The Home Book of Verse Novel Chapters
List of most recent chapters published for the The Home Book of Verse novel. A total of 413 chapters have been translated and the release date of the last chapter is Apr 02, 2024
Latest Release: Chapter 1 : The Home Book of Verse.
Vol. 1.
by Various.
Editor: Burton Egbert Stevenson.
PART IPOEMS
The Home Book of Verse.
Vol. 1.
by Various.
Editor: Burton Egbert Stevenson.
PART IPOEMS OF YOUTH AND AGE
THE HUMAN SEASONS
Four Seasons fill the measure of the year; There are four seasons in the mind of man: He has his l.u.s.ty Spring, when fancy clear
- 313 GREEN THINGS GROWING O the green things growing, the green things growing, The faint sweet smell of the green things growing!I should like to live, whether I smile or grieve, Just to watch the happy life of my green things growing.O the fluttering and the
- 312 Adventurous joy it was for me!I crept beneath the boughs, and found A circle smooth of mossy ground Beneath a poplar tree.Old garden rose-trees hedged it in, Bedropt with roses waxen-white, Well satisfied with dew and light And careless to be seen.Long ye
- 311 "IN GREEN OLD GARDENS"In green old gardens, hidden away From sight of revel and sound of strife, Where the bird may sing out his soul ere he die, Nor fears for the night, so he lives his day; Where the high red walls, which are growing gray With their l
- 310 How glorious is thy girdle, cast O'er mountain, tower, and town, Or mirrored in the ocean vast, A thousand fathoms down!As fresh in yon horizon dark, As young thy beauties seem, As when the eagle from the ark First sported in thy beam: For, faithful to i
- 309 Robert Herrick [1591-1674]THE CLOUD I bring fresh showers for the thirsting flowers From the seas and the streams; I bear light shade for the leaves when laid In their noonday dreams.From my wings are shaken the dews that waken The sweet buds every one, W
- 308 And though thy loftier brother shall be king, High-priest be thou to Brahma unrevealed, While thy white sanct.i.ty forever sealed In icy silence leaves desire congealed.In ghostly ministrations to the sun, And to the mendicant stars and the moon-nun, Be h
- 307 How still the plains of the waters be!The tide is in his ecstasy; The tide is at his highest height: And it is night.And now from the Vast of the Lord will the waters of sleep Roll in on the souls of men, But who will reveal to our waking ken The forms th
- 306 Here it comes sparkling, And there it lies darkling; Now smoking and frothing Its tumult and wrath in, Till, in this rapid race On which it is bent, It reaches the place Of its steep descent.The cataract strong Then plunges along, Striking and raging As i
- 305 The hills are white, but not with snow: They are as pale in summer time, For herb or gra.s.s may never grow Upon their slopes of lime.Within the circle of the hills A ring, all flowering in a round, An orchard-ring of almond fills The plot of stony ground
- 304 Woodman, forbear thy stroke!Cut not its earth-bound ties; O, spare that aged oak, Now towering to the skies!When but an idle boy I sought its grateful shade; In all their gus.h.i.+ng joy Here, too, my sisters played.My mother kissed me here; My father pre
- 303 An' down below's the cloty brook Where I did vish with line an' hook, An' beat, in playsome dips and zwims, The foamy stream, wi' white-skinned lim's.An' there my mother nimbly shot Her knitten-needles, as she zot At evenen down below the wide Woak
- 302 ASPECTS OF THE PINES Tall, somber, grim, against the morning sky They rise, scarce touched by melancholy airs, Which stir the fadeless foliage dreamfully, As if from realms of mystical despairs.Tall, somber, grim, they stand with dusky gleams Brightening
- 301 What is it we can do for you?Speak out before you die.His face is growing sharp and thin.Alack! our friend is gone.Close up his eyes; tie up his chin; Step from the corpse, and let him in That standeth there alone, And waiteth at the door. There's a new
- 300 Elizabeth Akers [1832-1911]TO A SNOW-FLAKE What heart could have thought you?-- Past our devisal (O filigree petal!) Fas.h.i.+oned so purely, Fragilely, surely, From what Paradisal Imagineless metal, Too costly for cost?Who hammered you, wrought you, From
- 299 WINTER: A DIRGE The wintry west extends his blast, And hail and rain does blaw; Or the stormy north sends driving forth The blinding sleet and snaw: While, tumbling brown, the burn comes down, And roars frae bank to brae; And bird and beast in covert rest
- 298 Emily d.i.c.kinson [1830-1886]"WHEN THE FROST IS ON THE PUNKIN"When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder's in the shock, And you hear the kyouck and gobble of the struttin' turkey-c.o.c.k, And the clackin' of the guineys, and the cluckin' of th
- 297 ODE TO AUTUMN I saw old Autumn in the misty morn Stand shadowless like Silence, listening To silence, for no lonely bird would sing Into his hollow ear from woods forlorn, Nor lowly hedge nor solitary thorn;-- Shaking his languid locks all dewy bright Wit
- 296 SEPTEMBER Sweet is the voice that calls From babbling waterfalls In meadows where the downy seeds are flying; And soft the breezes blow, And eddying come and go, In faded gardens where the rose is dying.Among the stubbled corn The blithe quail pipes at mo
- 295 O, this is peace! I have no need Of friend to talk, of book to read: A dear Companion here abides; Close to my thrilling heart He hides; The holy silence is His Voice: I lie and listen, and rejoice.John Townsend Trowbridge [1827-1916]A MIDSUMMER SONG O, F
- 294 "SISTER, AWAKE!"Sister, awake! close not your eyes!The day her light discloses, And the bright morning doth arise Out of her bed of roses.See the clear sun, the world's bright eye, In at our window peeping: Lo, how he blusheth to espy Us idle wenches s
- 293 When sweet wild April Dipped down the dale, Pale cuckoopint brightened, And windflower trail, And white-thorn, the wood-bride, In virginal veil.Sing hi, Sing hey, Sing ho!When sweet wild April Through deep woods pressed, Sang cuckoo above him, And lark on
- 292 MARCH Blossom on the plum, Wild wind and merry; Leaves upon the cherry, And one swallow come.Red windy dawn, Swift rain and sunny; Wild bees seeking honey, Crocus on the lawn; Blossom on the plum.Gra.s.s begins to grow, Dandelions come; Snowdrops haste to
- 291 Thus, then, live I, Till, 'mid all the gloom, By heaven! the bold sun Is with me in the room s.h.i.+ning, s.h.i.+ning!Then the clouds part, Swallows soaring between; The spring is alive, And the meadows are green!I jump up, like mad, Break the old pipe i
- 290 And when the lark, 'tween light and dark, Blithe waukens by the daisy's side, And mounts and sings on flittering wings, A woe-worn ghaist I hameward glide.Come, Winter, with thine angry howl, And raging bend the naked tree; Thy gloom will soothe my chee
- 289 I clink my castanet And beat my little drum; For spring at last has come, And on my parapet, Of chestnut, gummy-wet, Where bees begin to hum, I clink my castanet, And beat my little drum."Spring goes," you say, "suns set."So be it! Why be glum?Enough,
- 288 And yet how still the landscape stands, How nonchalant the wood, As if the resurrection Were nothing very odd!Emily d.i.c.kinson [1830-1886]SONG From "Pippa Pa.s.ses"The year's at the spring, And day's at the morn; Morning's at seven; The hill-side'
- 287 George B. Logan, Jr. [1892- A WOOD SONG Now one and all, you Roses, Wake up, you lie too long!This very morning closes The Nightingale his song; Each from its olive chamber His babies every one This very morning clamber Into the s.h.i.+ning sun. You Slug-
- 286 John Addington Symonds [1840-1893]NIGHT Night is the time for rest; How sweet, when labors close, To gather round an aching breast The curtain of repose, Stretch the tired limbs, and lay the head Down on our own delightful bed!Night is the time for dreams
- 285 THE EVENING CLOUD A cloud lay cradled near the setting sun, A gleam of crimson tinged its braided snow; Long had I watched the glory moving on O'er the still radiance of the lake below.Tranquil its spirit seemed, and floated slow!Even in its very motion
- 284 That yon white bird on homeward wing Soft-sliding without motion, And now in blue air vanis.h.i.+ng Like snow-flake lost in ocean, Beyond our sight might never flee, Yet forward still be flying; And all the dying day might be Immortal in its dying!Pelluci
- 283 O swift forerunners, rosy with the race!Spirits of dawn, divinely manifest Behind your blus.h.i.+ng banners in the sky, Daring invaders of Night's tenting-ground,-- How do ye strain on forward-bending foot, Each to be first in heralding of joy!With silen
- 282 HYMN OF APOLLO The sleepless Hours who watch me as I lie, Curtained with star-inwoven tapestries, From the broad moonlight of the sky, Fanning the busy dreams from my dim eyes,-- Waken me when their Mother, the gray Dawn, Tells them that dreams and that t
- 281 The call-note of a redbird from the cedars in the dusk Woke his happy mate within me to an answer free and fine; And a sudden angel beckoned from a column of blue smoke-- Lord, who am I that they should stoop--these holy folk of thine?Karle Wilson Baker [
- 280 The Home Book of Verse.Vol. 3.by Various.PART III POEMS OF NATURE The world is too much with us; late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!This sea tha
- 279 ONE WORD MORE TO E. B. B.I There they are, my fifty men and women Naming me the fifty poems finished!Take them, Love, the book and me together; Where the heart lies, let the brain lie also.II Rafael made a century of sonnets, Made and wrote them in a cert
- 278 SONNETS From "Thysia"II Twin songs there are, of joyance, or of pain; One of the morning lark in midmost sky, When falls to earth a mist, a silver rain, A glittering cascade of melody; And mead and wold and the wide heaven rejoice, And praise the Maker;
- 277 XLIII Mark where the pressing wind shoots javelin-like, Its skeleton shadow on the broad-backed wave!Here is a fitting spot to dig Love's grave; Here where the ponderous breakers plunge and strike, And dart their hissing tongues high up the sand: In hear
- 276 Louise Chandler Moulton [1835-1908]RENOUNCEMENT I must not think of thee; and, tired yet strong, I shun the thought that lurks in all delight-- The thought of thee--and in the blue heaven's height, And in the dearest pa.s.sage of a song.Oh, just beyond t
- 275 Breathe low her name, my soul; for that means more.x.x.xIV THE DARK GLa.s.s Not I myself know all my love for thee: How should I reach so far, who cannot weigh To-morrow's dower by gage of yesterday?Shall birth and death, and all dark names that be As do
- 274 Never believe, though in my nature reigned All frailties that besiege all kinds of blood, That it could so preposterously be stained To leave for nothing all thy sum of good!For nothing this wide universe I call, Save thou, my rose: in it thou art my all.
- 273 No far-fetched sigh shall ever wound my breast; Love from mine eye a tear shall never wring; Nor in "Ah me's!" my whining sonnets dressed!A libertine, fantasticly I sing!My verse is the true image of my mind, Ever in motion, still desiring change; And
- 272 Then, even of fellows.h.i.+p, O Moon, tell me, Is constant love deemed there but want of wit?Are beauties there as proud as here they be?Do they above love to be loved, and yet Those lovers scorn whom that love doth possess?Do they call virtue there, ungr
- 271 THE EXEQUY Accept, thou shrine of my dead saint, Instead of dirges this complaint; And for sweet flowers to crown thy hea.r.s.e, Receive a strew of weeping verse From thy grieved friend, whom thou might'st see Quite melted into tears for thee.Dear loss!
- 270 THE POET'S SONG TO HIS WIFE How many summers, love, Have I been thine?How many days, thou dove, Hast thou been mine?Time, like the winged wind When it bends the flowers, Hath left no mark behind, To count the hours.Some weight of thought, though loth, On
- 269 If Colin's weel, and weel content, I ha'e nae mair to crave; And gin I live to keep him sae, I'm blest abune the lave.And will I see his face again, And will I hear him speak?I'm downright dizzy wi' the thought, In troth I'm like to greet!For there
- 268 And, on its full, deep breast serene, Like quiet isles my duties lie; It flows around them and between, And makes them fresh and fair and green, Sweet homes wherein to live and die.James Russell Lowell [1819-1891]MARGARET TO DOLCINO Ask if I love thee? Oh
- 267 "He comes of strangers, and they are rangers, And ill to trust, girl, when out of sight: Fremd folk may blame ye, and e'en defame ye, A gown oft handled looks seldom white."She raised serenely her eyelids queenly,-- "My innocence is my whitest gown; N
- 266 TWO LOVERS Two lovers by a moss-grown spring: They leaned soft cheeks together there, Mingled the dark and sunny hair, And heard the wooing thrashes sing.O budding time!O love's blest prime!Two wedded from the portal stept: The bells made happy carolings
- 265 Jean Ingelow [1820-1897]MY OWEN Proud of you, fond of you, clinging so near to you, Light is my heart now I know I am dear to you!Glad is my voice now, so free it may sing for you All the wild love that is burning within for you!Tell me once more, tell it
- 264 Winthrop Mackworth Praed [1802-1839]"I SAW TWO CLOUDS AT MORNING"I saw two clouds at morning, Tinged by the rising sun, And in the dawn they floated on, And mingled into one; I thought that morning cloud was blest, It moved so sweetly to the west.I saw
- 263 Behold, whiles she before the altar stands, Hearing the holy priest that to her speaks, And blesseth her with his two happy hands, How the red roses flush up in her cheeks, And the pure snow, with goodly vermill stain Like crimson dyed in grain: That even
- 262 She took the little ivory chest, With half a sigh she turned the key, Then raised her head with lips compressed, And gave my letters back to me; And gave the trinkets and the rings, My gifts, when gifts of mine could please.As looks a father on the things
- 261 "YES"They stood above the world, In a world apart; And she dropped her happy eyes, And stilled the throbbing pulses Of her happy heart.And the moonlight fell above her, Her secret to discover; And the moonbeams kissed her hair, As though no human lovers
- 260 THE RECONCILIATION From "The Princess"As through the land at eve we went, And plucked the ripened ears, We fell out, my wife and I, O, we fell out, I know not why, And kissed again with tears.And blessings on the falling out That all the more endears, W
- 259 THE REASON Oh, hark the pulses of the night, The crickets hidden in the field, That beat out music of delight Till summoned dawn stands half revealed!Oh, mark above the bearded corn And the green wheat and bending rye, Tuned to the earth, and calling morn
- 258 On fields of strange men's feet, Or fields near home?Or where the fire-flowers blow, Or where the flowers of snow Or flowers of foam?We are in love's hand to-day-- Land me, she says, where love Shows but one shaft, one dove, One heart, one hand,-- A sh.
- 257 Oh heart! oh blood that freezes, blood that burns!Earth's returns For whole centuries of folly, noise and sin!Shut them in, With their triumphs and their glories and the rest!Love is best!Robert Browning [1812-1889] EARL MERTOUN'S SONG From "The Blot i
- 256 Oh! lose the winter from thine heart, the darkness from thine eyes, And from the low hearth-chair of dreams, my Love-o'-May, arise; And let the maidens robe thee like a white white-lilac tree, Oh! hear the call of Spring, fair Soul,--and wilt thou come w
- 255 That sunny hair is dim, lad, They said was like a crown-- The red gold turned to gray, lad, The night a s.h.i.+p went down.If you be yet May Margaret, May Margaret now as then, Then where's that bonny smile of yours That broke the hearts of men?The bonny
- 254 But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?Or snored we in the Seven Sleepers' den?'Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be; If ever any beauty I did see, Which I desired, and got, 'twas but a dream of thee.And now good-morrow to our waking souls,
- 253 "THE LITTLE ROSE IS DUST, MY DEAR"The little rose is dust, my dear; The elfin wind is gone That sang a song of silver words And cooled our hearts with dawn.And what is left to hope, my dear, Or what is left to say?The rose, the little wind and you Have
- 252 My dress is richly figured, And the train Makes a pink and silver stain On the gravel, and the thrift Of the borders.Just a plate of current fas.h.i.+on, Tripping by in high-heeled, ribboned shoes.Not a softness anywhere about me, Only whale-bone and broc
- 251 Amid the fairest things that grow My lady hath her dwelling-place; Where runnels flow, and frail buds blow As shy and pallid as her face.The wild, bright creatures of the wood About her fearless flit and spring; To light her dusky solitude Comes April's
- 250 Lydia is gone this many a year, Yet when the lilacs stir, In the old gardens far or near, This house is full of her.They climb the twisted chamber stair; Her picture haunts the room; On the carved shelf beneath it there, They heap the purple bloom.A ghost
- 249 Good-night, dear friend! I say good-night to thee Across the moonbeams, tremulous and white, Bridging all s.p.a.ce between us, it may be.Lean low, sweet friend; it is the last good-night.For, lying low upon my couch, and still, The fever flush evanished f
- 248 Heap not the heavy marble o'er my head To shut away the suns.h.i.+ne and the dew; Let small blooms grow there, and let gra.s.ses wave, And raindrops filter through.Thou wilt meet many fairer and more gay Than I; but, trust me, thou canst never find One w
- 247 Only to find Forever, blest By thine encircling arm; Only to lie beyond unrest In pa.s.sion's dreamy calm!Only to meet and never part, To sleep and never wake,-- Heart unto heart and soul to soul, Dead for each other's sake.Martha Gilbert d.i.c.kinson [
- 246 And I rest so composedly Now, in my bed, That any beholder Might fancy me dead-- Might start at beholding me, Thinking me dead.The moaning and groaning, The sighing and sobbing, Are quieted now, With that horrible throbbing At heart--ah, that horrible, Ho
- 245 SONG When I am dead, my dearest.Sing no sad songs for me; Plant thou no roses at my head, Nor shady cypress-tree: Be the green gra.s.s above me With showers and dewdrops wet; And if thou wilt, remember, And if thou wilt, forget.I shall not see the shadows
- 244 SONG OF THE OLD LOVE From "Supper at the Mill"When sparrows build, and the leaves break forth, My old sorrow wakes and cries, For I know there is dawn in the far, far north, And a scarlet sun doth rise; Like a scarlet fleece the snow-field spreads, And
- 243 "HOME THEY BROUGHT HER WARRIOR DEAD"From "The Princess"Home they brought her warrior dead; She nor swooned, nor uttered cry.All her maidens, watching, said, "She must weep or she will die."Then they praised him, soft and low, Called him worthy to be
- 242 His n.o.bles are beaten, one by one; (Hurry!) They have fainted, and faltered, and homeward gone; His little fair page now follows alone, For strength and for courage trying!The king looked back at that faithful child; Wan was the face that answering smil
- 241 But when I speak--thou dost not say What thou ne'er left'st unsaid; And now I feel, as well I may, Sweet Mary, thou art dead!If thou wouldst stay, e'en as thou art, All cold and all serene, I still might press thy silent heart, And where thy smiles hav
- 240 He had lived for his love, for his country he died, They were all that to life had entwined him; Nor soon shall the tears of his country be dried, Nor long will his love stay behind him.Oh! make her a grave where the sunbeams rest, When they promise a glo
- 239 My horse moved on; hoof after hoof He raised, and never stopped: When down behind the cottage roof, At once, the bright moon dropped.What fond and wayward thoughts will slide Into a lover's head!"O mercy!" to myself I cried, "If Lucy should be dead!"
- 238 Though cold her pale lips to reward With love's own mysteries, Ah, rob no daisy from her swand, Rough gale of eastern seas!Ah, render sere no silken bent That by her head-stone waves; Let noon and golden summer blent Pervade these ocean graves.And, ah, d
- 237 My love was false, but I was firm From my hour of birth.Upon my buried body lie Lightly, gentle earth!John Fletcher [1579-1625]A BALLAD From the "What-d'ye-call-it"'Twas when the seas were roaring With hollow blasts of wind, A damsel lay deploring, Al
- 236 I wish I were where Helen lies, Night and day on me she cries; O that I were where Helen lies, On fair Kirconnell lea!Cursed be the heart that thought the thought, And cursed the hand that fired the shot, When in my arms burd Helen dropped, And died to su
- 235 I sing no longer of the skies, And the swift clouds like driven s.h.i.+ps, For there is earth upon my eyes And earth between my singing lips.Because the King loved not my song That he had found so sweet before, I lie at peace the whole night long, And sin
- 234 THE La.s.s THAT DIED OF LOVE Life is not dear or gay Till lovers kiss it, Love stole my life away Ere I might miss it.In sober March I vowed I'd have no lover, Love laid me in my shroud Ere June was over.I felt his body take My body to it, And knew my he
- 233 A CASUAL SONG She sang of lovers met to play "Under the may bloom, under the may,"But when I sought her face so fair, I found the set face of Despair.She sang of woodland leaves in spring, And joy of young love dallying; But her young eyes were all one
- 232 Wi' lightsome heart I pu'd a rose, Frae aff its th.o.r.n.y tree; And my fause luver staw the rose, But left the thorn wi' me.Robert Burns [1759-1796]THE TWO LOVERS The lover of her body said: "She is more beautiful than night,-- But like the kisses of
- 231 A SEA CHILD The lover of child Marjory Had one white hour of life brim full; Now the old nurse, the rocking sea, Hath him to lull.The daughter of child Marjory Hath in her veins, to beat and run, The glad indomitable sea, The strong white sun.Bliss Carmen
- 230 LADY ANNE BOTHWELL'S LAMENT Balow, my babe, lie still and sleep!It grieves me sore to see thee weep.Wouldst thou be quiet I'se be glad, Thy mourning makes my sorrow sad: Balow my boy, thy mother's joy, Thy father breeds me great annoy-- Balow, la-low!W
- 229 Then he forsook her one sad morn; She wept and sobbed, "Oh, love, come back!"There only came to her forlorn b.u.t.terflies all black.John Davidson [1857-1909]UNSEEN SPIRITS The shadows lay along Broadway, 'Twas near the twilight-tide, And slowly there
- 228 Young lover, tossed 'twixt hope and fear, Your whispered vow and yearning eyes Yon marble Clytie pillared near Could move as soon to soft replies: Or, if she thrill at words you speak, Love's memory prompts the sudden start; The rose has paled upon her
- 227 Children dear, were we long alone?"The sea grows stormy, the little ones moan; Long prayers," I said, "in the world they say; Come!" I said, and we rose through the surf in the bay.We went up the beach, by the sandy down Where the sea-stocks bloom, to
- 226 She has struggled and yearned and aspired, grown purer and wiser each year: The stars are not farther above you in yon luminous atmosphere!For she whom you crowned with fresh roses, down yonder, five summers ago, Has learned that the first of our duties t
- 225 Where is my own true lover gone, Where are the lips vermilion, The shepherd's crook, the purple shoon?Why spread that silver pavilion, Why wear that veil of drifting mist?Ah! thou hast young Endymion, Thou hast the lips that should be kissed!Oscar Wilde
- 224 And put gold fetters on her golden hair.Oh! the vain joy it is to see her lie Beside me once again; beyond release, Her hair, her hand, her body, till she die, All mine, for me to do with what I please!For, after all, I find no chain whereby To chain her
- 223 Porphyria's love: she guessed not how Her darling one wish would be heard.And thus we sit together now, And all night long we have not stirred, And yet G.o.d has not said a word!Robert Browning [1812-1889]MODERN BEAUTY I am the torch, she saith, and what
- 222 LOVE'S ROSARY All day I tell my rosary For now my love's away: To-morrow he shall come to me About the break of day; A rosary of twenty hours, And then a rose of May; A rosary of fettered flowers, And then a holy-day.All day I tell my rosary, My rosary
- 221 Marjorie L. C. Pickthall [1883-1922]SONG She's somewhere in the sunlight strong, Her tears are in the falling rain, She calls me in the wind's soft song, And with the flowers she comes again.Yon bird is but her messenger, The moon is but her silver car;
- 220 With hand on latch, a vision white Lingered reluctant, and again Half doubting if she did aright, Soft as the dews that fell that night, She said,--"Auf wiedersehen!"The lamp's clear gleam flits up the stair; I linger in delicious pain; Ah, in that cha
- 219 The dames of France are fond and free, And Flemish lips are willing, And soft the maids of Italy, And Spanish eyes are thrilling; Still, though I bask beneath their smile, Their charms fail to bind me, And my heart falls back to Erin's Isle, To the girl
- 218 But I would come away To dwell with you, my dear; Through unknown worlds to stray,-- Or sleep; nor hope, nor fear, Nor dream beneath the clay Of all our days that were.Philip Bourke Marston [1850-1887]"COME TO ME, DEAREST"Come to me, dearest, I'm lonel
- 217 With naught of true thou wilt me greet.And Thou that men call by my name!O helpless One! hast thou no shame That thou must even look the same As while agone, as while agone When Thou and She were left alone, And hands and lips and tears did meet?Grow weak
- 216 The blossoms drifted at our feet, The orchard birds sang clear; The sweetest and the saddest day It seemed of all the year.For, more to me than birds or flowers, My playmate left her home, And took with her the laughing spring, The music and the bloom.She
- 215 Then, when we meet, and thy look strays towards me, Scanning my face and the changes wrought there: Who, let me say, is this stranger regards me, With the gray eyes, and the lovely brown hair?Matthew Arnold [1822-1888]LONGING Come to me in my dreams, and
- 214 THE PALM-TREE AND THE PINE Beneath an Indian palm a girl Of other blood reposes, Her cheek is clear and pale as pearl, Amid that wild of roses.Beside a northern pine a boy Is leaning fancy-bound, Nor listens where with noisy joy Awaits the impatient hound