John Greenleaf Whittier - Maud Muller (1865)

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For of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these: 'It might have been!'

John Greenleaf Whittier

Maud Muller, on a summer's day,
Raked the meadows sweet with hay.
Beneath her torn hat glowed the wealth
Of simple beauty and rustic health.

John Greenleaf Whittier

A manly form at her side she saw,
And joy was duty and love was law.
Then she took up her burden of life again,
Saying only, "It might have been".

John Greenleaf Whittier

So, closing his heart, the Judge rode on,
And Maud was left in the field alone.
But the lawyers smiled that afternoon,
When he hummed in court an old love-tune

John Greenleaf Whittier

He wedded a wife of richest dower,
Who lived for fashion, as he for power.
Yet oft, in his marble hearth's bright glow,
He watched a picture come and go:
And sweet Maud Muller's hazel eyes
Looked out in their innocent surprise.

John Greenleaf Whittier