'O not to pry and peer on your reserve， But led by golden wishes， and a hope The child of regal compact， did I break Your precinct； not a scorner of your sex But venerator， zealous it should be All that it might be： hear me， for I bear， Though man， yet human， whatsoe'er your wrongs， From the flaxen curl to the gray lock a life Less mine than yours： my nurse would tell me of you；I babbled for you， as babies for the moon， Vague brightness； when a boy， you stooped to me From all high places， lived in all fair lights， Came in long breezes rapt from inmost south And blown to inmost north； at eve and dawn With Ida， Ida， Ida， rang the woods；The leader wildswan in among the stars Would clang it， and lapt in wreaths of glowworm light The mellow breaker murmured Ida. Now， Because I would have reached you， had you been Sphered up with Cassiop雐a， or the enthroned Persephon？in Hades， now at length， Those winters of abeyance all worn out， A man I came to see you： but indeed， Not in this frequence can I lend full tongue， O noble Ida， to those thoughts that wait On you， their centre： let me say but this， That many a famous man and woman， town And landskip， have I heard of， after seen The dwarfs of presage： though when known， there grew Another kind of beauty in detail Made them worth knowing； but in your I found My boyish dream involved and dazzled down And mastered， while that after-beauty makes Such head from act to act， from hour to hour， Within me， that except you slay me here， According to your bitter statute-book， I cannot cease to follow you， as they say The seal does music； who desire you more Than growing boys their manhood； dying lips， With many thousand matters left to do， The breath of life； O more than poor men wealth， Than sick men health--yours， yours， not mine--but half Without you； with you， whole； and of those halves You worthiest； and howe'er you block and bar Your heart with system out from mine， I hold That it becomes no man to nurse despair， But in the teeth of clenched antagonisms To follow up the worthiest till he die：
Yet that I came not all unauthorized Behold your father's letter.'
On one knee Kneeling， I gave it， which she caught， and dashed Unopened at her feet： a tide of fierce Invective seemed to wait behind her lips， As waits a river level with the dam Ready to burst and flood the world with foam：
And so she would have spoken， but there rose A hubbub in the court of half the maids Gathered together： from the illumined hall Long lanes of splendour slanted o'er a press Of snowy shoulders， thick as herded ewes， And rainbow robes， and gems and gemlike eyes， And gold and golden heads； they to and fro Fluctuated， as flowers in storm， some red， some pale， All open-mouthed， all gazing to the light， Some crying there was an army in the land， And some that men were in the very walls， And some they cared not； till a clamour grew As of a new-world Babel， woman-built， And worse-confounded： high above them stood The placid marble Muses， looking peace.
Not peace she looked， the Head： but rising up Robed in the long night of her deep hair， so To the open window moved， remaining there Fixt like a beacon-tower above the waves Of tempest， when the crimson-rolling eye Glares ruin， and the wild birds on the light Dash themselves dead. She stretched her arms and called Across the tumult and the tumult fell.
'What fear ye， brawlers？ am not I your Head？
On me， me， me， the storm first breaks： ~I~ dare All these male thunderbolts： what is it ye fear？
Peace！ there are those to avenge us and they come：
If not，--myself were like enough， O girls， To unfurl the maiden banner of our rights， And clad in iron burst the ranks of war， Or， falling， promartyr of our cause， Die： yet I blame you not so much for fear：
