Helen Redeemed and Other Poems | Page 9

and clear
As mellow evening's
whenas, like a priest,
Rain has absolved the world, and golden mist

Hangs over all like benediction.
In her proud eyes sat triumph on a
throne,
To know herself beloved, her lover by,
So near the
consummation. Womanly
She dallied with the moment when, all wife,

Upon his breast she'd lie and cast her life,
Cast body, soul and
spirit in one gest
Supreme of giving. Glorying in his quest
Of her,
now let her hide what he must glean,
But not know yet. Ah, sweet to
feel his keen
Long eye-search, like the touch of eager fingers,
And
sweet to thrill beneath such hot blush-bringers;
To fence with such a
swordsman hazardous
And sweet. "Belov'd, thou art glad of me!"
Then thus
Antiphonal to him she breathes, "Thou sayest!"
"I see thy
light and hail it!"
"Thou begayest
My poor light."
"Knowest thou not that thou art loved?" "And am I loved then?"

"If thou'ldst have it proved, Look in my eyes. Would thine were open
book!"
"Palimpsest I," she said, and would not look.
But he was
grappling now with truth, would have it,
What though it cost him all
his gain. She gave it,
Looking him along. "O lady mine," he said,

"Now are my clouds disperséd every shred;
For thou art mine; I think
thou lovest me.
Speak, is that true?"
She could not, or may be
She would not hold her gaze, but let it fall,

And watched her fingers idling on the wall,
And so remained; but
urged to it by the spell
He cast, she whispered down, "I cannot tell

Thee here, and thus apart"--which when he had
In its full import
drove him well-nigh mad
With longing. "Call me and I come!"
But fear
Flamed in her eyes: "No, no, 'tis death! He's here
At hand.
'Tis death for thee, and worse than death--"
She ended so--"for both
of us."
And breath
Failed him, for well he knew now what she meant,
And
sighed his thanks to Gods beneficent.
Thereafter in sweet use of
lovers' talk,
In boon spring weather, whenas lovers walk

Handfasted through the meadows pied, and wet
With dew from
flower and leaf, these lovers met--
Two bodies separate, one wild
heart between,
Day after day, these two long-severed been;
And of
this mating of the eye and tongue
There grew desire passionate and
strong
For body's mating and its testimony,
Hearts' intimacy,
perfect, full and free.
And Helen for her heart's ease did deny
Her
girdled Goddess of the beamy eye,
Saying, "Come you down,
Mistress of sleek loves
And panting nights: your service of bought
doves
And honey-hearted wine may cost too dear.
What hast thou
done for me since first my ear
With thy sly music thou didst sign and
seal
Apprentice to thy mystery, teach me feel
Thy fierce divinity in
the trembling touch

Of open lips? Served I not thee too much
In
Kranai and in Sparta my demesne,
Too much in wide-wayed Ilios,
Eastern Queen?
Yes, but it was too much a thousandfold,
For what

was I but leman bought and sold?
"For woman craved what mercy
hath man brought,
What face a woman for a woman sought?
What
mercy or what face? And what saith she,
The hunted, scornéd wretch?
Boast that she be
Coveted, hankered, spat on? One to gloat,
The
rest to snarl without! If man play goat,
What must she play? Her
glory is it to draw
On greedy eye, sting greedy lip and paw,
And
find the crown of her desire therein?
Hath she no rarer bliss than all
this sin,
Is she for dandling, kissing, hidden up
For hungry hands to
stroke or lips to sup?
Hath she then nothing of her own, no mirth
In
honesty, nor eyes to worship worth,
Nor pride except in that which
makes men dogs,
Nor loathing for the vice wherein, like logs
That
float beneath the sun, lie fair women
Submiss, inert receptacles for
sin?
Is this her all? Hath she no heart, nor care
Therefor? No womb,
nor hope therein to bear
Fruit of her heart's insurgence? Is her face,

Are these her breasts for fondling, not to grace
Her heart's high
honour, swell to nurture it,
That it too grow? Hath she no mother-wit,

Nor sense for living things and innocent,
Nor leap of joy for this
good world's content
Of sun and wind, of flower and leaf, and song

Of bird, or shout of children as they throng
The world of mated men
and women? Nay,
Persuade me not, O Kypris; but I say
Evil hath
been the lore which thou hast taught--
For many have loved my face,
and many sought
My breast, and thought it joy supping thereat

Sweetness and dear delight; but out of that
What hath there come to
them, to me and all
Mine but hot shame? Not milk, but bitter gall."
So in her high passion she rent herself
And rocked, or hid her face
upon the shelf
Of the grim wall, lest he should see the whole

Inexpiable sorrow of her soul.

But he by pity pure made bountiful

Lent her excuse, by every means to lull
Her agony. Said he, "Of
mortals who
Can e'er withstand the way she wills them to,
Kypris
the forceful Goddess? Nay, dear child,
Thou wert constrained."
She said, "I was beguiled
And clung to him until the day-dawn