 | East and west : the discovery of America and other poems |  |
63
THE DRYAD.
I wooed the gentle spirit from a tree,
And asked her, “What art thou that thou shouldst be
So patient in thy green eternity?
And asked her, “What art thou that thou shouldst be
So patient in thy green eternity?
“Why dost thou brood upon the mountain lone,
Where mortal ne'er may hear thy plaintive moan,
Hear thy sweet sigh, and blend it with his own?”
Where mortal ne'er may hear thy plaintive moan,
Hear thy sweet sigh, and blend it with his own?”
She answered like a zephyr soft and low,
“The cause of my estate I do not know.
I live—am happy—God hath willed it so.
“The cause of my estate I do not know.
I live—am happy—God hath willed it so.
“Think not, proud soul, that all is planned for you.
Where men come not bloom flowers of fairest hue,
And Heaven unfolds the same ethereal blue.”
Where men come not bloom flowers of fairest hue,
And Heaven unfolds the same ethereal blue.”
| East and west : the discovery of America and other poems | |