 | The Collected Songs of Charles Mackay |  |
315
A VISION.
I
Dawn without cloud, thou happy Day!Earth's fairest creature comes this way;
And yet, O Sun, thou need'st not shine,—
Her beauty's light surpasses thine.
II
Be silent harpsichord and lute;She sings, and Music should be mute,
And take a lesson from her voice,
How best to soothe us or rejoice.
III
Sweet-scented Lily, sweeter Rose,Let all your blushing petals close:
What boots your odours to expand,
When she comes breathing in the land?
IV
Delay, O Time, when she is near,Change every minute to a year;
And when she's gone, let seasons pass
Fleeter than moments in thy glass.
V
Delay! nor do my heart a wrong;Go rob the sad, who deem thee long,
And give me, while my love is by,
The produce of the larceny.
316
VI
Take from the wasteful of thy joyThe days and hours that they destroy,
And pile them as my passion bids,
Like stones of steadfast pyramids.
VII
But when she goes—O wayward Time!To linger is capricious crime;
So spur the steed, and slack the rein,
And gallop till she comes again.
| The Collected Songs of Charles Mackay | |