Page:Leaves of Grass (1855).djvu/101

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Leaves of Grass.
95

Great are marriage, commerce, newspapers, books, freetrade, railroads, steamers, international mails and telegraphs and exchanges.

Great is Justice;
Justice is not settled by legislators and laws .... it is in the soul,
It cannot be varied by statutes any more than love or pride or the attraction of gravity can,
It is immutable .. it does not depend on majorities .... majorities or what not come at last before the same passionless and exact tribunal.

For justice are the grand natural lawyers, and perfect judges .... it is in their souls,
It is well assorted .... they have not studied for nothing ..... the great includes the less,
They rule on the highest grounds .... they oversee all eras and states and administrations,

The perfect judge fears nothing .... he could go front to front before God,
Before the perfect judge all shall stand back .... life and death shall stand back .... heaven and hell shall stand back.

Great is goodness;
I do not know what it is any more than I know what health is .... but I know it is great.

Great is wickedness .... I find I often admire it just as much as I admire goodness:
Do you call that a paradox? It certainly is a paradox.

The eternal equilibrium of things is great, and the eternal overthrow of things is great,
And there is another paradox.

Great is life .. and real and mystical .. wherever and whoever,
Great is death .... Sure as life holds all parts together, death holds all parts together;
Sure as the stars return again after they merge in the light, death is great as life.