 | Poems by Sarah Helen Whitman |  |
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CINDERELLA AND THE SLEEPING BEAUTY.
239
CINDERELLA.
“Pomp and feast and revelry,
Masque and antique pageantry.”
L'Allegro.
Masque and antique pageantry.”
L'Allegro.
PART I.
The night was cold, the skies were bleak,
The ways were dark and dreary,
When Cinderella o'er the fire
Sat hovering, worn and weary.
Neglected in her childhood's home,
She knew no mother's care,
Condemned, in youthful loveliness,
A menial's lot to share.
The ways were dark and dreary,
When Cinderella o'er the fire
Sat hovering, worn and weary.
Neglected in her childhood's home,
She knew no mother's care,
Condemned, in youthful loveliness,
A menial's lot to share.
Her haughty sisters spend their days
In splendor and parade;
To ball and opera they go,
To play and masquerade:
And now, bedecked with gems and gold,
In festal crowds they shone,
While she beside the chimney nook
Sat musing and alone.
In splendor and parade;
To ball and opera they go,
To play and masquerade:
And now, bedecked with gems and gold,
In festal crowds they shone,
While she beside the chimney nook
Sat musing and alone.
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The ruddy hearth-fires gleam and fade
Upon the dusky wall,
And on the oaken paneling
Fantastic shadows fall.
No sound is heard in all the house,
So lonely now and drear,
And e'en the cricket's drowsy song
Falls faintly on her ear.
Upon the dusky wall,
And on the oaken paneling
Fantastic shadows fall.
No sound is heard in all the house,
So lonely now and drear,
And e'en the cricket's drowsy song
Falls faintly on her ear.
There pensive by the hearth she sat
And watched the flickering fire,
Nor saw that close beside her stood
A dame in rich attire.
When, lo! upon her startled gaze
A matchless splendor broke,
As thus, in thrilling words and low,
The radiant fairy spoke:—
And watched the flickering fire,
Nor saw that close beside her stood
A dame in rich attire.
When, lo! upon her startled gaze
A matchless splendor broke,
As thus, in thrilling words and low,
The radiant fairy spoke:—
“No longer shalt thou moping sit,
Oppressed with gloom and care,
But at the royal banquet shine
The fairest of the fair.
Go, search, and by the garden wall
A pompion thou shalt find,
And lo! a chariot shall arise
From out its golden rind!
Oppressed with gloom and care,
But at the royal banquet shine
The fairest of the fair.
Go, search, and by the garden wall
A pompion thou shalt find,
And lo! a chariot shall arise
From out its golden rind!
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“Down in the cellar's darkest nook
A rat-trap shalt behold,
Whose narrow space doth stable steeds
Of more than mortal mold!
Behind the moss-grown garden well
Six lizards thou shalt see;
These, with the pompion and the trap,
Go quickly bring to me.”
A rat-trap shalt behold,
Whose narrow space doth stable steeds
Of more than mortal mold!
Behind the moss-grown garden well
Six lizards thou shalt see;
These, with the pompion and the trap,
Go quickly bring to me.”
And now she sees with wondering awe
Six powdered footmen stand,
Six mice transformed to stately steeds
Beneath the fairy's wand!
At length a glittering car arose
From out the pompion's rind,
While blazing torches flamed before
And footmen swung behind!
Six powdered footmen stand,
Six mice transformed to stately steeds
Beneath the fairy's wand!
At length a glittering car arose
From out the pompion's rind,
While blazing torches flamed before
And footmen swung behind!
Lo! Cinderella's tattered garb,
With dust and ashes strown,
Touched by the fairy's magic wand,
With pearls and diamonds shone!
All woven woof of mortal loom
Her vesture did surpass,
And on her little feet were seen
Two slippers framed of glass!
With dust and ashes strown,
Touched by the fairy's magic wand,
With pearls and diamonds shone!
All woven woof of mortal loom
Her vesture did surpass,
And on her little feet were seen
Two slippers framed of glass!
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“Now,” said the fairy, “mount thy car
And to the palace speed,
But as you prize my fairy gifts,
My parting counsel heed:
Shouldst thou within the castle gates
Outstay the midnight hour,
Thy gorgeous robes to tatters turn,
My spell hath lost its power.”
And to the palace speed,
But as you prize my fairy gifts,
My parting counsel heed:
Shouldst thou within the castle gates
Outstay the midnight hour,
Thy gorgeous robes to tatters turn,
My spell hath lost its power.”
She said:—the fiery coursers prance,
Their rattling hoofs resound,
With tossing heads and flying manes
They clear the frozen ground.
The Prince (informed some noble dame
Arrives in matchless state),
With all his royal retinue,
Receives her at the gate.
Their rattling hoofs resound,
With tossing heads and flying manes
They clear the frozen ground.
The Prince (informed some noble dame
Arrives in matchless state),
With all his royal retinue,
Receives her at the gate.
With courtly grace the startled child
He up the staircase hands,
And now within the blazing hall
Sweet Cinderella stands.
Soon as she stept within the door
The music ceased to sound,
And on the softly perfumed air
A murmur floats around.
He up the staircase hands,
And now within the blazing hall
Sweet Cinderella stands.
Soon as she stept within the door
The music ceased to sound,
And on the softly perfumed air
A murmur floats around.
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Before her nobles bent the knee,
And courtly dames caressed,
While foremost in the glittering throng
Her haughty sisters pressed.
Amid the glittering throng she stood
Like some wild woodland flower,
Blushing at her own loveliness,
And trembling at its power.
And courtly dames caressed,
While foremost in the glittering throng
Her haughty sisters pressed.
Amid the glittering throng she stood
Like some wild woodland flower,
Blushing at her own loveliness,
And trembling at its power.
The Prince, enamored, claimed her hand
And bore her to the dance,
And oft amid its mazy rings
She sought her sisters' glance.
At length upon the castle clock
She chanced to turn her eye
And starts to see upon its face
The hour of midnight nigh!
And bore her to the dance,
And oft amid its mazy rings
She sought her sisters' glance.
At length upon the castle clock
She chanced to turn her eye
And starts to see upon its face
The hour of midnight nigh!
Then, swiftly as a falling star
Shoots through the gloom of night,
She sprang into her airy car
And vanished from their sight.
And now of all her splendor reft
And all her rich attire,
She takes her solitary place
Beside the smoldering fire.
Shoots through the gloom of night,
She sprang into her airy car
And vanished from their sight.
And now of all her splendor reft
And all her rich attire,
She takes her solitary place
Beside the smoldering fire.
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But soon she hears a thundering knock
Resounding through the hall;—
The sisters all come rushing in,
Enraptured with the ball.
All talk at once and all descant
Upon the unknown guest,
And tell of all the courtesies
She showed them at the feast.
Resounding through the hall;—
The sisters all come rushing in,
Enraptured with the ball.
All talk at once and all descant
Upon the unknown guest,
And tell of all the courtesies
She showed them at the feast.
They say that court and city now
Are ringing with her fame.
The Prince has offered countless sums
To learn the stranger's name.
Fair Cinderella, wild with joy,
Seems little heed to take,
She only yawns and rubs her eyes
As if but half awake.
Are ringing with her fame.
The Prince has offered countless sums
To learn the stranger's name.
Fair Cinderella, wild with joy,
Seems little heed to take,
She only yawns and rubs her eyes
As if but half awake.
At length she said, “Ah, sisters dear,
Might I but only go,
To-morrow night, in pearl and white,
With you to see the show?”
“In pearl and white, you little fright!
A figure you would cut!
How would your pearl and white agree
With cinders and with smut?”
Might I but only go,
To-morrow night, in pearl and white,
With you to see the show?”
“In pearl and white, you little fright!
A figure you would cut!
How would your pearl and white agree
With cinders and with smut?”
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“Then would my sister Charlotte, dear,
But only give me leave
To wear the yellow satin dress
She wore on Christmas eve?”
“Lend you my satin dress, indeed!
But understand at once
That courts and balls are not for such
As you, you little dunce!”
But only give me leave
To wear the yellow satin dress
She wore on Christmas eve?”
“Lend you my satin dress, indeed!
But understand at once
That courts and balls are not for such
As you, you little dunce!”
PART II.
Again the palace halls are thronged
With many a noble guest,
And Cinderella, lovelier still,
Is there among the rest.
So fast the golden moments fly
In rapture and delight,
She soon forgets to count the hours
Nor heeds their rapid flight.
With many a noble guest,
And Cinderella, lovelier still,
Is there among the rest.
So fast the golden moments fly
In rapture and delight,
She soon forgets to count the hours
Nor heeds their rapid flight.
But, hark! at length the castle clock
Sounds from its lofty tower;
She starts to hear it, stroke by stroke,
Toll forth the midnight hour.
She fled across the marble floor
Fleet as the mountain wind,
But, tripping at the door, she left
One shining shoe behind.
Sounds from its lofty tower;
She starts to hear it, stroke by stroke,
Toll forth the midnight hour.
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Fleet as the mountain wind,
But, tripping at the door, she left
One shining shoe behind.
There, gleaming like a diamond spark,
The little slipper lies,
Dropped like a star-flake in the path
Where some swift meteor flies.
Breathless she gains the castle court,
In terror and dismay,
With naught of all her splendor left
Nor all her rich array.
The little slipper lies,
Dropped like a star-flake in the path
Where some swift meteor flies.
Breathless she gains the castle court,
In terror and dismay,
With naught of all her splendor left
Nor all her rich array.
Her rich array, to tatters turned,
Hangs fluttering in the wind;
The mice run scampering on before,
The pompion rolls behind!
The guards that round the portal wait,
With startled eyes, behold
A vagrant leave the palace gate
And cross the moonlit wold.
Hangs fluttering in the wind;
The mice run scampering on before,
The pompion rolls behind!
The guards that round the portal wait,
With startled eyes, behold
A vagrant leave the palace gate
And cross the moonlit wold.
And wondering menials stare to see
The little beggar pass,
For nought of all her pomp remains
Except one shoe of glass.
Next day the herald's trump did sound
Proclaiming far and wide
That whosoe'er could wear the shoe
Should be the Prince's bride!
The little beggar pass,
For nought of all her pomp remains
Except one shoe of glass.
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Proclaiming far and wide
That whosoe'er could wear the shoe
Should be the Prince's bride!
From street to street, from house to house,
The glittering prize they bear,
But ne'er a lady in the land
That little shoe could wear.
'T was midnight ere they reached the door
Where Cinderella dwelt,
Who vainly strove to veil her heart
And hide the joy she felt.
The glittering prize they bear,
But ne'er a lady in the land
That little shoe could wear.
'T was midnight ere they reached the door
Where Cinderella dwelt,
Who vainly strove to veil her heart
And hide the joy she felt.
The sisters rushed into the hall
And sought, with vain ado,
To press and pinch and crowd their feet
Into the fair shoe.
Till Cinderella, all the while
Demurely standing by,
Now on the royal messenger
Cast an appealing eye.
And sought, with vain ado,
To press and pinch and crowd their feet
Into the fair shoe.
Till Cinderella, all the while
Demurely standing by,
Now on the royal messenger
Cast an appealing eye.
The mute request with curling lip
The tittering sisters see,
But soon to wonder and amaze
Was turned their scornful glee.
With perfect ease she slides her foot
Into the fairy shoe,
Then, blushing, from her folded vest
Its little partner drew.
The tittering sisters see,
But soon to wonder and amaze
Was turned their scornful glee.
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Into the fairy shoe,
Then, blushing, from her folded vest
Its little partner drew.
When, lo! soft music filled the air,
Resplendent lustre shone;
The fairy comes to claim her charge
And lead her to a throne.
And “Ne'er forget, my child,” she said,
“In sorrow's darkest hour
That unseen guardians still are nigh
To aid thee with their power:
Resplendent lustre shone;
The fairy comes to claim her charge
And lead her to a throne.
And “Ne'er forget, my child,” she said,
“In sorrow's darkest hour
That unseen guardians still are nigh
To aid thee with their power:
“And often in yon glittering court
Recall my last behest,
For pleasure's self pursued too far
Shall lose its sweetest zest.
Then count the moments as they pass
And heed their warning chime,
Nor ever in life's mazy dance
Forget the flight of time.”
Recall my last behest,
For pleasure's self pursued too far
Shall lose its sweetest zest.
Then count the moments as they pass
And heed their warning chime,
Nor ever in life's mazy dance
Forget the flight of time.”
1848.
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THE SLEEPING BEAUTY.
“A tale of forests and enchantments drear.”
Il Penseroso.
Il Penseroso.
Sister, 't is the noon of night!—
Let us, in the web of thought,
Weave the threads of ancient song,
From the realms of Fairie brought.
Let us, in the web of thought,
Weave the threads of ancient song,
From the realms of Fairie brought.
Thou shalt stain the dusky warp
In nightshade wet with twilight dew;
I, with streaks of morning gold,
Will strike the fabric through and through.
In nightshade wet with twilight dew;
I, with streaks of morning gold,
Will strike the fabric through and through.
PART I.
Where a lone castle by the sea
Upreared its dark and moldering pile,
Far seen, with all its frowning towers,
For many and many a weary mile;
Upreared its dark and moldering pile,
Far seen, with all its frowning towers,
For many and many a weary mile;
The wild waves beat the castle walls
And bathed the rock with ceaseless showers,
The winds roared hoarsely round the pile,
And moaned along its moldering towers.
And bathed the rock with ceaseless showers,
The winds roared hoarsely round the pile,
And moaned along its moldering towers.
Within those wide and echoing halls,
To guard her from a fatal spell,
A maid, of noble lineage born,
Was doomed in solitude to dwell.
To guard her from a fatal spell,
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Was doomed in solitude to dwell.
With portents dark and omens dire,
The orphan's natal day began,
As warring destinies conspire
Her charmèd life to bless or ban.
The orphan's natal day began,
As warring destinies conspire
Her charmèd life to bless or ban.
Four Fairies graced the infant's birth
With fame and beauty, wealth and power;
A fifth, by one fell stroke, reversed
The magic splendors of her dower:
With fame and beauty, wealth and power;
A fifth, by one fell stroke, reversed
The magic splendors of her dower:
If e'er a spindle's shining steel
Should pierce the maiden's lily hand,
A solemn trance her eyes should seal
In sleep's forlorn, enchanted land:
Should pierce the maiden's lily hand,
A solemn trance her eyes should seal
In sleep's forlorn, enchanted land:
A hundred years her soul should stray
In far-off shadow-lands of dream,
Till, warm beneath love's kindling ray,
It opened to the morning's beam.
In far-off shadow-lands of dream,
Till, warm beneath love's kindling ray,
It opened to the morning's beam.
In olden times the tale had birth,
By wandering minstrels told of yore,
Whose names have perished from the earth,—
Whose legends live in fairy lore.
By wandering minstrels told of yore,
Whose names have perished from the earth,—
Whose legends live in fairy lore.
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The wild waves beat the castle wall,
And bathed the rock with ceaseless showers;
Dark, heaving billows plunge and fall
In whitening foam beneath the towers.
And bathed the rock with ceaseless showers;
Dark, heaving billows plunge and fall
In whitening foam beneath the towers.
There, rocked by winds and lulled by waves,
In youthful grace the maiden grew,
And from her solitary dreams
A sweet and pensive pleasure drew.
In youthful grace the maiden grew,
And from her solitary dreams
A sweet and pensive pleasure drew.
Yet often, from her lattice high,
She gazed athwart the gathering night
To mark the sea-gulls wheeling by,
And longed to follow in their flight.
She gazed athwart the gathering night
To mark the sea-gulls wheeling by,
And longed to follow in their flight.
One winter night, beside the hearth
She sat and watched the smoldering fire,
While now the tempest seemed to lull,
And now the winds rose high and higher,
She sat and watched the smoldering fire,
While now the tempest seemed to lull,
And now the winds rose high and higher,
Strange sounds are heard along the wall,
Dim faces glimmer through the gloom,
And still mysterious voices call,
And shadows flit from room to room:
Dim faces glimmer through the gloom,
And still mysterious voices call,
And shadows flit from room to room:
Till, bending o'er the dying brands,
She chanced a sudden gleam to see;
She turned the sparkling embers o er,
And lo! she finds a golden key!
She chanced a sudden gleam to see;
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And lo! she finds a golden key!
Lured on, as by an unseen hand,
She roamed the castle o'er and o'er,—
Through many a darkling chamber sped,
And many a dusky corridor:
She roamed the castle o'er and o'er,—
Through many a darkling chamber sped,
And many a dusky corridor:
And still, through unknown, winding ways
She wandered on for many an hour,
For gallery still to gallery leads,
And tower succeeds to tower.
She wandered on for many an hour,
For gallery still to gallery leads,
And tower succeeds to tower.
Oft, wearied with the steep ascent,
She lingered on her lonely way,
And paused beside the pictured walls,
Their countless wonders to survey.
She lingered on her lonely way,
And paused beside the pictured walls,
Their countless wonders to survey.
At length, upon a narrow stair
That wound within a turret high,
She saw a little low-browed door,
And turned, her golden key to try;
That wound within a turret high,
She saw a little low-browed door,
And turned, her golden key to try;
Slowly, beneath her trembling hand,
The bolts recede, and, backward flung,
With harsh recoil and sullen clang,
The door upon its hinges swung.
The bolts recede, and, backward flung,
With harsh recoil and sullen clang,
The door upon its hinges swung.
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There, in a little moonlit room,
She sees a weird and withered crone,
Who sat and spun amid the gloom,
And turned her wheel with drowsy drone.
She sees a weird and withered crone,
Who sat and spun amid the gloom,
And turned her wheel with drowsy drone.
With mute amaze and wondering awe,
A passing moment stood the maid,
Then, entering at the narrow door,
More near the mystic task surveyed.
A passing moment stood the maid,
Then, entering at the narrow door,
More near the mystic task surveyed.
She saw her twine the flaxen fleece,
She saw her draw the flaxen thread,
She viewed the spindle's shining point,
And, pleased, the novel task surveyed.
She saw her draw the flaxen thread,
She viewed the spindle's shining point,
And, pleased, the novel task surveyed.
A sudden longing seized her breast
To twine the fleece,—to turn the wheel:
She stretched her lily hand, and pierced
Her finger with the shining steel!
To twine the fleece,—to turn the wheel:
She stretched her lily hand, and pierced
Her finger with the shining steel!
Slowly her heavy eyelids close,
She feels a drowsy torpor creep
From limb to limb, till every sense
Is locked in an enchanted sleep.
She feels a drowsy torpor creep
From limb to limb, till every sense
Is locked in an enchanted sleep.
A dreamless slumber, deep as night,
In deathly trance her senses locked.
At once, through all its massive vaults
And gloomy towers, the castle rocked.
In deathly trance her senses locked.
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And gloomy towers, the castle rocked.
The beldame roused her from her lair,
And raised on high a mournful wail,—
A shrilly scream that seemed to float
A requiem on the dying gale.
And raised on high a mournful wail,—
A shrilly scream that seemed to float
A requiem on the dying gale.
“A hundred years shall pass,” she said,
“Ere those blue eyes behold the morn,—
Ere these deserted halls and towers
Shall echo to a bugle-horn;
“Ere those blue eyes behold the morn,—
Ere these deserted halls and towers
Shall echo to a bugle-horn;
“A hundred Norland winters pass,
While drenching rains and drifting snows
Shall beat against the castle walls,
Nor wake thee from thy long repose.
While drenching rains and drifting snows
Shall beat against the castle walls,
Nor wake thee from thy long repose.
“A hundred times the golden grain
Shall wave beneath the harvest moon,
Twelve hundred moons shall wax and wane
Ere yet thine eyes behold the sun!”
Shall wave beneath the harvest moon,
Twelve hundred moons shall wax and wane
Ere yet thine eyes behold the sun!”
She ceased; but still the mystic rhyme
The long-resounding aisles prolong,
And all the castle's echoes chime
In answering cadence to her song.
The long-resounding aisles prolong,
And all the castle's echoes chime
In answering cadence to her song.
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She bore the maiden to her bower,
An ancient chamber, wide and low,
Where golden sconces from the wall
A faint and trembling lustre throw;
An ancient chamber, wide and low,
Where golden sconces from the wall
A faint and trembling lustre throw;
A silent chamber, far apart,
Where strange and antique arras hung,
That waved along the moldering walls,
And in the gusty night-wind swung.
Where strange and antique arras hung,
That waved along the moldering walls,
And in the gusty night-wind swung.
She laid her on her ivory bed,
And gently smoothed each snowy limb,
Then drew the curtain's dusky fold
To make the entering daylight dim.
And gently smoothed each snowy limb,
Then drew the curtain's dusky fold
To make the entering daylight dim.
PART II.
And all around, on every side,
Throughout the castle's precincts wide,
In every bower and hall,
All slept: the warder in the court,
The figures on the arras wrought,
The steed within his stall.
Throughout the castle's precincts wide,
In every bower and hall,
All slept: the warder in the court,
The figures on the arras wrought,
The steed within his stall.
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No more the watch-dog bayed the moon,
The owlet ceased her boding tune,
The raven on his tower,
All, hushed in slumber still and deep,
Enthralled in an enchanted sleep,
Await the appointed hour.
The owlet ceased her boding tune,
The raven on his tower,
All, hushed in slumber still and deep,
Enthralled in an enchanted sleep,
Await the appointed hour.
A pathless forest, wild and wide,
Engirt the castle's inland side,
And stretched for many a mile;
So thick the deep, impervious screen,
Its topmost towers were dimly seen
Above the moldering pile.
Engirt the castle's inland side,
And stretched for many a mile;
So thick the deep, impervious screen,
Its topmost towers were dimly seen
Above the moldering pile.
So high the ancient cedars sprung,
So far aloft their branches flung,
So close the covert grew,
No foot its silence could invade,
No eye could pierce its depths of shade,
Or see the welkin through.
So far aloft their branches flung,
So close the covert grew,
No foot its silence could invade,
No eye could pierce its depths of shade,
Or see the welkin through.
Yet oft, as from some distant mound,
The traveler cast his eyes around
O'er wold and woodland gray,
He saw, as by the glimmering light
Of moonbeams, on a misty night,
A castle far away.
The traveler cast his eyes around
O'er wold and woodland gray,
He saw, as by the glimmering light
Of moonbeams, on a misty night,
A castle far away.
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All desolate and drear it stood
Within the wild and tangled wood,
'Mid gloomy foss and fell;
And oft the maiden's form did seem
To mingle with a champion's dream,
As Gothic legends tell.
Within the wild and tangled wood,
'Mid gloomy foss and fell;
And oft the maiden's form did seem
To mingle with a champion's dream,
As Gothic legends tell.
Long ere the hundred years had passed,
Brave knights, with vigil and with fast,
Essayed to break the thrall;
Till, in the old romantic time
Of minstrel and Provençal rhyme,
And Amadis de Gaul,
Brave knights, with vigil and with fast,
Essayed to break the thrall;
Till, in the old romantic time
Of minstrel and Provençal rhyme,
And Amadis de Gaul,
A paladin from holy land,
With helm and hauberk, spear and brand,
And high, untarnished crest,
By visions of enchantment led,
Hath vowed the magic maze to tread,
And break her charmèd rest.
With helm and hauberk, spear and brand,
And high, untarnished crest,
By visions of enchantment led,
Hath vowed the magic maze to tread,
And break her charmèd rest.
As in the Valley of St. John,
The bold de Vaux defied alone
The mighty elfin powers,
And sought to gain the enchanted mound,
And break the spell that darkly bound
Its battlements and towers,—
The bold de Vaux defied alone
The mighty elfin powers,
And sought to gain the enchanted mound,
And break the spell that darkly bound
Its battlements and towers,—
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So, like that knight of Triermain,
He came through Saracenic Spain
O'er deserts waste and wide;
No dangers daunt, no toils can tire;
With throbbing heart and soul on fire
He seeks his sleeping bride.
He came through Saracenic Spain
O'er deserts waste and wide;
No dangers daunt, no toils can tire;
With throbbing heart and soul on fire
He seeks his sleeping bride.
He gains the old, enchanted wood,
Where never mortal footsteps trod,
He pierced its tangled gloom;
A chillness loads the lurid air,
Where baleful swamp-fires gleam and glare
His pathway to illume.
Where never mortal footsteps trod,
He pierced its tangled gloom;
A chillness loads the lurid air,
Where baleful swamp-fires gleam and glare
His pathway to illume.
Well might the warrior's courage fail,
Well might his lofty spirit quail,
On that enchanted ground;
No open foeman meets him there,
But, borne upon the murky air,
Strange horror broods around!
Well might his lofty spirit quail,
On that enchanted ground;
No open foeman meets him there,
But, borne upon the murky air,
Strange horror broods around!
At every turn his footsteps sank
'Mid tangled boughs and mosses dank,
For long and weary hours,—
Till issuing from the dangerous wood,
The castle full before him stood,
With all its flanking towers!
'Mid tangled boughs and mosses dank,
For long and weary hours,—
Till issuing from the dangerous wood,
The castle full before him stood,
With all its flanking towers!
259
The moon a paly lustre sheds;
Resolved, the grass-grown court he treads;
The gloomy portal gained,
He crossed the threshold's magic bound,
He paced the hall, where all around
A deathly silence reigned.
Resolved, the grass-grown court he treads;
The gloomy portal gained,
He crossed the threshold's magic bound,
He paced the hall, where all around
A deathly silence reigned.
No fears his venturous course could stay,—
Darkling he groped his dreary way,—
Up the wide staircase sprang:
It echoed to his mailèd heel;
With clang of arms and clash of steel
The silent chambers rang.
Darkling he groped his dreary way,—
Up the wide staircase sprang:
It echoed to his mailèd heel;
With clang of arms and clash of steel
The silent chambers rang.
He sees a glimmering taper gleam
Far off, with faint and trembling beam,
Athwart the midnight gloom:
Then first his soul confessed a fear,
As with slow footsteps drawing near,
He gained the lighted room.
Far off, with faint and trembling beam,
Athwart the midnight gloom:
Then first his soul confessed a fear,
As with slow footsteps drawing near,
He gained the lighted room.
And now the waning moon was low,
The perfumed tapers faintly glow,
And, by their dying gleam,
He raised the curtain's dusky fold,
And lo! his charmèd eyes behold
The lady of his dream!
The perfumed tapers faintly glow,
And, by their dying gleam,
He raised the curtain's dusky fold,
And lo! his charmèd eyes behold
The lady of his dream!
260
As violets peep from wintry snows,
Slowly her heavy lids unclose,
And gently heaves her breast;
But all unconscious was her gaze,
Her eye with listless languor strays
From brand to plumy crest:
Slowly her heavy lids unclose,
And gently heaves her breast;
But all unconscious was her gaze,
Her eye with listless languor strays
From brand to plumy crest:
A rising blush begins to dawn
Like that which steals at early morn
Across the eastern sky;
And slowly, as the morning broke,
The maiden from her trance awoke
Beneath his ardent eye!
Like that which steals at early morn
Across the eastern sky;
And slowly, as the morning broke,
The maiden from her trance awoke
Beneath his ardent eye!
As the first kindling sunbeams threw
Their level light athwart the dew,
And tipped the hills with flame,
The silent forest-boughs were stirred
With music, as from bee and bird
A mingling murmur came.
Their level light athwart the dew,
And tipped the hills with flame,
The silent forest-boughs were stirred
With music, as from bee and bird
A mingling murmur came.
From out its depths of tangled gloom
There came a breath of dewy bloom.
And, from the valleys dim,
A cloud of fragrant incense stole,
As if each violet breathed its soul
Into that floral hymn.
There came a breath of dewy bloom.
And, from the valleys dim,
A cloud of fragrant incense stole,
As if each violet breathed its soul
Into that floral hymn.
261
Loud neighed the steed within his stall,
The cock crowed on the castle wall,
The warder wound his horn;
The linnet sang in leafy bower,
The swallows, twittering from the tower,
Salute the rosy morn.
The cock crowed on the castle wall,
The warder wound his horn;
The linnet sang in leafy bower,
The swallows, twittering from the tower,
Salute the rosy morn.
But fresher than the rosy morn,
And blither than the bugle-horn,
The maiden's heart doth prove,
Who, as her beaming eyes awake,
Beholds a double morning break,—
The dawn of light and love!
And blither than the bugle-horn,
The maiden's heart doth prove,
Who, as her beaming eyes awake,
Beholds a double morning break,—
The dawn of light and love!
1848.
| Poems by Sarah Helen Whitman | |