Classic Poem

Faces irresolute and unperplexed,—
Unspeculative faces, bored and weak,
Cruise past each patient victory of technique
Dimly desiring to enjoy the next
Yet never finding what they seem to seek

Here blooms, recedes, and glows before their eyes
A quintessential world preserved in paint,
Calm vistas of long-vanished Paradise,
And ripe remembrances of sage and saint;
The immortality of changeless skies,
And all bright legendries of Time's creation
Yet I observe no gestures of surprise
From those who straggle in to patronize
The Art Collection of the English Nation