What are poets? Are they only drums commanding?
—Trumpets snarling, moving men to hate and ravage?
Were their songs of war the snares of Trade demanding
—Lives, and binding men to gods senile and savage?

What are soldiers? Only power, to be broken
—On the wheels of Business when there is no battle?
“War to end war,” was that but falsely spoken?
—Whom has war set free? Have rifles stopped their rattle?

Many suffer hunger while the few still plunder.
—Dreams of peace and brotherhood are all undone.

O, ye who gave to Ireland
Your love and life and all,
Who leaped into the flames of death
When rang her anguished call;
Pray, pray for us this Easter morn
That we may worthy be
Of Ireland's past, of all who died
On Ireland's Calvary.

As the windhover
Drops on the shrew,
Love, O young lover,
Swoops down on you,
Bears your heart heavenward,
Tears it in two;

Swift with his capture
Soars through the light—
Yours the fierce rapture
Of agonised flight,
Talon-torn, terror-winged,
Into blind night.

Ere yet the dawn
Pushed rosy fingers up the arch of day
And smiled its promise to the voiceless prime,
Love sat and patterns wove at life's swift loom.
He flung the suns into the soundless arch,
Appointed them their courses in the deep,
To keep His great time-harmonies and blaze
As beacons in the ebon fields of night.
Love balanced them and held them firm and true,
Poised 'twixt attractive and repulsive drift
Amid the throngs of heaven. What though this power
Was ever known to us as gravity,
Its first and last celestial name is Love.

Take Time while Time doth last,
Mark how Fair fadeth fast,
Beware if Envy reign,
Take heed of proud Disdain.
Hold fast now in thy youth,
Regard thy vowed Truth,
Lest when thou waxeth old
Friends fail and Love grow cold.

Love's a fever of the mind,
'Tis a grief that none can cure
Till the nymph you love prove kind:
She can give you ease again,
She can best remove the pain
Which you for her endure.

Be not ever, then, repining,
Sighing, denying, canting, whining;
Spend not time in vain pursuing;
If she does not love you—make her;
If she loves you—then forsake her;
'Tis the modish way of wooing.

The whiles some one did chaunt this lovely lay;
Ah see, who so faire thing doest faine to see,
In springing flowre the image of thy day;
Ah see the Virgin Rose, how sweetly shee
Doth first peepe forth with bashfull modestee,
That fairer seemes, the lesse ye see her may;
Lo see soone after, how more bold and free
Her bared bosome she doth broad display;
Loe see soone after, how she fades, and falles away.
So passeth, in the passing of a day,
Of mortall life the leafe, the bud, the flowre,
Ne more doth flourish after first decay,

Perfect love the Father giveth,
Full of grace so rich and free,
Like the rain or dew of morning
Falling now on you and me.

Perfect love is born in Jesus,
Naught of self can victory gain,
Till we find it all in Jesus
All our efforts prove but vain.

Perfect love will never falter
Perfect love will never fear,
And when the days are dark and stormy
Perfect love will always cheer.

Perfect love will never slander,
Friend or foe where e'er they go;
But will raise a fallen brother,
And will take his seat below.

You, who ending never saw
Of pleasures best delighting,
You that cannot wish a thaw.
Who feeles no frost of spighting,
Keeping Cupids hand in awe,
That sees but by your lighting.
Bee not still too cruell bent
Against a soule distressed,
Whose heart love long since hath rent,
And pittilesse oppressed:
But let malice now be spent,
And former ills redressed.
Grieve I doe for what is past,
Let favour then be granted,
Theeves by judgement to dye cast,
Have not of mercy wanted;
But alone at feasts I fast,
As Chiefe of pleasure scanted:

You powers divine of love-commanding eyes,
Within whose lids are kept the fires of love;
Close not your selves to ruine me, who lies
In bands of death, while you in darkenesse move.

One looke doth give a sparck to kindle flames
To burne my heart, a martyr to your might,
Receiving one kind smile I find new frames
For love, to build me wholly to your light.

My soule doth fixe all thoughts upon your will,
Gazing unto amazement, greedy how
To see those blessed lights of loves-heaven, bow
Themselves on wretched me, who else they kill.