And rest upon my thorn: For verily I think to-morrow morn Shall bring me Paradise, my gift's increase, Yea, give Thy very Self to me. FROM HOUSE TO HOME. THE first was like a dream through summer heat, The second like a tedious numbing swoon, While the half-frozen pulses lagged to beat Beneath a winter moon. "But," says my friend, "what was this thing and where?" It was a pleasure-place within my soul; An earthly paradise supremely fair That lured me from the goal. The first part was a tissue of hugged lies; My castle stood of white transparent glass My pleasaunce was an undulating green, Stately with trees whose shadows slept below, With glimpses of smooth garden-beds between Like flame or sky or snow. Swift squirrels on the pastures took their ease, Fulfilled their careless life. Woodpigeons cooed there, stockdoves nestled there. My trees were full of songs and flowers and fruit. Their branches spread a city to the air And mice lodged in their root. My heath lay farther off, where lizards lived Frogs and fat toads were there to hop or plod All caterpillars throve beneath my rule, I never marred the curious sudden stool That perfects in a night. Safe in his excavated gallery The burrowing mole groped on from year to year; No harmless hedgehog curled because of me His prickly back for fear. Ofttimes one like an angel walked with me, And sometimes like a snowdrift he was fair, We sang our songs together by the way, I have no words to tell what way we walked, This only can I tell that hour by hour I waxed more feastful, lifted up and glad To-morrow," once I said to him with smiles: To-night," he answered gravely and was dumb, But pointed out the stones that numbered miles And miles and miles to come. 6. Not so," I said: "to-morrow shall be sweet: To-night is not so sweet as coming days." Then first I saw that he had turned his feet, Had turned from me his face: Running and flying miles and miles he went, But once looked back to beckon with his hand And cry: Come home, O love, from banishment : Come to the distant land." That night destroyed me like an avalanche; No bird, no lamb, no living breathing thing; Azure and sun were starved from heaven above, My love no more," I muttered, stunned with pain : I shed no tear, I wrung no passionate hand, Till something whispered: "You shall meet again, Meet in a distant land." Then with a cry like famine arose, I lit my candle, searched from room to room, Searched up and down; a war of winds that froze Swept through the blank of gloom. I searched day after day, night after night; Scant change there came to me of night or day: "No more," I wailed, "no more:" and trimmed my light, And gnashed but did not pray. Until my heart broke and my spirit broke: Then life swooned from me. And I heard the song Of spheres and spirits rejoicing over me: One cried: "Our sister, she hath suffered long."- One cried: "Oh blessed she who no more pain, |