The Violet. from the french
The Violet.
from the french [1]
Modest in colour and in dress,
In modest shades I grew,
And free from pride beneath the grass
I hid my sweets from view;
But if once taken from my shade5
And on your breast revealed,
The humblest flower will then be made
The proudest of the field.
Notes
[1] EDITOR'S NOTE: "The Violet. from the French" does not appear in Psyche, with Other Poems or Mary (or Collected Poems and Journals) and is undated in Verses. It presents a verse translation of Jean Desmarets de Saint-Sorlin's quatrain "La Violette" which became part of the manuscript collection of madrigals "La Guirlande de Julie" (1641): "Modeste en ma couleur, modeste en mon séjour, / Franche d'ambition, je me cache sous l'herbe; / Mais, si sur votre front je puis me voir un jour, / La plus humble des fleurs sera la plus superbe" (“Modest in my color, modest in my dwelling”). BACK
