Shoots downward, glittering through the pure serene, Slow travelling with dim eyes suffused with tears, To rise before me— –Rise, O ever rise, Rise like a cloud of incense from the Earth! And tell the stars, and tell yon rising sun, Earth, with her thousand voices, praises God. S. T. Coleridge. CLXXVIII. FREE AND UNITED ITALY, (FROM 'FAZIO.') ICH and royal Italy, Dominion's lofty bride! Earth deemed no loss of pride To be enslaved by thee. From broad Euphrates' bank, When the sun looked through the gloom, Thy eagle's golden plume His orient splendour drank. Far in the chambered west, That bird of brilliance yet Sad and sunken Italy, The plunderer's common prey! Long, long a bloody stage Or from the northern star Come haughty despots down, With iron hand to share Thy bruised and broken crown. Fair and fervid Italy, Lady of each gentler art! Yet couldst thou lead the heart In mild captivity. Warm Raphael's Virgin sprung Did noble wrong to time, Loose and languid Italy! Where now the magic power That in thy doleful hour Made a queen of thee? The pencil cold and dead, Whose lightest touch was life ; The old immortal strife Of thy high poets fled ! Will Italy arise? Will golden days return 'Neath the azure of her skies? This is done, oh, this is done, When the broken land is One. Cas. This shall be, oh, this shall be, CLXXIX. TO BLOSSOMS. H. H. Milman. AIR pledges of a fruitful tree, Your date is not so past, But you may stay yet here awhile What, were ye born to be, An hour or half's delight, And so to bid good-night? But you are lovely leaves, where we Like you, awhile, they glide Into the grave. CLXXX. JULIUS CÆSAR. R. Herrick. ACT IV. SCENE III.-Camp near Sardis. BRUTUS's Tent. Enter BRUTUS and CASSIUS. HAT you have wronged me doth appear in this: You have condemned and noted Lucius Pella Wherein my letters, praying on his side, Bru. You wronged yourself to write in such a case, Cas. In such a time as this it is not meet That every nice offence should bear his comment. Bru. Let me tell you, Cassius, you yourself Are much condemned to have an itching palm; To sell and mart your offices for gold You know that you are Brutus that speak this, Bru. Remember March, the ides of March remember : Did not great Julius bleed for justice' sake? What villain touched his body, that did stab, And not for justice? What, shall one of us, That struck the foremost man of all this world But for supporting robbers, shall we now Contaminate our fingers with base bribes, And sell the mighty space of our large honours For so much trash as may be graspéd thus ? I had rather be a dog and bay the moon, Than such a Roman. Cas. Brutus, bay not me; I'll not endure it: you forget yourself, Bru. Cas. I am. Go to; you are not, Cassius. Bru. I say you are not. Cas. Urge me no more, I shall forget myself; Have mind upon your health, tempt me no further. Cas. Is't possible? Bru. Hear me, for I will speak. Must I give way and room to your rash choler? Cas. O ye gods, ye gods! must I endure all this? Bru. All this! ay, more: fret till your proud heart break; Go show your slaves how choleric you are, And make your bondmen tremble. Must I budge? Cas. Is it come to this? Bru. You say you are a better soldier : Let it appear so; make your vaunting true, And it shall please me well: for mine own part, I shall be glad to learn of noble men. Cas. You wrong me every way; you wrong me, Brutus ; I said, an elder soldier, not a better : Did I say 'better'? Bru. If you did, I care not. Cas. When Cæsar lived, he durst not thus have moved me. Bru. Peace, peace! you durst not so have tempted Cas. Do not presume too much upon my love; I may do that I shall be sorry for. Bru. You have done that you should be sorry for. There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats, For I am armed so strong in honesty That they pass by me as the idle wind, Which I respect not. I did send to you |