48
WHITHER?.
Another chamber lies apart
Within the portals of my heart,
Whose easy door swings wide;
And when my feet its threshold tread
A tumult in my soul is bred
That sweeps me like a tide.
And from it, too, there runs a stair
That leads without, I know not where,
But flitting forms I see,
Who would my spirit fain beguile
With soft beseeching look and smile
To join their revelry.
And some dark presence hovering near
Constrains me, whispering in my ear—
Exultant, smooth and bold—
The same alluring, honied word—
The subtle promise Jesus heard
Upon the Mount of old.
·······
Some day the portals of my heart
Shall riven be, and fall apart,
Touched by a power unknown;
And I, a pallid ghost, must flee
Far out into eternity,
Unshriven and alone.
