Page:Lyrical ballads, Volume 2, Wordsworth, 1800.djvu/209

201 At random and imperfectly indeed

On man; the heart of man and human life.

Therefore, although it be a history

Homely and rude, I will relate the same

For the delight of a few natural hearts,

And with yet fonder feeling, for the sake

Of youthful Poets, who among these Hills

Will be my second self when I am gone.

PON the Forest-side in Grasmere Vale

There dwelt a Shepherd, Michael was his name,

An old man, stout of heart, and strong of limb.

His bodily frame had been from youth to age

Of an unusual strength: his mind was keen

Intense and frugal, apt for all affairs,

And in his Shepherd's calling he was prompt

And watchful more than ordinary men.