 | Letters of Laura D'Auverne |  |
129
WHEN BEAUTY'S ROSE.
When beauty's rose is virtue's flower,—
When beauty's pride is honour's glow,
I'd take that rose for better dower
Than riches merely can bestow;
But when that rose is born to bloom,
In lieu of roses born of truth,—
When vain conceit takes up the room
Of flowers that live beyond our youth:
Then give me, love, a plainer face,
And I will ne'er adore it less,
If but the heart's enchanting grace,
The heart's warm feeling it express!
When beauty's pride is honour's glow,
I'd take that rose for better dower
Than riches merely can bestow;
But when that rose is born to bloom,
In lieu of roses born of truth,—
When vain conceit takes up the room
Of flowers that live beyond our youth:
Then give me, love, a plainer face,
And I will ne'er adore it less,
If but the heart's enchanting grace,
The heart's warm feeling it express!
It is not blooming cheeks alone,
Nor sunny lips, nor sparkling eyes,
Nor brow that seemeth beauty's throne,
Wherein love's truest witchery lies!
There is a charm beyond the power
Of rose or lily to excel,—
A charm that glads a summer hour,
And gilds a wintry hour as well!
So give me, love, a plainer face,
And I will ne'er adore it less,
If but the heart's enchanting grace,
The heart's warm feeling it express.
Nor sunny lips, nor sparkling eyes,
Nor brow that seemeth beauty's throne,
Wherein love's truest witchery lies!
130
Of rose or lily to excel,—
A charm that glads a summer hour,
And gilds a wintry hour as well!
So give me, love, a plainer face,
And I will ne'er adore it less,
If but the heart's enchanting grace,
The heart's warm feeling it express.
| Letters of Laura D'Auverne | |