University of Virginia Library

To the Moon

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The attribution of this poem is uncertain.

Bright orb, whose silver shadows streak the green,
Whose distant rays cast lustre on the waves,
I love thy presence, and thy beams serene
I joy to contemplate around the caves.
Thou fairest planet—may no envious cloud
Arise to quench thy pure majestic light,
To veil thy radiance in a dusky shroud,
And match thy beauty from the lonely night.
Lend, gentle moon, thy soft, untarnished ray,
That fills my soul with energy divine.
On the dark windings as I bend my way,
O let thy light of beauteous lustre shine!
For thy mild tints can chase the sigh of woe,
And break the cord that chains the thoughts below.
J. D.