Stanzas - In Memory of the Late Edward Quillinan, Esq.
By Matthew Arnold
I saw him sensitive in frame,
I knew his spirits low;
And wishd him health, success, and fame:
I do not wish it now.
For these are all their own reward,
And leave no good behind;
They try us, oftenest make us hard,
Less modest, pure, and kind.
Alas! Yet to the suffering man,
In this his mortal state,
Friends could not give what Fortune can
Health, case, a heart elate.
But he is now by Fortune foild
No more; and we retain
The memory of a man unspoild,
Sweet, generous, and humane;
With all the fortunate have not
With gentle voice and brow.
Alive, we would have changd his lot:
We would not change it now.