 | 'Twixt Kiss and Lip or Under the Sword. By the author of "Women Must Weep," [i.e. F. W. O. Ward] Third edition |  |
“SWEET AND TWENTY.” —Shakspeare.
Sweet Lady, who from thy gay girlish teens
Hast passed into a stage of grander good,
As from the shelter of a shadowy wood
The pilgrim enters on unbounded scenes;
Hast passed into a stage of grander good,
As from the shelter of a shadowy wood
The pilgrim enters on unbounded scenes;
Consider well what this strange magic means,
The mystery by none yet understood,
(Though love some scattered ears of wisdom gleans,)
The miracle of maiden womanhood.
The mystery by none yet understood,
(Though love some scattered ears of wisdom gleans,)
The miracle of maiden womanhood.
Thy feet have crossed the threshold, and they stand
White on the borders of a brighter land,
Clogged by no touch of earth's polluting ill;
White on the borders of a brighter land,
Clogged by no touch of earth's polluting ill;
And if thou would'st be mistress of thy will,
Not the poor slave of this world's iron hand,
Then carry with thee childhood's freshness still.
Not the poor slave of this world's iron hand,
Then carry with thee childhood's freshness still.
| 'Twixt Kiss and Lip or Under the Sword. By the author of "Women Must Weep," [i.e. F. W. O. Ward] Third edition | |