The Philosopher and the Philanthropist

The Philosopher and the Philanthropist

Original Text
J. K. Stephen, Lapsus Calami, new edn. (Cambridge: Macmillan and Bowes, 1891), p. 43. PR 5473 S4L3 1891 Robarts Library.
1Searching an infinite Where,
2Probing a bottomless When,
3  Dreamfully wandering,
4  Ceaselessly pondering,
5What is the Wherefore of men:
6Bartering life for a There,
7Selling his soul for a Then,
8  Baffling obscurity,
9  Conning futurity,
10Usefulest, wisest of men!
11Grasping the Present of Life,
12Seizing a definite Now,
13  Labouring thornfully,
14  Banishing scornfully
15Doubts of his Whither and How:
16Spending his substance in Strife,
17Working a practical How,
18  Letting obscurity
19  Rest on futurity,
20Usefuler, wiser, I trow.
Publication Start Year
1891
RPO poem Editors
Ian Lancashire
RPO Edition
RPO 1998.