'Shall I bring thee a pearl, to waste its ray
On thy bosom that mocks its hue divine?'
The maiden blushed as she murmured, 'Nay,
Bring me thy heart, as it beats to-day,

And I'll welcome thee back to mine!'

55

I WILL EVER LOVE THEE.

I WILL love thee, ever love thee,
With passion strong and deep;
And in the depths of memory's cell,
Thy image ever keep.

And round the fibres of my heart

Sweet faith shall weave a spell;

Whose charms shall bind my heart to thce
While on this earth we dwell.

I will love thee, ever love thee,

As long as life shall last;

And shield thee with the arms of love
From sorrow's chilling blast.

Though time's relentless hand should stamp
Some furrows on thy brow,

I will love thee with a faith as pure,
E'en as I love thee now.

I will love thee, ever love thee,
And for thy throbbing breast
I will pine; e'en as a stricken bird
Pines for its sheltered nest.
My every thought shall be of thee,
And time shall always bring
Glad tidings from the one I love,
Upon his healing wing.

I will love thee, ever love thee,
With faith and hope secure;
And adverse fate shall only serve
To make that love more sure.
My heart is bound in love's sweet chain,
And time shall ne'er sever

Its golden links, but I shall love,
Yea, love, yea, love for ever.

TO FRANCESCA.

WELL did I read thine angel brow
When first I looked upon thee,
That told my heart what thou shouldst be
When coming years should sun thee.
I saw beneath thy mystic veil

That childhood wove around thee,
The beauty and the intellect

With which thy God had crowned thee.

And fast I see the bud unfold

With sunshine and with showers; And soon thou'lt be mid human bloom A rose mid humbler flowers.

Yet not alone the queenly form

Shall tell thy triumph's story;

Thy thought shall shine abroad in heaven
A star in regal glory.

And joy 'twill be to look on thee,

Now standing in life's portal,

When thou hast reached the temple's crown,

And won a wreath immortal.

And if beyond the eternal gate,

My place shall then be given,

I'll wait with open heart and arm,

To welcome thee to heaven.

SONG OF A FORGOTTEN ONE.

I HAVE loved, not so madly, so blindly, as thou:
Nor with passion so transient and fleeting;
I paused long, ere my lips breathed a soul-lingering vow,
Though my heart was tumultuously beating.

Though my bosom heaved wildly, and tears filled my eye,
And wan grief ruled my heart as I met thee,
Yet I paused ere those words were recorded on high,
That the first in my bosom I'd set thee.

I ne'er doubted thy truth, for I felt that thy soul
Was as pure as a dewdrop of even;

But I paused, for a fear of myself o'er me stole
Lest thy love from my heart should be riven:

And that I should prove false to the words of my vow,
Slaying peace on her throne in thy spirit;
But my vows by thy silence are broken ere now,
And for thee I no longer may fear it.

Evermore when my thoughts wander back unto thee,
When I think how I've loved thee and lost thee;
When they dwell on the past, and 'tis full dark to see
How my love ever bitterly crossed me.

A tear will well forth, but I bid it fall back,

I have no tears to waste upon sorrow;
My heart has grown sick upon life's dreary track,
And my hope no assurance can borrow.

O! I once would have wept in the far long ago,
At the loss of a heart loving purely,

And now grief fills my soul, but my tears may not flow, I must e'en bear my sorrow demurely.

I must feel, as I tread the world's deep maze alone,
That no warm heart is waiting to greet me;

And that soon, when I sleep with my head 'neath a stone,
It is well there are none who will weep me.

I'LL LOVE NO MORE.

'I'LL love no more,'-I said, with quivering sigh;
Too full this heart has been of hope and trust:
Love's lightest flowers have but to bloom and die,
Hope's fairest fabrics crumble into dust.

I'll love no more--why power give to those
The heart will raise to fond idolatry,
To mock its wild and agonizing throes,
Struggling from galling bondage to be free?

I'll love no more-this aching heart shall beat
At words of cold indifference no more;

And acts of heartless meaning it will treat

As with forgetful draughts from Lethe's shore.

Thou'lt love no more-but canst thou break the spell, That years around that heart of thine have thrown? Will memory silent be within her cell,

Nor torture give by many a sickly moan?

Thou'lt love no more-can words alone efface
The image that long years have graved deep
Upon thy heart? will tireless memory trace
No vision to destroy thy peaceful sleep?

Thou'lt love no more-poor, sad and doubting one,
Is hope within thy fainting bosom crushed?
And dreams of peace, have they for ever fled,
And joyous songs for aye within thee hushed?

Has thy sick heart no spot to rest upon,

Like the tired dove, no ark of refuge near? Is there no breast to shelter thee? nor one

Kind hand to wipe the bitter blighting tear?

Thou canst not help but love-for woman's lot
Is on thy spirit, and thou must fulfil

Her fated destiny, though it is forgot;

Thy love may bloom and brightest flowers bear still.

The seeds of love we know on earth have birth;

Its flowers may bloom, and shed sweet fragrance even; The fruit of love we see not on the earth, Maturity it hath alone in heaven.

THOU ART AWAY.

THE skies are fair, the moon beams bright,

And fragrance fills the air;

No cloud appears to dim the light,
That's streaming pure and clear.
The verdant leaves are gently stirred
By zephyrs light and gay,
But oh! they seem to mock my grief,
For thou art far away!

I tread the paths we often trod

At evening's placid hour;

I hear the strains thou lov'dst to hear,
And view thy favourite flower.
But oh! those paths are lonely now;

My echoing footsteps stay

In unison with strain and flower,

Thou art-thou art away!

The sabbath's holy light appears,
Sweet day of rest and prayer;
I seek thee in the house of God,
But oh! thou art not there.
I do not hear thy mellow voice,
Thy seat is vacant; yea,
The deep solemnity that reigns,
Proclaims, thou art away!

Away?-yes, thou art far away!
The music of thy voice,
No longer falls upon my ear,
And bids my soul rejoice.
The radiancy of thy bright smile,
No longer lights my way;
Alone, I wander through the gloom,
To feel that thou'rt away!

Away?-yes, thou art far away!
No kindred heart responds

And beats in sweet accord with mine;
Linked to thine own in bonds

Which neither time nor space can break,

Which stronger grow each day,

Though doomed to know the startling truth, And feel-thou art away!

TO JEM.

Down the sunlight shone and glimmered,
Down on many a pleasant hill,
Down upon the waving tree-tops,
And the ever dancing rill.

On the bank we sat together,

And we murmured love-words low, Listening to the measured music

Of the streamer's ceaseless flow.

Through the opening 'mid the branches,
And the green leaves young and fair,
Playfully the glad light quivered,

Gleamed and sparkled on your hair.
And your arm was twined around me,
And your fond hand clasped my waist--
Why, away, on time's swift current,
Must such moments always haste?