Page:Aicard - Molière à Shakspeare, 1879.djvu/9

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He typifies a country, the North, the strong race,
He brings his heart, the universal heart ;
And, as a divine creator, this Master, — force and grace itself, —
Makes England illustrious and glorious under the heavens.

He lived. — He knew all the cares of a man’s life ;
“Of woman born”, he suffered from hatred and from love ;
He knew poverty, and, like Plautus at Rome,
From an artisan he made himself a sovereign of souls.

He thought. — His head, like a stupendous camera obscura,
Reflected the whole Universe in full, — body, soul and mind !
Thus gifted by nature, he added History unto himself :
In Plutarch’s page the ancient World conversed with him.

He sang. — The inmost recesses of the soul he brings to light,
The dream of life, all earthly goods, all earthly evils,
Love, affection, horror, joy, madness, crime,
All, — all !… — a storm, — an ocean of words !