Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, LINCOLN STILL LIVES, by CHARLES MUMFORD


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

LINCOLN STILL LIVES, by                    
First Line: This mask of bronze cannot conceal his heart
Last Line: O shame-faced death, you sped your shaft in vain.
Subject(s): Lincoln, Abraham (1809-1865); Presidents, United States


This mask of bronze cannot conceal his heart;
The lips once eloquent here speak again;
The kindly eyes, where tears were wont to start,
Look out once more upon the haunts of men.

His image fits no dim cathedral aisle,
Nor leafy shade, nor pedestal upraised,
But here, where playful children rest awhile
Upon his knees, whom all the nations praised.

Great in his strength, yet winsome as a child,
Quick to his touch the childlike heart responds,
As when his mighty hands, all undefiled,
From little dark-hued limbs struck off the bonds.

O Death, unerring as your arrows be,
High as the hills your hecatombs of slain,
Against this Son of Immortality,
O shame-faced Death, you sped your shaft in vain.





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net