 | Dunluce Castle, A Poem |  |
45
II.
The sea-dash'd cavern's far extent,That wound beneath Dunluce,
Possess'd an unsuspected vent;
Unknown to public use.
It join'd a lonely avenue,
Remote, behind the Castle slanting,
Where evergreens uncultur'd grew,
And shrubs of every name were flaunting.
One veteran oak, whom years had sunk,
Here shew'd his broad dismember'd trunk,
That could but one unriven branch
Of all its ancient honours launch;
Yet might afford its hollow breast
A shelter to a casual guest.
Such shelter Owen lov'd to seek,
When storms were dark, and loud, and fierce;
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The loudly echoing cavern pierce.
He sought it now; in hour so dire
It any other heart had aw'd;
He sought it by the lightening fire,
That flash'd its angry eye abroad.
| Dunluce Castle, A Poem | |