![England, 1802 (I), By: William Wordsworth](https://i0.wp.com/poetrycatalog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/England-1802-I-By-William-Wordsworth.png?resize=750%2C420&ssl=1)
O friend! I know not which way I must look
For comfort, being, as I am, opprest,
To think that now our life is only drest
For show; mean handy-work of craftsman, cook,
Or groom! – We must run glittering like a brook
In the open sunshine, or we are unblest:
The wealthiest man among us is the best:
No grandeur now in nature or in book
Delights us. Rapine, avarice, expense,
This is idolatry; and these we adore:
Plain living and high thinking are no more:
The homely beauty of the good old cause
Is gone; our peace, our fearful innocence,
And pure religion breathing household laws.