Poems (Jordan)/Justice
JUSTICE
When shall the mystic bands, by ages woundOf Partiality and PrejudiceBe torn away from Justice' level eyes,So that she clearly—safely! see, unboundEach comer's face—however he be gown'd—And mete to him his needs' correct supplies?When all untouched by Slander's liesHer scales? Unshaken by Might's foot, the groundWhereon she stands, to weigh minutest shadesOf difference? To try the Motive's weightThe deed has brought? The feeling 'gainst its mask?When shall she tell the size of Joy as 't fades;—Of useless sacrifice to Love and Hate?Oh, when shall Justice see to do her task?
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Oh, Justice! Thou strong-armed iconoclastOf wrong ideals, misshapen standards, all;—Oh, measure thou the fragments, as they fall,Nor let one piece, of worth, aside be cast,Nor one preserved, Sham molded in the past;And show thou man's real greatness but as tallAs Merit marks his height upon Life's wall!Let thy just eyes guard us while Life shall last;—Try our defeats against Temptation's darts,And our success by our opponent's might;By reached for heights measure our broken wings,Else shall Despair find dwelling in our heartsAnd kill the last live Hope—that parasiteWhich feeds upon its own imaginings!