SONG.
Oh, wer e my l ove yo u li lac fair , With purpl e bl oss oms to the spring ;
And I a bi r d to shelter ther e, When wearied on my little wing !
How I woul d m our n , when i t was tor n, By a utum n wi l d, an d wi n ter ru de !
Bu t I woul d si n g, on wanto n wing, When youthful May i t s bl oom r enewed .
SWEET AND LOW .
Sweet an d l o w , sweet an d l o w, Wind of the wester n se a,
Low, l o w , br eathe an d bl ow, Wind of the wester n se a !
Over the r olling wate r s go,
Come fr om the dying moon, an d bl ow,
Bl ow him again to m e ;
Whi l e my lit tl e one, whi l e my pr etty one, sl eeps.
Sleep an d r est, sl eep an d r est,
Father wi ll c om e to thee soon ;
Re st, r est on m other ’ s br east,
Father will com e to thee soon ;
Father will come to hi s babe in the nest,
Si l ver sa i ls all o ut of the west
Under the si lver moon
Sl eep, my little one, sl eep, my pret ty o n e , sl eep .
Ho w doth the littl e busy bee
Impr ove each ‘ shi n ing hour ,
An d gather honey all the day
Fr om every open ing flower !
How s ki lfully she b ui l ds he r cell ,
How neat she spr eads the wax !
And labor s har d to sto r e i t well
With the sweet food she makes .
In wor ks of l abor o r Of skill ,
I woul d be busy too ;
Fo r Sata n fin ds som e mischief sti ll
Fo r idle hands to do .
In books , o r work, o r healthful pl ay,
Le t my fir st year s he past,
That I may give f o r every day
Some good account at l ast .
Br eak, br eak, br eak,
On thy col d gr ay stones , 0 Se a !
An d I woul d that my tongu e coul d utt e r
The tho u ght s that arise i n me .
Oh, well f o r the fishe rman ’ s boy,
That he sho uts with hi s si s ter at play !
Oh, well f o r the sai l or la d,
That he sings in his boat on the bay !
And the stately s hips go on
To their haven un der the hill ;
But oh, f o r the touch of a vanished hand,
And the sound of a voice that i s still !
Br eak, break, br eak,
At the foot of thy crags , 0 Se a !
But the te nder grace Of a day that i s dead
Wi ll never come back to me .
THE ARROW AND THE SONG.
I shot an ar r ow i n to the air , It fell to earth, I knew not whe re ;
Fo r , so swift ly i t flew, the sight
Coul d not fol low i t in i t s flight .