Poems by Cecil Frances Alexander Edited, with a preface, by William Alexander |
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 | Poems by Cecil Frances Alexander |  |
Oh ye of generous soul, and gentle blood,
Who love the annals of the great and good;
Who love to trace their memory on earth,
Who trod their destined course in silent worth;
Who, in this age of direful innovation,
Hold fast the principles of conservation;
Who reverence ancient customs, and revere
The usages your ancestors held dear:
To such, I fondly hope, not all in vain,
I dedicate my brief memorial strain.
You know to prize, and you will guard with care
The memoirs of a yellow damask chair.
But to you levelling miscreants, who hold
That nought is good and worthy that is old;
Who, in the spirit of this modern time,
Reform even virtue, till ye make it crime.
Who 'stead of flowered satin, would relax
On vile cane chairs, with small indented backs;
You who would scorn my antique form, and hear
My retrospections with unhallowed sneer;
Read not one line, away, away, and spare
The harrowed feelings of a high-backed chair.
Who love the annals of the great and good;
Who love to trace their memory on earth,
Who trod their destined course in silent worth;
Who, in this age of direful innovation,
Hold fast the principles of conservation;
Who reverence ancient customs, and revere
The usages your ancestors held dear:
To such, I fondly hope, not all in vain,
I dedicate my brief memorial strain.
131
The memoirs of a yellow damask chair.
But to you levelling miscreants, who hold
That nought is good and worthy that is old;
Who, in the spirit of this modern time,
Reform even virtue, till ye make it crime.
Who 'stead of flowered satin, would relax
On vile cane chairs, with small indented backs;
You who would scorn my antique form, and hear
My retrospections with unhallowed sneer;
Read not one line, away, away, and spare
The harrowed feelings of a high-backed chair.
| Poems by Cecil Frances Alexander | |