 | Areytos or songs and ballads of the South |  |
50
WHEN I MET THEE, CORA LEE.
I.
When I met thee, Cora Lee,Thou wast surely unto me,
What the star is to the midnight—what the blossom to the tree;
In thy face, so soft and fair,
Was the dawn and morning air;
And the sunset in thy hair
Was a glory, Cora Lee!
II.
Thine were eyes, my Cora Lee,Which it dazzled mine to see,
But still won, with all their dazzle—won me ever after thee;
And I follow'd with a pace
That but shamed thy maiden grace,
Though with backward-looking face,
Thou still won'st me, Cora Lee!
III.
But no more, on land or sea,Shall my footsteps follow thee:
My star of midnight's gone, and my blossom of the tree;
And thy face of morning fair,
And thy grace of flight and air,
And the sunset in thy hair,
They are gone, forever gone, Cora Lee!
| Areytos or songs and ballads of the South | |