Force not to over--growth the subject mind: <br />Heaven's the power that spread the native soil; <br />The tillage only asks thy careful toil, <br />On primal strength dependent: if confined <br />In depth and barren, simple be thy seed, <br />Of hardy grain: God's providence hath need <br />Of some to marshal well the ranks behind, <br />As of the lofty spirits born to lead. <br />But if the tender plants of truth thou sow, <br />Let there be depth of matter genial; <br />And if the frosts should nip, and strong winds blow, <br />Their kindly opposites should countervail: <br />Blest gifts, unfailing in their fostering might, <br />Sunshine by day, the dews of heaven by night.<br /><br />Henry Alford<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/sonnet-lxxxiii-to-a-friend-concerned-in-education/
