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VOL1

VOL II

Till Lizzie urged, "O Laura, come; / I hear the fruit-call but I dare not look:
You should not loiter longer at this brook: / Come with me home.
The stars rise, the moon bends her arc, / Each glowworm winks her spark,
Let us get home before the night grows dark: / For clouds may gather
Though this is summer weather, / Put out the lights and drench us through;
Then if we lost our way what should we do?"
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Laura turn'd cold as stone / To find her sister heard that cry alone,
That goblin cry, / "Come buy our fruits, come buy."
Must she then buy no more such dainty fruit? / Must she no more such succous pasture find,
Gone deaf and blind? / Her tree of life droop'd from the root:
She said not one word in her heart's sore ache;/ But peering thro' the dimness, nought discerning,
Trudg'd home, her pitcher dripping all the way; / So crept to bed, and lay
Silent till Lizzie slept; / Then sat up in a passionate yearning,
And gnash'd her teeth for baulk'd desire, and wept / As if her heart would break.
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Day after day, night after night, / Laura kept watch in vain
In sullen silence of exceeding pain. / She never caught again the goblin cry:
"Come buy, come buy;"-- / She never spied the goblin men
Hawking their fruits along the glen: / But when the noon wax'd bright
Her hair grew thin and grey; / She dwindled, as the fair full moon doth turn
To swift decay and burn / Her fire away.
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One day remembering her kernel-stone / She set it by a wall that faced the south;
Dew'd it with tears, hoped for a root, / Watch'd for a waxing shoot,
But there came none; / It never saw the sun,
It never felt the trickling moisture run: / While with sunk eyes and faded mouth
She dream'd of melons, as a traveller sees/ False waves in desert drouth
With shade of leaf-crown'd trees, / And burns the thirstier in the sandful breeze.
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She no more swept the house, / Tended the fowls or cows,
Fetch'd honey, kneaded cakes of wheat, / Brought water from the brook:
But sat down listless in the chimney-nook / and would not eat.
Tender Lizzie could not bear / To watch her sister's cankerous care
Yet not to share. / She night and morning
Caught the goblins' cry: /"Come buy our orchard fruits,
Come buy, come buy;"-- /Beside the brook, along the glen,
She heard the tramp of goblin men, / The yoke and stir
Poor Laura could not hear; /Long'd to buy fruit to comfort her,
But fear'd to pay too dear. /She thought of Jeanie in her grave,
Who should have been a bride; / But who for joys brides hope to have
Fell sick and died / In her gay prime,
In earliest winter time / With the first glazing rime,
With the first snow-fall of crisp winter time.
Till Laura dwindling / Seem'd knocking at Death's door:
Then Lizzie weigh'd no more / Better and worse;
But put a silver penny in her purse, / Kiss'd Laura, cross'd the heath with clumps of furze
At twilight, halted by the brook: / And for the first time in her life

Began to listen and look.

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Laugh'd every goblin/ When they spied her peeping:
Came towards her hobbling,/ Flying, running, leaping,
Puffing and blowing,/Chuckling, clapping, crowing,
Clucking and gobbling,/ Mopping and mowing,
Full of airs and graces,/ Pulling wry faces,
Demure grimaces,/ Cat-like and rat-like,
Ratel- and wombat-like,/ Snail-paced in a hurry,
Parrot-voiced and whistler,/ Helter skelter, hurry skurry,
Chattering like magpies,/ Fluttering like pigeons,
Gliding like fishes,-/ Hugg'd her and kiss'd her:
Squeez'd and caress'd her:/ Stretch'd up their dishes,
Panniers, and plates:/ "Look at our apples
Russet and dun,/ Bob at our cherries,
Bite at our peaches,/ Citrons and dates,
Grapes for the asking,/ Pears red with basking
Out in the sun,/ Plums on their twigs;
Pluck them and suck them,/ Pomegranates, figs."

vvvvvvvv

"Good folk," said Lizzie, / Mindful of Jeanie:
"Give me much and many: -- / Held out her apron,
Toss'd them her penny. / "Nay, take a seat with us,
Honour and eat with us," / They answer'd grinning:
"Our feast is but beginning. / Night yet is early,
Warm and dew-pearly, / Wakeful and starry:
Such fruits as these / No man can carry:
Half their bloom would fly, / Half their dew would dry,
Half their flavour would pass by. / Sit down and feast with us,
Be welcome guest with us, / Cheer you and rest with us."--
"Thank you," said Lizzie: "But one waits / At home alone for me:
So without further parleying, / If you will not sell me any
Of your fruits though much and many, / Give me back my silver penny
I toss'd you for a fee."-- / They began to scratch their pates,
No longer wagging, purring, / But visibly demurring,
Grunting and snarling. / One call'd her proud,
Cross-grain'd, uncivil; / Their tones wax'd loud,
Their look were evil. /Lashing their tails
They trod and hustled her, / Elbow'd and jostled her,
Claw'd with their nails, / Barking, mewing, hissing, mocking,
Tore her gown and soil'd her stocking, / Twitch'd her hair out by the roots,
Stamp'd upon her tender feet, / Held her hands and squeez'd their fruits
Against her mouth to make her eat.
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White and golden Lizzie stood, / Like a lily in a flood,--
Like a rock of blue-vein'd stone / Lash'd by tides obstreperously,--
Like a beacon left alone / In a hoary roaring sea,
Sending up a golden fire,-- / Like a fruit-crown'd orange-tree
White with blossoms honey-sweet / Sore beset by wasp and bee,--
Like a royal virgin town / Topp'd with gilded dome and spire
Close beleaguer'd by a fleet / Mad to tug her standard down.
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One may lead a horse to water, / Twenty cannot make him drink.
Though the goblins cuff'd and caught her, / Coax'd and fought her,
Bullied and besought her, / Scratch'd her, pinch'd her black as ink,
Kick'd and knock'd her, / Maul'd and mock'd her,
Lizzie utter'd not a word; / Would not open lip from lip
Lest they should cram a mouthful in: / But laugh'd in heart to feel the drip
Of juice that syrupp'd all her face, / And lodg'd in dimples of her chin,
And streak'd her neck which quaked like curd. /At last the evil people,
Worn out by her resistance, / Flung back her penny, kick'd their fruit
Along whichever road they took, / Not leaving root or stone or shoot;
Some writh'd into the ground, / Some div'd into the brook
With ring and ripple, / ome scudded on the gale without a sound,
Some vanish'd in the distance.

vvvvvvvv

In a smart, ache, tingle, / Lizzie went her way;
Knew not was it night or day; /Sprang up the bank, tore thro' the furze,
Threaded copse and dingle, / And heard her penny jingle
Bouncing in her purse,-- / Its bounce was music to her ear.
She ran and ran / As if she fear'd some goblin man
Dogg'd her with gibe or curse /Or something worse:
But not one goblin scurried after, / Nor was she prick'd by fear;
The kind heart made her windy-paced / That urged her home quite out of breath with haste
And inward laughter. /She cried, "Laura," up the garden,
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"Did you miss me? / Come and kiss me.
Never mind my bruises, / Hug me, kiss me, suck my juices
Squeez'd from goblin fruits for you, / Goblin pulp and goblin dew.
Eat me, drink me, love me; / Laura, make much of me;
For your sake I have braved the glen /And had to do with goblin merchant men."
Laura started from her chair,

Flung her arms up in the air, /Clutch'd her hair:
"Lizzie, Lizzie, have you tasted / For my sake the fruit forbidden?
Must your light like mine be hidden, / Your young life like mine be wasted,
Undone in mine undoing, /And ruin'd in my ruin,
Thirsty, canker'd, goblin-ridden?"-- / She clung about her sister,
Kiss'd and kiss'd and kiss'd her: /Tears once again
Refresh'd her shrunken eyes, / Dropping like rain
After long sultry drouth; /Shaking with aguish fear, and pain,
She kiss'd and kiss'd her with a hungry mouth.

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