Blanche Edith Baughan

“ Yet never had she seen him face to face;
But, daily looking for his coming, grew
Daily more beautiful, and was most glad.
So when, the day before this dawn, a sloop,
Sharp-prow’d, and winged like a butterfly,
Came flitting past the palace, and brought news
Of royal vessels, sailing stately slow
Towards the great rock that keeps the bay at peace,
Nereia clapp’d her hands for joy, and ran
And stood upon the steps; and there stay’d long
Looking for him that was to come. But all
The colour faded from the molten west,
And fainter grew the faint sea-line; and still
No vessel. ”

“ Her forehead, level as the sea far-spread,
Was pure like foam; her steps were light and free,
As the light breeze that springs, at dawn of day
And lustrous even, from the dappled strand
Where earth and ocean meet. Fair, she, and fresh,
Buoyant, deep-hearted, untamed, beautiful;
In all ways as our radiant summer sea,
Beneath whose flickering dance of sun and wave,
Throbs the vast volume of an unknown power;
Loving the ocean as a sister, friend,
A more than mother to her, left motherless. ”

“ Is risen the Queen of Love and Loveliness,
Out of the sea my Queen! And I will bow
Low as the grave; yea, I will beg so loud
The stars at noon shall hear me, if thereby
The promise sweetly closing-in thy strain,
Wizard! ring rhymes with Truth. If it prove so,
Oh, then, be blessed! Oh, then, not for Death—
For Life, for Life, Gramercy!”
As he spake,
Leon the dolorous laugh’d, and with him laugh’d
Riance, her eyes tear-bright. And well he spake;
For they two loved together all life long.
Butler & Tanner, The Selwood Printing Works, Frome, and London. ”

“ Free winds, and childish-ey’d Spring flowers,
Wide wings of Heaven undefiled,
Fallows, and airy-headed down,
O, all things simple, all things wild,
Farewell! Once more the scarce-trod track,
The chance good-greeting must I lack;
Must to the thick confusion of the town
And to its loneliness, once more go back!
—Yet, as I turn away, and take my load,
To go (not singing now) the dust-deep road,
Surely a little richer is my store
And yet my burden lighter than before? ”

“ Like a thousand emulous warriors surging
Heavily against this world-wide hush—
Heavily! O God! have they not power
Twenty human hearts like mine to crush?
What is it that arms them? Is it sorrow
Or remorse has made their shafts so keen?
Have their arrows drunk of foil’d ambition’s
Bitter poison? Or hath mad doubt been
Forger of their weapons? Neither; only
This same quiet, plain accustom’d scene.
Just these four red walls, this closed quadrangle! ”

“ The waves’ gasp, and the stealthy swathing mist,
Wrought upon Leon like the sense of Death.
He paus’d upon the midway sand, secrete,
Alone; in the dim silence Morgan’s words
Burst lurid on his mind, a sinister glare,
And lit the one thought—Death.
“Fool! fool!” he cried;
A savage laughter took him. “From the sea
Love was to rise? Out of the sea, forsooth,
My bride was coming? Oh, a fair conceit,
Kind Queen! a riddle plain to rede! Ay, thee,
Rising at last to rid me of life’s hate,
Thee see I clear, thee speak I loud, thee―Death! ”

“ Some pretty bird a-flying;
Flew round and round
Above the ground
Where yet the snow was lying:
Flew in and out the branches bare,
Whose arms kind Spring was filling
With baby sunbeams: everywhere
Flew, flitted, flutter’d, trilling
Out of his throat
A little note,
That thro’ my heart went thrilling,
Till, looking up, “O Spring!” I said,
“Mute must I stand, confessing
My human dulness. ”

“ Margaret, gazing thro’ the skies,
Or past the sweep of the upland lonely:
Margaret, with the grateful eyes!
With yonder harebells, pure and pale,
How gentle is the rough down made!
Yet ere October they must fade . . .
—There's another flower, more fair, more frail,
Will first upon God’s knee be laid.
And ah! the wheat has finish’d turning
Her waves of green to waves of gold,
Rich light is swimming round stalk and fold,
The fields with a ruddy joy are burning
—And all the August suns are told. ”

“ Would Death were come! since Life is nought but pain.”
He ceas’d. Throughout the great plain, far and wide,
Silence. Throughout the sky and lonely air,
Silence. There was not any that replied;
And Death, for all his ranging, came not there. ”

“ Down the white stairway flocking towards the twain,
Tumultuous with joy, to lead them in.
So then Nereia took her lover’s hand,
And led him to the palace. Very white
And snow-white was it, in the morning sun.
Only the almond blossom hung her veil,
Mazy and delicate, before the gates,
And, on the topmost terrace, oranges
Leant their gold shadowless discs, full-orb’d and bright,
’Gainst the blue shadowless sky. ”

“ Some men have souls like gardens,—
Fair plots of fruitful ground,
Smooth lawns and ways well-order’d,
With chosen blossoms border’d,
And walls to fence them round.
O still and safe and fragrant!
Kind homes of peace and love!
All things uncouth excluding,
Free only to the brooding
Of the great sky above!
’Tis said, by Angel-footsteps
Such garden-paths are trod—
Angels, the sky forsaking,
Tend every blossom, making
A pleasure-place for God. ”

“ Night cannot lull my sorrow asleep, nor dawn
Awaken my despair.
But, oft-times, twixt the rim of the dying day,
And the rim of the darkening sea,
Hope spies the pearly gleam of that far-off Sail,
Will give him back to me! ”

“ With bubbles of song is splashing
The little laughing Day.
And there’s clean, clean breath for every one,
There’s the breath of life for me!
For the city is turn’d to country,
And the prose to poesy! ”

“ What strange device is this of Fate’s, that thou,
Being such, in such a time, to such an earth
Art born, O damsel of the unruffled brow?
Sure, in a stately age long-past, thy birth
Must have made glad some lordly palace-pile
In some far dreamy city of the South,
Whose languid grace yet lingers in thy smile
And curves the corners of thy pouted mouth,
Sunbeams less shy than ours have kiss’d that cheek
Into its changeful almond-petal bloom,
And play’d their mazy game of hide-and-seek
’Mid those crisp tresses ”

“ All things seem’d melting into sunny space.
I lay long, looking in the sky’s dear face,
Wearing my heart away with prayers, until
Nature releas’d me from my weary will,
Gave me sweet Death-in-Life. ”

“ A simple, ignorant girl is she;
But, here, in Nature’s heart she looks,
And finds there—God, immediately.
God smiles at her in the austere sweet gloaming
That muffles the feet of the coming dawn;
God's hand smoothes out the fair long morn;
God rides the waters, thro’ all their roaming,
And hangs the cool stars over the corn. ”

“ But to-day, to-day,
Each pool in the street is an eye of blue,
Buoyant with Spring is the smoky air,
And a girl sells daffodils, over the way.—
Why should not everything come new?
Thank God! Hope’s everywhere! ”

“ Never, but this once, take the market-track!
And oh! you’ll never, never any more
Come back!
. . . You’re all alone. Tho’ we trudge on beside
(All of us but poor Pincher) , one by one,
And Granny often stumbles: yet you ride
Alone.
. . . You need no gaiters, tho’ the roads be mire;
Your old blue cloak’s at home, despite the rain;
We needn’t be afraid you’ll ever tire
Again.
. . . ’Tis market-day, we're all for Shere, and yet
There’s not one word among so many souls. ”

“ All their heart to the large-ey’d sky.
—In ceaseless worship do they lie
With ever His puissance overhead
Mirror’d in their humility:
For, when the sun is over-brimming
Heaven’s chalice of profoundest blue,
The downs run o’er with rapture, too ”

“ Whence the wild laughter leapt but now, a sob,
A long, deep sob, came bursting. And he took
Her sea-stain’d hand to kiss it, but she snatch’d
The fingers from him, and she fell and wept
Heart-broken on the sand. No Venus, she! ”

“ Singing a carol of surpassing glee.
Sing happily, Robin, Robin, happily!
No furtive sun hearten’d the heavy sky,
(Sing happily!)
December’s churlish wind push’d roughly by,
Earth lay a-dreaming deep with upclosed eye. ”

“ This heart-aching, these cares, this weakness,
Draw them off—they are harsh and heavy,
Dewy-handed Mother of mine!
Lave me in purity, lap me in freshness,
Mother mine!
Sing, now! Open my spirit’s portals
Wide; all the bustling thoughts lure outward,
Dulcet-breathing Mother of mine! ”

“ Then, my speed was but thy spur.
(The Wind blows.) Hark! The sad Sea
Moans...Nay, winds do walk the tree-tops ...
Nay . . . what? what? . . . Footsteps! Feet running
Hither, hither at last! Belovéd,
Here (Heaven shield me!) , I am here! ”

“ Was it the mist wrought so bewilderingly?
He stood confused. But Riance chirrup’d on,
Flouting, and fleering, yet in all her ways
Sweet as a wagtail on the briny beach:
“So slow of courtesy, Sir Dolorous-Face?
Art doubtful? Why, me was it not you sought,
Me, they call Maid, and Lady, of the Sea?
Art dainty? Are my trickling sands too hard?
Nay, but thy knees, forsooth, too proud! Kneel, kneel!
Bow low, do worship! Then—who knows? The boon. . . .” ”

“ All round thou see’st the mighty flood expand,
Hear’st its hoarse voice of thunderous command,
Know’st all its power; yet from that power art free!
Man’s joy, Man’s woe, his hunger and his wealth,
For ever art thou contemplating these ”

“ I could not even dream thy face
In that wild agony of pain.
But, now!—The clouds are roll’d away,
The moon looks lovingly from Heaven.
Thousands of tender voices say,
“Rest now, poor soul! Thou art forgiven!” ”

“ Seeking for what, can I desire life past?
Death! Death! within thy dark shall we find light,
And, ’mid thy void, our certain goal at last?—
Find, as it were, some once-familiar Breast
That will regather us—and so find rest? ”

“ And be consoled, thou sick at heart!
Ay, upon dreary errands sent
With wrested will, and footsteps bent
Into a byway, be content!
One is but one, two make a world;
And two may laugh where one must weep. ”

“ Something touches me! something gleams!
The air is quick with resurgent dreams!
For, “Love! Love and Life! Oh, back to you!
Trouble’s a lie, but ye are true!”—
Now, praise and thanks to my brother the bird—
This was he singing; this I heard! ”

“ And smote the dark to light.
And the sad Pool rejoiced, and said: “At last
Comes lightly to my breast
The natural lord of its unrifled deeps,—
And O, the glorious Guest!
“Now my perpetual pall of murky days
What secret Sun will line!
Now all my shadows shall with light be sped,
Or, lingering, learn to shine.
“And ye, charged Clouds, ye shall but gladden me
Now, with your rainbow rain!” ”

“ What hurt you? Let me look and see . .
Thighs, and breast, and head and back—
No! There's not the slightest crack
In these greaves of burnish’d brass,
In this velvety cuirass,
Or all this plated gossamer
Of wings that wont to whirr and whirr,
You burly hoplite, what went wrong
In a panoply so strong?
Your golden collar is in place,
These great eyes visor yet your face,
Your broad sash is not push’d awry.
Bumble! How did you come to die? ”

“ Welcome! . . . Ah, will he win or miss?
Calm are those eyes that burn so bright,
Helm’d are those brows with stedfastness,
Take heed, ye Briars,
Ye flaunting Briars!
See! see! what tho’ his hand is torn,
His lifted face with bloodstains wet,
What tho’ the thirsty spikes of thorn
Weave him a ghastly carcanet—
Steadily are his footsteps set
Amid the Briars,
And thro’ the Briars. . . .
O glorious Knight, securely brave!
Gain’d is the great oak door at last! . . .
Now anew he buffets the biting wave. . . .
The porch is pass’d, and the courtyard pass’d. ”

“ And a sharp splash,
From the surety and the peace
Of your never-changing world:
Comfortable, safe, at ease:
—Sore to the eye, sharp to the hand,
Stark upon the weary strand
Like bleach’d bones in an unslaked land? ”

“ Footsteps following nigh.
Broken darkness, broken light,
Knowledge knit with mystery,
Glory temper’d with a sigh—
Man’s inconstant spirit-sight
Needs a shifting sky;
Joy, with sorrow; wrong, with right ”

“ With two that would have done her knight to death.
Now men he hated, but his mother’s love
Spake for the Queen, and, leaping on those churls,
With unmail’d hands he smote at them, so sore,
So sudden, that their coward’s valour slunk
For hiding to their heels. “A pouncing beast!”
One cried; the other, “Mercy!” and they fled. ”

“ Earth is busy forgetting her weariful winter dream,
And loud and louder sings the Thrush, high up in the poplar-tree,
With a “Pretty bird! Pretty bird! Pretty bird! Spring! Spring! Spring!” carols he. ”

“ The daisies purse their petals up,
The lambs to shelter creep;
Man, putting off his toil, puts on
The nothingness of sleep.
Still, still upon the shore
The waves their music pour.
Deep grows the dusk. ”

“ Cast it, with tears. He, too, had had
One friend. She lay there, dead.
—I wander through the streets, and see
The poor man and the rich,
And sure I am that God alone
Knows rightly which is which! ”

“ Beneath the purple awning still outspread,
A multitude of maidens. Softly fell
The clinging robes round the fair limbs, relax’d,
At touch of sleep’s kind hand, into such grace
As movement scarce can know. ”

“ Or can you scent some fiendish form
Prowling ahead? Get on! you slink
Too close. Now, were we near the brink
Instead of safe inland . . . What! Hark! . . .
One’s ear is dull’d by all this dark. . . . ”

“ THE SUMMONS
“Leave the broad sunshine, and the pleasant plain;
Seek thou the o’erclouded height!”
Great was the voice that call’d. I rose, and went
Out from the light
That makes the happy valleys laugh; I left
Glad homes and children’s prattle all behind ”