Classic Poem

There journeyed from the south a man,
To one whom in the north he'd seen;
And many a river's tide rolled on,
And many a city rose between.

At first he travelled hard and strong,
For to his friend his heart was bound;
But slow and slower grew his pace,
And many a resting place he found.

At last forgot he him he loved,
And that he e'er was journeying there;
They called him friend whom he had met,
And bade with them their living share.

But soon another journeyed by,
To seek the friend that first he sought;
He tarried not, though tempted much,
Nor could from his first love be bought.

Still on he held his noble way,
And he who had forgot his end;
Gained strength as he beheld him walk,
And rose and found with him his friend.