Arthur Quiller-Couch, ed. 1919. The Oxford Book of English Verse: 1250–1900.
Alfred Tennyson, Lord Tennyson. 18091892708. Maud
COME into the garden, Maud, | |
For the black bat, Night, has flown, | |
Come into the garden, Maud, | |
I am here at the gate alone; | |
And the woodbine spices are wafted abroad, | 5 |
And the musk of the roses blown. | |
For a breeze of morning moves, | |
And the planet of Love is on high, | |
Beginning to faint in the light that she loves | |
On a bed of daffodil sky, | 10 |
To faint in the light of the sun she loves, | |
To faint in his light, and to die. | |
All night have the roses heard | |
The flute, violin, bassoon; | |
All night has the casement jessamine stirr’d | 15 |
To the dancers dancing in tune; | |
Till a silence fell with the waking bird, | |
And a hush with the setting moon. | |
I said to the lily, ‘There is but one | |
With whom she has heart to be gay. | 20 |
When will the dancers leave her alone? | |
She is weary of dance and play.’ | |
Now half to the setting moon are gone, | |
And half to the rising day; | |
Low on the sand and loud on the stone | 25 |
The last wheel echoes away. | |
I said to the rose, ‘The brief night goes | |
In babble and revel and wine. | |
O young lord-lover, what sighs are those | |
For one that will never be thine? | 30 |
But mine, but mine,’ so I sware to the rose, | |
‘For ever and ever, mine.’ | |
And the soul of the rose went into my blood, | |
As the music clash’d in the hall; | |
And long by the garden lake I stood, | 35 |
For I heard your rivulet fall | |
From the lake to the meadow and on to the wood, | |
Our wood, that is dearer than all; | |
From the meadow your walks have left so sweet | |
That whenever a March-wind sighs | 40 |
He sets the jewel-print of your feet | |
In violets blue as your eyes, | |
To the woody hollows in which we meet | |
And the valleys of Paradise. | |
The slender acacia would not shake | 45 |
One long milk-bloom on the tree; | |
The white lake-blossom fell into the lake, | |
As the pimpernel dozed on the lea; | |
But the rose was awake all night for your sake, | |
Knowing your promise to me; | 50 |
The lilies and roses were all awake, | |
They sigh’d for the dawn and thee. | |
Queen rose of the rosebud garden of girls, | |
Come hither, the dances are done, | |
In gloss of satin and glimmer of pearls, | 55 |
Queen lily and rose in one; | |
Shine out, little head, sunning over with curls. | |
To the flowers, and be their sun. | |
There has fallen a splendid tear | |
From the passion-flower at the gate. | 60 |
She is coming, my dove, my dear; | |
She is coming, my life, my fate; | |
The red rose cries, ‘She is near, she is near;’ | |
And the white rose weeps, ‘She is late;’ | |
The larkspur listens, ‘I hear, I hear;’ | 65 |
And the lily whispers, ‘I wait.’ | |
She is coming, my own, my sweet; | |
Were it ever so airy a tread, | |
My heart would hear her and beat, | |
Were it earth in an earthy bed; | 70 |
My dust would hear her and beat, | |
Had I lain for a century dead; | |
Would start and tremble under her feet, | |
And blossom in purple and red. |