There sat two glasses filled to the
brim,
on a rich man's table, rim to
rim;
One was ruddy and red as could
be,
and one as clear as a crystal
sea.
Said the glass of wine to the paler
brother:
"Let us tell the tales of the past
to each other;
I can tell of banquets and revel
and mirth,
and the proudest and grandest souls
on earth
fell under my touch as though
struck by blight,
where I was king, for I ruled in
might;
From the heads of kings, I have
torn the crown,
From the heights of fame, I have
hurled men down:
I have tempted the youth with a
sip,
a taste,
that has made his future a barren
waste.
Greater, far greater than king am
I,
or than any army beneath the
sky.
I have made the arm of the driver
fall,
and sent the train from the iron
rail;
I have made good ships go down at
sea,
and the shrieks said,
'Behold, how great
you be!
Fame, strength, wealth, genius
before you fall,
For your might and power are over
all.'
Ho, ho, pale brother," laughed the
wine,
"Can you boast of deeds as great
as mine!"
Said the water glass: "I cannot
boast
of a king dethroned or a murdered
host;
But I can tell of a heart once
sad,
by my crystal drops made light and
glad;
of thirsts I've quenched, of brews
I've laved,
of hands I have cooled, and souls I
have saved;
I have leaped through the
valley,
dashed down the
mountain,
flowed in the river and played in
the fountain,
slept in the sunshine and dropped
from the sky,
and everywhere gladdened the
landscape and eye.
I have eased the hot forehead of
fever and pain;
I have made the parched meadows
grow fertile with grain;
I can tell of the powerful wheel of
the mill,
that ground out the hour and turned
at my will.
I can tell of manhood debased by
you,
that I have lifted and crowned
anew.
I cheer, I help, I strengthen and
aid;
I gladden the heart of man and
maid;
I set the chained wine-captive
free;
and all are better for knowing me."
These are the tales they told each
other,
The glass of wine and the paler
brother,
as they sat together filled to the
brim,
on the rich man's table, rim to
rim.
~~~~~Ella Wheeler Wilcox