Merlin and the White Death
I.
DARKLY I sought, in shade and sun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Long days I journeyed, fearing not,
Through forests dark, by waters dire;
And far behind me Camelot
Sank to its topmost spire.
Ay, wingëd as the summer wind,
I left the haunts of men behind:
By waters dire, through forests dark,
Under the white moon's silver arc;
O'er hill, down valley, far away,
Toward the sunset gathering gray,
I, Merlin, fled,—
With aged limbs and hoary hair,
Arm'd with strange amulets to snare
The peerless Water-Witch, whose head
With lilies of sleep is garlanded,
Under the earth and air,—
And all the viewless lures to break
Of that pale Lady of the Lake.
II.
Swiftly I near'd her region dun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Till, lastly, trees of hugest height,
Below them, flowers of poppy red,
And weird deep whisperings of the night,
And breezes dropping dead,
Closed round my path; while in the sky
The moon shone like a great white eye
That watched me through a belt of cloud,—
What time, with head and shoulders bowed,
And lips that mutter'd unaware,
I gained the haunted region where
White Uniun dwells;
And far away, through forest trees,
I caught a gleam like moonlit seas—
A glassy gleam of silver swells,—
The lake rimm'd round with lily-bells,
Unstirr'd by rain or breeze;—
And trembled on, my own to make
The matchless Lady of the Lake.
III.
Nor safely wooed, nor lightly won,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
She dwells within her weed-hung cave,
Deep in the green moon-lighted water,
She glimmers in the whispering wave—
A demon's awful daughter!
White, white as snow her oozy dress,
White as her face's loveliness;
Supple her boneless limbs as snakes,
And full of radiance, such as breaks
Around the cestus of a star,
And strange as eyes of serpents are
Her haunting eyes;
And she had power, as stars aver,
To make the wight who conquered her
More young, and beautiful, and wise,
For good and ill, and great emprize,
Than all men else that stir;
Wherefore I sought to win and take
This matchless Lady of the Lake!
IV.
Colder than ice her blood doth run,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Pitiless to all things that range
Below her, near her, or above,
Till, by some marvel dark and strange,
She learn at last to love;
Knight after knight had thither gone,
Led by fierce impulse plunging on
To something that he loved with dread,
And each in turn been conquerëd;
Yea, each in turn been held and snared
By the pale syren, silver-hair'd,
Whom all men fear!
And side by side they lay at rest,
With folded hands upon the breast,
On beds of weed and darnel drear,
And foam-bells hung in every ear,
And all in white were drest,
And all were watch'd till they should wake
By the pale Lady of the Lake.
V.
Potent her spells in shade or sun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Wherefore I, Merlin, old but strong,
Sweeping my breast with hoary beard,
Skill'd in deep signs and magic song,
Much honour'd and revered,
Vow'd, with a wise man's purpose stern,
To face the Water-Witch, and learn
What wondrous arts, unknown to me,
What superhuman witchery,
She used, those sleepers to enslave
That rested in her ocean cave,
Nor felt, nor heard;
Nay, vowed by her strange love to free
My soul for immortality,
To woo her darkly, till I heard
The sigh of love, the whisper'd word
That proved her love for me!
And then for aye her spells to break,
The wondrous Lady of the Lake.
VI.
Thus arm'd, I near'd her region dun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
I passed from out the forests old,
And, 'tween two faintly purple hills,
Saw the smooth waters glitter cold,
And throb with silvery thrills:
Under a heaven glassy gray,
Bare to the ghastly moon they lay.
And on their marge great lilies heaved,
Slimed with the water-snakes, huge-leaved
And monstrous, floating scores on scores,
With fire-sparks burning in their cores—
Like eyes of flame;
Afar across the lake there passed
Great shadows, multiform and vast,
That with low murmurs went and came;
And crawling things, stingless and tame,
Came creeping thick and fast
Upon me, as I silence brake
With, "Rise, white Phantom of the Lake!
VII.
"The time has come, thy spells are spun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
And, lo! with hands uplifted thus,
I weave a spell of strange device,
To awe thine eyes soul-perilous,
And thaw thy blood of ice!"
Then, like a hum of waterfalls,
I heard a voice, "Who calls, who calls?"
And, standing on the water's brim,
With heart stone-still and brain a-swim,
I wove the spell of strange device,
With whirling arms I wove it thrice,
And audibly.
From the deep silence of the flood,
The answer smote me where I stood,—
"Who summons me, who summons me?"
And, straining dizzy eyes to see,
With fingers gushing blood,
I shrieked aloud, "Awake! awake!
Thou white-faced Phantom of the Lake."
VIII.
The deep caves murmur'd, all and one,
"Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!"
And, from her wondrous weed-hung cave,
Deep in the green moon-lighted water,
She rose above the whispering wave—
A demon's awful daughter!
White, white as snow her oozy dress,
White as her face's loveliness,
Supple her boneless limbs as snakes,
And full of radiance, such as breaks
Around the cestus of a star,
And strange as eyes of serpents are
Her haunting eyes.
What time I cried, "The fates decree,
That he will grow, who conquers thee,
More young, and beautiful, and wise,
For good, and ill, and high emprize,
Than all men else that be;—
Wherefore I seek thy spells to break,
O wondrous Lady of the Lake!"
IX.
She rose erect, the peerless one,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
She fixed her glassy eyes on mine,
With gaze that swoon'd through soul and sense,
And wholly robed in white moonshine,
In vestal white intense,
She rose before me to the waist,
What time bright silver snakes embraced
Her arms and neck, and lilies white
Throbbed to her sides with veins of light;
The pale moon, trembling overhead,
Slow widen'd like a flower, and shed
Peace on the place;
And, one by one, peept stars that grew
To silver leaf, and sparkled dew,
Shedding a sweetness strange to trace
Upon the Witch's bloodless face,
Until I saw, and knew,
The lovely lure I sought to break
In the white Lady of the Lake!
X.
Fairer than aught that loves the sun
Was Uniun, pale Uniun!
But, weaving spells and waving arms,
I gazed upon her unbeguiled,
And gazed, and gazed, and mutter'd charms,
Till, beauteously, she smiled!
And at the smile, —O wondrous sight!—
Her body gleamed and gathered light;
Next, silent as a fountain springs,
From shining shoulders, golden wings
Uncurl'd, and round about her feet
The water murmured and grew sweet,
And fair, so fair!
The lady smiled upon me still,
And tranced my fate to tears, until
I, gazing on her, waiting there,
Her gentle eyes, her yellow hair,
Seemed lost to hope and will;
Then thus, in tones like music, spake
That matchless Lady of the Lake:
XI.
"Not safely wooed, nor lightly won,
Is Uniun, fair Uniun!
Yet unto those who, by a power
Greater than mine, are given to me,
I grow in beauty hour by hour,
And immortality!
Haste, haste thee back to Camelot;
I seek not those who love me not;
Nor, till due time, can mortal gaze
Behold how fair I am, and praise
My matchless beauty at its worth;
And thou, compact of subtle earth,
Hast yet to learn
How fair I am, what peace I keep
For hearts that ache and eyes that weep,
And how, when humbled, men discern
That mine are eyes more sweet than stern!"
Whereat a darkness deep
Oppressed my soul, and, as she spake,
Sank the white Lady of the Lake!
XII.
O beautiful, and all unwon,
Pale Uniun, pale Uniun!
With wiser wonder in my brain,
And will as weak as ocean foam,
Stript of my pride, and pale with pain,
I, Merlin, wander'd home.
But, ever since, in moon and sun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun,
Has haunted me from place to place
With the white glory of her face;
And I grow old, grow old, and long
At last to join that white-robed throng,
Who sweetly sleep,
Watched ever by the peerless one,
Who sweetens sleep when work is done
For still, within her cavern deep,
Where never eye may ope to weep,
Watches pale Uniun,
Till, at a call, the sleepers wake,
And see the Angel of the Lake!
DARKLY I sought, in shade and sun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Long days I journeyed, fearing not,
Through forests dark, by waters dire;
And far behind me Camelot
Sank to its topmost spire.
Ay, wingëd as the summer wind,
I left the haunts of men behind:
By waters dire, through forests dark,
Under the white moon's silver arc;
O'er hill, down valley, far away,
Toward the sunset gathering gray,
I, Merlin, fled,—
With aged limbs and hoary hair,
Arm'd with strange amulets to snare
The peerless Water-Witch, whose head
With lilies of sleep is garlanded,
Under the earth and air,—
And all the viewless lures to break
Of that pale Lady of the Lake.
II.
Swiftly I near'd her region dun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Till, lastly, trees of hugest height,
Below them, flowers of poppy red,
And weird deep whisperings of the night,
And breezes dropping dead,
Closed round my path; while in the sky
The moon shone like a great white eye
That watched me through a belt of cloud,—
What time, with head and shoulders bowed,
And lips that mutter'd unaware,
I gained the haunted region where
White Uniun dwells;
And far away, through forest trees,
I caught a gleam like moonlit seas—
A glassy gleam of silver swells,—
The lake rimm'd round with lily-bells,
Unstirr'd by rain or breeze;—
And trembled on, my own to make
The matchless Lady of the Lake.
III.
Nor safely wooed, nor lightly won,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
She dwells within her weed-hung cave,
Deep in the green moon-lighted water,
She glimmers in the whispering wave—
A demon's awful daughter!
White, white as snow her oozy dress,
White as her face's loveliness;
Supple her boneless limbs as snakes,
And full of radiance, such as breaks
Around the cestus of a star,
And strange as eyes of serpents are
Her haunting eyes;
And she had power, as stars aver,
To make the wight who conquered her
More young, and beautiful, and wise,
For good and ill, and great emprize,
Than all men else that stir;
Wherefore I sought to win and take
This matchless Lady of the Lake!
IV.
Colder than ice her blood doth run,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Pitiless to all things that range
Below her, near her, or above,
Till, by some marvel dark and strange,
She learn at last to love;
Knight after knight had thither gone,
Led by fierce impulse plunging on
To something that he loved with dread,
And each in turn been conquerëd;
Yea, each in turn been held and snared
By the pale syren, silver-hair'd,
Whom all men fear!
And side by side they lay at rest,
With folded hands upon the breast,
On beds of weed and darnel drear,
And foam-bells hung in every ear,
And all in white were drest,
And all were watch'd till they should wake
By the pale Lady of the Lake.
V.
Potent her spells in shade or sun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
Wherefore I, Merlin, old but strong,
Sweeping my breast with hoary beard,
Skill'd in deep signs and magic song,
Much honour'd and revered,
Vow'd, with a wise man's purpose stern,
To face the Water-Witch, and learn
What wondrous arts, unknown to me,
What superhuman witchery,
She used, those sleepers to enslave
That rested in her ocean cave,
Nor felt, nor heard;
Nay, vowed by her strange love to free
My soul for immortality,
To woo her darkly, till I heard
The sigh of love, the whisper'd word
That proved her love for me!
And then for aye her spells to break,
The wondrous Lady of the Lake.
VI.
Thus arm'd, I near'd her region dun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
I passed from out the forests old,
And, 'tween two faintly purple hills,
Saw the smooth waters glitter cold,
And throb with silvery thrills:
Under a heaven glassy gray,
Bare to the ghastly moon they lay.
And on their marge great lilies heaved,
Slimed with the water-snakes, huge-leaved
And monstrous, floating scores on scores,
With fire-sparks burning in their cores—
Like eyes of flame;
Afar across the lake there passed
Great shadows, multiform and vast,
That with low murmurs went and came;
And crawling things, stingless and tame,
Came creeping thick and fast
Upon me, as I silence brake
With, "Rise, white Phantom of the Lake!
VII.
"The time has come, thy spells are spun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
And, lo! with hands uplifted thus,
I weave a spell of strange device,
To awe thine eyes soul-perilous,
And thaw thy blood of ice!"
Then, like a hum of waterfalls,
I heard a voice, "Who calls, who calls?"
And, standing on the water's brim,
With heart stone-still and brain a-swim,
I wove the spell of strange device,
With whirling arms I wove it thrice,
And audibly.
From the deep silence of the flood,
The answer smote me where I stood,—
"Who summons me, who summons me?"
And, straining dizzy eyes to see,
With fingers gushing blood,
I shrieked aloud, "Awake! awake!
Thou white-faced Phantom of the Lake."
VIII.
The deep caves murmur'd, all and one,
"Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!"
And, from her wondrous weed-hung cave,
Deep in the green moon-lighted water,
She rose above the whispering wave—
A demon's awful daughter!
White, white as snow her oozy dress,
White as her face's loveliness,
Supple her boneless limbs as snakes,
And full of radiance, such as breaks
Around the cestus of a star,
And strange as eyes of serpents are
Her haunting eyes.
What time I cried, "The fates decree,
That he will grow, who conquers thee,
More young, and beautiful, and wise,
For good, and ill, and high emprize,
Than all men else that be;—
Wherefore I seek thy spells to break,
O wondrous Lady of the Lake!"
IX.
She rose erect, the peerless one,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun!
She fixed her glassy eyes on mine,
With gaze that swoon'd through soul and sense,
And wholly robed in white moonshine,
In vestal white intense,
She rose before me to the waist,
What time bright silver snakes embraced
Her arms and neck, and lilies white
Throbbed to her sides with veins of light;
The pale moon, trembling overhead,
Slow widen'd like a flower, and shed
Peace on the place;
And, one by one, peept stars that grew
To silver leaf, and sparkled dew,
Shedding a sweetness strange to trace
Upon the Witch's bloodless face,
Until I saw, and knew,
The lovely lure I sought to break
In the white Lady of the Lake!
X.
Fairer than aught that loves the sun
Was Uniun, pale Uniun!
But, weaving spells and waving arms,
I gazed upon her unbeguiled,
And gazed, and gazed, and mutter'd charms,
Till, beauteously, she smiled!
And at the smile, —O wondrous sight!—
Her body gleamed and gathered light;
Next, silent as a fountain springs,
From shining shoulders, golden wings
Uncurl'd, and round about her feet
The water murmured and grew sweet,
And fair, so fair!
The lady smiled upon me still,
And tranced my fate to tears, until
I, gazing on her, waiting there,
Her gentle eyes, her yellow hair,
Seemed lost to hope and will;
Then thus, in tones like music, spake
That matchless Lady of the Lake:
XI.
"Not safely wooed, nor lightly won,
Is Uniun, fair Uniun!
Yet unto those who, by a power
Greater than mine, are given to me,
I grow in beauty hour by hour,
And immortality!
Haste, haste thee back to Camelot;
I seek not those who love me not;
Nor, till due time, can mortal gaze
Behold how fair I am, and praise
My matchless beauty at its worth;
And thou, compact of subtle earth,
Hast yet to learn
How fair I am, what peace I keep
For hearts that ache and eyes that weep,
And how, when humbled, men discern
That mine are eyes more sweet than stern!"
Whereat a darkness deep
Oppressed my soul, and, as she spake,
Sank the white Lady of the Lake!
XII.
O beautiful, and all unwon,
Pale Uniun, pale Uniun!
With wiser wonder in my brain,
And will as weak as ocean foam,
Stript of my pride, and pale with pain,
I, Merlin, wander'd home.
But, ever since, in moon and sun,
Fair Uniun, pale Uniun,
Has haunted me from place to place
With the white glory of her face;
And I grow old, grow old, and long
At last to join that white-robed throng,
Who sweetly sleep,
Watched ever by the peerless one,
Who sweetens sleep when work is done
For still, within her cavern deep,
Where never eye may ope to weep,
Watches pale Uniun,
Till, at a call, the sleepers wake,
And see the Angel of the Lake!
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