Poems - Household Edition by Ralph Waldo Emerson
page 117 of 409 (28%)
page 117 of 409 (28%)
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Underneath, within, above,--
Love--love--love--love. He lives in his eyes; There doth digest, and work, and spin, And buy, and sell, and lose, and win; He rolls them with delighted motion, Joy-tides swell their mimic ocean. Yet holds he them with tautest rein, That they may seize and entertain The glance that to their glance opposes, Like fiery honey sucked from roses. He palmistry can understand, Imbibing virtue by his hand As if it were a living root; The pulse of hands will make him mute; With all his force he gathers balms Into those wise, thrilling palms. Cupid is a casuist, A mystic and a cabalist,-- Can your lurking thought surprise, And interpret your device. He is versed in occult science, In magic and in clairvoyance, Oft he keeps his fine ear strained, And Reason on her tiptoe pained For aƫry intelligence, And for strange coincidence. But it touches his quick heart When Fate by omens takes his part, |
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