Take it thou,—finding pure, from all those years,

Thus, with a fillet of smooth-kissing breath,

A grave, on which to rest from singing? Choose.

In a serene air purely. Antidotes

Thy purple round me, till my heart shall grow

With personal act or speech,—nor ever cull

How it shook when alone. Why, conquering

Beloved, my Beloved, when I think

The kiss my mother left here when she died.

Went counting all my chains as if that so

Of lifes grea九_九_藏_書t cup of wonder ! Wonderful,

Some prescience of thee with the blossoms white

As purply black, as erst to Pindars eyes

No natural heat till mine grows cold in death.

A shade, in which to sing—of palm or pine?

As girls do, any more: it only may

XVII

From thence into their ears. Gods will devotes

To a man, Dearest, except this to thee,

Sad memory, with thy songs to interfuse?

And from my poets forehead to my heart

In lifting upward, as in crushing low!

XVIII

Still lingers on thy curl, it is so black!

Thou canst prevail against my fears and fling

Receive this lock which outweighs argosies,—

The bay-crowns shade, Beloved, I surmise,

Would take this first, but Love is justified,—

XVI

May prove as lordly and complete a thing

And saw no footprint, heard the silence sink

Struck by thy possible hand,—why, thus I drink

What time I sat alone here in the snow

Thine to such ends, and mine to wait on thine.

Because thou art more noble and like a king,

I tie theｈttpｓ://ｒｅad.9９ｃsｗ•cｏｍ shadows safe from gliding back,

I barter curl for curl upon that mart,

God set between his After and Before,

Nor plant I it from rose or myrtle-tree,

The dim purpureal tresses gloomed athwart

The nine white Muse-brows. For this counterpart, . . .

XIX

Through sorrows trick. I thought the funeral-shears

To one who lifts him from the bloody earth,

My hair no longer bounds to my foots glee,

Here ends my strife. If thou invite me forth,

I ring out to the full brown length and say

They never could fall off at any blow

I rise above abasement a九九藏書t the word.

How, Dearest, wilt thou have me for most use?

A hope, to sing by gladly? or a fine

XX

Even so, Beloved, I at last record,

Taught drooping from the head that hangs aside

Mankinds forlornest uses, thou canst pour

And lay the gift where nothing hindereth;

And as a vanquished soldier yields his sword

Which now upon my fingers thoughtfully,

Here on my heart, as on thy brow, to lack

That thou wast in the world a year ago,

Who cannot guess Gods presence out of sight.

And strike up and strike off the general roar

The souls Rialto hath its merchandihttps://read.99csw.comse;

Now shade on two pale cheeks the mark of tears,

Of the rushing worlds a melody that floats

Make thy love larger to enlarge my worth.

Take it. My day of youth went yesterday;

And yet, because thou overcomest so,

I never gave a lock of hair away

Of medicated music, answering for

Never to feel thee thrill the day or night

Too close against thine heart henceforth to know

No moment at thy voice, but, link by link,

Thou sawest growing! Atheists are as dull,

My poet, thou canst touch on all the notes