 | The British Months |  |
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APRIL.
Intermediate Character between March and May. Name indicative of its property
Hail, pleasant month, that lead'st the way
From March austere to smiling May,
Allied to each! The mornings frore
Now and again with mantle hoar
Array'd; the dry and biting blast,
Shrewd from the north; the sky o'ercast
With fleet and oft recurring shroud
Of sleety storm and darkling cloud;
Claim kindred to thy brother March.
On that dark cloud the braided arch
Imprest; the sparkling sunshine bright,
That now with countless gems of light
The meadow's grassy surface spreads
Resplendent, and with slanting threads
Pierces the falling raindrops' veil,
Now beams unclouded, while the gale
Breathes sweetness from the blooming spray,
Show likeness to thy sister May.
From March austere to smiling May,
Allied to each! The mornings frore
Now and again with mantle hoar
Array'd; the dry and biting blast,
Shrewd from the north; the sky o'ercast
With fleet and oft recurring shroud
Of sleety storm and darkling cloud;
Claim kindred to thy brother March.
On that dark cloud the braided arch
Imprest; the sparkling sunshine bright,
That now with countless gems of light
The meadow's grassy surface spreads
Resplendent, and with slanting threads
Pierces the falling raindrops' veil,
Now beams unclouded, while the gale
Breathes sweetness from the blooming spray,
Show likeness to thy sister May.
Hail, April! if allowed the claim
Involv'd obscurely in thy name,
Else thy subjection deem'd to prove
To Aphrodite, queen of love;
Hail, Opener of the fruitful year ;
Who universal nature's sphere
Terrestrial dost apertly bring
To life, a fresh awakening
Of vegetation in the gloom
Immerst of winter's dreary tomb.
Involv'd obscurely in thy name,
Else thy subjection deem'd to prove
To Aphrodite, queen of love;
Hail, Opener of the fruitful year ;
Who universal nature's sphere
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To life, a fresh awakening
Of vegetation in the gloom
Immerst of winter's dreary tomb.
Nam, quia Ver aperit tunc omnia, densaque cedit
Frigoris asperitas, fetaque terra parit;
Aprilem memorant ab aperto tempore dictum:
Quem Venus injectâ vindicat alma manu.
Frigoris asperitas, fetaque terra parit;
Aprilem memorant ab aperto tempore dictum:
Quem Venus injectâ vindicat alma manu.
—Ov. Fast. iv. 87.
Beauty of reviving nature. The heathen's melancholy feeling. Moschus's elegy on Bion. The Christian's feelings. Spring an emblem of a future state
There is a simple pure delight,
Which the heart feasts on, in the sight
Of nature, when aside she throws
The wintry cearments that inclose
Her vegetable forms, and keep
Their senses in sepulchral sleep.
Which the heart feasts on, in the sight
Of nature, when aside she throws
The wintry cearments that inclose
Her vegetable forms, and keep
Their senses in sepulchral sleep.
Yet are there some, to whom, untaught
By holy lore divine, the thought
Of nature's renovating spring
May rather by dark contrast bring
Sad thoughts and cheerless. Thus on thee,
Sweet rural bard of Sicily,
Sweet Moschus, by thy Dorian well
Reflection's bitter spirit fell,
And steep'd in tears thy plaintive verse,
Hung on lamented Bion's hearse.
“Alas, Alas, the garden flow'r,
When, spent its transitory hour,
With shrivell'd leaves and faded dies
Nipt on its native bed it lies,
Again the wither'd head shall rear,
And flourish yet another year.
But we meanwhile, of human birth,
The great, the brave, the wise of earth,
As soon as once o'erspent we die,
Within the earth's dark caverns lie,
Inglorious; and for ever keep
A long, an endless, wakeless sleep!”
By holy lore divine, the thought
Of nature's renovating spring
May rather by dark contrast bring
Sad thoughts and cheerless. Thus on thee,
Sweet rural bard of Sicily,
Sweet Moschus, by thy Dorian well
Reflection's bitter spirit fell,
And steep'd in tears thy plaintive verse,
Hung on lamented Bion's hearse.
“Alas, Alas, the garden flow'r,
When, spent its transitory hour,
With shrivell'd leaves and faded dies
Nipt on its native bed it lies,
Again the wither'd head shall rear,
And flourish yet another year.
But we meanwhile, of human birth,
The great, the brave, the wise of earth,
As soon as once o'erspent we die,
Within the earth's dark caverns lie,
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A long, an endless, wakeless sleep!”
Truce to the melancholy rhime!
Be rather ours this lenten time,
This time of spring reviv'd, to greet
Returning April's season sweet;
Pledge of the time, when like the flower,
Which now with renovated power
Is waken'd, man again shall bloom;
Yet not like it in wintry gloom
Again to wither and decay,
But flourish in eternal day!
Be rather ours this lenten time,
This time of spring reviv'd, to greet
Returning April's season sweet;
Pledge of the time, when like the flower,
Which now with renovated power
Is waken'd, man again shall bloom;
Yet not like it in wintry gloom
Again to wither and decay,
But flourish in eternal day!
Then, April, hail! With cheerful tone
I bid thee welcome: not alone
For that thou com'st and bring'st along
The sight, and smell, and tuneful song
Of leaf, and flow'r of mingled hue,
And many a plumed warbler new:
But that, with holy wisdom fraught,
Thou wak'st withal the grateful thought,
That, when these pleasant things are o'er,
Things still more pleasant are in store
In God's celestial paradise
“For those that love him;” passing bliss
“Which human eye or ear can scan,
Nor dwell they in the heart of man !”
I bid thee welcome: not alone
For that thou com'st and bring'st along
The sight, and smell, and tuneful song
Of leaf, and flow'r of mingled hue,
And many a plumed warbler new:
But that, with holy wisdom fraught,
Thou wak'st withal the grateful thought,
That, when these pleasant things are o'er,
Things still more pleasant are in store
In God's celestial paradise
“For those that love him;” passing bliss
“Which human eye or ear can scan,
Nor dwell they in the heart of man !”
April objects pleasing in themselves. Fresh Foliage. Larch, Thorn, Sycamore, Horse Chestnut, Lime, Alder, Birch, Elm, Beech
Of song, and flow'r, and bursting bough,
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And show'rs and suns, in holt and heath,
Are opening. Fearful to sustain
Imperious March's rougher reign,
Thy softer wooing they obey,
Forerunner of the gentle May.
Hail, April! Lo, inspired by thee
Full many a lovely form I see
Its long lost garniture resume,
Of woodland leaf, and woodland bloom.
Full many a lovely form I see
Its long lost garniture resume,
Of woodland leaf, and woodland bloom.
No more with tassels here and there
Besprent, but in a vesture fair
The Larch to welcome thee is seen,
Unmingled, of the tenderest green.
Bright tints, to welcome thee, adorn
Of tenderest green the full-robed thorn.
Of broader lobes, and darker grain,
His leaves for thee the Maple-Plane
Develops from their crimson sheaths:
For thee his bright and twisted wreaths
Five-finger'd, like a giant's hand,
The Chestnut's lengthening shoots expand.
Fcrth from his coral's ruby holds
The Lime his pale green leaves unfolds.
The Alder through the wat'ry mead,
About the mountain's rocky head
The Birch for thee his leaves displays.
And Elm and spreading Beech arrays,
To grace thy course, a thickening skreen;
This his smooth plates of glossy sheen;
And, stateliest of the woodland realm,
His rougher leaves the blossom'd Elm.
Besprent, but in a vesture fair
The Larch to welcome thee is seen,
Unmingled, of the tenderest green.
Bright tints, to welcome thee, adorn
Of tenderest green the full-robed thorn.
Of broader lobes, and darker grain,
His leaves for thee the Maple-Plane
Develops from their crimson sheaths:
For thee his bright and twisted wreaths
Five-finger'd, like a giant's hand,
The Chestnut's lengthening shoots expand.
Fcrth from his coral's ruby holds
The Lime his pale green leaves unfolds.
The Alder through the wat'ry mead,
About the mountain's rocky head
The Birch for thee his leaves displays.
And Elm and spreading Beech arrays,
To grace thy course, a thickening skreen;
This his smooth plates of glossy sheen;
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His rougher leaves the blossom'd Elm.
Fresh blossoms on trees. Aspen. Ash. Mountain Ash. Crab-Apple. Cherry. Pear. Beauty of wild Fruittrees
And, April, many a blossom'd tree
Besides appears to honour thee.
If dull to March's wooing, now
For thee the trembling Aspen's bough
Shows its long drops of scaly down,
White, but with rings of mottled brown.
For thee the Ash-tree's branches gray,
Whose lingering leaves crave longer stay,
Send now their flow'rs unshelter'd forth:
And, offspring of the hilly north,
The beauteous tree of mountain fame,
The Ash-tree's kinsman but in name,
For thee with winged leafits spread
Puts forth his blossoms' cluster'd head.
Besides appears to honour thee.
If dull to March's wooing, now
For thee the trembling Aspen's bough
Shows its long drops of scaly down,
White, but with rings of mottled brown.
For thee the Ash-tree's branches gray,
Whose lingering leaves crave longer stay,
Send now their flow'rs unshelter'd forth:
And, offspring of the hilly north,
The beauteous tree of mountain fame,
The Ash-tree's kinsman but in name,
For thee with winged leafits spread
Puts forth his blossoms' cluster'd head.
And wilding fruit-trees, such alone
As Britain's isles can boast their own,
Indigenous, of more delight
Ministrant to the curious sight,
Than grateful to the craving taste:
The Crab with virgin whiteness graced,
Ting'd with the rose's modest glow;
Of virgin whiteness, like the snow,
The cluster'd Cherry; and more rare,
Of rival white the blooming Pear:
More justly valued for their use,
For swelling pulp, for flowing juice,
But not in form, or native die,
Or texture, lovelier to the eye,
Where, nurs'd by man's improving care,
With Peach and Apricot they share,
And luscious Nectarine, the praise
To light the garden's vernal blaze;
Or claim, their undivided reign,
The blooming orchard's rich domain.
As Britain's isles can boast their own,
Indigenous, of more delight
Ministrant to the curious sight,
Than grateful to the craving taste:
The Crab with virgin whiteness graced,
Ting'd with the rose's modest glow;
Of virgin whiteness, like the snow,
The cluster'd Cherry; and more rare,
Of rival white the blooming Pear:
More justly valued for their use,
For swelling pulp, for flowing juice,
But not in form, or native die,
Or texture, lovelier to the eye,
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With Peach and Apricot they share,
And luscious Nectarine, the praise
To light the garden's vernal blaze;
Or claim, their undivided reign,
The blooming orchard's rich domain.
Fresh Flowers. Cowslip. Broom. Ground-ivy. Periwinkle. Strawberry. Fritillary or Chequer'd Daffodill. Various other flowers
Nor, April, fail with scent and hue
To grace thee lowlier blossoms new.
Not only that, where weak and scant
Peep'd forth the early primrose plant,
Now shine profuse unnumber'd eyes,
Like stars that stud the wint'ry skies:
But that its sister Cowslips nigh,
With no unfriendly rivalry
Of form and tint and fragrant smells,
O'er the green fields their yellow bells
Unfold bedropt with tawny red,
And meekly bend the drooping head.
Not only that the fringed edge
Of heath, or bank, or pathway hedge
Glows with the furze's golden bloom:
But mingling now the verdant Broom,
With flow'rs of rival lustre deck'd,
Uplifts its shapelier form erect.
To grace thee lowlier blossoms new.
Not only that, where weak and scant
Peep'd forth the early primrose plant,
Now shine profuse unnumber'd eyes,
Like stars that stud the wint'ry skies:
But that its sister Cowslips nigh,
With no unfriendly rivalry
Of form and tint and fragrant smells,
O'er the green fields their yellow bells
Unfold bedropt with tawny red,
And meekly bend the drooping head.
Not only that the fringed edge
Of heath, or bank, or pathway hedge
Glows with the furze's golden bloom:
But mingling now the verdant Broom,
With flow'rs of rival lustre deck'd,
Uplifts its shapelier form erect.
And there, upon the sod below,
Ground-ivy's purple blossoms show,
Like helmet of crusader knight,
Its anthers' crosslike forms of white.
And lesser Periwinkle's bloom,
Like carpet of Damascus' loom,
Pranks with bright blue the tissue wove
Of verdant foliage: and above
With milkwhite flow'rs, whence soon shall swell
Red fruitage, to the taste and smell
Pleasant alike, the Strawberry weaves
Its coronets of threefold leaves
In mazes through the sloping wood.
Nor wants there, in her dreamy mood
What fancy's sportiveness may think
A cup, whence midnight elves might drink
Delicious drops of nectar'd dew,
While they their fairy sports pursue
And roundelays by fount or rill;
The streak'd and chequer'd Daffodill.
Ground-ivy's purple blossoms show,
Like helmet of crusader knight,
Its anthers' crosslike forms of white.
And lesser Periwinkle's bloom,
Like carpet of Damascus' loom,
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Of verdant foliage: and above
With milkwhite flow'rs, whence soon shall swell
Red fruitage, to the taste and smell
Pleasant alike, the Strawberry weaves
Its coronets of threefold leaves
In mazes through the sloping wood.
Nor wants there, in her dreamy mood
What fancy's sportiveness may think
A cup, whence midnight elves might drink
Delicious drops of nectar'd dew,
While they their fairy sports pursue
And roundelays by fount or rill;
The streak'd and chequer'd Daffodill.
Nor wants there many a flow'r beside
On holt and heath and meadow pied:
With pale green bloom the upright Box;
And woodland Crowfoot's golden locks;
And yellow Cinquefoil's hairy trail;
And Saxifrage with petals pale;
And purple Bilberry's globelike head;
And Cranberry's bells of rosy red;
And creeping Gromwell blue and bright;
And Cranesbill's streaks of red and white,
Or purple with soft leaves of down;
And golden Tulip's turban'd crown
Sweet-scented on its bending stem;
And bright-eyed Star of Bethlehem;
With those, the firstlings of their kind,
Which through the bosky thickets wind
Their tendrils, vetch, or pea, or tare,
At random; and with many a pair
Of leafits green the brake embower,
And many a pendent painted flower.
On holt and heath and meadow pied:
With pale green bloom the upright Box;
And woodland Crowfoot's golden locks;
And yellow Cinquefoil's hairy trail;
And Saxifrage with petals pale;
And purple Bilberry's globelike head;
And Cranberry's bells of rosy red;
And creeping Gromwell blue and bright;
And Cranesbill's streaks of red and white,
Or purple with soft leaves of down;
And golden Tulip's turban'd crown
Sweet-scented on its bending stem;
And bright-eyed Star of Bethlehem;
With those, the firstlings of their kind,
Which through the bosky thickets wind
Their tendrils, vetch, or pea, or tare,
At random; and with many a pair
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And many a pendent painted flower.
Fresh birds. Swallow tribe more numerous. Swift. Short-winged birds. White Throat. Redstart. Woodwren. Grass-hopper-Warbler. Yellow Wagtail. Turtledove. Cuckoo
Responsive, countless forms the while
Of animated life obey
The summons of thy gentle sway.
If uncongenial blasts before
Have stay'd their passage to our shore,
Now wafted, gentler month, by thee
O'er midland or Atlantick sea,
The threefold tribes of Swallows haste,
In thy first days, or ere to waste
Thy midmost course has run. Nor fails
He of the pinion's broadest sails
To track their path, their brother Swift.
But tho' to brave the stormy drift
Be his the pinions' amplest spread,
And his with fleetest action sped
The airy flight; more late to come,
More prompt to quit his summer home,
Is he of all the fork-tail'd race:
As if his wint'ry dwelling-place,
Hard by the Stormy Cape, or far
In regions of the eastern star,
Forbade across the tedious way
Or quick approach or lengthen'd stay.
Nor, April, dost thou fail to bring
To greet thee birds of shorter wing,
Infirm of flight; yet such as trill
Melodious from their tender bill
Sweet musick. If the White-throat's lay,
Flitting from hedgerow spray to spray,
Or gently mounting through the air,
To mark his bosom silvery fair
Invite us:—or from loftiest tree
With brisk unwearied melody,
Of sable breast and snowy head
And quivering tail of crimson red,
The slumbering morn the Redstart wakes:—
Or 'mid the groves and tangled brakes
The Wood-wren from his yellow throat
Chants forth his sharp and shivering note,
Peculiar:—or his whisper'd song
That warbler, olive brown, among
Thicket, or furze, or sheltering grass;
While untaught peasants, as they pass,
Deem the loud whisper of his bill
Is but the cricket's chirrup shrill.
To greet thee birds of shorter wing,
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Melodious from their tender bill
Sweet musick. If the White-throat's lay,
Flitting from hedgerow spray to spray,
Or gently mounting through the air,
To mark his bosom silvery fair
Invite us:—or from loftiest tree
With brisk unwearied melody,
Of sable breast and snowy head
And quivering tail of crimson red,
The slumbering morn the Redstart wakes:—
Or 'mid the groves and tangled brakes
The Wood-wren from his yellow throat
Chants forth his sharp and shivering note,
Peculiar:—or his whisper'd song
That warbler, olive brown, among
Thicket, or furze, or sheltering grass;
While untaught peasants, as they pass,
Deem the loud whisper of his bill
Is but the cricket's chirrup shrill.
Nor, April, think I scorn to see
On newturn'd tilth, or upland lea,
Tho' thin and weak her pow'r of song,
Tripping the nibbling flocks among,
Or hunting brisk from ridge to ridge
The worm minute or lurking midge,
With sulphur breast, and olive wing,
The pretty Shepherdess of Spring;—
Or in the shelter'd solitudes
Of southern England's sprouting woods,
Hear with his soft repeated coo
His mate the gentle Turtle woo:—
Or catch on some sunshiny day
“The plainsong of the Cuckoo gray ,”
Resounding from his shallow bill
With cry monotonous, and still
Repeated; but though rude and dull
Of sound, of pleasing thoughts is full
“The plainsong” of that shallow bird,
Then first amid the flushing heard
Of vernal beauty, at the time
When the young year is in its prime;
And, ere that prime be overcast,
The Cuckoo's homely song is past.
On newturn'd tilth, or upland lea,
Tho' thin and weak her pow'r of song,
Tripping the nibbling flocks among,
Or hunting brisk from ridge to ridge
The worm minute or lurking midge,
With sulphur breast, and olive wing,
The pretty Shepherdess of Spring;—
Or in the shelter'd solitudes
Of southern England's sprouting woods,
Hear with his soft repeated coo
His mate the gentle Turtle woo:—
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“The plainsong of the Cuckoo gray ,”
Resounding from his shallow bill
With cry monotonous, and still
Repeated; but though rude and dull
Of sound, of pleasing thoughts is full
“The plainsong” of that shallow bird,
Then first amid the flushing heard
Of vernal beauty, at the time
When the young year is in its prime;
And, ere that prime be overcast,
The Cuckoo's homely song is past.
Nightingale. Southampton, Bagley Wood, East Horsley. Limits of the nightingale. Favourite of poets. Chaucer. Bishop Heber. Beauty of its song. Song-birds a sign of divine benevolence. Gratitude due in return. Sentiment of Izaak Walton
But what's the song, which gives the zest
To thee, the sweetest and the best,
Spring's opening season? Which delights
With liquid lay thy vernal nights,
And summer's, on my native shores,
Where Itchin, gentle river, pours
His tribute with the inswelling tide
To mingle; and his western side
My own Southampton's spires adorn,
Loveliest of towns; and onward borne
In that bright bay the admiring sight
Rejoices, and the hills of Wight,
And Netley's abbey-hallow'd nook,
And castled cape of Carisbrook,
And that famed Forest's broad array
Of umbrage by that lucid bay?
To thee, the sweetest and the best,
Spring's opening season? Which delights
With liquid lay thy vernal nights,
And summer's, on my native shores,
Where Itchin, gentle river, pours
His tribute with the inswelling tide
To mingle; and his western side
My own Southampton's spires adorn,
Loveliest of towns; and onward borne
In that bright bay the admiring sight
Rejoices, and the hills of Wight,
And Netley's abbey-hallow'd nook,
And castled cape of Carisbrook,
And that famed Forest's broad array
Of umbrage by that lucid bay?
Sweet to the eye is that bright bay;
Sweet to the ear that liquid lay,
Now warbled in my native coasts:
Or in the glades, where Bagley boasts
His site by Oxford's classick bowers,
My mother Oxford's Gothick towers,
And spires, and domes, and glistening vanes:
Or in green Horsley's hazel lanes,
My sojourn once; nor fairer scene
Surrey 'mong all her copses green
Can vaunt of, and her cowslip fields!
That liquid lay no dingle yields
Northward or west. Nor rugged Wales
In her deep nooks the wanderer hails;
Nor Scotia in the briery brakes
That shade her dells, and bourns, and lakes;
Nor Erin on her emerald hills,
Nor Cumbria's meres and mountain rills,
Nor Devon's genial groves. Alone
Of Britain's islands, for thine own
'Tis thine, lov'd England, where is strew'd
By flowery meads the good green wood,
In midland or in southern vale,
To claim the peerless Nightingale!
Sweet to the ear that liquid lay,
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Or in the glades, where Bagley boasts
His site by Oxford's classick bowers,
My mother Oxford's Gothick towers,
And spires, and domes, and glistening vanes:
Or in green Horsley's hazel lanes,
My sojourn once; nor fairer scene
Surrey 'mong all her copses green
Can vaunt of, and her cowslip fields!
That liquid lay no dingle yields
Northward or west. Nor rugged Wales
In her deep nooks the wanderer hails;
Nor Scotia in the briery brakes
That shade her dells, and bourns, and lakes;
Nor Erin on her emerald hills,
Nor Cumbria's meres and mountain rills,
Nor Devon's genial groves. Alone
Of Britain's islands, for thine own
'Tis thine, lov'd England, where is strew'd
By flowery meads the good green wood,
In midland or in southern vale,
To claim the peerless Nightingale!
Theme of thy bards! From him who drew
At Arno's fount the inspiring dew,
And bath'd thy yet uncultur'd wild,
“Pure well of English undefil'd :”
To him, who late from Gunga's side
Far o'er the world of waters wide
Thought on his pleasant native land;
And, pilgrim on a distant strand,
Half breath'd a pray'r, but breath'd in vain,
To see his well-lov'd oaks again,
And near the grave's expecting verge
Sang, swan-like, his funereal dirge,
Prelate and Bard !—And who, with ear
The concert of sweet sounds to hear,
Feels not the soul-intrancing swell,
Like him, of lovely Philomel;
As in the still and silent eve
Preluding he begins to weave
The tissue of his silver song:
Then with brief pauses all night long
Ascending now, and now descending,
The scatter'd links of sweetness blending,
From note to note harmonious changing,
Through every maze of musick ranging,
Again commences, and again,
No plaintive melancholy strain
Of frustrate hopes, but fills the grove
With descant of enraptur'd love.
At Arno's fount the inspiring dew,
And bath'd thy yet uncultur'd wild,
“Pure well of English undefil'd :”
To him, who late from Gunga's side
Far o'er the world of waters wide
Thought on his pleasant native land;
And, pilgrim on a distant strand,
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To see his well-lov'd oaks again,
And near the grave's expecting verge
Sang, swan-like, his funereal dirge,
Prelate and Bard !—And who, with ear
The concert of sweet sounds to hear,
Feels not the soul-intrancing swell,
Like him, of lovely Philomel;
As in the still and silent eve
Preluding he begins to weave
The tissue of his silver song:
Then with brief pauses all night long
Ascending now, and now descending,
The scatter'd links of sweetness blending,
From note to note harmonious changing,
Through every maze of musick ranging,
Again commences, and again,
No plaintive melancholy strain
Of frustrate hopes, but fills the grove
With descant of enraptur'd love.
How full is Providence's plan
Of joy gratuitous to man!
These little birds, that wing the air
Through the blithe spring, and seek their fare,
Reptile and burrowing fly, that lurk
In the fresh plant, and else would work
Death to the cornfield's sprouting root,
And blooming garden's embryo fruit:
How might they through the orchard fly
And sprouting field; in silence ply
The intrusted task; nor breathe a note
Of rapture from their tuneless throat!
Of joy gratuitous to man!
These little birds, that wing the air
Through the blithe spring, and seek their fare,
Reptile and burrowing fly, that lurk
In the fresh plant, and else would work
Death to the cornfield's sprouting root,
And blooming garden's embryo fruit:
How might they through the orchard fly
And sprouting field; in silence ply
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Of rapture from their tuneless throat!
But He, who these his creatures sends,
Our little help meets, kindly blends
Delight with our substantial good:
And we, as through the good green wood
We wander in the pleasant spring,
And hear them “in the branches sing ,”
Behoves us then to Him to raise
A heartfelt thought of grateful praise,
Who bids their little hearts rejoice,
And gives us through their tuneful voice
A portion of their joy to feel!
And thence a pleasing thought may steal
O'er the calm heart with heavenward aim,
Like that old man's of angling fame,
Who courted rural nature's love
On the wild banks of lonely Dove,
Or sought beside Lea's “crystal stream
In pleasant meads to solace him.”
Then oft, as from the midnight hill,
When every village sound was still,
And safely slept the weary swains,
The Nightingale's loud liquid strains
Breath'd from her little throat he caught,
Devotion wak'd the aspiring thought:
“Lord, if such musick thou bestow
On bad men in this world of woe,
Thy saints—what musick shall they prove
Before thee in thy realm of love!”
Our little help meets, kindly blends
Delight with our substantial good:
And we, as through the good green wood
We wander in the pleasant spring,
And hear them “in the branches sing ,”
Behoves us then to Him to raise
A heartfelt thought of grateful praise,
Who bids their little hearts rejoice,
And gives us through their tuneful voice
A portion of their joy to feel!
And thence a pleasing thought may steal
O'er the calm heart with heavenward aim,
Like that old man's of angling fame,
Who courted rural nature's love
On the wild banks of lonely Dove,
Or sought beside Lea's “crystal stream
In pleasant meads to solace him.”
Then oft, as from the midnight hill,
When every village sound was still,
And safely slept the weary swains,
The Nightingale's loud liquid strains
Breath'd from her little throat he caught,
Devotion wak'd the aspiring thought:
“Lord, if such musick thou bestow
On bad men in this world of woe,
Thy saints—what musick shall they prove
Before thee in thy realm of love!”
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General activity in nest building. Variety of materials. Diversity of situations. Different modes of building. Skill unrivalled by man. Altogether instructive
There's bustle now throughout the air:
For little forms are busy there
In social flight; and to and fro
Still on unwearied wing they go,
Ere from the east the orient ray
Streak with faint light the morning gray,
Till fading in the opposing west
It warn them to their evening rest,
The nuptial pairs! for them, whom first
Hath this their native climate nurst,
And their perennial home supplied,
Or the recurring vernal tide
Invites from distant climes to come,
And seek with us their summer home,
Indigenous; the genial hour,
Alike with unresisted power,
Now 'mid their native fields and groves
Excites to prosecute their loves,
And, where their earliest breath they drew,
The fortunes of their race renew.
For little forms are busy there
In social flight; and to and fro
Still on unwearied wing they go,
Ere from the east the orient ray
Streak with faint light the morning gray,
Till fading in the opposing west
It warn them to their evening rest,
The nuptial pairs! for them, whom first
Hath this their native climate nurst,
And their perennial home supplied,
Or the recurring vernal tide
Invites from distant climes to come,
And seek with us their summer home,
Indigenous; the genial hour,
Alike with unresisted power,
Now 'mid their native fields and groves
Excites to prosecute their loves,
And, where their earliest breath they drew,
The fortunes of their race renew.
And so 'tis bustle all, nor rest
Nor respite; for the purpos'd nest
Till by instinctive skill are sought
Materials rude and quaint, and brought
Each to the appropriate place, as each
The general laws of nature teach:
The general laws, to all as known
In common, and to each its own.
Whate'er on earth's broad bosom lies,
Or on the passing breezes flies,
May serve their urgent need, they catch
And bear abrupt away: from thatch
Of cottage roof, or haystack, draw
The loosen'd hay, or dangling straw;
Or with keen glance inquiring peep,
And from the rich manuring heap
Take of its matted stores; or cull
The wiry hair, or softer wool,
Of horse or fleecy sheep; and now
Twigs from the dry and sapless bough,
Now tufts of cottony down combine,
Or of the spider's filmy line;
Or fibrous root, or grassy bent,
Or feathery catkin, with cement
Compos'd of neatly moulded clay:
Now the green moss, or lichen gray,
Or leaves, whose gather'd heaps imbed
The woodland's shady depth, or shred,
Paper, or wood; and oft a plume,
Perhaps their own, the narrow room
Their nestling's future house to form,
Without, within, compact and warm.
Nor respite; for the purpos'd nest
Till by instinctive skill are sought
Materials rude and quaint, and brought
Each to the appropriate place, as each
The general laws of nature teach:
The general laws, to all as known
In common, and to each its own.
Whate'er on earth's broad bosom lies,
Or on the passing breezes flies,
May serve their urgent need, they catch
And bear abrupt away: from thatch
137
The loosen'd hay, or dangling straw;
Or with keen glance inquiring peep,
And from the rich manuring heap
Take of its matted stores; or cull
The wiry hair, or softer wool,
Of horse or fleecy sheep; and now
Twigs from the dry and sapless bough,
Now tufts of cottony down combine,
Or of the spider's filmy line;
Or fibrous root, or grassy bent,
Or feathery catkin, with cement
Compos'd of neatly moulded clay:
Now the green moss, or lichen gray,
Or leaves, whose gather'd heaps imbed
The woodland's shady depth, or shred,
Paper, or wood; and oft a plume,
Perhaps their own, the narrow room
Their nestling's future house to form,
Without, within, compact and warm.
Nor less diversified in place,
The dwellings for their future race
The various kinds are planning. These
Choose the deep shade of forest trees,
Or lowlier shrub, or on the edge
Of cultur'd field the platted hedge,
Orchard or garden, by the leaves
Fresh-spreading shelter'd: those the eaves
Projecting of man's friendly roof
In populous city, or aloof
In rural hamlet's dwellings rude,
Or in the grange's solitude,
Window or rafter'd beam select.
For some suffices to protect
Their lurking place in mouldering wall
Or bank, where ever bubbling fall
The runnels of the living brook,
Or refuse heap, a hollow nook.
Those the green lands, and grassy leas,
And pastures by the waters please:
These the wild mountain's lone recess,
Or dwellings of the wilderness
Secluded; where they shroud alone,
Beside some bare o'ermantling stone
From storm defended, or within
The bowery heath or prickly whin:
These the old Baron's feudal fort
Dismantled, or the cloyster'd court
Of ruin'd abbey; while the boughs,
Where the rude sounds of wild carouse
Once echoed, or the cloisters dim
Return'd the chant or measur'd hymn,
Now circle through the lonely grove,
The thrilling notes of joyous love,
Or what to pensive ear the tone
May seem of grateful orison.
The dwellings for their future race
The various kinds are planning. These
Choose the deep shade of forest trees,
Or lowlier shrub, or on the edge
Of cultur'd field the platted hedge,
Orchard or garden, by the leaves
Fresh-spreading shelter'd: those the eaves
Projecting of man's friendly roof
In populous city, or aloof
In rural hamlet's dwellings rude,
Or in the grange's solitude,
138
For some suffices to protect
Their lurking place in mouldering wall
Or bank, where ever bubbling fall
The runnels of the living brook,
Or refuse heap, a hollow nook.
Those the green lands, and grassy leas,
And pastures by the waters please:
These the wild mountain's lone recess,
Or dwellings of the wilderness
Secluded; where they shroud alone,
Beside some bare o'ermantling stone
From storm defended, or within
The bowery heath or prickly whin:
These the old Baron's feudal fort
Dismantled, or the cloyster'd court
Of ruin'd abbey; while the boughs,
Where the rude sounds of wild carouse
Once echoed, or the cloisters dim
Return'd the chant or measur'd hymn,
Now circle through the lonely grove,
The thrilling notes of joyous love,
Or what to pensive ear the tone
May seem of grateful orison.
And then what strangely varied skill
Is prompt of each the instinctive will
To execute by diverse ways
Of combination, so to raise
A structure, for the wants design'd
And comfort of each varying kind!
To twine the twisted nest; to plat,
To braid, to weave; with felted mat
The fabrick of the house to line;
Firm on the ground to plant; to mine
The hollow earth beneath; on high
Wreath'd in the leafy canopy
To hang the floating ark; a hole
Drill'd in the perforated bole
To hew with griding bill; or spread
The level platform; or on shed
Of roof or jutting coign suspend
The plaster'd nest, and round it bend
A circling fence, or penthouse dome
Above, to shield the nursling's home!
Such skill is theirs, with wisdom fraught,
By the Great Source of wisdom taught.
And if, as fabling bards have said,
'Twere truth that man, or ere he spread
His canvass to the driving gale,
Learn'd of the nautilus to sail;
'Twere with like show of reason told,
That, ere the world and time were old,
Man, in the arts of life unskill'd,
Learn'd of the little birds to build,
To weave the twisted wreath, and twine
In banded plats the braided line.
Is prompt of each the instinctive will
To execute by diverse ways
Of combination, so to raise
A structure, for the wants design'd
And comfort of each varying kind!
To twine the twisted nest; to plat,
To braid, to weave; with felted mat
139
Firm on the ground to plant; to mine
The hollow earth beneath; on high
Wreath'd in the leafy canopy
To hang the floating ark; a hole
Drill'd in the perforated bole
To hew with griding bill; or spread
The level platform; or on shed
Of roof or jutting coign suspend
The plaster'd nest, and round it bend
A circling fence, or penthouse dome
Above, to shield the nursling's home!
Such skill is theirs, with wisdom fraught,
By the Great Source of wisdom taught.
And if, as fabling bards have said,
'Twere truth that man, or ere he spread
His canvass to the driving gale,
Learn'd of the nautilus to sail;
'Twere with like show of reason told,
That, ere the world and time were old,
Man, in the arts of life unskill'd,
Learn'd of the little birds to build,
To weave the twisted wreath, and twine
In banded plats the braided line.
Not so I deem. But who will scan
Their handy work, may doubt if man,
Form'd tho' he be this world to rule,
And in experience' antique school
Improv'd, with science' ample fruit,
Means and appliances to boot,
Can emulate the instinctive skill,
Which with the bended claw, and bill
Acute, and round and moulding breast,
Constructs the feather'd warbler's nest.
Their handy work, may doubt if man,
Form'd tho' he be this world to rule,
And in experience' antique school
Improv'd, with science' ample fruit,
Means and appliances to boot,
Can emulate the instinctive skill,
Which with the bended claw, and bill
140
Constructs the feather'd warbler's nest.
But that instinctive skill, howe'er
By nature's voice distinct and clear
Instructed; from the tract of age,
Experience, observation sage,
Derives no modulating force,
No wise improvement: but the course,
Pursued of old, they still pursue,
And know but what of old they knew;
What time the raven and the dove
Went forth from Noah's hand to prove
The land disburden'd of the sea:
Or in the world's first infancy
Each bird, according to his kind,
Stoop'd on the wing to hear assign'd
Its name by men's forefather given;
Or listen'd to the voice from heaven,
Which bade it in heaven's face to fly,
And o'er the broad earth multiply
Its proper brood. The high behest,
Which then to form the appropriate nest
Inspir'd them, still its sway maintains;
Still in each untaught bosom reigns;
And with the nest, the feather'd tribes
Their nestling place and time prescribes;
Their eggs, for number, shape, and size
Distinct, and variegated dies;
And what the form and plumed grace
Transmissive of each future race.
By nature's voice distinct and clear
Instructed; from the tract of age,
Experience, observation sage,
Derives no modulating force,
No wise improvement: but the course,
Pursued of old, they still pursue,
And know but what of old they knew;
What time the raven and the dove
Went forth from Noah's hand to prove
The land disburden'd of the sea:
Or in the world's first infancy
Each bird, according to his kind,
Stoop'd on the wing to hear assign'd
Its name by men's forefather given;
Or listen'd to the voice from heaven,
Which bade it in heaven's face to fly,
And o'er the broad earth multiply
Its proper brood. The high behest,
Which then to form the appropriate nest
Inspir'd them, still its sway maintains;
Still in each untaught bosom reigns;
And with the nest, the feather'd tribes
Their nestling place and time prescribes;
Their eggs, for number, shape, and size
Distinct, and variegated dies;
And what the form and plumed grace
Transmissive of each future race.
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Examples of building. Nests near human habitations. Plea for forbearance towards them. Humanity injoined. The divine Law
Come, let us walk abroad, and see
Amus'd with what variety
The little architects their work
Have plann'd; while some already lurk
In covert o'er their procreant bed
Close brooding; some the unform'd shed
Now but prepare, less prompt to ply
The housewife's duty, till the sky
More genial and the swelling spray
Disclos'd forbid prolong'd delay.
Amus'd with what variety
The little architects their work
Have plann'd; while some already lurk
In covert o'er their procreant bed
Close brooding; some the unform'd shed
Now but prepare, less prompt to ply
The housewife's duty, till the sky
More genial and the swelling spray
Disclos'd forbid prolong'd delay.
Nor far afield in search to roam
Behoves thee; if about thy home
Tall tree, or shrub, or budding hedge,
Or hollow nook, or jutting ledge,
Meet nestling place afford; and thou
Free nature's denizens allow
To dwell uninjur'd, nor molest
The fortunes of the rising nest.
For us'd to men, and human haunts
And actions, if no terror daunts
And drives them from their place preferr'd,
Full many a sociable bird
Forgets the wildness of his race,
At least foregoes it; and the place
Of man's abode not his alone
Esteems, but chooses for its own.
Behoves thee; if about thy home
Tall tree, or shrub, or budding hedge,
Or hollow nook, or jutting ledge,
Meet nestling place afford; and thou
Free nature's denizens allow
To dwell uninjur'd, nor molest
The fortunes of the rising nest.
For us'd to men, and human haunts
And actions, if no terror daunts
And drives them from their place preferr'd,
Full many a sociable bird
Forgets the wildness of his race,
At least foregoes it; and the place
Of man's abode not his alone
Esteems, but chooses for its own.
Molest them not! the vernal bloom
If chance the prying bill consume,
The ill o'erlook'd they'll more than buy
The indulgence with the snail or fly
Excluded:—if the ripening fruit
Perchance their curious palate suit,
To the pleas'd ear they more than pay
Its value with the tuneful lay.
And if at times 'tis haply true,
That mischief more than good they do,
Still does not the considerate mind
And gentle feel a joy refin'd,
A sort of heavenly joy, to see
God's creatures round about us free
From harm, rejoicing as they can
In their brief life's precarious span?
And would we not desire to know,
Or wish we rather to forego
Such joy if purchas'd at the price
Of some poor trivial sacrifice?
If chance the prying bill consume,
The ill o'erlook'd they'll more than buy
The indulgence with the snail or fly
Excluded:—if the ripening fruit
Perchance their curious palate suit,
142
Its value with the tuneful lay.
And if at times 'tis haply true,
That mischief more than good they do,
Still does not the considerate mind
And gentle feel a joy refin'd,
A sort of heavenly joy, to see
God's creatures round about us free
From harm, rejoicing as they can
In their brief life's precarious span?
And would we not desire to know,
Or wish we rather to forego
Such joy if purchas'd at the price
Of some poor trivial sacrifice?
Then hold, nor thoughtlessly molest,
Or wantonly, the brooding nest!
But if occasion to displace
Constrain you some o'erwhelming race;—
For some there are whose presence breeds
Superior damage, and exceeds
Their just degree; and where, to ours
Oppos'd, their good with rival powers
Conflicting vies, we deem that they
Must bend to man's imperial sway,
Whom the Great God, that all things made,
With right and pow'r o'er all array'd:—
Against a race on mischief bent
If sad occasion prompt the intent
Corrective, monish'd by his law,
From whom your right, your pow'r you draw,
Life, breath, and all things; ah! refuse
Beyond the occasion's call to use
The sway entrusted; and if need
Have 'gainst the “eggs or young” decreed
Destruction, list to mercy's claim,
“Nor with the brood destroy the dam !”
Or wantonly, the brooding nest!
But if occasion to displace
Constrain you some o'erwhelming race;—
For some there are whose presence breeds
Superior damage, and exceeds
Their just degree; and where, to ours
Oppos'd, their good with rival powers
Conflicting vies, we deem that they
Must bend to man's imperial sway,
Whom the Great God, that all things made,
With right and pow'r o'er all array'd:—
Against a race on mischief bent
If sad occasion prompt the intent
Corrective, monish'd by his law,
From whom your right, your pow'r you draw,
Life, breath, and all things; ah! refuse
Beyond the occasion's call to use
143
Have 'gainst the “eggs or young” decreed
Destruction, list to mercy's claim,
“Nor with the brood destroy the dam !”
Different sorts of Thrush sitting. Chaffinch, Sparrow, Blackcap. Yellow Bunting. Hedge-sparrow. Goldcrested Wren. Kitty Wren. Green bird. Ox-eye Tit. Linnet. Bull-finch. Redbreast. Singular situation of a Redbreast's nest
And see the Blackbird and the Thrush,
Our inmates in the lowly bush:
And nestling in the lofty tree
The Missel-bird our inmate see.
Already may the curious eye
Aslant their patient forms descry
Close cowering: let the passing glance
Suffice thee; nor with rash advance,
Or motion of the extended arm,
The mother from her charge alarm;
The shelter of her pent-house wings
While o'er the pregnant eggs she flings,
As yet with motion unendued;
Or nestles o'er the callow brood,
And fosters the now lively nest
With fervour of the beating breast.
Our inmates in the lowly bush:
And nestling in the lofty tree
The Missel-bird our inmate see.
Already may the curious eye
Aslant their patient forms descry
Close cowering: let the passing glance
Suffice thee; nor with rash advance,
Or motion of the extended arm,
The mother from her charge alarm;
The shelter of her pent-house wings
While o'er the pregnant eggs she flings,
As yet with motion unendued;
Or nestles o'er the callow brood,
And fosters the now lively nest
With fervour of the beating breast.
Here on the lawn, in laurustine
Or holly see the Chaffinch twine
With hair his moss-wove home compact.
There with like zeal, but less exact
Of skill, the intrusive Sparrow weaves
His in the spout or jutting eaves.
Or holly see the Chaffinch twine
With hair his moss-wove home compact.
There with like zeal, but less exact
Of skill, the intrusive Sparrow weaves
His in the spout or jutting eaves.
There 'mid the fruit-trees' blooming bowers,
Where now the warm prolifick hours
Tempt him the ivy buds to quit,
And through the flowery orchard flit,
Or garden, for his filmy prey
Enliven'd by the sunny ray,
The Blackcap see! And now with trill
Of wild note from his mellow bill
He cheers, and now with gnat or fly,
Caught sporting in the azure sky,
Attent his brooding consort feeds:
And, as the nestling task proceeds,
Oft may you mark his sable crown
Exchang'd for her's of russet brown.
Where now the warm prolifick hours
Tempt him the ivy buds to quit,
And through the flowery orchard flit,
144
Enliven'd by the sunny ray,
The Blackcap see! And now with trill
Of wild note from his mellow bill
He cheers, and now with gnat or fly,
Caught sporting in the azure sky,
Attent his brooding consort feeds:
And, as the nestling task proceeds,
Oft may you mark his sable crown
Exchang'd for her's of russet brown.
Low in the garden's thorny bound,
Or under, on the shelving mound
'Mid waving bent-grass, or the bloom
Of blossom'd furze, her humble home
The Yellow Bunting plants. And she,
Reft of her early progeny
By thoughtless sport, again prepares
Her simple nest and household cares,
The Hedgerow Chanter. And above,
In shelter of the fir-tree grove,
Where the broad bough its shadow lends,
Her home the Golden Wren suspends.
Nor does her duskier kinsman fly
Aloof from man's society;
The streamlet's overarching bank,
Beset with grass and mosses dank,
For the broad cedar's arm, or fir
Wide-spread, or spiral juniper,
Exchanging; or the hawthorn spray,
Or strawroof'd thatch of treasur'd hay,
Or out-house eave, or ivied wall,
Resounding his blythe madrigal.
Or under, on the shelving mound
'Mid waving bent-grass, or the bloom
Of blossom'd furze, her humble home
The Yellow Bunting plants. And she,
Reft of her early progeny
By thoughtless sport, again prepares
Her simple nest and household cares,
The Hedgerow Chanter. And above,
In shelter of the fir-tree grove,
Where the broad bough its shadow lends,
Her home the Golden Wren suspends.
Nor does her duskier kinsman fly
Aloof from man's society;
The streamlet's overarching bank,
Beset with grass and mosses dank,
For the broad cedar's arm, or fir
Wide-spread, or spiral juniper,
Exchanging; or the hawthorn spray,
Or strawroof'd thatch of treasur'd hay,
Or out-house eave, or ivied wall,
Resounding his blythe madrigal.
145
A cradle for the Greenbird's bed,
And bowery covert o'er her head,
The forked pine supplies. A hole
In wall, or tree's decaying bole,
The Oxeye's artless nest receives.
With thickening shroud of sprouting leaves
The quickset hawthorn's prickly spines,
Or gooseberry's, where the Linnet twines
His house compact, or cove within
The shrubby and close-cluster'd whin,
'Gainst eye or hand a shelter throw
And barrier from invading foe.
And bowery covert o'er her head,
The forked pine supplies. A hole
In wall, or tree's decaying bole,
The Oxeye's artless nest receives.
With thickening shroud of sprouting leaves
The quickset hawthorn's prickly spines,
Or gooseberry's, where the Linnet twines
His house compact, or cove within
The shrubby and close-cluster'd whin,
'Gainst eye or hand a shelter throw
And barrier from invading foe.
Deep in the thorn's intangled maze,
Or where the fruit-tree's thickening sprays
Yield a secure and close retreat,
The dusky Bullfinch plans her seat.
There, where you see the cluster'd boughs
Put forth the opening bud, her spouse
With mantle gray, and jet-like head,
And flaming breast of crimson red,
Is perch'd with hard and hawk-like beak
Intent the embryo fruit to seek.
Nor ceases from his pleasing toil,
The orchard's budding hope to spoil,
Unless with quick and timid glance
Of his dark eye your dread advance
He notice, and your search evade,
Hid in the thicket's pathless shade.
Or where the fruit-tree's thickening sprays
Yield a secure and close retreat,
The dusky Bullfinch plans her seat.
There, where you see the cluster'd boughs
Put forth the opening bud, her spouse
With mantle gray, and jet-like head,
And flaming breast of crimson red,
Is perch'd with hard and hawk-like beak
Intent the embryo fruit to seek.
Nor ceases from his pleasing toil,
The orchard's budding hope to spoil,
Unless with quick and timid glance
Of his dark eye your dread advance
He notice, and your search evade,
Hid in the thicket's pathless shade.
But most of all to haunts of men
Familiar, though to savage glen
And woodland wild he oft may roam
Secluded, oft his wintry home
No less the Redbreast makes his bower
For nestling in the vernal hour;
In thatch, or root of aged tree
Moss-grown, or arching cavity
Of bank, or garden's refuse heap,
Or where the broad-leav'd tendrils creep
Of ivy, and an arbour spread
O'er trellis'd porch or cottage shed.
Familiar, though to savage glen
And woodland wild he oft may roam
Secluded, oft his wintry home
146
For nestling in the vernal hour;
In thatch, or root of aged tree
Moss-grown, or arching cavity
Of bank, or garden's refuse heap,
Or where the broad-leav'd tendrils creep
Of ivy, and an arbour spread
O'er trellis'd porch or cottage shed.
Lo! as we pass the homestead round,
At every change of place the sound
Of Robin's voice salutes the ear,
Carolling to his partner near;
And with nice gaze th' observant eye
May Robin's hidden home descry.
And memory now recalls the sight,
'Twas where from Lansdown's chalky height
A pleasant garden-house looks down
On Bladud's old romantick town,
And pinnacled and towered fane,
And the slow Avon's sinuous train,
And Claverton's opposing hill;
There on my trellis'd window-sill,
Where climbing evergreens display'd
An arching and a bowery shade,
The Redbreast fearlessly had spread
'Mid scatter'd leaves her shelter'd bed
Of feathers, moss, and woven hair;
And nestled unmolested there
By passing steps, and labourer's din
Without, or watchful eyes within.
At every change of place the sound
Of Robin's voice salutes the ear,
Carolling to his partner near;
And with nice gaze th' observant eye
May Robin's hidden home descry.
And memory now recalls the sight,
'Twas where from Lansdown's chalky height
A pleasant garden-house looks down
On Bladud's old romantick town,
And pinnacled and towered fane,
And the slow Avon's sinuous train,
And Claverton's opposing hill;
There on my trellis'd window-sill,
Where climbing evergreens display'd
An arching and a bowery shade,
The Redbreast fearlessly had spread
'Mid scatter'd leaves her shelter'd bed
Of feathers, moss, and woven hair;
And nestled unmolested there
By passing steps, and labourer's din
Without, or watchful eyes within.
147
Address to the bird
Yes, 'mid the dark-green ivy twine,
Couch'd in the trellis'd eglantine,
We mark'd that tiny form of thine,
The spring's sweet tide;
We mark'd thee weave thy mossy nest,
And in its hair-lined covert rest
Thy russet wings and ruddy breast
Our home beside.
Couch'd in the trellis'd eglantine,
We mark'd that tiny form of thine,
The spring's sweet tide;
We mark'd thee weave thy mossy nest,
And in its hair-lined covert rest
Thy russet wings and ruddy breast
Our home beside.
Close didst thou sit: but we might spy
The sparkle of thy quick dark eye,
As if some reckless foe were by,
That mischief stirr'd.
Sit on! away we would not bear
Those freckled balls, thy anxious care;
Nor of thy plumes a feather mar,
Thou social bird!
The sparkle of thy quick dark eye,
As if some reckless foe were by,
That mischief stirr'd.
Sit on! away we would not bear
Those freckled balls, thy anxious care;
Nor of thy plumes a feather mar,
Thou social bird!
Sit on, and keep thy leafy bed,
Secure in thy secluded shed,
Till forth thy spotted brood be led
Yon shrubs among:
When autumn chills the silent day,
Perch'd on the hawthorn's leafless spray
They shall their guardian's care repay
With a sweet song.
Secure in thy secluded shed,
Till forth thy spotted brood be led
Yon shrubs among:
When autumn chills the silent day,
Perch'd on the hawthorn's leafless spray
They shall their guardian's care repay
With a sweet song.
Sweet is thy song from vernal tree,
Though noticed less amid the glee,
Which swells in general harmony
Each tuneful throat;
More valued, when its warbles cheer
The gloom of the departing year,
And pour into the pensive ear
Their lonely note.
Though noticed less amid the glee,
Which swells in general harmony
Each tuneful throat;
148
The gloom of the departing year,
And pour into the pensive ear
Their lonely note.
That lonely note may wisdom preach!
To the lorn mourner it may teach,
'Mid saddest scenes within our reach
Some joys remain;
A pledge no less, though winter's wing
Obscure our path, another spring
Shall come, and all things laugh and sing
With mirth again.
To the lorn mourner it may teach,
'Mid saddest scenes within our reach
Some joys remain;
A pledge no less, though winter's wing
Obscure our path, another spring
Shall come, and all things laugh and sing
With mirth again.
Then welcome to my window-sill,
Garden, or root-house, as thy will
May lead thee, social warbler, still
By man belov'd!
Home in my homestead may'st thou find;
And give in turn thy greeting kind,
Sweet to the sense, and by the mind
Not unimprov'd!
Garden, or root-house, as thy will
May lead thee, social warbler, still
By man belov'd!
Home in my homestead may'st thou find;
And give in turn thy greeting kind,
Sweet to the sense, and by the mind
Not unimprov'd!
Numberless kinds of nestling birds in April. Examples of more retired kinds. Nightingale. Dipper. Kingfisher. Stonechat. Whinchat. Cushat and Turtle Dove. Heron. Bittern. Willock and Razor-bill Auk. Puffin. Eagle
Which through the genial April day
In part each pleasant homestead scene,
Lawn, garden, orchard, shrubbery green,
Enliven, as intent to rear
Their coming race our dwelling near?
And who still more the kinds can tell,
Which distant from our homesteads dwell
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Of wood, or barren wilderness,
Where few their houshold haunts may see,
And nurse their brood in privacy?
Yet would the Muse attempt to sing,
How, prompted by the inspiring spring,
In the wild brake's impervious shade,
Or tangled copse, or gloomy glade
Of woodland, on the dusky ground
Of bents and oaken leaves embrown'd
The Nightingale his mansion plants
Prolifick, and his love-song chants
The livelong night at hand to cheer
Below his brooding partner's ear:—
How, prompted by the inspiring spring,
In the wild brake's impervious shade,
Or tangled copse, or gloomy glade
Of woodland, on the dusky ground
Of bents and oaken leaves embrown'd
The Nightingale his mansion plants
Prolifick, and his love-song chants
The livelong night at hand to cheer
Below his brooding partner's ear:—
How by the trembling mountain brook,
Mid rocky glen, in mossy nook,
Wash'd by the dashing torrent's spray
Their eggs the lonely Dippers lay;
Or, lurking by the tranquil brim
Of pool or wood-embowered stream,
Within the pierc'd and hollowed side
The Kingfishers retiring hide
Their head's and wing's resplendent sheen
Of “turkis blue and emerald green :”—
Mid rocky glen, in mossy nook,
Wash'd by the dashing torrent's spray
Their eggs the lonely Dippers lay;
Or, lurking by the tranquil brim
Of pool or wood-embowered stream,
Within the pierc'd and hollowed side
The Kingfishers retiring hide
Their head's and wing's resplendent sheen
Of “turkis blue and emerald green :”—
How on wild moor or sterile heath
Bright with the golden furze, beneath
O'erhanging bush or shelving stone,
The little Stonechat dwells alone,
Or near his brother of the Whin;
Among the foremost to begin
His pretty love-song's tinkling sound,
And nest low seated on the ground,
Not heedless of the winding pass
That leads him through the secret grass:—
Bright with the golden furze, beneath
O'erhanging bush or shelving stone,
The little Stonechat dwells alone,
Or near his brother of the Whin;
Among the foremost to begin
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And nest low seated on the ground,
Not heedless of the winding pass
That leads him through the secret grass:—
How in the depth of solemn groves
The Cushat and the Turtle Doves
On the tall fir of transverse sticks
Their artless dwelling rudely fix,
Where on the gazer's eye below
Gleam their twin eggs of drifted snow:—
The Cushat and the Turtle Doves
On the tall fir of transverse sticks
Their artless dwelling rudely fix,
Where on the gazer's eye below
Gleam their twin eggs of drifted snow:—
How their broad floors the Herons make
On wooded isle, 'mid inland lake,
Aloft a congregated town;
Where on the spare twigs nestling, down
Hangs dangling from the peopled bough
Their dull-green length of leg:—and how
Imbedded in the marsh-grown weeds,
Amid his mansionry of reeds
And rushy flags, the Bittern late
In the dark night salutes his mate,
And echo o'er the swamp rebounds
His solemn love-cry's spectral sounds.
On wooded isle, 'mid inland lake,
Aloft a congregated town;
Where on the spare twigs nestling, down
Hangs dangling from the peopled bough
Their dull-green length of leg:—and how
Imbedded in the marsh-grown weeds,
Amid his mansionry of reeds
And rushy flags, the Bittern late
In the dark night salutes his mate,
And echo o'er the swamp rebounds
His solemn love-cry's spectral sounds.
Fain too the Muse would stretch her flight
To the steep rocks of southern Wight,
Or where the straiten'd Menai breaks
Round rugged Priestholm, or the peaks
Of craggy Ailsa's conelike pile,
Or northern Rathlin's simple isle;
There on the upright Sea-cliff's edge,
Along the bare and nestless ledge
Basaltick, or the cavern'd chalk,
The Willock and the Sharp-bill'd Auk
Their marshall'd ranks collective close;
Range tiers on tiers, and rows on rows,
Their solitary eggs, and brave
The sweeping wind and dashing wave:
Or deeply in the sandy shore
Their holes the burrowing Puffins bore;
Sharp as the riving ploughshare, thrill
The furrow with their knife-like bill;
Scoop outward, as with hollow hand,
With palmate feet the muttering sand;
And form a subterranean keep,
A winding chamber, long and deep.
To the steep rocks of southern Wight,
Or where the straiten'd Menai breaks
Round rugged Priestholm, or the peaks
Of craggy Ailsa's conelike pile,
Or northern Rathlin's simple isle;
There on the upright Sea-cliff's edge,
Along the bare and nestless ledge
Basaltick, or the cavern'd chalk,
The Willock and the Sharp-bill'd Auk
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Range tiers on tiers, and rows on rows,
Their solitary eggs, and brave
The sweeping wind and dashing wave:
Or deeply in the sandy shore
Their holes the burrowing Puffins bore;
Sharp as the riving ploughshare, thrill
The furrow with their knife-like bill;
Scoop outward, as with hollow hand,
With palmate feet the muttering sand;
And form a subterranean keep,
A winding chamber, long and deep.
Thence would she fain ascending soar
The pillar'd head of huge Benmore
Abrupt, whose far projecting base
Old Ocean's giant arms embrace;
Or onward, where the boiling seas
Howl round the incircling Orcades;
Or where Killarney's ridges steep
Crown with thick woods the western deep:
There on the mountain's cloven crest
Survey far off the Eagle's nest,
Where dwells he with his faithful mate
From age to age in regal state
Aloft amid the lonely sky:
Thence marks with penetrating eye
His destin'd spoil, and seaward flings
Down, down, his flight on sounding wings,
Strikes with sure aim, and bears away
Up-soaring his reluctant prey.
The pillar'd head of huge Benmore
Abrupt, whose far projecting base
Old Ocean's giant arms embrace;
Or onward, where the boiling seas
Howl round the incircling Orcades;
Or where Killarney's ridges steep
Crown with thick woods the western deep:
There on the mountain's cloven crest
Survey far off the Eagle's nest,
Where dwells he with his faithful mate
From age to age in regal state
Aloft amid the lonely sky:
Thence marks with penetrating eye
His destin'd spoil, and seaward flings
Down, down, his flight on sounding wings,
Strikes with sure aim, and bears away
Up-soaring his reluctant prey.
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Other April objects. Fresh field and meadow vegetation. The Trout-stream. Newborn lambs. Mutual recognition of the dams and their young
From Ocean waves and Alpine heights
Recall the Muse's wandering wing,
To ponder nearer views; and sing
The fruits, which yet unsung remain,
Of fleeting April's fertile reign.
Between the furrow's darker rows
The fields their tender blades disclose.
Spread with a tint of freshest green
The meadows' speckless face is seen:
Where sprouting willows fringe the side
Of runnels, that beneath them glide,
And line the fresh and verdant grass
With broidery of liquid glass.
Such runnels o'er their pebbly bed,
Swift, shallow, bright, translucent, thread
My pleasant Hampshire's breezy hills,
Through bending coombs in eddying rills,
Winding their serpent folds about:
And there the cavern-haunting Trout
Whose spotted back's enamel vies
For crimson with the cowslip's eyes,
With belly where white lilies hold
Strife with the yellow marigold,
With leap, and splash, and twinkling gleam,
And ripple of the curling stream,
Springs upward on the frequent fly;
Or from the shadow passing by
Of steps, that on the margin stray
Cleaves, like a dart, the crystal way,
O'ershadow'd by the thickening shoots,
And lurks within the twisted roots.
The fields their tender blades disclose.
Spread with a tint of freshest green
The meadows' speckless face is seen:
Where sprouting willows fringe the side
Of runnels, that beneath them glide,
And line the fresh and verdant grass
With broidery of liquid glass.
Such runnels o'er their pebbly bed,
Swift, shallow, bright, translucent, thread
My pleasant Hampshire's breezy hills,
Through bending coombs in eddying rills,
Winding their serpent folds about:
And there the cavern-haunting Trout
Whose spotted back's enamel vies
For crimson with the cowslip's eyes,
With belly where white lilies hold
Strife with the yellow marigold,
With leap, and splash, and twinkling gleam,
And ripple of the curling stream,
Springs upward on the frequent fly;
Or from the shadow passing by
Of steps, that on the margin stray
Cleaves, like a dart, the crystal way,
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And lurks within the twisted roots.
About their dams in frolick play
See how the Lambs at random stray,
In new-felt life exulting! See
Their mutual chases o'er the lea!
And now with skip, and frisk, and bound
They scale the meadow's grassy mound,
Or fearless down the trenches leap,
Or round the planted circle sweep.
And now they seek, by hunger led,
With quivering tail and butting head
Each for himself the well-known teats;
By instinct prompted; nor forgets
The feeble young his rightful dam
Distinct, nor she her youngling lamb.
Thus ever watchful nature guides
And prompts them, all the flock besides,
To seek their proper kind alone,
Nor choose another for their own.
Meanwhile sedate, the mother sheep
Close nibbling to their pasture keep,
Or on the thoughtless passer-by
Alarm'd direct the uplifted eye,
And watch him with suspicious glance:
Or conscious of the far advance
Of shepherd, with more welcome feed
Approaching, forward start with speed
His footsteps yet unseen to meet
With earnest gaze and welcoming bleat.
See how the Lambs at random stray,
In new-felt life exulting! See
Their mutual chases o'er the lea!
And now with skip, and frisk, and bound
They scale the meadow's grassy mound,
Or fearless down the trenches leap,
Or round the planted circle sweep.
And now they seek, by hunger led,
With quivering tail and butting head
Each for himself the well-known teats;
By instinct prompted; nor forgets
The feeble young his rightful dam
Distinct, nor she her youngling lamb.
Thus ever watchful nature guides
And prompts them, all the flock besides,
To seek their proper kind alone,
Nor choose another for their own.
Meanwhile sedate, the mother sheep
Close nibbling to their pasture keep,
Or on the thoughtless passer-by
Alarm'd direct the uplifted eye,
And watch him with suspicious glance:
Or conscious of the far advance
Of shepherd, with more welcome feed
Approaching, forward start with speed
His footsteps yet unseen to meet
With earnest gaze and welcoming bleat.
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Insects and reptiles. Worms. Ill counterbalanced by good. Snails. Slugs. Viper and Snake. Man's repugnance to them. Emmets. Gnats and Flies. Bees. Butterflies
See, from their dark recesses creep,
By April from their wintry sleep
Awaken'd, many an insect form,
And reptile! Now the burrowing worm,
The watchful warbler's welcome spoil,
Unsightly through the porous soil
Ascending, heaps the sprinkled ground,
Garden or field, with frequent mound
Offensive to fastidious sense,
Nor void of injury; but thence
Manuring warmth the grass pervades,
And the young corn-field's tender blades.
Thus nature, rightly understood,
Still counterpoises ill with good;
While man too oft unheedful still
The good forgets, resents the ill.
By April from their wintry sleep
Awaken'd, many an insect form,
And reptile! Now the burrowing worm,
The watchful warbler's welcome spoil,
Unsightly through the porous soil
Ascending, heaps the sprinkled ground,
Garden or field, with frequent mound
Offensive to fastidious sense,
Nor void of injury; but thence
Manuring warmth the grass pervades,
And the young corn-field's tender blades.
Thus nature, rightly understood,
Still counterpoises ill with good;
While man too oft unheedful still
The good forgets, resents the ill.
His shelly home about him wound,
With hard and spiral pent-house crown'd,
With sinuous course and slimy trail
Forth issues now the frequent Snail,
And leaves behind a silvery mark
On wall, or pathway, or the bark
Resplendent of the incircled tree.
But nought his spiral canopy
Avails against the prying thrush,
Prompt in his haunt to seek, and crush
Dash'd on the stones, or ruthless drill
With keen and penetrating bill
The yielding shell disperst, and win,
Rich prize, his lurking spoil within.
With hard and spiral pent-house crown'd,
With sinuous course and slimy trail
Forth issues now the frequent Snail,
And leaves behind a silvery mark
On wall, or pathway, or the bark
Resplendent of the incircled tree.
But nought his spiral canopy
Avails against the prying thrush,
Prompt in his haunt to seek, and crush
Dash'd on the stones, or ruthless drill
With keen and penetrating bill
The yielding shell disperst, and win,
Rich prize, his lurking spoil within.
Now too across the slimy way,
From the close covert, where he lay
In den beneath earth's bosom dug,
Crawls in dense crowds the shell-less Slug.
An easy prey, if forth he come,
Nor less, if in his burrow'd home
In earth's dark breast he seek repose,
To the keen tribe of riving crows,
Voracious; which though little priz'd,
Perhaps offensive or despis'd,
Confer, by nature's bounteous plan,
Substantial benefits on man.
From the close covert, where he lay
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Crawls in dense crowds the shell-less Slug.
An easy prey, if forth he come,
Nor less, if in his burrow'd home
In earth's dark breast he seek repose,
To the keen tribe of riving crows,
Voracious; which though little priz'd,
Perhaps offensive or despis'd,
Confer, by nature's bounteous plan,
Substantial benefits on man.
See, basking by the sunny brake
The Viper keen, and stingless Snake!
Regardful of the poisonous bite,
Smite, if you will, for safety smite
The noxious reptile; but forbear,
And with considerate mercy spare
Him who nor does nor means you harm!
Lo, at your step with swift alarm
Innocuously he glides away,
And unconcern'd about him play
The little birds, nor for a foe
The thicket's harmless inmate know.
Yet, mindful of the primal ban,
By nature or by habit Man
Shrinks shuddering with disgust and fright
Ev'n from the harmless reptile's sight.
And still with hostile aim we tread
Remorseless on his “bruised head,”
As if we fear'd we else should feel
His venom in our wounded “heel.”
And well it is to bear in mind
The fall primeval of our kind,
The curse primeval; and to bring
Instruction from each creeping thing,
To warn us of our own estate:
But not to cherish baseless hate
For all, nor let our wrath be sped
Injurious on the harmless head!
The Viper keen, and stingless Snake!
Regardful of the poisonous bite,
Smite, if you will, for safety smite
The noxious reptile; but forbear,
And with considerate mercy spare
Him who nor does nor means you harm!
Lo, at your step with swift alarm
Innocuously he glides away,
And unconcern'd about him play
The little birds, nor for a foe
The thicket's harmless inmate know.
Yet, mindful of the primal ban,
By nature or by habit Man
Shrinks shuddering with disgust and fright
Ev'n from the harmless reptile's sight.
And still with hostile aim we tread
Remorseless on his “bruised head,”
As if we fear'd we else should feel
His venom in our wounded “heel.”
And well it is to bear in mind
The fall primeval of our kind,
156
Instruction from each creeping thing,
To warn us of our own estate:
But not to cherish baseless hate
For all, nor let our wrath be sped
Injurious on the harmless head!
And see the industrious Emmet's race,
With forward course and eager pace,
Forth from their wintry hillock's store
Blackening the narrow pathway pour,
And to and fro impatient run,
Exulting in the vernal sun.
With forward course and eager pace,
Forth from their wintry hillock's store
Blackening the narrow pathway pour,
And to and fro impatient run,
Exulting in the vernal sun.
To frolick in the sunny skies,
The Gnats and silver-winged Flies,
And here and there the scatter'd Bees,
That from the flow'rs and bloomy trees
Suck nectar in the noontide warm,
Precursive of the future swarm,
Abroad with buzz and murmur come.
The Humble-Bee with louder hum
Across your path comes booming by.
And now and then a Butterfly
Waves in the breath of balmy gales
The tissue of his plumed scales.
He first, whose many mingled dies,
Gold, azure, red, and Argus' eyes
Hold contest with the Peacock's train:
And he, whose wings of blood-bright grain
With broidery black and gold excel
The mottled Tortoise' polish'd shell:
He that, of crimson frontlet, decks
Bedropt with central crimson specks
The brightness of each sulphur sail,
Bright as the sun: or he that pale
Of lustre, as the pale moonlight,
Expands each fanlike circlet bright
With sable spots and sable tips;
As the fresh garden-dew he sips,
And flutters o'er the Colewort's head,
And marks his future offspring's bed.
The Gnats and silver-winged Flies,
And here and there the scatter'd Bees,
That from the flow'rs and bloomy trees
Suck nectar in the noontide warm,
Precursive of the future swarm,
Abroad with buzz and murmur come.
The Humble-Bee with louder hum
Across your path comes booming by.
And now and then a Butterfly
Waves in the breath of balmy gales
The tissue of his plumed scales.
He first, whose many mingled dies,
Gold, azure, red, and Argus' eyes
Hold contest with the Peacock's train:
And he, whose wings of blood-bright grain
With broidery black and gold excel
The mottled Tortoise' polish'd shell:
He that, of crimson frontlet, decks
Bedropt with central crimson specks
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Bright as the sun: or he that pale
Of lustre, as the pale moonlight,
Expands each fanlike circlet bright
With sable spots and sable tips;
As the fresh garden-dew he sips,
And flutters o'er the Colewort's head,
And marks his future offspring's bed.
Mischief done by Butterflies in the Caterpillar state. The Chrysalis. The Imago. Its fair appearance and mischievous operations. How compensated. Goodness of Providence
Pity, a form so passing bright,
Made, as might seem, to give delight,
A form for loveliness to wear,
And innocence, about should bear
Destruction brooding in its breast,
Surpassing thought, a general pest!
What time the egg mature reveals
The expected birth; when forth it steals,
Not like the parent form'd to fly
Abroad, and charm the dazzled eye,
Another Phœnix: but in form
A downy, soft, elongate Worm,
On legs multiplicate to creep
With unperceiv'd and wily step,
The garden's bane, the gardener's grief,
From plant to plant, from leaf to leaf,
With tender green before him graced,
Behind him left a dreary waste.
Made, as might seem, to give delight,
A form for loveliness to wear,
And innocence, about should bear
Destruction brooding in its breast,
Surpassing thought, a general pest!
What time the egg mature reveals
The expected birth; when forth it steals,
Not like the parent form'd to fly
Abroad, and charm the dazzled eye,
Another Phœnix: but in form
A downy, soft, elongate Worm,
On legs multiplicate to creep
With unperceiv'd and wily step,
The garden's bane, the gardener's grief,
From plant to plant, from leaf to leaf,
With tender green before him graced,
Behind him left a dreary waste.
Till, satiate of destruction's task,
And stript of many a mantling mask,
Each after each, the remnant roll'd
In winding sheet of tissued gold,
It dangles from a silken thread,
In semblance motionless and dead,
Like Egypt's mummied forms of old:
Anon to burst the incircling fold;
Anon to charm the admiring view,
An Image beautiful, and new,
And perfect, of its beauteous race;
Anon to flit from place to place,
Show to the sun his feather'd mail,
The blossom's sweetest scent inhale,
A few brief days; and then to die,
And leave behind a progeny,
Like its own infant mask-like state,
And pregnant with the garden's fate.
And stript of many a mantling mask,
Each after each, the remnant roll'd
In winding sheet of tissued gold,
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In semblance motionless and dead,
Like Egypt's mummied forms of old:
Anon to burst the incircling fold;
Anon to charm the admiring view,
An Image beautiful, and new,
And perfect, of its beauteous race;
Anon to flit from place to place,
Show to the sun his feather'd mail,
The blossom's sweetest scent inhale,
A few brief days; and then to die,
And leave behind a progeny,
Like its own infant mask-like state,
And pregnant with the garden's fate.
Yes, pity that a form so fair
Should seeds of hidden mischief bear!
And yet not useless, while the eye
Feeds on the gorgeous butterfly
Delighted, if reflexion turn
A page of wisdom's book, and learn
How oft appearance may deceive,
Fair to the sight, the sons of Eve,
Herself deceiv'd of old: how oft
The pleasant smile, the manners soft,
“Like whiten'd sepulchres!” though clean
Without, may harbour ill within!
Not useless, if again we look
With due regard on nature's book;
And read, how He, who wisely sends
The butterfly, to make amends
Sends us to pierce the larva's skin,
The Parasitick Fly, therein
To lurk, and seek its custom'd food,
And check the expected insect's brood:—
Sends us the little birds with claw
Comprest, and pungent bill, to draw
Abroad where'er in secret place
They dwell, the keen voracious race:—
And to mankind withal imparts
Attentive and observant hearts,
Intelligence, contrivance, skill,
To cope with what remains of ill;
Mindful of Him, by whom is sent,
For proof of faith, or chastisement
Of weak distrust, those creeping things,
His army; and who kindly brings
His aid, that men o'er ill subdued
May triumph and rejoice in good,
And with submissive meekness know
Whence both the bane and blessing flow!
Should seeds of hidden mischief bear!
And yet not useless, while the eye
Feeds on the gorgeous butterfly
Delighted, if reflexion turn
A page of wisdom's book, and learn
How oft appearance may deceive,
Fair to the sight, the sons of Eve,
Herself deceiv'd of old: how oft
The pleasant smile, the manners soft,
“Like whiten'd sepulchres!” though clean
Without, may harbour ill within!
Not useless, if again we look
With due regard on nature's book;
And read, how He, who wisely sends
The butterfly, to make amends
Sends us to pierce the larva's skin,
The Parasitick Fly, therein
159
And check the expected insect's brood:—
Sends us the little birds with claw
Comprest, and pungent bill, to draw
Abroad where'er in secret place
They dwell, the keen voracious race:—
And to mankind withal imparts
Attentive and observant hearts,
Intelligence, contrivance, skill,
To cope with what remains of ill;
Mindful of Him, by whom is sent,
For proof of faith, or chastisement
Of weak distrust, those creeping things,
His army; and who kindly brings
His aid, that men o'er ill subdued
May triumph and rejoice in good,
And with submissive meekness know
Whence both the bane and blessing flow!
| The British Months | |