- 1. Man Of Today
For thee he thought,
The Greek, who by the sea
Lay in his lithe-limbed grace, as dreamily
He gazed upon the sky begemmed with stars,
...
- 2. Weed Or Flower
"'Tis but a common thing," one coldly said,
"Nay, call it not a flower - this little weed,
If plucking it, I kill it, root and seed -
Better the world were if it lay there dead."
...
- 3. To Apollo. I-31 (from The Odes Of Horace)
What prays the poet of enshrined Apollo?
What is he asking for with lifted hands,
Pouring a fresh libation from his flagon? -
Not fertile crop from rich Sardinian lands, -
...
- 4. The Fading Vision
The vision fades - dome, pinnacle and tower,
All the white beauty of the lake-side dream,
The artist's ideal, the poet's theme
Vanish away. Yet for no fleeting hour
...
- 5. Town And Country
About the country they may talk who will,
Who praise it ever to the town's despite.
Let him extol the charms of wood and hill
Who finds them peerless. None disputes his right.
...
- 6. Memorial Day
No warrior he, a village lad,
needing nor words nor other prod
To point his duty; he was glad
to tread the path his fathers trod.
...
- 7. Oak-leaves
Crinkled oak-leaves, twinkling in the sun,
Splashed by midday showers, dripping cold -
Serrate oak-leaves, silvered by the sun
That has brushed yon dull brown grass with gold.
...
- 8. Self-satisfied
Well satisfied with all his own, he stands
Holding a trembling balance in his hands;
On one scale - wealth and ease, men's praises, too -
Whatever charms the soul, and keeps it true.
...
