Queen Berengaria's Courtesy, and Other Poems By the Lady E. Stuart Wortley. In Three Vols |
 | I, II, III. |
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THE SONG. |
 | Queen Berengaria's Courtesy, and Other Poems |  |
THE SONG.
Sing me that soft and silvery song—
'Twill bring old thoughts, a shadowy throng;
That song of old thou lov'dst to sing;
A train of well-known dreams 'twill bring.
'Twill bring old thoughts, a shadowy throng;
That song of old thou lov'dst to sing;
A train of well-known dreams 'twill bring.
Oh! Music, mighty is thy power—
What is the place—and what the hour?
I feel—I feel I am once more
All that I was in truth before!
What is the place—and what the hour?
I feel—I feel I am once more
All that I was in truth before!
213
Still sing that song again, again;
It hath unclasped a galling chain;
No more I shrink—no more I droop—
Memory once more becometh Hope!—
It hath unclasped a galling chain;
No more I shrink—no more I droop—
Memory once more becometh Hope!—
Music hath brought to heart and brain
The Old World of the Past again—
That Old World of the Past so fair,
That Past that vanished—lo! 'tis there!
The Old World of the Past again—
That Old World of the Past so fair,
That Past that vanished—lo! 'tis there!
'Tis there, with all its happy scenes,
My soul from this bleak Present leans—
And seeks to strain in its embrace
That Past—whose paths it can retrace!—
My soul from this bleak Present leans—
And seeks to strain in its embrace
That Past—whose paths it can retrace!—
Sing still that song—again, again
Let pleasure come to chase dull pain:
My soul this dull blank Present leaves—
To her embrace the Past receives!
Let pleasure come to chase dull pain:
My soul this dull blank Present leaves—
To her embrace the Past receives!
214
Sweet thoughts, and dreams! that, long before,
Kindled and thrill'd my glad heart's core,
Aye, come in freshness once again,
In shining throng and smiling train!
Kindled and thrill'd my glad heart's core,
Aye, come in freshness once again,
In shining throng and smiling train!
Ye seem not changed—ye are not cold—
Ye warm me to my heart's deep fold—
Ye are not dull—ye are not tame—
Oh! thoughts and dreams, ye're still the same.
Ye warm me to my heart's deep fold—
Ye are not dull—ye are not tame—
Oh! thoughts and dreams, ye're still the same.
Joy! for my soul then is unchanged—
Nor yet from feeling's glow estranged;
Shine on the surface, but, the light,
And 'twill reflect it back as bright!
Nor yet from feeling's glow estranged;
Shine on the surface, but, the light,
And 'twill reflect it back as bright!
Sing still that song again, again,
And break the galling, crushing chain,
That long hath sorrow known to wind
About my sinking heart and mind.
And break the galling, crushing chain,
That long hath sorrow known to wind
About my sinking heart and mind.
215
Make me e'en thus myself once more;
Renew me to my heart's quick core;
Repair the waste of Time and Woe—
And let my long-check'd feelings flow.
Renew me to my heart's quick core;
Repair the waste of Time and Woe—
And let my long-check'd feelings flow.
Sing that sweet song again, again,
I live, I breathe, in that deep strain;
I bless its sound—I dread its close,
Lest that I lose my new repose!
I live, I breathe, in that deep strain;
I bless its sound—I dread its close,
Lest that I lose my new repose!
| Queen Berengaria's Courtesy, and Other Poems | |