 | The Poetical Works of Aubrey De Vere |  |
XXI. THE SIBYL'S CAVE AT CUMA.
Cumæan Sibyl! from thy sultry caveThy dark eyes level with the sulph'rous ground
Through the gloom flashing, roll in wrath around!
What see they? Coasts perpetual Earthquakes pave
With ruin; piles half buried in the wave;
Wrecks of old times in later lava drowned;—
And festive crowds, sin-steeped and myrtle-crowned,
Like idiots dancing on a Parent's grave.
And they foresee. Those pallid lips with pain
Suppress their thrilling whispers. Sibyl, spare!
Could Wisdom's voice divide yon sea, and scare
With some Vesuvius new its flaming plane,
Futile the warning! Power despised! forbear
To deepen guilt by counsel breathed in vain!
| The Poetical Works of Aubrey De Vere | |