Matin Bells and Scarlet and Gold By "F. Harald Williams"[i.e. F. W. O. Ward]. First Edition |
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| I. |
WHITE FEET. |
 | II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
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| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
 | Matin Bells and Scarlet and Gold |  |
WHITE FEET.
Lo, they came in the darkness, they came in the grief
When my burden was heavy to bear,
In the sorrow and night that was not a relief
Nor a robe that the wretched might wear;
They were little white feet and delicious and sweet
In the fashion of snow flakes and air,
As if silence and gloom had just burst into bloom
And a form the most winsome and fair;
As if out of the dew and the rapture and bliss
Of the moment that never comes twice,
Love had sent me a sign that makes nothing amiss
And that cannot be bought with a price.
When my burden was heavy to bear,
In the sorrow and night that was not a relief
Nor a robe that the wretched might wear;
They were little white feet and delicious and sweet
In the fashion of snow flakes and air,
As if silence and gloom had just burst into bloom
And a form the most winsome and fair;
As if out of the dew and the rapture and bliss
Of the moment that never comes twice,
Love had sent me a sign that makes nothing amiss
And that cannot be bought with a price.
43
I was troubled and torn, and despair shut me in
To the shadow of shame and my woe
That was deeper than thought and more dreadful than sin,
As if I had myself turned my foe;
Then those little white feet that were maiden and meet
For the message I sought for in vain,
From the horrible husk of the death and the dusk
Came in pity and ease for my pain;
And the curtain of blackness around me all broke
Into roses of purple and light,
And the joy at the heart of my sadness awoke
Like a morning of June in its might.
To the shadow of shame and my woe
That was deeper than thought and more dreadful than sin,
As if I had myself turned my foe;
Then those little white feet that were maiden and meet
For the message I sought for in vain,
From the horrible husk of the death and the dusk
Came in pity and ease for my pain;
And the curtain of blackness around me all broke
Into roses of purple and light,
And the joy at the heart of my sadness awoke
Like a morning of June in its might.
And I fancied they said to me “Follow the way
Which we tread through the travailing years,
For wherever we go there is always the day
And a golden horizon appears!”
Then those little white feet that were holy and fleet
On the errands of kindness and care,
Went before me in love as they raised me above
The old anguish and evil I bare;
O they were not of woman, they were not of child,
But partook of the beauties of both,
They were softer than music and never defil'd,
And with mine kept the tenderest troth.
Which we tread through the travailing years,
For wherever we go there is always the day
And a golden horizon appears!”
Then those little white feet that were holy and fleet
On the errands of kindness and care,
Went before me in love as they raised me above
The old anguish and evil I bare;
O they were not of woman, they were not of child,
But partook of the beauties of both,
They were softer than music and never defil'd,
And with mine kept the tenderest troth.
If I doubt in the journey of life what is best,
If I step for a season aside,
Then they seem to be walking in tears on my breast
And the depths of my being divide;
Yes, those little white feet guide me straight in the street
And in pleasure and mourning and toil,
For they cannot lead wrong and they move as to song
And they gather no blemish or soil;
Ah, I know when I come to the border at length
Of the River that flows for us all,
They will brighten before me the gulf in their strength
And their purity—lest I should fall.
If I step for a season aside,
Then they seem to be walking in tears on my breast
And the depths of my being divide;
Yes, those little white feet guide me straight in the street
And in pleasure and mourning and toil,
For they cannot lead wrong and they move as to song
And they gather no blemish or soil;
Ah, I know when I come to the border at length
Of the River that flows for us all,
They will brighten before me the gulf in their strength
And their purity—lest I should fall.
| Matin Bells and Scarlet and Gold | |