Page:Familiar letters of Henry David Thoreau.djvu/267

 J5T.35.] LOVE AND HATE. 243

The relation may be profaned in many ways. The parties may not regard it with equal sacred- ness. What if the lover should learn that his beloved dealt in incanta-tions and philters! What if he should hear that she consulted a clairvoyant ! The spell would be instantly broken.

If to chaffer and higgle are bad in trade, they are much worse in Love. It demands directness as of an arrow.

There is danger that we lose sight of what our friend is absolutely, while considering what she is to us alone.

The lover wants no partiality. He says, Be so kind as to be just.

Canst thou love with thy mind,

And reason with thy heart ? Canst thou be kind,

And from thy darling part ?

Can st thou range earth, sea, and air, And so meet me everywhere ? Through all events I will pursue thee, Through all persons I will woo thee.

I need thy hate as much as thy love. Thou wilt not repel me entirely when thou repellest what is evil in me.

Indeed, indeed, I cannot tell, Though I ponder on it well, Which were easier to state, All my love or all my hate.