LYRICAL AND DRAMATIC. 133
AN ODE.
VOICE of sightless magic
Clear through day’s crystal sky,
Blithe, contemplative, tragic,
As men may laugh or sigh,
As men may love or sorrow,
Their moods thy music borrow
To bid them live or die. |
So sweet, so sad, so lonely,
In silent noontide only
Thy song-wings float and lie
On cloud-foam scarred and riven
By God’s red lightnings shriven,
And quiet hours are given
To him that lingers nigh.
Fain would I linger near thee
Amid the poppies red,
Forget this world, and hear thee
As one among the dead,
Amid the daffadillies,
Red tulips and white lilies,
Where daisies’ tears are shed