The Vision of Prophecy and Other Poems By James D. Burns ... Second Edition |
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| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
| IX. |
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| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
| IX. |
| X. |
| XI. |
| XII. |
| XIII. |
| XIV. |
| XV. |
| XVI. |
| XVII. |
| XVIII. |
| XIX. |
| XX. |
| XXI. |
| XXII. |
| XXIII. |
| XXIV. |
| XXV. |
| XXVI. |
| XXVII. | XXVII.
VIA DOLOROSA. |
| XXVIII. |
| XXIX. |
 | The Vision of Prophecy and Other Poems |  |
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XXVII. VIA DOLOROSA.
My feet lightly stepped on the highway,
Youth ran with a thrill in my blood,
And my thoughts were in tune with the voices
That rung out of thicket and wood.
Youth ran with a thrill in my blood,
And my thoughts were in tune with the voices
That rung out of thicket and wood.
The blithe birds were my companions,
They fluttered from tree to tree,
Alluring me on with sweet music
That awoke sweeter echoes in me.
They fluttered from tree to tree,
Alluring me on with sweet music
That awoke sweeter echoes in me.
But I suddenly turned down a by-way
With briars and mosses o'ergrown,
And they shrunk from its threatening shadows,
And left me to journey alone.
With briars and mosses o'ergrown,
And they shrunk from its threatening shadows,
And left me to journey alone.
With a sorrowful heart I went onward,
And a darkness fell on the day,
When one, in attire like a pilgrim,
Appeared by my side on the way.
And a darkness fell on the day,
When one, in attire like a pilgrim,
Appeared by my side on the way.
280
His face had the sternness of sorrow,
For a time he spoke not a word,
And then, turning round, spoke abruptly
In a speech I never had heard.
For a time he spoke not a word,
And then, turning round, spoke abruptly
In a speech I never had heard.
I answered him not, but his language
Awoke many thoughts in my mind,
And the cloud seemed to pass from his features,
And his speech was more gentle and kind.
Awoke many thoughts in my mind,
And the cloud seemed to pass from his features,
And his speech was more gentle and kind.
And slowly my soul understood him,
I may not reveal what he said,
But it seemed, as we walked, the rough by-way
Grew pleasant and soft to my tread.
I may not reveal what he said,
But it seemed, as we walked, the rough by-way
Grew pleasant and soft to my tread.
He vanished, but left a remembrance
Which brightened the desolate place,—
And I knew, by the light on his features,
I had looked on an Angel's face.
Which brightened the desolate place,—
And I knew, by the light on his features,
I had looked on an Angel's face.
| The Vision of Prophecy and Other Poems | |