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Home  »  The Oxford Book of English Verse  »  481. Late Wisdom

Arthur Quiller-Couch, ed. 1919. The Oxford Book of English Verse: 1250–1900.

George Crabbe. 1754–1832

481. Late Wisdom

WE’VE trod the maze of error round, 
  Long wandering in the winding glade; 
And now the torch of truth is found, 
  It only shows us where we strayed: 
By long experience taught, we know—         5
  Can rightly judge of friends and foes; 
Can all the worth of these allow, 
  And all the faults discern in those. 
 
Now, ’tis our boast that we can quell 
  The wildest passions in their rage,  10
Can their destructive force repel, 
  And their impetuous wrath assuage.— 
Ah, Virtue! dost thou arm when now 
  This bold rebellious race are fled? 
When all these tyrants rest, and thou  15
  Art warring with the mighty dead?