THE YEARS OF LOVE.

For Love there’s no oblivion. I have cherished

An idol beautiful, but in this hour,

Hopes that had bloomed for years have wholly perished,

And left me but the fragrance of the flower:

But be the hopes of love like blossoms blighted,

Wherever in the temples of the heart

Hath stood an altar with their splendor lighted,

The glory will not utterly depart;

Still as we enter life’s forgetful haven,

And every form of beauty disappears,

The pictures on the memory engraven

Of early love, win our last smiles and tears;

The inspiration of the first endeavor

After the love of woman dwells forever.