart,shou ld ever float
Upon my r uined towers ? Bu t I must break
The weather -weakened cord of my mi stake,
Which holds i t,that i t blow away
,or l ike
A gauzy stream cast down from its h igh p innac le
Through al l the fine d i ssect ions of th e ai r,
Be given back unto its elements .
Yes , dear del inquent , we have been too much
200 TH E UN EQUAL LOVER s.
G ray hairs do not affr ight you and you say
Tis bu t the underside of th e leaf that turns
And brigh tens in th e sun .
” Alas I my ch i ld,
The winds of death have grasped the h idden branches,
A nd do shake them threateningly . You smi le each t ime
I speak of wrinkle s,and with haste ins ist
,
They are bu t “ welcome crevices wh ich show
The gleam and gold with in .
” Th is h ard dry hand
Would bru ise th ine own soft tender one,
Hold ing i t rigid l ike an i ron glove
Bu t you “ wou ld rub the metal t i l l i t shone
And showed your sm il ing,happy face in i t or k iss
The rugged th ing and c la im triumphantly,
That “ l i ps were feebler,softer th ings than hands
,
And yet th e touch had never inj u red them .
These arms that have been stra igh tened and out stre tchedThrough many years of st iff expectancy
,
Cou ld they be bended to th e pl iant cu rves
Wh ich rounded youth m igh t rest in eas i l y ?
Love would but warp th e ir rigid muscles,gir l
Cou ld never make them fl ex ible aga in .
What,wilfu l
,s tubborn one
,sti l l unconvinced ?
St i l l in you r twi l igh t blu shes find the c lu e
To speech,and say
,that you have seen my arms
“ Cross over and enfold the spac iou s couch
Of the breast,and could they not
,with lesse r stra in
,
Meet m idway and enc lose one l i ttl e sl eeper ?”
No , dear, fal lac iou s reasoner, ev er wrong I
TH E UN EQUAL LO VERS . 201
For they would tremble al l so fea rfu l ly,
That Sleep ’s ve ined onyx stones m igh t soon be j arred
From thy smooth brow and fal l upon the floor,
Break ing to frigh tfu l d reams ; th en thou wou ldst wake
And moan and welte r in thy tears t i l l day .
The Years that bu i ld upon ou r uprigh t l ives
Thei r fata l sta i rs,unt i l th ey reach the top
,
And tear away the banner-breath with scorn,
Bu ild ever on th e front and openly
And thou mayst see that they have mounted h igh
Already hang upon my breast,and make
M e bend a l i tt l e towards th em — pardon I ch i ld ,Th is stoop doth bring thy l ips so near m ine own
,
I cou ld not help but k iss them .
’
Twas th e Years
I spoke of cau sed i t . But i f th ou couldst c l imb
With them,secu re upon the i r fra i l supports
,
Such k iss were not a theme for peni tence .
Too late,thou camest
,l i t t le lo i terer
,
To bu ild of fairy stu ff th e bridal room with me I
Thy fragi le gems and dainty propert ie s—fl
How wi l l they match th e stro rig wel l -ch iseled stone ,Which I mu st lay with p lumb—l ine in the wal l s ?
How wi l l thy carele ss,discontinuou s touch
,
Thy gleefu l heapings of thy pretty toys
And handfu l th rowings on th e t rembl ing pi le ,Assi st my steady cau t iou s masonry ?
But i f th e odd,unlovely st ructure rose
,
Desp ite these sad d iscordanc ie s of hand,
202 TH E UN EQUAL L OVERS .
So h igh,i t needed cover st i l l th e work
Must stop from graver d ifference for'
I
Cou ld roof i t on ly with th e flat expanse
Of spl i t , d isj o inted memories , th rough wh ich
Obl iv iou s ra ins wou ld beat upon ou r heads ;Bu t t/zo n wou ldst take th e flawless
,perfect p iece
O f th ine undamaged presen t, and wouldst dome
The room luxuriou sly . Besides,th ere i s
The floor,my l it tle
,sweet incompetent ;
What wise,ingenious plan canst thou dev ise
,
That we may j o int ly bu i ld t he fi tt ing floor ?
For I am footsore,weary and worn out
,
With tread ing on l i fe ’s hard impossibi l i t ie s,
I ts sharp convent ions and discom fitures,
And su rging aspi rat ions frozen st iff
In early ridges,by some merc i less co ld
Of qu ick h eart - s ickness,and so left to stand
Like awfu l corrugat ions in th e brow of Doubt .
I have la id off my shoes and wou ld acquaint
My feet with softer ways,where God doth not
So fend H imsel f with peril s,wrap h is tru th s
In hard ungrac iou s obstac les,bu t leaves
The wondrous cou rse s of H i s be ing al l
Unclosed before us . Better shod art thou ,With wholesome energies wh ich sh i eld thy feet ,And strong enthu s iasms ringing loud
Upon the flinty ways, and strik ing fi re
O f fine exh ilarat ion every step .
2m. 7 1/E UN E QUAL LOVERS .
You gather,ch i ld . Nay
,hear me pat iently ;
The seed of love i s br igh t,l ike pearls
,and hued
With sparkl ing j oy s ; and it i s flung by Hope ,Far forward
,as the sower sows
,and sprou ts
And blossoms as i t fal l s bu t the hard gra ins
Thou scatterest were not tak en from th e keeps
And crysta l treasu ries o f lav ish you th,
But stolen from my granaries of sorrow .
Alas I the fru it th ey y ie ld has not th e glow
And bloom of th ine untarnish ed heart,bu t l ies
I n thy brigh t hand al l staled by trembl ing touches,
Streaked by frequent tears,and withered
’
by ho t s ighs .
But thou hast been too long here,fel low - h eart
And now thou must go from me,for thy peace
,
To places that awai t thee,noble tasks
That need thy l i ttl e e fforts,and to mi rth
That may not float on any voice save th ine
And thou must hasten,ere th e sh in ing tra i l
O f one who goes before th ee through th i s world,
Shal l fade away already doth the shade
O f my hard rocks fal l fa r along the way ;And thy young eyes have turned so oft with mine
Upon the migh ty out l ines of my nearer goal,
They may not se i ze and bind the broken l ines
And gl immering v isibi l i t ie s of th ine .
Continue s i lent,ch i ld
,and seriou s I
Let t ing my thought gl id e th rough thy though tfu lness,
TH E UN EQUAL L O VERS .
To reach the farth est tu rning-goal of doubt
And come back freely to thy confidence .
E ach age hath i ts own gifts and o ffices,
In fixed relat ion to the rest of l i fe
Man - l i fe,or God - l i fe
,round i t . Ch i ld with ch i ld
Must j o in th e margins of th e i r separate j oys,
O r leave the ragged edges so they wound .
Ch ildhood alone doth have the sacred art
O f mini ste ring to th e ch i ld — holdeth the clu e
To the near goods h e needeth,or the power
To hel p h im l i ft and fi t th em to h is h ea rt .
Youth only bea t with you th can make the foi l
The prec iou s writ ing sheet,whereon the h eavens pen
Th eir holy formu las of happiness
And man who strives alone with m an,gains augh t
O f God to demonstrate h is v ictory .
H ear th is I th e separate paral l e l s of st rands
Which make ou r song - l i fe ’s noble in strument ,Do lack a crossi ng
,v ibrant warp to bind
The upper and the lower S tr ings ; and thou ,So far away from me in th y tense you th
,
Canst give bu t faint ha rmon ic tones to -day
To my hard - smitten age so soon to break .
There is another meaning,earnest one ,
I n ou r fixed places here wh ich touches, too ,Our places el sewhere for i t seems
We .measu re h ere with careful , accu rate hand
200 TH E UN EQUAL LOVERS .
The fl ight we take hereafter from death ’s perc h .
With l ife ’s fi rst mot ions we draw slowly forth
From some d im,duct i le mass of prec iou s ore
,
A golden thread,and wind unceasingly
,
In even co i ls,and hold them on our arms ;
Death but unwinds th e thread and leaves u s d izzy
Where it ends . So thou must run to work,
And draw with swiftness,t i l l th e gathered loops
E qual m ine own ; fo r look thou at th ine arm
So near ly empty,— al l thou hast secu red
Cou ld scarcely serve thee for a wedd ing ring .
But when thou goest from me,I shal l lose
O f prec iou s th ings far more than I can count
Upon the fai l ing finger- t ips of speech .
My wondrou s ga ins in thee have al l been scored
Upon the lum inou s pages of thy presence
Naugh t that ’s prepared for wri t ing,i s so broad
As that,or offers room
,at best
,for more
Than t it le page of name and arabesque of smile
Forfi nz'
s to it . Absence hath no sage
Arithmet ic to sum my losse s by ;And leaves me bu t a l i tt le book to print
Thy changefu l image in . Let me but read
Some fi rst l ine s only of th e wondrou s volume,
E re thou dost c lose i t with thy part ing look .
H ere find 1 wri tten with a trembl ing hand,
The low,sweet song before th e evening prayer ;
as TH E UN EQUAL L OVERS .
And there are be ings who l ie down with u s at
Who slumber longer than the weary frame
Spirits that fi l l the eye and move the hand,
And u rge th e h eart into a qu icker pace
E ternal Beau ty,Asp irat ion
,Hope
They wi l l no t waken at th e harsh complaint
A n 'l heavy voice of age, obscu rely h eard ,Like th e accu stomed rumble of th e stre et ;But one mu st come and wh isper tenderly ,Touch ing to motion th e l igh t whee ls of th e ear
,
With the fine dra ft o f mus ic,— load ing up
The sp iri t with the lu re o f morning ec stasy
And sweetest u tte rance,and qu icken ing
The drowsy l ids with s ilken wh ips of eyes
That play above them .
Thou shal t e l sewhere be,
Some morning when 1 r i se,alone
,to meet
The day withou t th ese fai ry m in i strants .
I,who have stroked thy pleasant
,loosened hai r
,
Unti l the h idden shu tt le of th e touch
D id weave i ts fluc tuant flo sses into c loth
O f float ing gold,must grasp th e sl ippery th read s
O f incoherent energies to work
Them , somehow,into decent burial c lothes .
These eyes t hat have so -often la in at ease,
With in the peaceful Satu rn-rings of th ine,
To intercept th ine own brigh t v i sionings,
TH E UN EQUAL LO VER S .
Must early feel D eath buck le u p the l ids
And press th e l ingering l igh t ou t ruth le ssly .
$16
Thou weepest,but ’t is less from th ine own pain
Than from thy sympathy with m ine .
Ah,ch i ld
,
’t i s p leas ing to d ispute th e po int
With thee,and I am happy that to - day
Thou th ink est i t i s peace,to hold thy place
O f cramped and painfu l att i tud e and po ise
O f labored equ i l ibrium upon
The harsh proj ec tions of m y shattered walls
Bu t th e rel ie f of pl iant muscl es,ease
Of unstrained wishes and the l iberal grace
O f natural ac t ions led by apt itudes ,Shal l safe rece ive thee i n the ir gentle arms
,
When thou dost loose thy ho ld about my neck,
And fall upon the lower,broader -ground
O f you thfu l fe llowsh ip . There thou shal t find
Creatu res with fine,smooth
,tender hands l ike th ine ,
Whose c lasp shal l be love ’s sure cohes iveness,
Not the false hold ings of my roughened ones
Wh ich caugh t th e fluttering fabric o f thy youth
Upon th ei r bramble touches . There thy feet
Sha l l don th e holy shoon of pu re Love ’s footprints ,As she gu ideth th ee along the doubtfu l way
To perfect t rea su res stored for thee by H eaven ,I n open coffers of supreme embraces ,
210 TH E U LVE Q U A L LOVERS .
O r beneath dark stones of sad experience .
But thou mu st never cease to fo llow her,
Nor ever fa i l to pu t thy wil l ing feet
E xactly in the traces of her own,
Unti l thou gainest so th e fash ion of her step,
That th e hard earth shal l soften under th ee .
And thou shal t se t thy fingers Only where
Love ’s cunning hand hath made a place for th em,
And l ined i t w ith th e bless ing of her sm ile .
Yet fear to be too eager i n pursu i t,
Or play too fast th ine m im icr ies
Bu t fol low le i su rely the thoughtfu l way,
Leaving each obj ec t with a so lemn j oy,
And look ing often back regretfu l ly .
Be not afraid to rest,to l ie th ee down
,
Aye,c lose th e eyes and sleep ; thou sha l t not lose
One l ine of progress in the longest dream
For love shal l stoop and take thee in her arms
And carry thee t i l l morning— harken I ch i ld
When thou mayst wake to find me bending over th ee .
Yes , l i t t le weeper , thou shal t come again
To me,and I shal l c la im thee though my right
Be chal lenged by the h ighest Lords o f Heaven .
Thou art mine own to -day ; shal l one pretend
That there i s law to void my ownersh ip,
Unt il I wa ive my lega l t it les ? What I
Becau se I send thee ou t to play an hour,To scatte r song and gather fragrancies
21 2 TH E UN EQUAL LOVERS .
Strengthen thyse l f with thought,and teach th ine eyes
To find the weakness of th ine adversary ’s
Constra in thy sp irit to a dart and hurl
The m issi le ’gainst the th ickened rind of the world
And break i t open tu tor thy weak hands
Ti l l i ron seemeth soft and thou canst twi st
The l ightnings round thy fingers,l ike a curl
O f thy bright hai r — th en come again to me,
And we shal l make a pai r whom God is proud of.
