IF thou indeed derive thy light from Heaven, And they that from the zenith dart their beams Though half a sphere be conscious of their brightness) Are yet of no diviner origin, No purer essence, than the one that burns, Like an untended watch-fire, on the ridge Of some dark mountain; or than those which seem PREFATORY NOTE. IN N the following pages I have endeavoured to give the best of Wordsworth's earlier short poems. They are arranged, as nearly as can be ascertained, in the chronological order of their composition; the date of each poem being appended. The earlier texts have been followed, except in a few cases where the later readings were preferable. The present selection will, I trust, confirm the general opinion that Wordsworth's early work is his best. All the poems here given were composed between the Poet's sixteenth and fiftieth years; and the greater portion of them between the years 1798 and 1808. Wordsworth was born 1770; died 1850. J. R. TUTIN. |