The Collected Songs of Charles Mackay With Illustrations by John Gilbert |
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CATAWBA WINE. |
 | The Collected Songs of Charles Mackay |  |
CATAWBA WINE.
I
Ohio's green hill-topsGlow bright in the sun,
And yield us more treasure
Than Rhine or Garonne:
They give us Catawba,
The mild and the true,
As radiant as sunlight,
As soft as the dew,
And fragrant as gardens
When Summer is new.
Of all the glad vintage,
The purest and best,
Catawba the nectar
And balm of the West.
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II
Champagne is too oftenA trickster malign,
That flows from the apple
And not from the vine;
But thou, my Catawba!
Art fresh as the rose,
And sweet as the lips
Of my love when they close
To give back the kisses
My passion bestows.
Thou'rt born of the vintage,
And fed on its breast,
Catawba the nectar
And balm of the West!
III
When pledging the lovely,This sparkler we'll kiss;
When drinking to true hearts,
We'll toast them in this.
For Catawba is like them,
Though tender, yet strong,
As pleasant as morning,
And soft as a song,
Whose delicate beauty
The echoes prolong.
Catawba! heart-warmer!
Soul-cheerer! life-zest!
Catawba the nectar,
And balm of the West!
Cincinnati, Ohio, January, 1858.
| The Collected Songs of Charles Mackay | |