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.
Rhyme