O GREATLY wise! thou of the crown and rod, Robed in the purple majesty of kings -- Power was thine own, where'er thy footsteps trod, Yet didst thou mourn if Time on idle wings Went by for thee! Deep sunk in thought wert thou -- And sadness rested on thy noble brow, If, when the dying day closed o'er thy head, Thou hadst no knowledge gain'd -- no good conferr'd "Diem Perdidi" was the thought that stirr'd Thy conscious soul, when night her curtain spread. Oh Emperor, greatly wise! could we so deal With misspent hours, and win thy faith sublime, We should not be ('mid the soul's mute appeal) Such triflers with the solemn trust of Time! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...NORTH WIND TO DUTIFUL BEAST MIDWAY BETWEEN DIAL & FOOT OF GARDEN CLOCK by MARIANNE MOORE HOLY POEMS: 3 by GEORGE BARKER STANZAS ADDRESSED TO PERCY BYSSHE SHELLY by BERNARD BARTON LYRIC by WILLIAM STANLEY BRAITHWAITE BURNS - EXTEMPORE by ROBERT BURNS |