The Project Gutenberg EBook of Second April, by Edna St. Vincent Millay

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Title: Second April

Author: Edna St. Vincent Millay

Posting Date: August 13, 2008 [EBook #1247]
Release Date: March, 1998

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SECOND APRIL ***

Produced by Judy Boss

SECOND APRIL

By Edna St. Vincent Millay

TO
MY BELOVED FRIEND
CAROLINE B. DOW

CONTENTS

SPRING INLAND
CITY TREES TO A POET THAT DIED YOUNG
THE BLUE-FLAG IN THE BOG WRAITH
JOURNEY EBB
EEL-GRASS ELAINE
ELEGY BEFORE DEATH BURIAL
THE BEAN-STALK MARIPOSA
WEEDS THE LITTLE HILL
PASSER MORTUUS EST DOUBT NO MORE THAT OBERON
PASTORAL LAMENT
ASSAULT EXILED
TRAVEL THE DEATH OF AUTUMN
LOW-TIDE ODE TO SILENCE
SONG OF A SECOND APRIL MEMORIAL TO D. C.
ROSEMARY UNNAMED SONNETS I-XII
THE POET AND HIS BOOK WILD SWANS
ALMS

SECOND APRIL

SPRING

To what purpose, April, do you return again?
Beauty is not enough.
You can no longer quiet me with the redness
Of little leaves opening stickily.
I know what I know.
The sun is hot on my neck as I observe
The spikes of the crocus.
The smell of the earth is good.
It is apparent that there is no death.
But what does that signify?
Not only under ground are the brains of men
Eaten by maggots,
Life in itself
Is nothing,
An empty cup, a flight of uncarpeted stairs.
It is not enough that yearly, down this hill,
April
Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers.

CITY TREES

The trees along this city street,
Save for the traffic and the trains,
Would make a sound as thin and sweet
As trees in country lanes.

And peo