Well have yon Railway Labourers to THIS ground Withdrawn for noontide rest. They sit, they walk Among the Ruins, but no idle talk Is heard; to grave demeanour all are bound; And from one voice a Hymn with tuneful sound 5 Hallows once more the long-deserted Quire[295] And thrills the old sepulchral earth, around. Others look up, and with fixed eyes admire That wide-spanned arch, wondering how it was raised, To keep, so high in air, its strength and grace: 10 All seem to feel the spirit of the place, And by the general reverence God is praised: Profane Despoilers, stand ye not reproved, While thus these simple-hearted men are moved? _June 21st, 1845._ [295] See the note to the previous sonnet on Furness Abbey, p. 168.--ED. “YES! THOU ART FAIR, YET BE NOT MOVED” Composed possibly in 1845.--Published 1845 One of the “Poems founded on the Affections.”--ED. Yes! thou art fair, yet be not moved To scorn the declaration, That sometimes I in thee have loved My fancy’s own creation. Imagination needs must stir; 5 Dear Maid, this truth believe, Minds that have nothing to confer Find little to perceive. Be pleased that nature made thee fit To feed my heart’s devotion, 10 By laws to which all Forms submit In sky, air, earth, and ocean. “WHAT HEAVENLY SMILES! O LADY MINE” Composed 1845.--Published 1845 One of the “Poems founded on the Affections.”--ED. What heavenly smiles! O Lady mine Through my[296] very heart they shine; And, if my brow gives back their light, Do thou look gladly on the sight; As the clear Moon with modest pride Beholds her own bright beams Reflected from the mountain’s side And from the headlong streams. [296] 1845. … this … MS. TO A LADY, IN ANSWER TO A REQUEST THAT I WOULD WRITE HER A POEM UPON SOME DRAWINGS THAT SHE HAD MADE OF FLOWERS IN THE ISLAND OF MADEIRA Composed 1845.--Published 1845 One of the “Poems of the Fancy.”--ED. Fair Lady! can I sing of flowers That in Madeira bloom and fade, I who ne’er sate within their bowers, Nor through their sunny lawns have strayed? How they in sprightly dance are worn 5 By Shepherd-groom or May-day queen, Or holy festal pomps adorn, These eyes have never seen. Yet tho’ to me the pencil’s art No like remembrances can give, 10 Your portraits still may reach the heart And there for gentle pleasure live; While Fancy ranging with free scope Shall on some lovely Alien set A name with us endeared to hope, 15 To peace, or fond regret.[297]