"Not yet—not yet—
Still there is trial for thee, still the lot
To bear (the Father wills it) strife and care,
With this sweet consciousness in balance set
Against the world, to soothe thy suffering there.
Thy Lord rejects thee not."
Such tender words awoke me, hopeful, shriven,
To life on earth again from dream of heaven.
For the beauty at the fountain I once thought the best title might be some couplet like the following:—
"So tranced and still half-dreamed she, and half-heard
The splash of fountain and the song of bird."
But my wife, from my description of the picture, suggested a name better suited to the "suggestiveness" of the work:—
"Lieder ohne Worte": don't you think it rather pretty?
In the multitude of counsellors some one says there's wisdom, and this liberty we take with you may beget some thought that had not struck you.
I have Mr. Cockerell's commands to express to you the gratification his visit afforded him and his sense of your kindness and attentions.—I am, faithfully yours,
Ralph A. Benson.
Another friend wrote of "Lieder ohne Worte," adding a poem suggested by the "Francesca":—
Trinity House, E.C., 8th April 1861.