So all day long the noise of battle roll'd Among the mountains by the winter sea;-- Browning's poems, "How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix", "The Pied Piper of Hamelin", and "Hervé Riel", you are likely to know already. "Saul" is a more difficult poem, but in it Browning shows his great power as a poet. {235} His love poetry, in such poems as "The Last Ride Together", and "One Word More", is considered Browning's finest work. "Saul" is a story taken from the Bible. David plays on his harp to Saul, who is ill. He tries to find help for Saul in his despondency. David finally tells Saul that God must be a man as well as God, so that He may help us all. He who did most, shall bear most; the strongest shall stand the most weak. 'Tis the weakness in strength, that I cry for! my flesh that I seek In the Godhead! I seek and I find it. O Saul, it shall be A Face like my face that receives thee; a man like to me, Thou shalt love and be loved by, forever: a Hand like this hand Shall throw open the gates of new life to thee! See the Christ stand! Do you remember how we discovered earlier in this book that time decides what is great in writing? This is true of the work of poets. We can see for ourselves how widely great poets differ in their work. Some write sweet, simple, clear and lovely songs; others write poetry which is difficult to read and understand. The simple, clear and lovely songs may last longer than the difficult poems. But if the difficult poetry contains great meaning, it may last too. A poet sometimes is great for the people of his own generation, but the ages that follow may not care for his work. Yet it may be that after a hundred years or so, people will love the poet's work again. Is great poetry being written now! It is difficult for anyone to answer this question with {236} certainty. Some very lovely poetry has been written in this twentieth century, in the same way that beautiful verse has been written in the English language for hundreds of years. Examples of this beautiful verse from Chaucer's time to the end of the nineteenth century, we may find in such books as Palgrave's _Golden Treasury of English Verse_; and _The Oxford Book of English Verse_, 1250-1900, edited by Mr. Quiller-Couch. Several anthologies, called _Books of Georgian Poetry_, and others beside, contain poetry written in the twentieth century. There are many poets of whose work we have not spoken. Some of their names you know already; some you will learn by and by. These poets may have lived long ago, or no longer ago than last century, or they may be living to-day. Three outstanding names belonging to the Victorian Age are those of Matthew Arnold, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and Charles Algernon Swinburne. We should remember the names also of a group of women who have written poetry: Mrs. Browning, Christina Rossetti, Emily Brontë, and Emily Dickinson, who is an American poet.