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THE GOLDEN CITY.
PART I.
I
Two aged men, that had been foes for life,Met by a grave, and wept—and in those tears
They wash'd away the memory of their strife;
Then wept again the loss of all those years.
II
Two youths discoursing amid tears and laughterPour'd out their trustful hearts unto each other:
They never met before, and never after,
Yet each remember'd he had found a brother.
III
A boy and girl amid the dawning lightGlanced at each other at a palace door;
That look was hope by day, and dreams by night,
And yet they never saw each other more.
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IV
Should gentle spirits born for one anotherMeet only in sad death, the end of all?
Should hearts, that spring, like rivers, near each other,
As far apart into the Ocean fall?
V
Should heavenly Beauty be a snare to stayFree Love, and ere she hear his tongue complain,
Forsake him, as a lily turns away
From the air that cannot turn to it again?
VI
Ah! hapless Zephyr, thou canst never partFrom the rare odor of the breathing bloom;
Ah! flower, thou canst not tell how fair thou art,
Or see thyself, or quaff thine own perfume.
VII
Ah! Lover unbeloved, or loving notThe doomed heart that only turns to thee,
In this wild world how cureless is thy lot,
Who shall unwind the old perplexity?
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PART II.
I
Fond hearts, not unrequited shall ye beFor ever—I beheld a happy sight,
Heaven open'd, and a starry company
Far off, like Gods, and crowned Sons of Light.
II
On beacon-towers, and citadels sublimeThey stood, and watch'd with their unsleeping eyes
Where two or three across the sea of Time
Held on unto the shores of Paradise.
III
All day they rock'd upon the stormy Deep,Till night beset them; and they could not tell
The signal lights—and they began to weep—
And the dark waters smote them, and they fell.
IV
But oh! they woke in wonder! and beholdA mighty City!—'twas a summer-morn,
And dazzling sunshine smote on walls of gold,
And blessed voices on their ears forlorn.
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V
Soon as the gray prow touch'd upon the sandsWild birds from from fadeless woods, and inland streams,
Shower'd o'er them those same notes of Faery lands,
Which they had heard in far, forgotten dreams.
VI
And on the morning breezes come and partGushes of those enchanted melodies,
Which for brief moments born within the heart
Make sad the earth with echoes of the skies.
VII
Odors from silent fields of AsphodelBreathe o'er them, steeping them in sudden bliss,
That once had touch'd their sense, as with a spell,
And made them yearn for parted lives in this.
VIII
Visions, which some pale bard had seen afarBurn in the sunset, or the morning cloud,
And then depart into the scornful air,
Leaving his heart with earthly sorrows bow'd,
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IX
From forth broad portals into daylight pour'd,While songs were peal'd, and trumpets stream'd above,
And by those shores in triumph took their way,
While he stood rapt in ecstacy and love.
X
And men of sorrows, whose dejected eyesHad sought the earth, and look'd for Death in vain,
Lifted their heads unto the glorious skies,
And sigh'd with perfect bliss, unthrall'd of pain.
XI
And they were borne into a vale of bowers,And heard infantine voices, and those tones
Link'd in their hearts with the rejoicing hours
Ere mortal anguish smit their weary bones.
XII
Amid the tumult who are they that callIn well-known tongues sweet welcomes? Who are they
Amid the multitudes that throng the wall,
With well-known faces, now so young and gay
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XIII
Who are the foremost on the shore to find,And clasp those weary mariners, pale with woes?
Friends, lovers, tender children, parents kind,
Lost soon as loved—or loved too long to lose.
XIV
They took those storm-beat mariners by the hand,And thro' their worn and weary senses pour'd
Sweet snatches of old songs, and to the land
They led them, whispering many a tender word.
XV
Up to the golden Citadel they fare,And as they go their limbs grow full of might,
And One awaits them on the topmost stair—
One whom they had not seen, but knew at sight!
XVI
Hark! there is music, such as never flow'dThro' all the Ages—for the Lost are found—
Sorrow is sitting by the throne of God—
Justice and Mercy meet—and Love is crown'd!
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