With you as guide, we breathe the ample air,
Behold the purple splendors, which belong
To that bright other world of English song;
From peak to shining peak our spirits fare
And view its wonders, — Byron's lava-glare;
The prisoned Ariel, Shelley; the fell wrong
Of rarest Adonais; and the strong,
Full heart of Wordsworth, rich beyond compare.

With you as guide: for when fair Poesie
Chose you as Warden of her Gate, she taught
You all her treasures, told the sum of each,
Till in your heart their virtues now agree;
You too are franchised in her realm of thought,
And her large accents are your native speech.