As shadows of thee,
As men that adore thee,
As cloudlets that flee:
But thou art the God, and thy kingdom is heaven, and thy shrine is the sea.




_AFTER NINE YEARS._

TO JOSEPH MAZZINI.

_Primâ dicte mihi, summâ dicende Camenâ._


1.

The shadows fallen of years are nine
Since heaven grew seven times more divine
With thy soul entering, and the dearth
Of souls on earth
Grew sevenfold sadder, wanting One
Whose light of life, quenched here and done,
Burns there eternal as the sun.


2.

Beyond all word, beyond all deed,
Beyond all thought beloved, what need