Poems
The Touchstone
A man there came, whence none could tell,
Bearing a Touchstone in his hand;
And tested all things in the land
By its unerring spell.
Quick birth of transmutation smote
The fair to foul, the foul to fair;
Purple nor ermine did he spare,
Nor scorn the dusty coat.
Of heirloom jewels, prized so much,
Were many changed to chips and clods,
And even statues of the Gods
Crumbled beneath its touch.
Then angrily the people cried,
‘The loss outweighs the profit far;
Our goods suffice us as they are
We will not have then tried.’
And since they could not so prevail
To check this unrelenting guest,
They seized him, saying – ‘Let him test
How real it is, our jail!’
But, though they slew him with the sword,
And in a fire his Touchstone burn’d,
Its doings could not be o’erturned,
Its undoings restored.
And when to stop all future harm,
They strew’d its ashes on the breeze;
They little guess’d each grain of these
Convey’d the perfect charm.
North, south, in rings and amulets,
Throughout the crowded world ’tis borne;
Which, as a fashion long outworn,
In ancient mind forgets.
Bearing a Touchstone in his hand;
And tested all things in the land
By its unerring spell.
Quick birth of transmutation smote
The fair to foul, the foul to fair;
Purple nor ermine did he spare,
Nor scorn the dusty coat.
Of heirloom jewels, prized so much,
Were many changed to chips and clods,
And even statues of the Gods
Crumbled beneath its touch.
Then angrily the people cried,
‘The loss outweighs the profit far;
Our goods suffice us as they are
We will not have then tried.’
And since they could not so prevail
To check this unrelenting guest,
They seized him, saying – ‘Let him test
How real it is, our jail!’
But, though they slew him with the sword,
And in a fire his Touchstone burn’d,
Its doings could not be o’erturned,
Its undoings restored.
And when to stop all future harm,
They strew’d its ashes on the breeze;
They little guess’d each grain of these
Convey’d the perfect charm.
North, south, in rings and amulets,
Throughout the crowded world ’tis borne;
Which, as a fashion long outworn,
In ancient mind forgets.
Analysis (ai): The mysterious arrival of the figure with the Touchstone establishes an external, almost mythic force challenging established social hierarchies.
- Function of the Touchstone: Serving as a tool of absolute judgment, it disrupts conventional values by reversing appearances—revealing hidden truths without regard for status or tradition.
- Social Hierarchy and Class: The refusal to spare royalty (purple and ermine) or elevate poverty (the dusty coat) underscores impartiality, challenging Victorian ideals of decorum and inherited worth.
- Cultural Artifacts Under Scrutiny: Heirlooms and divine statues—symbols of lineage and religion—lose value under the touch, suggesting skepticism toward institutional legitimacy common in mid-Victorian critique.
- Public Reaction: The populace’s anger reflects discomfort with truth that destabilizes economic and symbolic capital, prioritizing comfort over integrity.
- Violent Suppression: Efforts to destroy the bearer and his instrument align with historical patterns of silencing dissent, mirroring reactions to reformers and critics of faith and class.
- Persistence of Truth: Death and destruction fail to erase the touchstone’s effect, implying that once truth is introduced, it cannot be fully retracted.
- Dissemination Through Ashes: The scattering of ashes parallels the uncontrollable spread of ideas, akin to Romantic notions of revolutionary thought outliving its originator.
- Ubiquity in Disguise: The transformed grains carried globally in jewelry indicate how subversive ideals endure covertly, absorbed into culture as silent norms.
- Memory and Oblivion: The final lines suggest collective amnesia; society adopts the consequences of truth while forgetting its source, a phenomenon frequent in Allingham’s contemplative works.
- Comparison to Contemporary Poems: Unlike Tennyson’s affirmations of order or Browning’s psychological defenses, this poem embraces irreversible disruption, aligning more with later Hardy in its skepticism.
- Place in Allingham’s Oeuvre: Among his lesser-known allegorical pieces, this stands out for its sustained metaphor and moral clarity, departing from his more lyrical, folk-infused verses.
- Language and Diction: Archaic phrasing (“whence none could tell,” “doings could not be o’erturned”) lends gravity and fable-like detachment, distancing the lesson from immediate politics.
- Post-1900 Relevance: Though written earlier, the poem prefigures modern concerns with systemic deception, institutional trust, and how truth circulates invisibly through societies.
- Form and Structure: The ballad-like quatrains with regular rhythm support a moral parable form common in Victorian didactic poetry, though the unresolved ending signals modern unease.
William Allingham (19 March 1824 – 18 November 1889) was an Irish poet, diarist and editor. He wrote several volumes of lyric verse, and his poem “The Faeries” was much anthologised. But he is better known for his posthumously published Diary, in which he records his lively encounters with Tennyson, Carlyle and other writers and artists. His wife, Helen Allingham, was a well-known artist, watercolourist and illustrator.
