The Tormentil.
But this small golden disk was there, to give
Me its glad welcomings; teaching me to live
A life of beauty, and be useful too.
Our fathers in their fevers sought its aid— 5
Their sheep and swine throve well on it for food—
Its tanning properties were understood
In many lands; the Laplander has made
It yield its fine red dye, to ornament
His rein-deers’ trappings, his girdle and his gloves; 10
For every child of Nature dearly loves
The beautiful, and every flower is sent
For use as well as beauty,—only we
Are heedless of their wondrous potency!
George Markham Tweddell
[Sonnets on Trees and Flowers, p. 25]
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