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Robert Browning - ProtusRobert Browning - Protus
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Among these latter busts we count by scores, Half-emperors and quarter-emperors, Each with his bay-leaf fillet, loose-thonged vest, Loricand low-browed Gorgon on the breast,—- One loves a baby face, with violets there, Violets instead of laurel in the hair, As those were all the little locks could bear. Now read here.  ``Protus ends a period ``Of empery beginning with a god; ``Born in the porphyry chamber at Byzant, ``Queens by his cradle, proud and ministrant: ``And if he quickened breath there, `twould like fire ``Pantingly through the dim vast realm transpire. ``A fame that he was missing spread afar: ``The world from its four corners, rose in war, ``Till he was borne out on a balcony ``To pacify the world when it should see. ``The captains ranged before him, one, his hand ``Made baby points at, gained the chief command. ``And day by day more beautiful he grew ``In shape, all said, in feature and in hue, ``While young Greek sculptors, gazing on the child, ``Because with old Greek sculptore reconciled. ``Already sages laboured to condense ``In easy tomes a life`s experience: ``And artists took grave counsel to impart ``In one breath and one hand-sweep, all their art—- ``To make his graces prompt as blossoming ``Of plentifully-watered palms in spring: ``Since well beseems it, whoso mounts the throne, ``For beauty, knowledge, strength, should stand alone, ``And mortals love the letters of his name.`` —-Stop! Have you turned two pages? Still the same. New reign, same date.  The scribe goes on to say How that same year, on such a month and day, ``John the Pannonian, groundedly believed ``A Blacksmith`s bastard, whose hard hand reprieved ``The Empire from its fate the year before,—- ``Came, had a mind to take the crown, and wore ``The same for six years (during which the Huns ``Kept off their fingers from us), till his sons ``Put something in his liquor``—-and so forth. Then a new reign.  Stay—-``Take at its just worth`` (Subjoins an annotator) ``what I give ``As hearsay.  Some think, John let Protus live ``And slip away.  `Tis said, he reached man`s age ``At some blind northern court; made, first a page, ``Then tutor to the children; last, of use ``About the hunting-stables.  I deduce ``He wrote the little tract `On worming dogs,` ``Whereof the name in sundry catalogues ``Is extant yet.  A Protus of the race ``Is rumoured to have died a monk in Thrace,—- ``And if the same, he reached senility.`` Here`s John the Smith`s rough-hammered head.  Great eye, Gross jaw and griped lips do what granite can To give you the crown-grasper.  What a man!
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