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For oh! tho' painful be th' excess, The might wherewith it swells, In nature's fount no bitterness Of nature's mingling, dwells; And thou hadst not, by wrong or pride, Poison'd the free and healthful tide.

But didst thou meet the face no more, Which thy young heart first knew? And all—was all in this world o'er, With ties thus close and true? It was!—On earth no other eye Could give thee back thine infancy.

No other voice could pierce the maze Where deep within thy breast, The sounds and dreams of other days, With memory lay at rest; No other smile to thee could bring A gladd'ning, like the breath of spring.