When shall I find you, sweetheart,
That shall be and must be mine?
I seek, though the world divides us,
And I send you the secret sign.

There 's blood in the veins of morning,
So fresh it may well deceive,
When man goes forth as Adam,
And woman awaits him as Eve.

There 's an elvish spell in twilight
When the bats of Fancy fly,
And sense is bound by a question,
And Fate by the quick reply.

And the moon is an old enchantress,
With her snares of glimmer and shade,
That have ever been false and fatal

I can forget so much at will:
That first walk in the snow,
The violet bed on the wet spring hill,
The song we both loved so;

Even the rapture of love's magic hour,
Even the anguish of love's disdain,
—But never, but never, the little white flower
We found one day in the rain.

Louise, have you forgotten yet
The corner of the flowery land,
The ancient garden where we met,
My hand that trembled in your hand?
Our lips found words scarce sweet enough,
As low beneath the willow trees
We sat; have you forgotten, love?
Do you remember, love Louise?

Marie, have you forgotten yet
The loving barter that we made?
The rings we changed, the suns that set,
The woods fulfilled with sun and shade?
The fountains that were musical
By many an ancient trysting tree—
Marie, have you forgotten all?
Do you remember, love Marie?

Here's a fine Declaration of Whimsical Love
That nor Beauty, nor Spirit, nor Virtue can move,
He would mortify none, lampoon'd he ten more,
For who but a Bawd will design on Threescore?

O! the white rose of friendship 'twixt us twain
Spreading out scentful; O! the frail, fresh leaves
Of fervid youth, that fights and fears and grieves
And laughs and loves and hopes through all its pain!

O! friend I am but poor for all my praise
And love of you, 'tis but a book I bring,
About that Land, where our dreams, wing to wing,
Drift seeking shelter from earth's sordid days.

O! friend whose soul is swift to understand
If life is difficult and cold and sad—
Some are together still … and some are glad

Long ago, in the young moonlight,
I lost my heart to a hero;
Strong and tender and stern and right,
Darker than night,
And terribler than Nero.
Heigh, but he was dear, O!

And there, to bind our fellowship,
I laughed at him; and a moment after.
I laughed again till he bit his lip,
For the test of love is laughter.

“Lord and master, look up!” I cried;
“I wreathe your brow with a laurel!
Gloom and wisdom and right and pride
Cast them aside,
And kiss, and cure our quarrel.
Never mind the moral!”

Then , fare thee well, my own dear love,
This world has now for us
No greater grief, no pain above
The pain of parting thus,
Dear love!
The pain of parting thus.

Had we but known, since first we met,
Some few short hours of bliss,
We might, in numbering them, forget
The deep, deep pain of this.
Dear love!
The deep, deep pain of this.

But no, alas, we've never seen
One glimpse of pleasure's ray,
But still there came some cloud between,
And chased it all away,
Dear love!
And chased it all away.

“To look on happiness through others' eyes,”
So mused I, not without a secret pain,
For lovers passed me in the twilight lane,
As arm in arm they murmured soft replies.
How sweetly Love can gild the winsome lies
Whispered in Youth! But oh! to us in vain
He calls, if in our heart that barb remain,—
“To look on happiness through others' eyes.”
Joy is a jewel-casket locked to Age,
Youth and Love only have the golden key;
Bliss is a bubble, bursting as it flies:
Now evening comes, and what is left to me?
This is the pathos of life's pilgrimage,—

They say there is
A still pool even in the middle of
The rushing whirlpool,—
Why is there none in the whirlpool of my love?

My heart is happy now, beloved,
Albeit thy form is far away;
A joy that will not be removed
Broods on me like a summer's day.
Whatever evil Fate may do,
It cannot change what has been thine;
It cannot cast those words anew,
The gentle words I think divine.

No touch of time can blight the glance
That blest with early hope my love;
New years are dark with fearful chance,
That moment is with God above:
And never more from me departs
Of that sweet time the influence rare,
When first we looked into our hearts