In stagnant gloom I toil through day All that enchants me put away No bird decoyed to such a breast Could warble a note, or be at rest; From the old fountain of delight Falls not one drop to salve my sight. Yet - Thou who mad'st of dust my face, And shut me in this bitter place, Thou also, past the world to know, Didst hinges hand where heart may go After day's travail - vain all words! - Into this garden of the Lord's.
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Authorship:
- by Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley, Sir (1903 - 1989), "Poetry", op. 93 no. 1a (1977), published 1978 [ medium voice and piano ], from Another Spring, op. 93 no. 1, no. 1 [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 86