Poems by Mary Russell Mitford. Second edition, with considerable additions |
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TO
THE HON. WILLIAM HERBERT. |
 | Poems |  |
1
TO THE HON. WILLIAM HERBERT.
Herbert! thy muse from every shore
Assiduous cull'd her tuneful store;
Soft spells from every clime she stole,
From bright Ausonia to the pole;
There, from the palsied hand of time,
She snatch'd the shell of Runic rhyme;
Pour'd the wild melody again,
Awoke the long-forgotten strain,
Swell'd the sweet notes through Odin's hall,
Whilst heroes started at the call!
Assiduous cull'd her tuneful store;
Soft spells from every clime she stole,
From bright Ausonia to the pole;
There, from the palsied hand of time,
She snatch'd the shell of Runic rhyme;
Pour'd the wild melody again,
Awoke the long-forgotten strain,
Swell'd the sweet notes through Odin's hall,
Whilst heroes started at the call!
2
Herbert! my simple wreath I twine
To honor, not to deck, thy shrine.
A simple wreath! no blushing rose
'Mid April's drooping flowerets glows,
No fragrance steals the ravish'd sense,
No charm is their's, but innocence.
Soon will they fade: The early flower
Falls the sad victim of an hour;
Yet the warm sun's benignant beam
Pours lengthen'd life in every gleam.
Ah, deign thy cheering smiles to give,
And bid the timid blossoms live!
To honor, not to deck, thy shrine.
A simple wreath! no blushing rose
'Mid April's drooping flowerets glows,
No fragrance steals the ravish'd sense,
No charm is their's, but innocence.
Soon will they fade: The early flower
Falls the sad victim of an hour;
Yet the warm sun's benignant beam
Pours lengthen'd life in every gleam.
Ah, deign thy cheering smiles to give,
And bid the timid blossoms live!
MARY RUSSELL MITFORD.
Bertram House, Feb. 20, 1810.
| Poems | |