 | Poems |  |
333
LOVERS AT LOGGERHEADS.
What have I to do with thee—
Thee, Caprice's wilful daughter,
That to mate thee I must be
Steering thus through stormy water?
What need I, an elder, care
Whether fools be foes or spouses,
Meddling, marring here and there—
Plague say I o' both your houses.
Thee, Caprice's wilful daughter,
That to mate thee I must be
Steering thus through stormy water?
What need I, an elder, care
Whether fools be foes or spouses,
Meddling, marring here and there—
Plague say I o' both your houses.
Vestry brawls are rude and rough,—
Who but Vestry chairman pities?
Workhouse boards torment enough,
Worse torment one school committees;
But to me the toil of toils,
Hardest—ay! full ten times over—
Is to soothe the raging broils
Of a loved one with a lover.
Who but Vestry chairman pities?
Workhouse boards torment enough,
Worse torment one school committees;
But to me the toil of toils,
Hardest—ay! full ten times over—
Is to soothe the raging broils
Of a loved one with a lover.
Lo! upon my study shelves,
When on such affairs I ponder,
Sage and scholar bless themselves,
Theologians watch and wonder.
Hooker, Hammond, Taylor, Mede,
Basil, Ambrose, Athanasius—
All pronounce the life I lead
Inconceivably vexatious.
When on such affairs I ponder,
Sage and scholar bless themselves,
Theologians watch and wonder.
Hooker, Hammond, Taylor, Mede,
Basil, Ambrose, Athanasius—
All pronounce the life I lead
Inconceivably vexatious.
334
Whence the spell which thus enchains
Me, a grave and prudent rector?
Has Queen Mab bewitched my brains?
Have I quaff'd Olympian nectar?
Nay—to speak prosaic sense—
All the charm is purely human;—
'Tis the generous confidence
Of a noble-hearted woman.
Me, a grave and prudent rector?
Has Queen Mab bewitched my brains?
Have I quaff'd Olympian nectar?
Nay—to speak prosaic sense—
All the charm is purely human;—
'Tis the generous confidence
Of a noble-hearted woman.
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