You who love music and comprehend
All the pomps and triumphs of sound,
Deign you to follow me, critical friend,
Into my span of enchanted ground ?

An infinite sky where the sun has set,
A chamber of shadow and after-glow,
Against the window'en silhouette'
A model for Fra Angelico,

A slim girl-form, a delicate pose,
A downcast head, a glory of hair,--
Often I think that such were those
Who climbed the visioned Ladder of Prayer,

A soft cheek pressed to a violin,
And two grave eyes that happy keep
Watch for the soul of the music in
The notes that follow the white arm's sweep,

-- Such is my vision ! Oh, unto me
The child and her tune are the hunger of heart,
The vague sweet sorrow, the mystery,
Which are the beginning and end of Art.