Part 6 (1/2)

Lord of the mighty, as Lord of the weak and the lowly, Lord of the sage and the madman, of clean and unclean; Breeder of suns and of excrement, loathly and holy, Graving the skull with the pity of all that had been,-- Death, oh thou graver of countenance knighted austerely, Yea, on the pitiful clay, such poor flesh in its fear Of G.o.d and the soul and the singing of stars that may teach us Wisdom at last,--oh thou ultimate searcher and seer, Beckon--I follow. At last on my lips set thy finger; Thou wilt make clear!

SUNLIGHT

Sunlight is full of age.

Ah, so old!

Older than any sage Has ever told!

The draught our Lord quaffed up To the b.l.o.o.d.y lees; The aching hemlock cup Of Socrates.

It is a golden sword; The veil of the Grail; The unfathomable Word That will not fail.

Along a summer street It often lies s.h.i.+mmering to repeat Immortal paradise.

As a mountain lake can mirror The exalted with the near, Heaven's wonder and terror-- Both s.h.i.+ne here.

It says all things in nought; And, saying them, pa.s.ses To gild like gentle thought Trees and gra.s.ses.

It sways upon the ocean Like a G.o.d asleep Where the waves' wandering motion Hides the deep.

It shafts through forest aisles Like miracle; It trembles and smiles On the lip of h.e.l.l.

It has touched Greece and Rome And Persia's might-- And stirs the vines of home With flickering light.

It lay on Cain's hot neck As he stooped to slay.

David's stone from the beck Glittered its day.

Cleopatra gazed upon it Through shadowed lids.

High halls they built to shun it In the Pyramids.

It opens babies' hands That crawl to s.n.a.t.c.h its beams.

Through hovels in ancient lands Its splendor streams.

Eternal wells of light Its largeness shows.

There shall be no more night Its conscience knows.

It is a smiling stranger, A fainting hour, Love and peace and danger And the mock of power.

Yet have I said no word Of what it is.

Only--my heart is stirred By its mysteries!

AND A LONG WAY OFF HE SAW FAIRYLAND

I lived once with fairies, (And I know they're _true_ fairies!) One lifts laughing eyes In a way I most admire.

Truth goes by contraries, For you don't know they're fairies Till there isn't any firelight, Nor song beside the fire.

One fairy's small to hold, And her hair is fairy gold.

One's a feminine fairy With unusual address.

One fairy's just Jim.