Avolio ; a legend of the island of Cos With poems, lyrical, miscellaneous, and dramatic |
1. |
2. |
2. |
1. |
2. |
3. |
1. |
2. |
2. |
[Well spake the Poet, that howe'er the cry] |
Avolio ; a legend of the island of Cos | ||
86
[Well spake the Poet, that howe'er the cry]
Well spake the Poet, that howe'er the cryOf frenzied sorrow might call loud on death,
No soul hath prayed that with our transient breath,
The last sad burden of a mortal sigh,
Life—thought—desire—should perish utterly;
O! rather would the spirit bear the yoke
Of torture, if beyond its prison-bars
A glimmer of the feeblest promise broke,
Athwart new heavens, sown thick with happy stars;
O! rather would we hold that doctrine just,
Whereby mankind—save some through Christ set free—
Shall writhe for aye divorced from joy and trust,
Than yield up thus our Immortality,
Quenching THAT HOPE in darkness and the dust.
Avolio ; a legend of the island of Cos | ||