Lines.
BY ALEX. LACEY BEARD.
O! there are many brilliant things
To light this darksome life,
And many bright imaginings
With wild enjoyment rife.
The flashing of the sparkling stream—
The billows bounding free—
The glittering of the sunny beam
Upon the dark green sea.
The lightning flash that rends the air—
The meteor's dazzling light
That fiercely gleams with fitful glare
Amid the starless night.
And there are many lovely things
That grace the smiling earth—
The gushing of a thousand springs—
The laughing streamlet's mirth—
The swift deer bounding through the wood—
The merry singing bird;—
Its sweet tones in the solitude
Of lonely forests heard.
The greenwood and the grassy plain—
The silent mountain glen
Where nature sways her wild domain,
Far from the haunts of men.
The mountain where the cedars high
Bend to the passing breeze—
The murm'ring pines that softly sigh—
The music of the trees—
The sparkling dew-drop on the grass—
The river's golden sand—
The flitting of the shades which pass
In grandeur o'er the land.
The whippoorwill's sad cry at night,
Heard from some lonely dell—
The streaming of the pale moonlight,
Old nature's magic spell.
The rainbow's arch that spans the sky—
The shining stars above—
The glancing of a kindling eye—
The tones of one we love.
The glowing kiss all fondly pressed
On lips both warm and true—
The beating of a tender breast,
Which only throbs for you.
These gild with sunshine and delight
The paths of life, and throw
Upon its darkling streams a bright,
And never fading glow.
By what bizzarrerie does it happen that Sardanapalus is discovered in Greek literature under the name of Tenos Concoleros?
For the Southern Literary Messenger.
← Back to The Southern Literary Messenger, Volume I., 1834-35