English Poetry III: From Tennyson to Whitman.
The Harvard Classics. 1909–14. |
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| 695. In a London Square |
| | | Arthur Hugh Clough (1819–1861) |
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| PUT forth thy leaf, thou lofty plane, | |
| East wind and frost are safely gone; | |
| With zephyr mild and balmy rain | |
| The summer comes serenely on; | |
| Earth, air, and sun and skies combine | 5 |
| To promise all that’s kind and fair;— | |
| But thou, O human heart of mine, | |
| Be still, contain thyself, and bear. | |
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| December days were brief and chill, | |
| The winds of March were wild and drear, | 10 |
| And, nearing and receding still, | |
| Spring never would, we thought, be here. | |
| The leaves that burst, the suns that shine, | |
| Had, not the less, their certain date;— | |
| And thou, O human heart of mine, | 15 |
| Be still, refrain thyself, and wait. | |
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