James Weldon Johnson, ed. (1871–1938). The Book of American Negro Poetry. 1922.
The Barrier
I
Your eyes are dawning day;
I must not watch you as you go
Your sun-illumined way;
The fascinating note,
Which, fluting like a river-reed,
Comes from your trembling throat;
Love’s softly glowing spark;
For there’s the barrier of race,
You’re fair and I am dark.