Classic Poem

There was one who walked in shadow,
There was one who walked in light:
But once their way together lay,
Where sun and shade unite,

In the meadow of the lotus,
In the meadow of the rose,
Where fair with youth and clear with truth
The Living River flows.

Scarcely summer stillness breaking,
Questions, answers, soft and low —
The words they said, the vows they made,
None but the willows know.

Both have passed away for ever
From the meadow and the stream;
Past their waking, past their breaking
The sweetness of that dream.

One along the dusty highway
Toiling counts the weary hours,
And one among its shining throng
The world has crowned with flowers.

Sometimes perhaps amid the gardens,
Where the noble have their part,
Though noon's o'erhead, a dew-drop's shed
Into a lily's heart.

This I know, till one heart reaches
Labour's sum, the restful grave,
Will still be seen the willow-green,
And heard the rippling wave.

Vnto the tender youth of those faire eies
The light of iudgement can arise but new;
And yong the world appeares t'a yong conceit,
Whil'st thorow the vnacquainted faculties
The late inuested soule doth rawly view
Those obiects which on that discretion wait.
Yet you that such a faire aduantage haue
Both by your birth and happy pow'rs, t'out go,
And be before your yeeres, can fairely guesse
What hue of life holdes surest without staine;
Hauing your well-wrought heart full furnish't so
With all the images of worthinesse,
As there is left no roome at all t'inuest
Figures of other forme but sanctitie:
Whilst yet those cleane-created thoughts, within
The Garden of your innocencies rest;
Where are no motions of deformitie,
Nor any doore at all to let them in.
With so great care doth she, that hath brought forth
That comely body, labour to adorne
That better part, the mansion of your minde,
With all the richest furniture of worth;
To make y'as highly good as highly borne,
And set your vertues equall to your kinde.
She tels you how that honour onely is
A goodly garment put on faire desarts;
Wherein the smallest staine is greatest seene,
And that it cannot grace vnworthinesse;
But more apparant shewes defectiue parts,
How gay soeuer they are deckt therein.
She tels you too, how that it bounded is,
And kept inclosed with so many eies,
As that it cannot stray and breake abroad
Into the priuate wayes of carelesnesse;
Nor euer may descend to vulgarize,
Or be below the sphere of her abode
But like to those supernall bodies set
Within their Orbs, must keepe the certaine course
Of order, destin'd to their proper place;
Which onely doth their note of glory get.
Th'irregular apparances inforce
A short respect, and perish without grace:
Being Meteors seeming high, but yet low plac't,
Blazing but while their dying matters last:
Nor can we take the iust height of the minde,
But by that order which her course doth shew,
And which such splendor to her actions giues;
And thereby men her eminencie finde,
And thereby onely doe attaine to know
The Region, and the Orbe wherein she liues.
For low in th'aire of grosse vncertaintie
Confusion onely rowles, order sits hie.
And therefore since the dearest thinge on earth,
This honour, Madam, hath his stately frame
From th'heau'nly order, which begets respect;
And that your Nature, vertue, happy birth,
Haue therein highly interplac'd your name,
You may not runne the least course of neglect,
For where, not to obserue, is to prophane
Your dignity; how carefull must you be
To be your selfe? And though you may to all
Shine faire aspects, yet must the vertuous gaine
The best effects of your benignitie:
Nor must your common graces cause to fall
The price of your esteeme t'a lower rate,
Then doth befit the pitch of your estate.
Nor may you build on your sufficiencie,
For in our strongest parts we are but weake;
Nor yet may ouermuch distrust the same:
Lest that you come to checke it so thereby,
As silence may become worse then to speake;
Though silence women neuer ill became.
And none we see were euer ouerthrowne
By others flattery more then by their owne.
For though we liue amongst the tongues of praise,
And troopes of smoothing people that collaud
All that we doe, yet 'tis within our harts
Th'ambushment lies, that euermore betraies
Our iudgements, when our selues be come t'applaud
Our owne abilitie and our owne parts.
So that we must not onely fence this fort
Of ours, against all others fraud, but most
Against our owne; whose danger is the most,
Because we lie the neerest to doe hurt,
And soon'st deceiue our selues, and soon'st are lost
By our best pow'rs, that doe vs most transport
Such are your holy bounds, who must conuay
(If God so please) the honourable bloud
Of Clifford , and of Russell , led aright
To many worthy stems; whose ofspring may
Looke backe with comfort, to haue had that good
To spring from such a branch that grew s'vpright;
Since nothing cheeres the heart of greatnesse more
Then th'Ancestors faire glory gone before.