we find, in the latest text, the lines--first adopted in 1827:

I stood, of simple shame the blushing Thrall;
So narrow seemed the brooks, the fields so small,

while the early edition of 1807 contains the far happier lines:

To see the Trees, which I had thought so tall,
Mere dwarfs; the Brooks so narrow, Fields so small.

On the other hand, if the earliest text be invariably retained, some of
the best poems will be spoiled (or the improvements lost), since
Wordsworth did usually alter for the better. For example, few persons
will doubt that the form in which the second stanza of the poem 'To the
Cuckoo' (written in 1802) appeared in 1845, is an improvement on all its
predecessors. I give the readings of 1807, 1815, 1820, 1827, and 1845.


While I am lying on the grass,
I hear thy restless shout:
From hill to hill it seems to pass,
About, and all about! 1807.

While I am lying on the grass,
Thy loud note smites my ear!--
From hill to hill it seems to pass,
At once far off and near! 1815.

While I am lying on the grass,
Thy loud note smites my ear!