THE SWIMMER 



And a horror of outer darkness after, 

 And dust returneth to dust again. 

 Then the lesser life shall be as the greater, 

 And the lover of light shall join the hater, 

 And the one thing cometh sooner or later, 

 And no one knoweth the loss or gain. 



Love of my life ! we had lights in season — 

 Hard to part from, harder to keep — 



We had strength to labour and souls to reason. 

 And seed to scatter and fruits to reap. 



Though time estranges and fate disperses, 



We have had our loves and our loving-mercies ; 



Though the gifts of the light in the end are 

 curses, 

 Yet bides the gift of the darkness — sleep ! 



See ! girt with tempest and wing'd with 

 thunder, 

 And clad with lightning and shod with sleet. 

 The strong winds treading the swift waves 

 sunder 

 The flying rollers with frothy feet. 

 One gleam like a bloodshot swordblade swims 

 on 



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