The Death of Adam Author:Laurence Binyon Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: A VISION OF RESURRECTION THE Genius of an hour that fading day Resigned to wide-haired Night's impending brow Stole me apart, I knew not where nor how, And fr... more »om my sense ravished the world away. Rose in my view a visionary ground, A rugged plain, beneath uncoloured skies. There slowly in the midst without a sound Upheaved a motion as of birth. I gazed, When lo! a head, with upcast empty eyes And semblance of dead shoulders' majesties, Whose fleshless arms a marble breast upraised. But even as this emerged, nor yet was free, Behold it ripen into bloom and form, The shrunk limbs round and into colour warm, The hair spring new as leaves upon a tree, And curl like small flames round the forehead fair. At last the eyelids open wide: it seems A glorious-statured youth that wakens there, Casting his eyes in wonder down, to feel This body that with clear blood newly teems, How perfect, yet still heavy as from dreams, And over it the ancient beauty steal. A VISION OF RESURRECTION 35 O lost in musing recollection sweet, What summoning cry thine age-long slumber stirred ? In that profound grave has thy cold ear heard From heaven the mailed Archangel call, whose feet Stand planted in the stream of stars, and whose Time-shattering trump hath pealed to the world's core? Yet still doth thy averted head refuse To lift its eyes up ; still thy spread hands lean On earth, while pensive thou surveyest o'er This radiant shape that all thy sorrows bore, Strong now as if no pain had ever been. What thoughts begin to glide upon thy brain, And part thy lips with sighs ? Is it some fear 'Mid flattering heavenly airs approaching near This strange unproven peace to entertain ? Musing, " O rebel flesh, in my hard need How often didst thou fail me! I know well How thou didst make me su...« less