Page:Poems Argent.djvu/42

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POEMS.
Within my walls, where those I loved should wander,
And to whose hearts mine own would gladly turn.

The heart must crave a heart to rest on sweetly,
The soul, a soul, to feed its higher fires,
And kindred spirits to make up completely
All that a human creature most desires!

If I might choose, the summer should reign ever,
A peerless bride 'mid snowy belts of flowers,
And winter, robed in ice and snow, should never
Come to displace her bright voluptuous hours.

Myrtles should bloom within my garden closes,
The bee's low murmur float upon the air
From morn till eve, and the soft-scented roses
Should blow for ever beautiful and fair.

What care I for Society's harsh uses,
The cold restraint, the feelings tired and old?
The frigid handshake, and the fierce abuses
Of souls all bartered for the lust of gold?

The hollow mask, Frivolity's last fashion,
The life without an aim? the careless throng,
Unheeding of the tide of human passion,
The undercurrent moving swift and strong?

Away! away! all these I'd fly to-morrow
If T might choose wherein to find true rest;
The grand old hills would smile away my sorrow,
Keep watch and ward above a wearied breast.