Class ^S3545L. GopightN"—^ COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. WOVEN OF DREAMS. WOVEN OF DREAMS. BY BLANCHE SHOEMAKER. vvaf.H AUTHOR OF "THE SONG OF YOUTH" NEW YORK. JOHN LANE COMPANY, MCMVIL COPYRIGHT, 1967, BY JOHN LANE COMPANY. LIBRARY of CONGRESS Two Copies Received MAk 9 1907 ^^ Copyright Entry CLASS ^ XXc, No. 'COFT B. "T^^^'vJt j\^ \10 Dedication. I care not if the world knows who thou art, Oh Loveliness, that set my soul at rest; My love for thee stands nobly sweet con- fessed. Heaven's acknowledgment and counterpart. Ah, through thee only can I gain my fame, Thou moon-star of my night's forsaken ways; And all life's gathered glory is to praise Thee, oh my Heaven and my Love the same. CONTENTS. tAGE Sonnets .<,» ••»,.. 9 Youth's Journey 29 Gathered Petals 87 Woven of Dreams 105 SONNETS I. The Rider (Mexico). Just as the mount upon his sprightly steed Rides on from day to day thro' plain and glen, Climbing the hill, to but descend again, Knowing infinitude of change and need When dawn the dreary dark does supersede, Living uncertain of each jump he takes. Fearful lest haste will cause him dire mis- takes, Knowing not where his horse's footsteps lead, — So are we all lone riders on life's plain; Before us lie the hilly ascents steep. Which we in turn must take and cross the deep Broad seas of sorrow and descend again. Little we know our destiny each day, We journey on thro' the untrodden way! II II. The Master. There are no joys in Life retainable ; Delight eludes as the dear lips of one We love and long to kiss, but have not won. Strive as we will, or struggle mayhap well, Our victory but half our struggles tell. Ambition sways us to attempt the great, And lo! we find our effort comes too late, — We could not conquer ere ambition fell. We seek our share of happiness and when Heart-strengthened ecstasy imbues us, then Ere we have lived, we pass into the grave. We all lose Love, and try to love once more, — We all achieve awhile, and it is o'er, For Time is Master, — man the hapless slave. 12 III. Sunward. Just as the leaves lean sunward on the trees, Yearning toward their sweet goal of vis- ible light, And weeping at the first faint signs of night, The estranging dark that brings surcease of ease ; So I lean heavenward toward fond ecstasies That are begot of your proximity, — E'en if the desert's cold inveteracy, Between us lies, or the stern sundering seas. No matter in what region or what clime, Whether soul-starved, or fed with blisses sweet, Beneath the impotence of fettered feet I faint and yearn toward you, oh Love sub- lime, And with the gradual growth of youth, my time Is wholly spent in prayers that we shall meet! 13 IV. The Glen. Sweet sheltered spot of Love's first utterance, The golden shadows strewn upon the grass, The cloud-pale images that come and pass Upon the lake's edge where the ripples dance. Flower-like eddies glistening as they glance Upon the waters that the winds harass. The hyacinth-pale light that lives, alas! Only a while till dark's deliverance. The song-thrilled air, in pauseless ecstasy. Hangs odorous and sweet upon the spot; The hanging trees display their amorous lot. And meet above the cloistered sanctuary. Sequestered glen that knows so fully of The rapturous infinitude of love! H V. In Defiance. Ah sweet, would that Love could all Time defy! And rose-crowned in unending glory last Thro'out Eternity, when Life has passed. The timeless tide of Joy should never die. For sovereign Love should see Death pass it by... Fierce sweeps the strengthenful sea imperi- ous, Defiant of the changing years, and thus Love should Eternity exemplify. But ah, the ceaseless current of the years Sweeps on, and sunders Love from us, — as tears Our wept hearts lose, do ne'er return again. Oh love-sown soul of mine that dreads the day Dejected Love will sadly steal away, — Time's penalty is Love shall ever wane. 15 VI. Glorification. Because thou lov'st me I am glorified; Like some dim star the moonshine falls upon, Making it luminant with a radiance won. And I have only to reach thy sweet side To be o'ershowered with joy, and mystified With multitudes of hope. Mortality Assumes an infinite guise in hours with thee; The bonds of flesh seem utterly defied. Because I live within the circle of Thy charmed devotion, dear, I dwell apart, A tenant of thy purity of heart, Inheritage of thy eternal love. Oh winged soul of mine, so quick to soar, Blessed by thy love, — in life, I want no morel i6 VII. I Cannot Live Without Thee. I cannot live without thee, for in vain My aimless soul seeks solace everywhere, Faltering thro'out the garden lands, aware Of thy dear absence; sweet, I suffer pain! The lonely afternoons refuse to wane, The desolate nights that once were fond and fair, — The sense of destitution in the air, — Oh, sweet, I crave thy loveliness again! I dread the futile foe of life that binds Me fettered to a land that knows thee not; Love's scattered garlands I have not forgot. Nor the bruised buds of passion my soul finds Strewn on its memory path; Death, visit me, Rather than face a future without thee! 17 VIIL Ah, What if Thou Shouldst Cease to Love! Ah, what if thou shouldst cease to love me, dear. Within the future days that should be sweet! Fidelity is sometimes very fleet, And joy is briefer than a sun-drowned tear. To-day, and happiness is really here. Yet who knows what the undreamed mor- row brings? Love is a rootless flower that sudden springs, A blossom of the soul too quick to veer. Suppose cold, uncaressive finger-tips Should kill the life of Love until it paled. And thou, my guardian flower that glowed, and failed. Should cease to crave allegiance of my lips! Ah, Sweet, if this sad hour should ever be, 'Twere better I die now, whilst trusting thee! i8 IX. The Infinite. When but a fearful child, afraid of night, It was my pleasure to steal off, and sit Close by the darkening sea. . . . Ah, what de- light I felt so near to that vast Infinite! Beside me, veering to the water's edge There fell the steepest cliff — if I but turned To gaze at shadows sweeping o'er the ledge, I would have been no more, — yet I dis- cerned A charm in being thus alone, with not A hand between Eternity and me. . . . A woman now. These hours loom unforgot Luring my soul with a lost ecstasy. And dear, on meeting your strange eyes, I then Looked out upon the Infinite again! 19 X. You Say Great Love Gives Freely. You say great love gives freely of its prize, And like an open flower with heart laid bare, Sheds fragrant sweetness on the desert air. The petalled loveliness that deeply lies Grows perfecter revealed to human eyes; Whilst the unopened bud that seems so fair Shrinks into unobservance, hidden where A love's unheeded plea grows old and dies. So sweet, the fulness of a perfect love, Without restraining sense, I proffer thee, Let me but give you unreservedly A fond heart's depths that you had ne'er dreamed of. Until the flower-heart shall its petals shed. And life shall end, and we shall both be dead. 20 XL Oh! I am Sick at Heart. Oh! I am sick at heart, and bowed with woe, Fearful of Love's inveterate changefulness; Desolate at the thought of happiness So slow to come, and yet so quick to go I The tyranny of Time's momentous flow, The sad sea's tide estranging a caress, The weight of unappeasable distress, — Oh, heart's despair, that I should suffer so! Some day there may be calm for me, a rest From Love's poor tribulation; but to-day The burdens of my doubt so heavy weigh By terrifying fears I seem possessed. I am so sad, so very weary of The tearful turbulence that comes with love! 21 XII. Forsaken. All to you then, and nothing to you now! What constitutes this freak of destiny? — That but last night together we did bow Beneath a halo of great ecstasy, And with joined hands and happy hearts allied We faced the future with much confidence : There seemed no other hour to come; the tide Of happiness engulfed our ev'ry sense. Had I refrained, dear one, from loving you, I might still be beside you, — knowing not Of Love, with all its gall, and sweetness, too. . . . But, ah, 'twas you who lov'd and you for- got— While I embittered and deserted stand, Remembering your last word and touch of hand. 22 XIII. Discontent. My heart is heavy with the height attained, O'erburdened with a multitude of joy, — Bowed with a bliss no Time can e'er de- stroy, Weak from the carried crown of joy main- tained. When woe was mine how loud my heart com- plained; How great my tears' downfall; how keen, despair! How strong the pangs; how manifold the care; So great that present bliss might well seem feigned. Yet, ah, the weight of happiness I bear, — A sun-born progeny that stills my heart. Immeasurable delight from life apart, As wave-shine in the glory of thy hair. Whence came this burden of ecstatic bliss? Why should I murmur that my fate is this? 23 XIV. A Resolve. Yea, I shall give you up, and go my way Unweeping, without hope of a return. . . . This is the lesson that we all must learn Before Youth dies, and Age has come to stay: To give up joy at its full height, and lay Love in its early grave e'er it has died, And to renounce, e'er one is satisfied. And thus mature or waning passions slay. Seek for the night e'er comes the end of day! So shall I leave you with my tears unshed, Going my way to number with the dead — And tho' I love you so, still I must say Farewell, and ne'er come back to you again,— And thus we shall be spared our poor love s wane. 24 XV. On Guido Reni's " St. Sebastian" in the Louvre. The pale averted face in misery Of speechless anguish from the watcher turned; The soulful eyes that infinitely have yearned Towards some dim goal that lured invisibly; The ageless torture in the indrawn knee; The suffering posture of the body bent; The heart pierced with the arrow cruelly sent; — An image of distressed humility. Beyond the piteous form a pale sky lies Shot thro' with amber clouds and violet hues; The shadowy foliage clustering round the bruise The poor heart holds, — the wound that never dies, But stains his side with scarlet. Can one's eyes A memory of this canvas ever lose! 25 XVI. On Nietzsche's " Zarathustra.'' Mad gospel of an anti-Christ, who knew But little of the life he sought to show, Spending his days in mental misery so, With dissipated strength nought could renew, — Why this strange theory that things tried and true Should be abolished? Superseded by The revolutionary things that die? Surely these doctrines were not lived by you. I deemed, oh Erisichthon, that you meant These doctrines, and I drank them word by word, — Stranger than eye had read or ear had heard Since life began or destiny was spent, — Yet in my great incredulous wonderment I faced the world of thought your words had stirred. . . . 26 XVII. On Rossetti's " House of Life.' Oh, immemorial monument of verse, Eternal tower of perfectness too great For pen to adequately estimate, No limitless expressions can rehearse Thy scope of beauty; nor no Time immerse Thy immortality. Thy sonnets are As lovely as the wonder of a star That is in touch with all the universe. And no contemporary verse can e'er Arise to thy supremacy. Thou art A peer without a chance of counterpart; A '^ House of Life " to which nought can com- pare. Oh, lasting structure age will not impair, The monument a mortal did impart! 27 XVIII. On Swinburne's ^^ Tristam of Lyonnesse." Oh wonder tale of love and bravery, Of unfeigned courage and impassioned strength, Of valorous fondness of an endless length, Of fortitude and wrong's humility, Of frenzied longing and propinquity. Of gradual justice dawning breath by breath. Until the crowning hour of uniting Death, The eventful end of Love's sad secrecy. Twin-souls that found felicity in fate Not on this earth, but in the one to come; Released at last from their life's martyr- dom. United thus, their severance expiate. Oh, well and grandly hast thou sung the great Eternal tale of Love whence life comes from! 28 YOUTH'S JOURNEY, 29 Villanelle of Youth. Youth's happy garnered hours: What is sweeter than May? Life's dawn with its gathered flowers. Sunshine illumes love's bowers But for the length of a day; Youth's happy garnered hours. Sweet are the sunfall showers That are strewn across our way; Life's dawn with its gathered flowers. Lovely and brief Youth's dowers, Hope is the heart's mainstay. Youth's happy garnered hours! Dauntless the dreams of ours, Splendid the fancy's stray, Life's dawn with its gathered flowers. Of all immortal powers. Youth is better than they; Youth's happy garnered hours, Life's dawn with its gathered flowers! 31 The Journey. Each heart-beat brings me nearer to the goal, To that desired, divine felicity, — A nearness to the radiance of your soul. Within which glory I so long to be. Each indrawn breath is but a presage of The passing instants that will culminate In final joy exquisite, hours of love My wondering soul dares not anticipate. Each foot-fall on the leaf-strewn paths proclaims My journey's end is near, and o'er my way A wondrous light has risen that acclaims The coming dawn of love's perpetual day. 32 Heloise to Abelard. We shall be one eventually, — if not Here on God's earth then in His Heaven above, Where severance we can expiate with love, Where all earth's deprivations are forgot. We shall be one eventually, — no hand Can hold us e'er apart, — tho' life may bind. Surely in Death's deep power we shall find The mingled blessedness of love's own land! We shall be one eventually, — I know Eternity is sweet and kind to those Who suffer thro'out life until its close, — No God could keep our souls in severance so! 33 Time. What slaves we are of Time! The tyrant of our soul's delight, The cruel slayer of our hopefulness, The potent dispeller of our charms, The master builder of our aims. The stormy dethroner of success. The abolition of all things. The stern unyielding force that kills; That rears our joys and fells them down again, That soothes our sorrows and allays our fears. That arrests our loves and banishes our wants, That brings fulfillment in an hour. That hurls grief on stricken souls, . . . What abject slaves are we To that Immortal hand of Time In whose defence man has so little, And in whose name our impotence Is pitiable but true. 34 On the Bridge. Gazing over the gleaming rail, Into the depths below, The vague mysteries of dark Swarming before my sight. The faint flicker of wind Thro' the mists. The stir of shadows over The quiet waters that stir not, Breathless my soul with expectancy, Supreme the silence, Strange as death the hour. . . Then a flutter of wings, the beat Of flying breasts thro' the air, — The passage of something unseen Out from the depths of my soul: The Spirit of Love departs Upward over the waters; Nought can stay its flight. While I stand leaning over the bridge. Aged and alone, the night empty and void,- Stricken and sad my desolate soul! 35 The Blind Man. The pulse of sound throbs in his breast; A great eternal, sad unrest Beats in his veins. His haunting eyes Seek everywhere for dawn. Perpetual night Is his intolerable plight. Dark without pause, or soothing, sweet sunrise! Longing unceasingly for much Without his powerless grasp; the touch Of hands well-loved; only the voice His heart hears, hearkening to rejoice — These must suffice the wanderer Whose senses sounds alone can stir: Ah, hapless soul, within Life's night Ever desiring, e'er bereft of sight! 36 By the Shores of Acheron. We are in Sorrow's land to-day — Where shall we go? What shall we do to drive away Our soul's despairing woe? Unutterable presaging Of coming sadness more; Suggestion of a vanished Spring, And bliss passed o'er. We are in Sorrow's land to-day: Weeping delight Of love's glad hours is past away. This is life's night, — Dawnless and drear as Death's dim hour, Sorrow is by; Unwelcome fiend that shall be our Foe till we die. 37 Dawn. The brooding dawn came creeping o'er the land, And stood upon the water's edge and scanned The desolate, darksome sea wrapt in night's arms. And then with pauseless pace its wondrous charms Spread soft effulgence o'er the mist-veiled wave, And lit the sky with torches of the brave. Until the tremulous stars went in to weep, — And this was dawn! I shuddered in my sleep Waking to find the night time growing wan, With all my fairy dreams dissolved and gone! 38 In After Years. What mean our little lives to-day? we tread The self-same paths of struggle others knew; We plan our hopeful hours, passing thro' The fleeting ecstasy of dreams come true; But Youth's fair moments that our fancies fed Perish within the teeth of Time, and then Our little lives are wiped away again. Our loves and sorrows vanish with the dead. Like fragile atoms that are blown along A sea of sadness; now a sound of song And then to-morrow anguish, — so we pass, Fleet are our lives as cloud-shades o'er the grass; We dream to-day's desire is everything But wake and find our days upon the wing. We live and love and hope and shed our tears, — What means it all, my sweet, in After Years? . . . 39 Little We Know. Little we know what the to-morrow brings! What trials to still our laughter, or what woes Dwell undiscovered in the beauteous rose; Its inner imperfections no one knows, Nor what tears lurk within the swallows' wings. Life glides along in gladness for awhile, We hope and soar, — and then the happy smile Dies suddenly as the song some late bird sings. Little we dream that night dwells in the day, Or that the present pleasure could expire E'er we have found the fill of our desire. Hope is a flame we feed till it is fire, Then do we watch its watered grave and pray The dawn will find no more our dream deferred. Oh, presaged sadness that the winds have stirred : Little we know what clouds will follow May! 40 If I Were Gone. If I were gone what would you do, my sweet? Hearing my phantom spirit-steps retreat Adown the gloomy shores of Death's drear sea. Ah, would you in a tumult of tear-shed Come after me. Over the wind-blown chasms of the sea, If I were dead? If I were gone would you stir up the blaze Of those divine, incomparable days Dimmed in Youth's golden past? and would you sigh Remembering all the vows our kisses said In days gone by; Or would you turn away, forget to sigh. If I were dead? If I were gone! ah God, I see you now Cloud-pale and fainting with your hyacinth brow Deep-buried in the grasses where you lie. Murmuring my name with tremulous lips stained red. . . . I hear your cry As on the grasses, in my dream you lie: If I were dead. .... 41 Eloignement. I Ah, once in days long gone when Love was young, We wandered by the verdure of a stream, Following its course to where the widest depths Found us apart, — you on one lofty bank, And I upon the opposite. — Tho' wide The waters that estranged us thus, it seemed We were still near, for Love's uniting hold Held us unsevered, tho' long leagues apart; And when we leaned to look into the stream. Strange, our lips met in one sweet fervent kiss; Fondness had spanned the distance, — we were one. Methinks if all the world had lain between. Love would have bridged the intervening space! II And Yesterday we took the self-same path. Wending our way beside the water's edge. Tearful and sad with Time's momentous change. . . . And, as you stood beside me our eyes met Over a yearning chasm that grew great, Bridgeless, a wide expanse of love estranged, — Soul-sundered by the silent gulf between! 42 Fame. As on a sky-lumed night the stars array Resplendent in a heavenly glory lay, There shines amongst the many, one bright star Supremer and much lovelier by far Than all its sister lights; the tremulous air Being showered with effulgence sweetly rare; — So was the world enkindled by his lot. Attainment in sublime deeds unforgot. Until he seemed to shine supreme above His fellow men, whose fruitless ways were of Another world. His life's reflected rays Perpetuate shine throughout the future days. 43 Invisible Singer — To Arthur Symons. You have sung to my soul like the wind of the South, As strongly as kisses that ravish my mouth, As lips that rain rapture relieving a drouth. As the sea you have stirred me and wakened my heart With the weight of a joy which your songs did impart. And I reel to your side, while my heart calls your heart. You have sung with a voice that I seem to have known In the years that are past when our Youth was unblown. In Thessaly where all the world was our own. Oh, minstrel of sweetness that breaks o'er my heart. To Hesperian groves let my winged soul depart, To the flowery fields where my heart finds your heart! 44 The Wind. The wind is rising o'er the Sea, A sudden storm sweeps up the bay Whose stinging breezes reach my side; Just as the wind arose to-day Without and o'er the Sea, So steeped in hopes my soul defied All Time and Tide And Love arose in me. 45 To Imagination. Ah! to have lived . . . aye, also to have drunk Deep of life's richest cup of ecstasy. And to have seen, and to have felt full well Majestic beauty knit to splendor's touch, (A sentiment being of soul-impassioned strength.) Ah! to have lived — alas too brief a span; She comes — is here, and of a sudden gone. Vanishing 'neath a filmy veil of blue, A spirit so intangible and fleet, In raiment clothed, in beauteous earthly guise. Oh restless soul, why dost thou seek to find In realms of fancy, thy repose, thy peace? Elusive goddess of Imagining! 46 Harborless. Sweet, my life is a stray bark at sea, Rocked on the tide relentlessly, Troubled and tossed in a torrent of tears, Engulfed in the loneliness of years, Harborless, driven into the deep, Straying without the solace of sleep, Wakeful and weak as the early stars; Bruised with the waves and rocks and bars, Wind-tossed, worn and wandering on. Seeing the days and the nights grow wan, Without the hope of relief, unless Subsides the sea, and the waves grow less. And you find me washed on the sands, and take Pity on me for our past love's sake. And lift me out of the sea, and steer The tossed little bark to a harbor near. 47 Sea- Thoughts. I stood by the turbulent sea, Rearing beside me angrily, — Like some sudden torrent of tears Flowing ceaselessly from the depths of my soul. How the dark midst lured me On to the hidden and inexplicable goal That man e'er seeks, but never nears. How tempting the throb of night in the air, The dull pulse of the waves that rose And subsided as the desire of my heart laid bare, Throbbed like the torment of desire Fervent and agitated at my feet like fire! Oh, to plunge into the sea that flows Ever onward; fearlessly to forget The world's great strife, its pangs and fears, To drown deliciously in this realm of tears. Never to rise again — to let Life cease, since I can never have my share; To die in oblivious mists, rather than stare The naked future in the face, and know That You and Love have gone the way that all things go! 48 Immortality. Until the sea shall subside and the whelming waves recede, Until the splendor of sun shall find surcease of need, Until the dew-bright hours the dark shall supersede. So shall I love you, Sweet. Until the rose-bright morns shall cease and shine no more, Until the fervid nights shall pass forever o'er, Until exhausted quite is life's abundant store, So shall I love you, Sweet. Until the desert is drear and discrowned of hills and dales. Until the light of life lessens, grows dimmer and pales. Until the measureless music of time dwindles and fails, So shall I love you, Sweet. Until the sun-thrilled air shall exist no more and fade. Until the vibrant winds their final tune have played, Until the Tide of Things is quiescent and allayed; So shall I love you, Sweet. 49 The Pause. There is a silence lies upon the sea, Between each fall of waves upon the shore ; Silence so breathless, that it seems to be Cessation of the whole sea's melody: An inter pause — and then the spell is o'er. Oft have I hearkened to the water's play, And likened each sweet pause upon the sands, To love's strange silence that sends words away, — The inarticulate hour with soul astray, — Life's pause that comes within a touch of hands! SO Understanding. Lying face down in the disheveled grass, Eyes buried in the damp and soothing ground, Senses alert to every little sound. Hearing the stately darkness rise and pass. Light is obscured in the delicious dark. Heart-beats seem stilled in awesome rever- ence. And feeling but remains, — the vivid sense Of life, as in the song of some late lark. A kinship with the force of life, the thrill Accompanying Nature's close proximity, A revelation of the world to be, — Lying within the grasses, lone and still. 51 The Unfathomable. The unfathomed sea knows not its wondrous depths ; Nor does man know what marvels lie therein. Never will it give up its cherished store, And neither land nor shore shall ever see The hidden treasures that lie unrevealed. So the untrodden pathways of my heart Are possessed of a marvelous wealth of love; Nothing can estimate the fondness there, The measureless amount of tenderness, The vast, sweet store of love I have for you. 52 Paganism. There is no God; my soul has no shrine now. It cannot boast an idol from above; There are no altars where I kneel and bow, My sacrifice is limited to love. I see no future state without you, dear. There is no life or after destiny, For I can boast no immortality But that which your sweet influence brought near. Without you, oh my solitary shrine. My faithless soul has nought to rest upon, Oh leave me not bereft, — be mine, be mine, — That my Eternity and God be won! 53 Two Destinies. Two maidens sat upon a stile and mused — And one was fair, and blue-eyed as the sky; Wan with rich, amber hair, and ready sigh The other; each to meadow work was used. And each alike pondered upon her fate; Whether to wear her vestments virginal, Or mingle in the mad whirl of life's call; Thus did they their perplexities relate. The beauteous one averring she would love, And she who was less fair to look upon Vowed passionate denial, until her wan Pale face grew flushed with mere thinking of. And then they went their ways ; one with the fire Of youth's expectancy and youth's desire To dream of love's caress ; the other to Rejoice, renouncing what her soul ne'er knew. Years passed. . . . And with the frequency of years Excess of joy for the first maid, until The soul grew silent and the senses still. And Death closed o'er. Death welcomed with- out tears. The entered Hell seemed sweet, for love's keen sting Had been her earthly, living Paradise. 54 Two Destinies. And she who had renounced and closed her eyes To love, lived on forever sorrowing, A dim, uncertain Heaven as her prize! 55 Le Mort de la Jeunesse. The way is long and the path is drear, With never a sight of my loved one near; For the leaves have turned, and the woods are sere; And the Winter of life is here — is here — The way is long and the path is drear! Narrow and dim lies the road before, And the world is sick with an empty roar; For the nights are sad and they cease no more, And the Spring of life is o'er — is o'er — Narrow and dim lies the road before! Pale and stark in its sodden grave Stretches the form of my Youth . . . and brave Is my soul that sees, but it cannot save. Love lies with the Youth that we once did crave, Pale and stark in its sodden grave! 56 The Riddle of Life. We are so helpless in Immortal hands, So impotent beside the Power's commands, So childlike in our craved felicity. So weak before creating mystery. There is so much a soul ne'er understands! We seek the light in life, the end in view, We drain the goblets 'til our thirst is through, We want so much, and yet we know not why. Wanting and disappointed, thus we die. E'en then we know no more than others knew! Who can the mystery of life explain? Who can make all existing riddles plain? Who can illume our lives with knowledge, or Reveal what has been never known before? Or prove but that we live and die in vain? We are frail barks that toss upon a sea, The rock-bound shores of life's Humanity, Encompassed by strange, unseen hands that guide. Vague Powers behind the stars that stir the tide, — And this is all we know or e'er can be! 57 The Sea Maiden's Lament. Give me a taste of the inland life, Where the winds unfretted play, — Where the calm, sweet hours with rapture rife Are far from the turbulent shore away; From the sea's desire and the sea's strong strife. Where the languorous sun sheds soothing beams. Where the desert pacifies The thirst in me nought else redeems. Where the hollow lands echo no cries, And the soul is stilled in its longing dreams; Give me a moment where I am free Of the toilsome tumult along the shore. Of the impassioned surging of the sea; Where urgent needs harass no more. Oh lord of the inlands, grant this to mel 58 Uncertainty. Oh, anguish of things passing and things fleet, Of the eternal tragedy of change; Our hopes Time's dreaded onslaughts dis- arrange. And bitterness results from joys too sweet! Oh, anguish of uncertainty! we greet To-day's glad dawn with smiles ; yet do not know If on the morrow Happiness will go, Drowned in the dreary Death-hour all must meet. What of the unlived joy we cast astray? What of the ungiven kiss drowned in re- gret? What of fulfillment that we never met? — Delight untaken perishes as May. Oh love of mine! so wholly mine this day, Renew the rapture for this while as ours. To-morrow and the frost may fade the flowers — Take life e'er all its substance dies away. 59 Tears. Slow falls the rain from the sorrowing sky, Sad and deliberate as tears that descend Rhythmic and seeming without an end, Symbols of sadness begot on high. Gentle the music of rain, and sweet The sound of angels' tears at my feet. We of our earthly trials and woes, Weep when our hearts are wrung, but then Think of the river of tears that flows Thro'out all lands to the sea again! Raindrops are tears from invisible eyes. Heavenly fashioned, Elysian wise! 60 On the Cliff. Standing alone upon the cliff, the sea Chafing in angered tumult at my feet, The haunt of out-cast bird, — songs no more sweet; The furrowed rocks o'er hung with sullen mist. The downcast sky with heavy clouds set free. The blanched hills pallid where the snow has kissed; The blest and glorious Immunity From all the world's laborious ties, — the sense Of solitude with Love: Life's recompense. 6i Sic Transit Gloria Mundi. Put not your trust in delight, For it will fade as the night Passes away, And then becomes day. Joy is as fleet as a dream, And though enduring things seem, Nought can endure; Change is but sure To outlive all that exists. Change is a soul that subsists Without an end; Time's ceaseless friend, Sister to sorrow and tears, Lasting forever through years. Change will all things quite destroy, And bring a wane to all joy; Ne'er will it die. As you and I; — Delight it is only that wanes: Change forever remains. 62 Attainment. Despair not, those of ye who lose your way, And falter hopelessly with joy astray, Bereaved of life's fulfillment and the day, Wandering through endless dark night after night; Despair not ye, forlorn of your delight, For there will come a dawn to pacify The restive soul deprived of its desire! The darkest days must end, drear nights will die At length, drowned by the will. If we aspire. The height is soon attained. Do not despair, Though long the night, the dawn will follow fair! 63 A Dormir. Ah, Friend that saved me many an hour of tears! Upon your bosom I have found repose When all else failed, and I was wrapt in fears; Ah, sweet forgetfulness that my soul knows And craves in its dependency, the calm For daytime strife and heavy cares that weigh, The solacing, eternal blessed balm For weary woes, regrets that ache by day; For longings and despairs, for hopes defied. For memories, hatreds, and vicissitudes. Ill-timed desires, for love that is denied, — The soother of all doubts and fearful moods. The mother and dispenser of all woe. Oh, Friend of need, give me oblivion Of all the days' despairs, till one by one My solaced sorrows shall disperse and go! 64 The Lake. My heart is like the lake whereon she sheds Reflection of her perfect presence near. As some bright sunshine that the water weds, As some sweet radiance that the dawn makes clear. Oft o'er the surface of my heart there stir Fond shadows, that are semblances of her. At dusk, when day has drawn her from the shore, And she, the guiding light, illumes no more — Then in the severing dark her pilot soul Shines soft star-glory over every wave. And in the long night hours the gleams condole The splendour which her radiant spirit gave. Sometimes upon the surface of my heart Great storms hold sway, and sudden spasms start. And tears sweep down the lake like passing Ah, this is when she lingers far away! Oh, guardian of my heart's secreted lake, Oh blessed glory that is shed on me; A Paradise within me does she wake. If only through a brief proximity. 65 Independence. Tho' we linger long in the lane of love, And count the blossoms that deck the trees, And breathe the charm of the laden breeze, And thrill with manifold ecstasies, — Surely our souls want none of these, Tho' we linger long in the lane of love. For the lane is long and it has no turn, And we faint, and weaker grow on the way; Dim seems the dawn of fulfillment's day. Far looms the vista of love's dear May, And the years are long till we cease to stray, For the lane is long and it has no turn! So leave the lane for the meadows clear, And speed the hour, till footsteps go O'er the open way that true lovers know, — Give me your hand and we shall fly so. To the land where loves with the winds free-blow, — So leave the lane for the meadows clear! 66 The Desert. My heart is like the desert, e'er the Spring Has come to waken it to life again. Starved by the sunless days that slowly wane, Worn with the Winter havoc on the wing. The blossomless, bare meadows of my heart. Yearn for rejuvenating warmth and love; But from the sombre skies that hang above Only drear rains and chilling snow-storms start. Ah, my heart cries for Spring; will it e'er come? The flowered hours that loveliness renew. The wakening sense of life that thrills me thro' Nature's release and speech after months dumb. My heart is like the lonely desert when The Winter lingers long on every land; I hunger for the touch of a lost hand, And for the absent wakening again! 67 The Aftermath. Let age with clamorous fingers grip the throat, Let dewy dreams fade to forgetfulness, Let dark begin, and die without caress. Let empty day-hours come and pass by rote. Let graceless visions flit across your way. Let shrivelled seas creep nearer day by day. Let Death with threatening hand your age dis- tress, — If in the starry hours of Youth you knew The joy of life, and gathered fruits of bliss; Ah, let a terrored age then come to you — You lived! — ^who cares what follows after this? 68 The Lapse. Ah, that delight should die in May When Spring has flushed the night like day, And driven the winter woe away. Ah, that the ungiv'n kiss should fade. And hopes that have been long delayed Should pale like evening willow shade. Ah, that the joy my heart once held. Should die like stars from heaven expelled. Ah, pallid pleasures, why dispelled? Ah, that my Dream should lapse e'er I Have lived it thro'; that love should die When Spring is here, and Youth is nigh! 69 The Heritage. I dreamed a beckoning hand arose to me: With guiding finger tips it led me thro' A lovely garden, flowered with fair plants. Pale, delicate lavender lay upon the lawns, The sunshine seemed strewn amber on our path. Beside a wondrous flow'r of sea-green hue. Whose petalled frailness swayed within the breeze, I paused ; and bent my gaze to hear these words : *' Behold, this flow'r is thine, to guard and rear. Thy heavenly heritage from sweet realms above." And when I woke and felt the dream was gone, I knew its great significance: Your soul Heav'n gave me as a priceless gift to guard With love and tenderness unto the End! 70 Pastelle. There were three things that came out of the night: A rose, a soulful melody and a pearl of purest white. Red was the rose and as deep as my love for you. Pure was the pearl as my heart that adores in devotion fond and true. You were the melody, grand and sublime as the sun; And the rose and my love, and the pearl, my heart, and the melody all were one. 71 Gardenias. Flowers of dream-land, — fair as Heaven is fair, White as the stars and subtle as deepest night, Amorous mystery, rare as our love is rare. Fragrant as perfume and fleet in your life as delight. Debased and discolored by touch of my finger tips. Delicate, loving, pure as our faith is pure, Never could flowers in Paradise gardens eclipse You that are fragile and luring as lover-like lips, Petals apart in a passionate pause too sweet. Flowers of dream-land I strew you about my feet. Only to kneel and adore and my worship assure! 72 Hope. Hope brims my heart to-night Like fiery flames that creep Upon a sunset skyline white; The ashes of a lost delight Have vanished like a night time's sleep, Hope gilds my gladdened sight. Fear flies across my way Like wind, a phantom pale; Drear night is now replaced by day, Hope is a fairy power at play. The shadowy doubts like darkness fail Sweet sea of Hope my soul shall sail I 73 The Unknown World. Oh, dreaded world, unknown to me, The unexplored Eternity That lies before my fearful gaze, — Silent and dark in unlit ways That thrill the soul with sudden fear; Ah, would that I could cease to peer Into the great Untrodden Night! Ever before my hapless sight The vision of Death's hours creep. Until I wake and shudder in my sleep. 74 Laughter with Tears. Laughter with tears! Misery that veers Into ecstasy fleet — Bitter with sweet, Sorrow with joy, Love with alloy, Sunshine with rain, Pleasure with pain, Hope dimmed in fears, — Laughter with tears! 75 The Reaper. I who have lived desire to sleep! The slumber of longings stilled, the night Of soothing dumb dark that will dim de- light, And scatter the scents of love's flowers, and smother the want of love's sight. And banish the memories that I keep. I who have lived desire to sleep That after life's utmost Joy, Sorrow I shall not reap! 76 Ambition. One eve a mountain river crossed my way, Sparkling within the violet dusk it lay, Eagerly flowing seaward day by day, Glad when the goal of golden waves is reached, Happy the interspace of land is breached. So like my soul the stream appeared to me. Hasting forever onward ceaselessly Towards life's attainment and Eternity, — The strange and hidden goal we seek to find, Leaving our vale of cloud-hopes all be- hind! 11 The Sea-Lover. Beautiful maiden, beloved of the sea, Amber-hued loveliness beyond compare, Radiant-souled as a goddess, she Of the purple eyes and the golden hair. Fair in her form as a lily that sways, Supple and white on its slender stalk, Pale and graceful in subtlest ways, Fawn-like and swift in her gentle walk. Amorous and stern her lover the sea; Fierce in its masterful fervor, and Fond as an animate spirit could be. Seeking the maid on the yellow sand. Moaning in hunger manifest. Chafing in turbulent impotence, Eager to enfold her upon its breast. Restive with an impassioned suspense. So, one fair day when the winds blew free. And the maiden was saddened with loneli- ness. Her footsteps carried her down to the sea, Where lured by the tender wave's caress She watched enchanted: until there rose One great, strong wave that enfolded her In a fierce embrace; as a lily goes Submerged in a current without demur. 78 The Sea-Lover. So the sea swept on with its captive bride, Exultant and proud to possess her thus, For the world is cruel and the strength of the tide With its whelming love comes to all of us ! 79 The Voice. Like a voice out of the night Temptation called to me, Pleading in accents luringly, — Telling me of untold delight To be my future share. But like a bird in the air Winged Conscience rose across my sight. 80 Sinister. There never was delight without alloy; Nor pleasure without aftermath of pain; And yet we dream our dreams and find them vain Praying and begging life to yield us joy. I thought one hour that joy had come to me, Perfect and whole without a marring sense, — Surely it seemed 'twas virtue's recompense, One soul should know unblemished ecstasy. So sweet this brief, blest hour, delight did bring; Joy nestled by me as a loving bird; Until alas, I saw its feathers stirred. And lo! a teardrop lurked beneath its wing. 8i Memory's Sleep. Leave me to solitude, Memory mine, Where vanished scents and rose leaf wine And stars of anguish cease to shine. And dreams will not intrude. Fly from my heart. Winged memory; Let the past joys forgotten be, Quench the old longings utterly. Remembrance, pray depart! I am tired of my tears And memory's sway, Forsaken love should die away. The wine of passion should not slay, Oh, memory, sleep these years! 82 The Epicurean, There comes an end of laughter, And dark devours the light, Oft tear-fall follows after A moment's ripe delight. And clouds so often swallow The sun-dance on the sea; We know regret must follow Upon felicity. So, sweet, leave vows unuttered That rise to eager lips. Love is a bird that fluttered Till Time did flight eclipse. All joy is fleet as May-time, We quaff a while of bliss, Then ends our lovers' playtime Extinguished in a kiss. So fill the present hours With all the love you can, To-day is only ours, — The morrow dare we plan? Let love obscure our vision. Let kisses drown our fears. Mock to a deep derision The thought of coming years 83 The Sea's Eternity. Noble Sea, mightier than men, When, oh when, Will the tireless tide have finally ceased; Will the longing on the shore be all appeased. Will the glint of the sun have died away, And an end have come to the sea's great day? Glorious waters, wider than life, What endless strife. What maddening joy and desperate woe. What ceaseless changes do you know; Ah, what will calm the Sea at length. What power depose its wondrous strength? Nothing can end Eternity, Nor still the Sea; For in its whelming waves the whole Future of every living soul Lies waiting for man's death. The waves Are his Eternity that saves. 84 The Untraversed. The white sand lay before me on the beach, Pale and untraced upon the silent shore; Never a foot had passed its surface o'er, Never a wind its placidness could reach. And as I gazed the thought in me arose, How like my future was the untouched sand, With not a mark as far as my sight goes, Mine to make sad or to be nobly planned. Before me unperturbed, undreamed, the days To come, untrespassed lie, within my gaze. 85 GATHERED PETALS. 87 The Church at Matteawan. An humble edifice with sagging door, Dim-lit, the flickering candles near the floor, The crude impoverished altar, and an air Of poverty about the creaking pews. The awesome silence of unuttered prayer; A sense of dreary ardor wandering loose, Loud beats the wild wings of the wind without. And the worn windows rattle all about. The famished worshippers on bended knees Pray on, enduring speechless ecstasies, — My soul soars higher in this humble place Than in a church of gold luxurious grace! 89 Valley Farm : Sunset. Dusk and a fiery fury in the sky: Wings of the sunset hurrying hastily by, Languorous winds from the woods where the day-hours die, Lament of the birds and delight of the dark that wakes ; Mountainous shadows that on the snow-lands lie, Mystery that sweeps the sparkling valley lakes. Meadows of snow, and the long, lank pine trees green. Silence as deep as the soul can stand ; the sheen Of purple glows on the hill: ah, my heart has seen Into a world sweeter than Paradise, Glimpse of a spot too fair for human eyes! 90 Simsbury. A long lane lying ahead, On all sides meadows of snow, Tinged with sapphire and sun. Broken by lonely trees. Silence at dusk time; Murmurous breezes arise Laden with odors of night. A burst of sound. And a tinkle of bells, Laughter laden air, A passing sleigh, and the cry Of merry souls who are free and glad. And the dark paused apace; While a sorrow hovering near Dispersed in a flash. Youth with its spirit of joy Effaced impending gloom. . . . And the long lane glowed With a re-arisen light! 91 Biarritz. A sunny glow on the near-by sea, Gladdened and gold with the mid-day light Purple the forest's mystery, Shadows as deep and as dark as night Strewn on the lawns from the leaning trees, Willow and pine in the scent-thrilled breeze, Sweet the strength of the winter-land. Stilled the song of the swallow-band; Beauteous realm a glad soul sees! 92 Farewell to the Pacific. Ohj solace of the sea farewell; With tears I bid thee sad good-bye, Only the winds will hear my sigh, Only my echoing sorrow swell With every tide upon the shore. Only the waves will know I weep, Only the soundless sea-beds deep Bosom my misery's plenteous store. Sweet Comforter, we part alas. Pale sea-lips that I kissed so oft, Foam-flowers fallen from lands aloft, Shore loveliness, my soul sees pass. Farewell, my violet, loving sea; The inlands sound my martyrdom, — They call alack, and I must come. When will Time bring me back to thee? 93 The Friars of San Gabriel. Lonely they He within their living tombs, Enhanced in righteousness, enhanced in hope. Squandering the life that God endowed them with. Aiding their own salvations with long prayer, Helping no fellow men to bear their cross. What do they gain by abstinence thro'out Their youths' glad nights and gold, desirous days? Who have they bettered by their own starved souls? Surely the world was given us to combat Temptation, Heaven the reward of strength. They who resist the evil mingling in the world, They are the victors. Not the pious souls Comfortably sealed within monastic vows! 94 The Storm : San Diego. A raging storm in wave crests on the sand, The foam-flowered spray arising like a spring, The turbulence of March in everything. Dark hovering clouds that huddle on the land, The lowering skies meeting the waves storm-stilled. The hurrying air, wind-driven and wind- thrilled. A sombre sense of storm upon the shore. The dim, unbroken line of sea that lies Restless and surging where the dawn should rise, There is no sign the rage is passing o'er; Until there falls from Heaven a word from thee: Sunshine is born, the storm has ceased for me! 95 spring in Italy : Castellemare. The first sweet day of Spring! May's early child, Tender and mild As are the songs the young birds sing. Gentle the blushing sun, Hushed the wind's breath With Winter's death- Life's loveliness begun. Warm air beneath the palm, A lily shade By hedges made The camphor trees lie calm. The savour of the sea Is fresh and sweet. Peach blossoms meet In arbors over me. The skies smile fond above, Yet in my heart The tear drops start: Spring! Yet we cannot love! 96 Riverside : L'Amour Perdu. We walked beside the evening sea one night; When clear the moon-beams shone effulgent light- Sweet sang the amorous breezes on the sand, The scene was blithe and glad, — with meeting hands And marvelling at the happy scene before Our eyes, we wandered 'long the gleaming shore: For love seemed won and ours forevermore! II We walked beside the evening sea one night; It was months hence, but tho' the self-same light Illumed the scene and shone upon the sands, The spot seemed desolate, — our parted hands Hung idly; the unhappy scene before Our eyes struct fear while wand'ring 'long the shore : For love had left our hearts forevermore! 97 Spring Illusions : Normandy. A pallor of Spring that has not come as yet, — The tremulous wind caressive o'er the land, Faint the flicker of sunlight softly spann'd, Delicately gold the sea where clouds have met. Silence whispering o'er meadows violet, The swaying yellow of the heavens above, — Dusk and the dreams that come with May- time love. 98 Christmas Eve. Christmas — a still and gentle night; Speechless the hills with absent light, Starry the sky with a silver glow, Silent the woods where the winds laugh low. Sudden and sweet a melody, The sound of church bells songfuUy, Spirits of silence and peace arise: Dark and the dream that never dies. Lora 99 On the Shore : Belfast. Think of the pity of my poor lot, — Desolate, lonely and quite forgot, A wanderer even where life is not, Come back to me soon! Ah, how dreary the wind-washed shore. How dismal the waste of what was before, Love is a fugitive, — mine no more, Come back to me soon! The desert yawns in my soul, a sense Of solitude quite beyond recompense, Forsaken am I and without defence: Come back to me soon ! Oh, for the sake of our perished love. Lord of my joy look down from above, Pity my plight and my woe remove, Come back to me soon! TOO Interpretation . . . Tahlulah. The sound of night-time silences without; The gentle stir of songless winds awake; The wingless flight of unseen birds about; The tremulous leaves upon the willows shake ; The stifled murmur of a near-by sea; — God's glory in the world shed wondrously; — Sweeter by far for your own precious sake! lOI Absence : California. Last night I dreamed you took me in your arms, Where sheltered 'gainst a lifetime's hurtling harms {Your soul grew mine in love that never veers,) A wonder world was ope'd to me; until There came the dawn with its estranging thrill : (/ woke, and found my pillow wet with tears!) 1 02 Mission Canon. Two mountain streams that flowed down to the sea That met and cleaved as one, and thus allied Passed on renewed in strength and power and tide, A perfect river, blended beautifully. Two souls that met, — your soul, Beloved, and mine, And cast their lot as one, and with joined hands Grown stronger, passed into the Promised Lands, The mingled perfectness of love divine. 103 WOVEN OF DREAMS 105 The Immortal. I am tired of tears and laughter, And the ease that follows sleep, Of joy and its misery after, Of wine that is quaffed too deep, — Of hope that is slain by sorrow, Of dread for a dim to-morrow, Of regrets that my soul will keep. I have drunk of the Lethean splendour, I have drained the fulness of life, Youth that was sweet and tender Was drowned in the world's great strife. Weary with joy much tasted. And the golden hours wasted; With ennui my soul is rife. I am tired of tears and laughter. And the hint of a realm above, — Of life and its anguish after, And the things that I long knew of, — So give me your lips to treasure. And the lonely past remeasure, — I am weary of all but Love! 107 Subliminal. My mind possesses but one image, It cannot yield or contain any other Throughout the long days and endless nights. The soul's light glows in reflected loveliness, In the brain that bears manifold visions. Thus deep in the recesses of my soul An illumination lies; Steadily it flames, Unceasing sweet and strong: The great love of you that thrills my being. Making all else trivial and insignificant. My soul's reflection lurks deep in my mind, Until I have no other thought but of you, Until all else in Life is obliterated. Except your image which remains Lovely and clear as the sudden sight of the moon On a windy, storm-swept night. There in the recesses of my soul. Imaged within my mind you live. Let all else in the world recede, Sorrows, allurement, joys or tempting aims, So long as you are immured within me, I care for nought else in the world. 1 08 Looking into Your Eyes. Looking into your eyes! What a world disclosed. What presage of joy there lies Of dreams long uncomposed; What promises exposed. Looking into your eyes! Sweet schemes I do devise For future hours' delight, Day without end or night, Life without pause or plight, — Dear, I am only wise Looking into your eyes. Sweet seem the years to be, Fair in futurity, Joy that my heart does see Looking into your eyes! 109 Sweet and Strong as the Sea. Sweet and strong as the sea Is the strength of my love in me. Unchanging, grand and sublime, Endless as sound and Time, Steadfast, reliant and true, Faithful with fondness new. Ennobling and deeply pure, Sure as the sea is sure. So is my love in me Born of fidelity. Sweet and strong as the sea Is the strength of my love for thee. no Disillusionment. Cowering beneath your eyes' unwavering gaze, I looked from Heaven unto the world's sad ways. About us blithe the blossoms of love's May Made sweet the air. It was love's perfect day, And we looked on the world's estranging care Laughing from happy heights and unaware We must descend. . . . Love's realms be- dimmed our gaze. Frightened within the great world's question- ing gaze I looked from down below to our old ways. About us white the withered buds of May Showed Autumn near; it was life's love- less day, And we were bowed with multitudes of care, Weeping from sordid depths, too well aware It was descent. . . . Love no more dimmed our gaze! Ill At the Play. O mimic world before my gaze, What tragedies, What dire empassioned ways, What ecstasies Enacted there upon the stage! What simulated rage, What bliss supreme that lovers feign; What passionate imitations there Can vie with what we feel in vain? The mimic world cannot compare! For you and I Stand silent by Stirred by a stern reality, — Spectators of love, watching the free Living their stage love ... yet you and I Fettered and sad see Life go by! 112 Prodigality. Let us not be too prodigal of love. For you and I, my sweetheart, shall Not revel in its luxury, But by a studious denial Be miserly With what God gave us so much of. So when the hour of hours shall be. We shall not say With haggard hopes down-trod, " Look how We frittered Love away, What have we now? " 113 Defeat. Yea I have lost you and I wonder why I There was no reason for the wane of love, The lapse of fondness we can all deny, But when we meet and part without a sigh. Going our severed pathways reconciled, Ah then, alas, we know but too well of The fact that love is very prone to die. Even love's hope cannot its death defy. And when we lost our joy it was a child Not reached maturity, and life was sweet With love's significance . . . the days flew by As swallows gladly soar north in the Spring. But ah, I lost you, and around my feet Is wound the tattered emblem of love's hours, Withered and worn a fragment like dead flowers. Yea I have lost you and I wonder why! 114 Power. We love and all life is our own to take of! We wake and the world waxes glad for love's sake; We rejoice and dear love is our heart's only choice. Lips meet and the meaning of things grows more sweet; Hands touch and Heaven's joy is our own over much, Souls unite in ineffable, endless delight. We love and all life is our own to take of! We wake and the world waxes glad for love's sake; We rejoice and dear love is our heart's only choice. 115 The Star. Life is so sweet since you have sweetened it, Freshened the grasses with your tears and shed Wakening footfalls on the flowers long dead, Passed soothing hands over the world's tired eyes, Stirred the still sea and all the darkness lit, Swept the pale meadows with illumining light, Made day-hours as wonderful as night. Lightened all life with joy that never dies; And best of all, deep in my soul you placed A star no time could ever have effaced. ii6 The Coming of Day. We lie on the changeless shores and gaze As the shimmering sea sweeps in, Jewels the wave on the white sand lays; Soon will the day begin. A lilac light is strewn on the sea, A pallor upon the shore, The tide rolls on monotonously; That night so soon is o'er! A wind as soft as the sound of breath Caressive and sweet has come; We hear the sombre silence of Death And watch the dark succumb. Dawn that will take you from me, alas. Light that will sever us. Ah, that things sweetest should soonest pass And render our souls poor thus. Like a flow'r you lie in the sands so still, A rose sweet hidden from other eyes, Mine to be worshipped and loved until The amorous night's demise! Serene your smile and so calm your brow, The silvery surf I lay As a shroud about you. . , . Ah, sweetheart, now Dawn calls and we must away! 117 Poverty. When Life was glad and gold the shimmering sea You came to me, Laden with riches from the richest lands; Your loving hands Proffered me wealth, your lips uttered love's plea. And yet, — I laughed and turned away Saying, " Come back to me another day! " When Life was sad and still the sorrowing sea You came to me, O'erburdened with the misery of all lands; Your empty hands Brought nought, your abject lips spoke pov- erty; And then I heard my glad soul say: " I love you better poor, Beloved stay!" ii8 Change. A word — and the world was changed, And the light of the dawn begun. And then to a soul estranged The gleam of the sudden sun. A word — and the night was done And the endless dark exchanged, For the day and delight were one. A touch — and all life grew sweet With the scent of joys unblown, And the soul awoke to greet The birth that was all its own. A touch — and despair had flown Like the swallows whose flight is fleet. And the seed of delight was sown! 119 Without Him. What of the day without him? the dull waste Of untold wants and empty moments long; The monotonous calm that follows after song, Delight foregone and ecstasy effaced. What of the night without him? heavy night That has no pause or dawn for hours and hours; The odorous oppression of stale flowers, Blindness and absence of the soul's sweet sight. What of the world without him? the despair Of an Eternal void that never ends; Ceaseless, unchanging chaos that extends Thro' future years forlorn of all things fair! 1 20 At Autumn. Leave go my hands ; look back for love's sweet sake, — Upon the leaf-strewn meadows long we lay, Till dawn devoured night and left us day, Till the last longing of love had ebbed away, — And yet, ah yet, love's bonds are hard to break. Ah Sweet, ah Sweet, that death should come so soon! Release my lips for love is loth to leave: Hear our two hearts beating unsatisfied; Dear was the dream that death will soon deride. . . . Rise from the stifling grasses by my side, — Would one brief kiss could all lost bliss re- trieve. Ah Sweet, ah Sweet, that death should come so soon! Let us not weep but love until the last Ecstatic second left for us to be. Let unavailing tears flow to the sea. Heed not the end but meet it cheerfully; Gild death's drear hours with memories of the Past! Ah Sweet, ah Sweet, that death should 121 Income so soon! Playtime. We played at lovers, you and I! The long weeks passed without a sigh. . . The sweetest roses die, The gladdest hour ends, — So playtime passed and we Faced love's finality. . . . Our joy dimmed with the days. . = . We went our severed ways Without a tear for love past by. With ne'er a pang for hopes reared high. We passed into the days to be As Friends! 122 Thanksgiving Day, Sweet, on this day, What am I thankful for? The gift of Youth, The blessing of life's May, A soul that seeks to soar, The choice of life's sweet store, Or nameless joys? Forsooth My thanks I render more For what none know save thee, For what none have save I, The gift above Heaven and endless as the sea,- Mine till my hour to die: Thy love. 123 As in a Dream. As in a dream I felt your eager eyes In loving glances rest upon my face, — And knew the light of life that never dies Shone o'er us in our first and fond embrace - As in a dream. As in a dream I gazed within your heart, And saw the new-born love begotten there, Feeling the pleasant birth-pangs subtly start, Knowing that love was mine fore'er and e'er,- As in a dream. 124 Love's Disguise. The weary night is odorous with you, With that strange, soothing sweetness of your hands, The gentle influence of beseeching eyes, — Indefinite recollections rise anew, — A sensate tenderness from old-time lands, Throbs in the night, — can this be Love's dis- guise? 125 By the Fire. Kneeling beside the fire, — The flames on the hearth dying, subdued, The big room hushed with still desire. The light on your face many-hued. Sombre and dim the rafters above. Silent in shadow you seemed The slim sweet spirit my soul had dreamed. Begotten of long companionship. An agent of Heaven's supremest love. . . . Kneeling beside the fire. With lips just meeting lips, — The world and the world's torment of desire. Life with its turbulent sense of wrong. Fear that prowls by night and all The woes of injustice passed along 'Til nought but joy was within our call. . . . Kneeling beside you thus, Only the flight of the flames to show My watchful soul that you do not go: Heaven has stooped for us! 126 To . Oh soul's one hope, Dear pride of life, Sweet worshipped element of joy, Loved treasure of the world; Oh precious light That never dies; Uplifting star Shining resplendently Over my way; Oh essence of delight. Sweet meaning of all things; Ardor of my heart, Perfume of my hours. Vision of lovely night; Shrine of my soul, Religion of my life: Oh dearer self, you are The life of life to me! 127 Heaven. Out of a sea of many faces, Countenances that meant nought to me, Like a moon-star risen in the sky, O'er comets numberless, Sweetly radiant with hope, Animate with expectancy, — Rose thy precious face before me, After long months of wearied absence. Thine eyes met mine, and Heaven was by: 128 shoreward. Just as the sea steals upward to the shore, With labor-laden eagerness to enfold In fond embrace the leaning sands that pour Their longing to the waves; so I behold Your loveliness that is a Heaven's compeer Lying before my gaze tremulously near; And turn to you with fond inveteracy, My shore's assurance of felicity. 129 In Transitu. You came — and the light came after; You smiled, and Heaven was mine : In the music of your laughter, In the touch of hands divine; You came — and the Spring came after! You passed — and the light passed after; You sighed, and despair was mine: In the coldness of cold laughter. In the loss of hands divine; You passed — and life's Spring passed after! 130 So I Have You. Let the alluring world with its varied way, Its pleasures manifold, Its ecstasies untold, Its tempting night and its sunny, enticing day, Fade forever and ever away, So you, my sweetheart, stay; So I have you. Let all the sunward splendor of the plain, The music of the sea, The woodland harmony, The wondrous lustre by the nightfall lain, Die finally, forever wane, So you, sweetheart, remain; So I have you. Let all the humbling horror of despair, Of countless miseries. Of woe beyond release, Of loss beyond assuagement anywhere. Descend on me, I shall not care. So you, my sweet, are there; Sol have you. 131 Affinity. Yes, you and I were meant but for each other. Just as twin lilies on a stalk are one, Just as the day is wedded to the sun. So you and I were meant but for each other. Since life began we have been bound together In loving bonds unconsciously allied. In tenderness united side by side, Since life began we have been bound together. For none can part us now; we are incorporate. And as one being shall we live and love ; God meant you but for me, oh, bliss there- of! For none can part us now; we are incorporate. 132 One Little Hour. One little hour is granted us Out of the world's abundant store, — Life is not lavish to treat us thus. (Would that our share were vastly more!) Joy is a miser of its display; We are two suppliant ones who plead Only that life shall not ebb away (E'er we have found surcease of need!). Beggared of life's rich gifts we stand Feeling the moments passing by, — Fate we are powerless to command. (Only an hour, and love must die.) Oh, what a pity that fate is cruel! Oh, the shame that we sufifer so! Love is the fire allowed no fuel. (One little hour is all we know!) 133 Apart. Oh the dull waste And emptiness of passing days Without thee and thy blessing ways! Restless I paced Thro' desolate gardens drear and wan With thy apparent sweetness gone, By an echoless sea Stifled and pale without thee by, — Along the shores bereaved, that lie So silently In thy dear absence; the despair Of finding thee not anywhere! 134 A Little While. A little while and love will pass away. The interspace is glad but fleet as day, A few brief hours no hand has power to stay. We love, — and then the face once sweet with smile That lay next ours grows sad, — a little while (And love will pass away.) A little while and happiness will go. The shortening moments threaten, hearts beat slow, And love is passed and swallowed in Time's flow. So kiss me now and well, — we shall be- guile The interspace with joy, a little while, — (E'er happiness will go!). 135 Maturity. When first a wondering child I looked on you With large-eyed tenderness, you seemed to be The sudden dawn-light that awoke in me The revelation of a world-wide view. And when the passing years found me grown old, A woman who had traversed many lands, — My hungry soul with sight that under- stands Looked on you with a fondness long untold. And so the child-heart dream came true at last, While womanly love redeemed the unwaked past! 36 Finality. Oh, hold me close within your arms to-night, And fill me with an uttermost delight; For I am haunted by a vision of The dreaded hour we shall be lost to Love. Withhold no joy from me oh love of mine, Put not your faith in coming worlds divine, For all we know of Life is this one hour, Beyond its region, sweet, we have no power. Oh yield me one whole life's supremest bliss, And drown our fears of severance in a kiss; Let us forego the Future, lose the Past, To-day is only ours, — it cannot last. . . . 137 Expectation. The sun shines brimming gladness at my feet, Never before has life seemed half so sweet; The heavens' loving utterances repeat, The breezes bear me message manifold, The trembling burden of my heart is told. The sun thrilled air bespeaks a tender smile, — A joyous hope my spirit does beguile: Oh, love of mine, be still! He comes awhile! 138 MAR 9 1907 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS lilliliiiiliililillililifii 018 378 359 2