ALL night a great wind blew across the land, br Come fresh from wild and salty seas, br With many voices loud and low br Appealing to the sympathies br Of those with whom long, long ago br It had been friends, but who br Had lost the way to know and understand br Its weird and tearless woe. br A sleeper, drawn from ancient fancies, stirred, br And strangely breathed in deep unrest br As though his heart were choked with grief; br The moon down-stealing in the west br Threw every move of limb and leaf br Upon his blind. Now this br Was he the wind sought wildly, had he heard — br Alas, the friend was deaf! br All time a great Thought wandered round the world br Naked and breathing loveliness, br Seeking in alien souls a home br And thwarted, yet a-seek no less br At every door, till forced to roam br A wonder unexpressed: br A sense of strangeness, as of wings unfurled, br Hovered at times o'er some. br He heard the knocking at the inner door; br He saw her face a light intense, br And stood amazed, irresolute. br 'Now, thou who hast the poet-sense br In song serene and absolute br Proclaim my hidden worth!' br He sobbed; she drooped her wings . . .Woe evermore! br The chosen mind was mute.