And Other Poems.
31
Mystic midnight voices melt
Through each leafy bower and belt,
Round the spot where friends have knelt—
“Peace be with thee, Lilian.”
Through each leafy bower and belt,
Round the spot where friends have knelt—
“Peace be with thee, Lilian.”
Far away from town and tower,
Sleeping in a leafy bower,
Withered lies the forest flower—
“Peace be with thee, Lilian.”
Sleeping in a leafy bower,
Withered lies the forest flower—
“Peace be with thee, Lilian.”
There, where passions ne’er intrude;
There, where nature has imbued
With her sweets the solitude,
Rests the form of Lilian.
There, where nature has imbued
With her sweets the solitude,
Rests the form of Lilian.
Dear old forest o’er the sea,
Home of Nature’s uphony,
Pour thy requiem psalmody
O’er the grave of Lilian.
Home of Nature’s uphony,
Pour thy requiem psalmody
O’er the grave of Lilian.
Guard that daisy-quilted sod:
Thou hast there no common clod;
Keep her ashes safe; for God
Makes but few like Lilian.
Thou hast there no common clod;
Keep her ashes safe; for God
Makes but few like Lilian.
Sceptics ask me: “Is that clay
In the forest far away
Part of her?”—I only say:
“Flow’rets breathe out Lilian;
In the forest far away
Part of her?”—I only say:
“Flow’rets breathe out Lilian;
“From her grave their sweets mount high—
Love and beauty never die—
Sun and stars, earth, sea, and sky
All partake of Lilian.
Love and beauty never die—
Sun and stars, earth, sea, and sky
All partake of Lilian.
