 | Areytos or songs and ballads of the South |  |
183
QUIET IS ON THE EARTH.
I.
Quiet is on the earth, and in the skyThe moon rides pale and high;
Silence is o'er the city, and the gush
Of the sweet South is all that breaks the hush;
Oh! wonder not, while Earth thus lies at rest,
If thy dear memory stirs within my breast,
And from my bosom's depths my soul should rove,
Still seeking thine, dear love!
II.
How should I sleep, though daily toil be o'erDoom'd vainly to adore?
Like some heart-humbled devotee, I bow,
Yet the stern idol still rejects my vow;
Hopeless, like him, my erring prayer is sent
Into the bright, cold, loveless firmament,
Which, by its scorn, would seem to mock the prayer,
Whose worship is despair!
III.
In the deep blue, how graciously the starsSmile from their twiring cars;
And Earth, beneath the dewy-dropping gleam,
Sleeps, as if favor'd with some happy dream!
Oh! while all nature laps it in delight,
Why should'st thou rise thus coldly on my sight?
Thou marr'st the music in the scene I prove,
Yet oh, be there my love!
| Areytos or songs and ballads of the South | |