This flower she stopped at, finger on lip, Stooped over, in doubt, as settling its claim; Speech half-asleep, or song half-awake? Roses, if I live and do well, I may bring her, one of these days, To fix you fast with as fine a spell, Fit you each with his Spanish phrase! But do not detain me now; for she lingers There, like sunshine over the ground, And ever I see her soft white fingers Searching after the bud she found. Flower, you Spaniard, look that you grow not, Where I find her not, beauties vanish; Is there no method to tell her in Spanish June's twice June since she breathed it with me? Come, bud, show me the least of her traces, Treasure my lady's lightest footfall – Ah, you may flout and turn up your faces, Roses, you are not so fair after all! THE PIED PIPER OF HAMELIN. 31 THE PIED PIPER OF HAMELIN. H AMELIN Town 's in Brunswick, By famous Hanover city; The river Weser, deep and wide, Almost five hundred years ago, Rats! They fought the dogs, and killed the cats, And bit the babies in the cradles, And ate the cheeses out of the vats, And licked the soup from the cook's own ladles, Split open the kegs of salted sprats, Made nests inside men's Sunday hats, And even spoiled the women's chats, At last the people in a body To the Town Hall came flocking: "'T is clear," cried they, "our Mayor 's a noddy; And as for our Corporation, shocking To think we buy gowns lined with ermine At this the Mayor and Corporation An hour they sat in counsel, At length the Mayor broke silence : "For a guilder I'd my ermine gown sell; I wish I were a mile hence! It's easy to bid one rack one's brain, Looking little, though wondrous fat; Nor brighter was his eye, nor moister Than a too long-opened oyster, Save when at noon his paunch grew mutinous Makes my heart go pit-a-pat!” "Come in!". - the Mayor cried, looking bigger: Had walked this way from his painted tomb-stone!" THE PIED PIPER OF HAMELIN. He advanced to the council-table : And, Please your honors," said he, "I'm able, On creatures that do people harm, The mole, and toad, and newt, and viper; To match with his coat of the selfsame check; And his fingers, they noticed, were ever straying Upon this pipe, as low it dangled Over his vesture so old-fangled.) Yet," said he, "poor piper as I am, In Tartary I freed the Cham Last June from his huge swarms of gnats; I eased in Asia the Nizam Of a monstrous brood of vampyre-bats : And, as for what your brain bewilders, If I can rid your town of rats Will you give me a thousand guilders?" "One? fifty thousand!"—was the exclamation Of the astonished Mayor and Corporation. Into the street the Piper stept, In his quiet pipe the while; To blow the pipe his lips he wrinkled, And green and blue his sharp eyes twinkled 33 And the muttering grew to a grumbling; Fathers, mothers, uncles, cousins, 4.P.DAVIS S |