VANITY! guiding power, 'tis thine to rule Statesman and vestryman -- the knave or fool. The Macedonian crossed Hydaspes' wave, Fierce as the storm, and gloomy as the grave. Urged by the thought, What would Athenians say, When next they gathered on a market day? And the same spirit that induced his toil, Leads on the cook, to stew, and roast, and boil: Whether the spice be mixed -- the flag unfurled -- Each deems his task the glory of the world. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE BALLAD OF MY FRIEND by J. D. BEAZLEY SONGS OF THE SEA CHILDREN: 95 by BLISS CARMAN TO A BLUEBELL by SAMUEL VALENTINE COLE THE HOROSCOPE by FRANCOIS COPPEE SEATS OF THE FLIGHTY: THE FOURTH CHAIR by FAIRFAX DOWNEY THESE THREE: INTERPRETATION, RESERVATION, REJECTION by OLIVER MURRAY EDWARDS WHO SHALL SHUT THE DOOR? by JOHANN WOLFGANG VON GOETHE |