 | Poems of "Frank Forester" (Henry William Herbert) |  |
161
ANACREONTICS.
I.
On, on with the feast! Fill the goblets of goldWith the blood of old Metternich's vine.
They may boast their Falernian, and Massic of old,
Their Samian, and Cæcuban wine;
But never in vases of classical mould
Did liquor more generous shine
Than the ruby-crowned flagons of Burgundy hold,
Or the grapes of the bacchanal Rhine.
II.
Fill, fill to the river that gladdens our soulWith its joy-giving vintage's birth!
Long, long may the lands, where its bright waters roll,
Be the shrines of contentment and mirth!
Fill up, though the hollow bells haply may toll
For some time-parted offspring of earth!
Shall we be less near to eternity's goal
If we sorrow in silence and dearth?
III.
If care be the province of mortals below,In their being's allotted career;
If the chances of fortune, the deeds of the foe,
The falsehood or death of the dear,
Should extinguish the star that illumined our brow,
And shadow our spirits while here,—
Sure 'tis wiser in wine to rekindle the glow,
Than to languish in darkness and fear.
162
IV.
On, on with the feast! We will revel to-nightIf we never must revel again.
Let the song add its magical thrill of delight,
Till our bosoms exult in the strain.
Bring garlands—the dewy, the perfumed, the bright—
From the rose, with her blood-tinted grain,
To the lily's deep chalice of silvery light,
And the vine's odoriferous chain.
V.
Fill, fill the bright bowl! We are gathered to-dayFrom the camp, from the court, from the deep;
But to-morrow—what bard or what prophet can say
In what haven our spirits shall sleep?
And if o'er our souls, though their tone may be gay,
Some sad recollections should sweep,
With the wine-cup's enchantment we'll vanquish their sway,
And smile—that we ever should weep.
| Poems of "Frank Forester" (Henry William Herbert) | |