 | The Poems of Richard Watson Gilder |  |
THE UNRETURNING
I
Silent, silent are the unreturning!What tho' word may reach to them, and yearning,
Never through the stillness of the night,
Never in the daytime or the dark
Comes the long-lost voice, or smile of light;
Lifts no hand from sea or sunken bark.
Silent, silent are the unreturning!
II
Silent, silent are the unreturning!Silent they?—or are we undiscerning?
Child, my child! is this thy answering voice
Murmuring far down the mountain lone?
Evening's smile, that whispers: “Heart, rejoice!”
Mother mine! is this thy very own?
Nay! nay! Silent are the unreturning;
Silent, silent are the unreturning!
| The Poems of Richard Watson Gilder | |