"Best they honor thee Who honor in thee only what is best." -William Watson, poet (1858-1935)

What does this mean? Is it "they" or "thee" that the restrictive clause "who..." modifies?

Sorry. I racked my brain in vain to figure it out.

I’m learning English. If u find anywhere I can improve my composition, Pls do let me know. Bow.

THE TRUE PATRIOTISM

The ever-lustrous name of patriot
To no man be denied because he saw
Where in his country's wholeness lay the flaw,
Where, on her whiteness, the unseemly blot.
England! thy loyal sons condemn thee.--What!
Shall we be meek who from thine own breasts draw
Our fierceness? Not ev'n thou shalt overawe
Us thy proud children nowise basely got.
Be this the measure of our loyalty--
To feel thee noble and weep thy lapse the more.
This truth by thy true servants is confess'd--
Thy sins, who love thee most, do most deplore.
Know thou thy faithful! Best they honour thee
Who honour in thee only what is best.

is a pernicious, psychopathic form of idiocy.

One had rather hoped to assist callithump in identifying the referents to the pronouns in the quotation by setting it in the context of Watson's complete poem.

And Watson's notions about patriotism strike me as both benign and rational.

Sorry, Your Honour. I had not discerned your intent, saw only a poem posted without explanation, commentary or attribution, and jumped to the contusion that this had become a thread for quotes on the subject of the patriotism. I shall go back to my telepthy courses, head bowed in shame at my failure.

No problem, Max.

Ego te absolvo a peccatis tuis.

I thought perhaps I held the title for jumping to unwarranted conclusions on this board, but I am willing to share that ignominy with another.

The who refers to the they. They honor…, who honor… What Watson is saying is that someone who honors you for your bad traits is not honoring you for the right reasons. You should be honored for your good.

Thanks, Faldage. Your post did what Fr. Steve said his first was intended to, but without the requirement to divine your intent.

So can I parse the sentence as

'They, who honor in thee only what is best, honor thee best'

or, in plainer meaning,

'They [who] honor thee best [are thoese] who honor in thee only what is best'?

I’m learning English. If u find anywhere I can improve my composition, Pls do let me know. Bow.

... divine your intent.

Wonderful, Max.

'They [who] honor thee best [are thoese] who honor in thee only what is best'? Yes, Sweetie. [scuttling away from all this divine intent e]

And the only thing that is truly devine is ambrosia ... mmmmmmmmmm!

the only thing that is truly devine is ambrosia.

What about Bette Middler?

Then there's Divine hisownse'f. But he's a little bit dead, isn't he?

Harris Glen Milstead died 7 March 1988 of a heart attack induced by his obesity. He was "famous" for his several transvestite roles using the stage name Divine, especially Hairspray.