XII.

"Whom the gods love die young," was said of yore,[235] And many deaths do they escape by this: The death of friends, and that which slays even more-- The death of Friendship, Love, Youth, all that is, Except mere breath; and since the silent shore Awaits at last even those who longest miss The old Archer's shafts, perhaps the early grave[236] Which men weep over may be meant to save.