My lady calls; my First obeys--
Nor less his lord's behest:
In bower and hall, in olden days,
My First was in request.
Yet 'tis my First that tells us now
What then my First was doing;
How he went forth to war, and how
He prospered in his wooing.
A wise King bade the lazy fool
Observe my Second's ways,
And notice--as it were in school--
The wisdom she displays.
Yet hers is a devouring race,
And might--though strange it be--
Eat up, in given time and place,
My First, or you, or me.
As for my whole--in every age
Mankind must have its show;
In actual life, on mimic stage,
In peace, war, joy, or woe.
Now 'tis a wedding, now a death,
A gathering, or a play;
It comes, but, like a passing breath,
Full soon 'tis swept away.