The Poetical Works of George Barlow In Ten [Eleven] Volumes |
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 | The Poetical Works of George Barlow |  |
168
SONNET VIII
THE GREEK POET IN ENGLAND
In England's air the poet-heart was born,
And his young fancies 'mid the city's roar
Ripened,—strange fruit of thought the dark streets bore.
Yet light upon him of the world's first morn
Was shed, and woods that heard Diana's horn
And Grecian waves that flashed at Jason's oar
Knew him. He steeped his soul in old-world lore,
And met the modern gods with speechless scorn.
And his young fancies 'mid the city's roar
Ripened,—strange fruit of thought the dark streets bore.
Yet light upon him of the world's first morn
Was shed, and woods that heard Diana's horn
And Grecian waves that flashed at Jason's oar
Knew him. He steeped his soul in old-world lore,
And met the modern gods with speechless scorn.
England gave little love. She gave him flowers,—
Such as her Northern meadows can supply:
And just one moment's rest in first love's bowers;
And glory of hill and sea and lake and sky:
And lonely agonised heart-broken hours;
Death's bitterness—then the mandate not to die.
Such as her Northern meadows can supply:
And just one moment's rest in first love's bowers;
And glory of hill and sea and lake and sky:
And lonely agonised heart-broken hours;
Death's bitterness—then the mandate not to die.
| The Poetical Works of George Barlow | |