And broideries and supple grace

And diamonds and the whole sweet round
Of littles that large life compound,
And loves for God and God's bare truth, [51]
And loves for Magdalen and Ruth,

Dear eyes, dear eyes and rare complete --
Being heavenly-sweet and earthly-sweet,
-- I marvel that God made you mine,
For when He frowns, 'tis then ye shine!

____
Baltimore, 1874.



Notes: My Springs


For my appreciation of this tribute to the poet's wife
see `Introduction', p. xxxv [Part III]. Mr. Lanier's estimate is given
in a letter of March, 1874, quoted in Mrs. Lanier's introductory note:
"Of course, since I have written it to print I cannot make it such
as _I_ desire in artistic design: for the forms of to-day
require a certain trim smugness and clean-shaven propriety
in the face and dress of a poem, and I must win a hearing
by conforming in some degree to these tyrannies, with a view
to overturning them in the future. Written so, it is not nearly so beautiful
as I would have it; and I therefore have another still in my heart,