| Hunt and Lee, comps. The Book of the Sonnet. 1867. | | | | III. On Seeing a Youth Affectionately Welcomed by a Sister | | By Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834) |
| | | I TOO a sister had! too cruel Death! | |
| How sad remembrance bids my bosom heave! | |
| Tranquil her soul as sleeping infant’s breath; | |
| Meek were her manners as a vernal eve. | |
| Knowledge, that frequent lifts the bloated mind, | 5 |
| Gave her the treasure of a lowly breast; | |
| And Wit, to venomed Malice oft assigned, | |
| Dwelt in her bosom in a turtle’s nest. | |
| Cease, busy Memory! cease to urge the dart, | |
| Nor on my soul her love to me impress! | 10 |
| For oh! I mourn in anguish; and my heart | |
| Feels the keen pang, th’ unutterable distress. | |
| Yet wherefore grieve I that her sorrows cease, | |
| For life was misery, and the grave is peace. | | | | |
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