Orval, or The Fool of Time :: :: University of Virginia Library

Too fair she is truly, too fair heaven knows,
(God forgive her!) so cruel to be.
The fair Vila, whom the wan clouds fondly follow
O'er the mountain wherever she roam it,
Is not fairer nor whiter than she.
Her long soft eyelash is the wing of the swallow
When the dew of the dawn trembles from it,
And as dawn-stars her blue eyes to me;
Her eyebrows so dark are the slender sea-leeches;
Her rich-bloomèd cheeks are the ripe river peaches,
Her teeth are white pearls from the sea;
Her lips are two half-open'd roses;
And her breath the south wind, which discloses
The sweetness that soothes the wild bee.
She is tall as the larch, she is slender
As any green bough the birds move;
See her dance—'tis the peacock's full splendour!
Hear her talk—'tis the coo of the dove!
And, only but let her look tender—
'Tis all heaven melting down from above!

Kolo, signifying literally a wheel, is the generic term for all the Servian national dances; in most of which the dancers, either taking hands, or united each to each by a handkerchief tied round the waist or to the girdle, form a ring and advance or retreat to and from the centre to a monotonous music, either of the voice or some very simple wind instruments. Both sexes take part in these dances, which are frequently in the open air.

A strange, but very frequent, simile in Servian poetry.