Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, PRINCETON: FEBRUARY, 1916, by EDMUND WILSON



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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

PRINCETON: FEBRUARY, 1916, by                    
First Line: She sleeps like some old town with guarded gate
Last Line: Young and half-seeing with bewildered eyes.
Subject(s): Princeton, New Jersey


She sleeps like some old town with guarded gate.
Was ever footfall quick or shouting shrill?
Her lazy laughter drowses; it is late;
The windows darken and the streets are still.

Outside, the frozen air which no bells break
Of nasal clangor or of fragile chime, --
Only, to speed the Winter, faint clocks wake,
Lest we may fear his finger upon Time.

But now the sounds of mirth and music cease,
Have we no ears for anything but mirth?
How should we hope for quietude or peace,
Where learning lives and human souls find birth?

Our town is dark with struggle; fierce and sweet
We catch the echoing of eager cries,
As generations press along the street,
Young and half-seeing with bewildered eyes.





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