THE LOOKING -GLASS
47
Come to face
the Babe and Lion , come
to
measure
force with
them !
Ah ! these
locks flow down , a river , as
the earth's
before
the
Sun ,
As the earth's before
the sunset , and
the God and I are One.
I who entered
in a Fool , gain the God by clean endeavour ;
I am shaped
as men and women, fair for ever and for ever.
Such is the living poetry that abides and ever lives
on , knowing
no youth or age, alone an eternal man
hood .
Lavishly
scattered , we find it throughout
the
works before us ; in
“ Aceldama ,” “ Mysteries : Lyrical
and
Dramatic ,”
“
The Temple of the Holy Ghost, ”
“
Tannhäuser ,
“ Rosa Mundi,”
and
“ Alice .”
Ec
stasy is
the
keynote
here , as it is of
all
poetry
,
all
literature
,
-aye
!
of
all
Life
.
Without
it
we cease
to
be
even
animals
—
a
dog will
bay
the
moon
-
mere
lumps
of
sodden clay
;
with
it
a
flaming
crown
of
glory
,
angel
-
voiced
,
singing
amidst
the
stars
the
anthem
of
Eternity
,
·
Orpheus
,
vol
.
iii
,
pp
.
209
,
210
.