In the second number of the “Miscellany,” under the date of December, 1841, appeared also the “Ode” which he afterwards thought worth reprinting in the collected edition of his works. One cannot but see in it a careful statement of his own hopes and resolves for his future. It was originally printed in stanzas of four lines; as he recast it subsequently, the breaks between the stanzas disappear. The following characteristic verses show what was central in his thought and feeling at this time:—
“This, this is he for whom the world is waiting
To sing the beatings of its mighty heart.
Too long hath it been patient with the grating
Of scrannel-pipes, and heard it misnamed Art.
“To him the smiling soul of man shall listen,
Laying awhile its crown of thorns aside,
And once again in every eye shall glisten
The glory of a nature satisfied.
“His verse shall have a great commanding motion,