 | Lyrical Poems |  |
1
TO THE IMMORTAL MEMORY OF FREE ATHENS
Where are the flawless form,
The sweet propriety of measured phrase,
The words that clothe the idea, not disguise,
Horizons pure from haze,
And calm clear vision of Hellenic eyes?
The sweet propriety of measured phrase,
The words that clothe the idea, not disguise,
Horizons pure from haze,
And calm clear vision of Hellenic eyes?
Strength ever veil'd by grace;
The mind's anatomy implied, not shown;
No gaspings for the vague, no fruitless fires;—
Yet, heard 'neath all, the tone
Of those far realms to which the soul aspires.
The mind's anatomy implied, not shown;
No gaspings for the vague, no fruitless fires;—
Yet, heard 'neath all, the tone
Of those far realms to which the soul aspires.
Upon life's field they look'd
With fearless gaze, trusting their sight,—the while
Conscious the God's whole scheme they could not see;
But smiled a manly smile,
And the sane song spoke the heart's sanity.
With fearless gaze, trusting their sight,—the while
Conscious the God's whole scheme they could not see;
But smiled a manly smile,
And the sane song spoke the heart's sanity.
2
That unfantastic strain,
Void of weak fever and self-conscious cry,—
Truth bold and pure in her own nakedness,—
What modern hand can try,
Tracing the delicate line 'twixt More and Less?
Void of weak fever and self-conscious cry,—
Truth bold and pure in her own nakedness,—
What modern hand can try,
Tracing the delicate line 'twixt More and Less?
Yet as who, aiming high,
Must aim far o'er the mark that he can gain,
—O shining City of the Maiden Shrine!—
I name thee not in vain,
If these late Northern lays be kin to thine.
Must aim far o'er the mark that he can gain,
—O shining City of the Maiden Shrine!—
I name thee not in vain,
If these late Northern lays be kin to thine.
Jan. 1871
| Lyrical Poems | |