Poems and Songs by E. H. B. [i.e. E. H. Bickersteth] | ||
63
SONG.
[List! to old Ocean's voice, oh list]
I
List! to old Ocean's voice, oh list,Proudly he bounds along,
Flinging on high a briny mist,—
List! listen to his song.
II
“I come from many a far-off coast,From where the diamonds shine;
From golden sands, the trav'lers' boast,
And em'ralds all are mine.
III
“I rock the pearls within their shells,I haunt the coral groves;
I watch the Nereides weave their spells,
And guard their bright alcoves.
IV
“I bear upon my changeful breastFull many a gallant sail;
I hush the seaman to his rest
When night-winds loudly wail.
64
V
“I wait around fair Albion's Isle,And keep her from her foes;
And guard her fleet from rocks the while
The sterner Wind-God blows.
VI
“The loving heart—the aching headAre pillowed on the sea,
And none may dare disturb the dead
Who ride and sleep with me.
VII
“Their winding-sheet—a thousand waves,A world of waters hide
From man their bright untrodden graves
Beneath th' o'erwhelming tide.”
VIII
Then listen, Britons, to his voice!Proudly he bounds along,
While sunbeams mid his waves rejoice—
List! listen to his song.
Poems and Songs by E. H. B. [i.e. E. H. Bickersteth] | ||