THE GRAVE AND THE ROSE


THE GRAVE AND THE ROSE
by: Victor Hugo (1802-1885)
      HE Grave said to the Rose,
      "What of the dews of dawn,
      Love's flower, what end is theirs?"
      "And what of spirits flown,
      The souls whereon doth close
      The tomb's mouth unawares?"
      The Rose said to the Grave.
       
      The Rose said, "In the shade
      From the dawn's tears is made
      A perfume faint and strange,
      Amber and honey sweet."
      "And all the spirits fleet
      Do suffer a sky-change,
      More strangely than the dew,
      To God's own angels new,"
      The Grave said to the Rose.

This English translation of "The Grave and the Rose" was composed by Andrew Lang (1844-1912).

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