th."

And as the king commanded, so it was.
More quickly than he came, with all his court
And hosts of followers he went away,
Leaving the place to solitude once more,--
A rose to wither where it once had blown.

To-day the all-kind unpolluted sun
Shines through the marble fret-work with no sound;
The winds play hide and seek through corridors
Where stately women with dark glowing eyes
Have laughed and frolicked in their fluttering robes;
The rose leaves drop with none to gather them,
In gardens where no footfall comes with eve,
Nor any lovers watch the rising moon;
And ancient silence, truer than all speech,
Still holds the secrets of the Council Hall,
Upon whose walls frescoes of many faiths
Attest the courtesy of open minds.

Before the last camp-follower was gone,
The doves returned and took up their abode
In the main gate of those deserted walls.
And in their custody this "Gate of Peace"
Bears still the grandeur of its origin,
Firing anew the wistful hearts of men
To brave endeavor with replenished hope,
Though since that time three hundred years ago,
The magic hush of those forsaken streets
And empty courtyards has been undisturbed
Save by the gentle whirring of grey wings,
With cooing murmurs uttered all day long,
And reverent tread of those from near and far,
Who still pursue the immemorial quest.

_Warwick Bros. & Rutter, Limited_

_Printers and Bookbinders_

_Toronto_

When all my writing has been done
Except the final colophon,

And I must bid beloved verse
Farewell for better or for worse,

Let me not linger o'er the page
In doubting and regretful age;

But as an unknown scribe in some
Monastic dim scriptorium,

When twilight on his labour fell
At the glad-heard refection bell,

Might add poor Body's thanks to be
From spiritual toils set free,

Let me conclude with hearty zest
_Laus Deo! Nunc bibendum est!_

[Illustration: back end papers]

End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Later Poems, by Bliss Carman

*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LATER POEMS ***

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