Poems — Volume 1 by George Meredith
page 14 of 256 (05%)
page 14 of 256 (05%)
|
The use of winds and waters learn!
'Tis not to make the mother weep For sons that never will return; 'Tis not to make the nations show Contempt for all whom seas divide; 'Tis not to pamper war and woe, Nor feed traditionary pride; 'Tis not to make the floating bulk Mask death upon its slippery deck, Itself in turn a shattered hulk, A ghastly raft, a bleeding wreck. It is to knit with loving lip The interests of land to land; To join in far-seen fellowship The tropic and the polar strand. It is to make that foaming Strength Whose rebel forces wrestle still Thro' all his boundaried breadth and length Become a vassal to our will. It is to make the various skies, And all the various fruits they vaunt, And all the dowers of earth we prize, Subservient to our household want. And more, for knowledge crowns the gain |
|