Category: William Morris

The Earthly Paradise The Lady Of The Land The ArgumentA certain man having landed on an island in the Greek sea, found there a beautifuldamsel,…

On The Edge Of The Wilderness Puellae. Whence comest thou, and whither goest thou? Abide! abide! longer the shadows grow; What hopest thou the dark…

Drawing Near The Light Lo, when we wade the tangled wood, In haste and hurry to be there, Nought seem its leaves and blossoms good,…

Song Viii While Ye Deemed Him A-Sleeping Love is enough: while ye deemed him a-sleeping, There were signs of his coming and sounds of his…

Love Is Enough LOVE is enough: though the World be a-waning, And the woods have no voice but the voice of complaining,    Though the sky…

The King Of Denmark’s Sons In Denmark gone is many a year, So fair upriseth the rim of the sun, Two sons of Gorm the…

Sir Galahad, A Christmas Mystery It is the longest night in all the year, Near on the day when the Lord Christ was born; Six…

Hafbur And Signy TRANSLATED FROM THE DANISH. King Hafbur & King Siward They needs must stir up strife, All about the sweetling Signy Who was…

The Earthly Paradise Apology Of Heaven or Hell I have no power to sing, I cannot ease the burden of your fears, Or make quick-coming…

Of The Wooing Of Halbiorn The Strong A STORY FROM THE LAND-SETTLING BOOK OF ICELAND, CHAPTER XXX. At Deildar-Tongue in the autumn-tide, So many times…

Atalanta’s Race Through thick Arcadian woods a hunter went, Following the beasts upon a fresh spring day; But since his horn-tipped bow but seldom bent,…

The Voice Of Toil I heard men saying, Leave hope and praying, All days shall be as all have been; To-day and to-morrow bring fear…

Song Vii Dawn Talks To Day Dawn talks to Day Over dew-gleaming flowers, Night flies away Till the resting of hours: Fresh are thy feet…

Love Is Enough Songs I-Ix I1. Love is enough: though the World be a-waning . And the woods have no voice but the voice of…

The Orchard Midst bitten mead and acre shorn, The world without is waste and worn, But here within our orchard-close, The guerdon of its labour…

Riding Together For many, many days together The wind blew steady from the East; For many days hot grew the weather, About the time of…

Goldilocks And Goldilocks It was Goldilocks woke up in the morn At the first of the shearing of the corn. There stood his mother on…

The Doomed Ship The doomed ship drives on helpless through the sea, All that the mariners may do is done And death is left for…

Of The Three Seekers There met three knights on the woodland way, And the first was clad in silk array: The second was dight in…

Another For The Briar-Rose O treacherous scent, O thorny sight, O tangle of world’s wrong and right, What art thou ’gainst my armour’s gleam But…

Thunder In The Garden When the boughs of the garden hang heavy with rain And the blackbird reneweth his song, And the thunder departing yet…

Song Vi Cherish Life That Abideth Love is enough: cherish life that abideth, Lest ye die ere ye know him, and curse and misname him;…

Love’s Gleaning Tide Draw not away thy hands, my love, With wind alone the branches move, And though the leaves be scant above The Autumn…

The Hall And The Wood ’Twas in the water-dwindling tide When July days were done, Sir Rafe of Greenhowes, ’gan to ride In the earliest…

Shameful Death There were four of us about that bed; The mass-priest knelt at the side, I and his mother stood at the head, Over…

Gunnar’s Howe Above The House At Lithend Ye who have come o’er the sea to behold this grey minster of lands, Whose floor is the…

The Flowering Orchard Silk Embroidery. Lo silken my garden, and silken my sky, And silken my apple-boughs hanging on high; All wrought by the Worm…

Near Avalon A ship with shields before the sun, Six maidens round the mast, A red-gold crown on every one, A green gown on the…

All For The Cause Hear a word, a word in season, for the day is drawing nigh, When the Cause shall call upon us, some…

The Raven And The King’s Daughter King’s daughter sitting in tower so high, Fair summer is on many a shield. Why weepest thou as the…

Summer Dawn Pray but one prayer for me ‘twixt thy closed lips, Think but one thought of me up in the stars. The summer night…

Love Fulfilled Hast thou longed through weary days For the sight of one loved face? Mast thou cried aloud for rest, Mid the pain of…

The Haystack In The Floods Had she come all the way for this, To part at last without a kiss? Yea, had she borne the…

Sad-Eyed And Soft And Grey Sad-Eyed and soft and grey thou art, o morn! Across the long grass of the marshy plain Thy west wind…

From The Upland To The Sea Shall we wake one morn of spring, Glad at heart of everything, Yet pensive with the thought of eve?…

The Defence Of Guenevere But, learning now that they would have her speak, She threw her wet hair backward from her brow, Her hand close…

Near But Far Away She wavered, stopped and turned, methought her eyes, The deep grey windows of her heart, were wet, Methought they softened with…

Agnes And The Hill-Man TRANSLATED FROM THE DANISH. Agnes went through the meadows a-weeping, Fowl are a-singing. There stood the hill-man heed thereof keeping. Agnes,…

The Two Sides Of The River The Youths. O Winter, O white winter, wert thou gone No more within the wilds were I alone Leaping…

Song V Through The Trouble And Tangle Love is enough: through the trouble and tangle From yesterday’s dawning to yesterday’s night I sought through the…

Knight Aagen And The Maiden Else TRANSLATED FROM THE DANISH. It was the fair knight Aagen To an isle he went his way, And plighted…

The God Of The Poor There was a lord that hight Maltete, Among great lords he was right great, On poor folk trod he like…

Prologue of the Earthly Paradise Of Heaven or Hell I have no power to sing, I cannot ease the burden of your fears, Or make…

For The Briar-Rose The Briarwood. The fateful slumber floats and flows About the tangle of the rose; But lo! the fated hand and heart To…

The Day Is Coming Come hither lads and hearken, for a tale there is to tell, Of the wonderful days a-coming, when all shall be…

Mother And Son Now sleeps the land of houses, and dead night holds the street, And there thou liest, my baby, and sleepest soft and…

A Good Knight In Prison Wearily, drearily, Half the day long, Flap the great banners High over the stone; Strangely and eerily Sounds the wind’s…

The Story Of Sigurd The Volsung (Excerpt) But therewith the sun rose upward and lightened all the earth, And the light flashed up to the…

Song Ix Ho Ye Who Seek Saving Love is enough: ho ye who seek saving, Go no further; come hither; there have been who have…

King Arthur’s Tomb Hot August noon: already on that day Since sunrise through the Wiltshire downs, most sad Of mouth and eye, he had gone…

The Half Of Life Gone The days have slain the days, and the seasons have gone by And brought me the summer again; and here…

Sir Giles’ War-Song Ho! is there any will ride with me, Sir Giles, le bon des barrières? The clink of arms is good to hear,…

For The Bed At Kelmscott The wind’s on the wold And the night is a-cold, And Thames runs chill ‘Twixt mead and hill. But kind…

The Day Of Days Each eve earth falleth down the dark, As though its hope were o’er; Yet lurks the sun when day is done…

Mine And Thine Two words about the world we see, And nought but Mine and Thine they be. Ah! might we drive them forth and…

A Garden By The Sea I KNOW a little garden-close, Set thick with lily and red rose, Where I would wander if I might From…

The Son’s Sorrow FROM THE ICELANDIC. The King has asked of his son so good, “Why art thou hushed and heavy of mood? O fair…

Song Iv Draw Near And Behold Me Love is enough: draw near and behold me Ye who pass by the way to your rest and…

In Prison Wearily, drearily, Half the day long, Flap the great banners High over the stone; Strangely and eerily Sounds the wind’s song, Bending the…

The Forest Pear-tree. By woodman’s edge I faint and fail; By craftsman’s edge I tell the tale. Chestnut-tree. High in the wood, high o’er the…