 | The poetical writings of the late Willis Gaylord Clark |  |
146
TO THE MISSISSIPPI.
Thine is a troubled stream!
Born in the darkness of the lonely woods,
Where scarce from the bright sun a transient gleam
Streams through their arcades on thy solitudes;
But thy deep waves rush onward to the sea,
Meeting at intervals the day's broad light,
Save where the cypress-boughs o'ershadow thee,
And thy dim course is through their cloudy night.
Born in the darkness of the lonely woods,
Where scarce from the bright sun a transient gleam
Streams through their arcades on thy solitudes;
But thy deep waves rush onward to the sea,
Meeting at intervals the day's broad light,
Save where the cypress-boughs o'ershadow thee,
And thy dim course is through their cloudy night.
Such is the tide of life:
Shadows and sunlight tremble on its wave;
Soft gleams of pleasure and a cloud of strife
Mark our dim pathway to the silent grave;
Joy is our lot in youth, and Hope's blithe voice
Pours its sweet song where'er our footsteps be;
Flowers that soon wither bid the heart rejoice,
Then Time's wave mingles with Eternity!
Shadows and sunlight tremble on its wave;
Soft gleams of pleasure and a cloud of strife
Mark our dim pathway to the silent grave;
Joy is our lot in youth, and Hope's blithe voice
Pours its sweet song where'er our footsteps be;
Flowers that soon wither bid the heart rejoice,
Then Time's wave mingles with Eternity!
| The poetical writings of the late Willis Gaylord Clark | |