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CRADLE SONGS.
(WRITTEN FOR MRS. H. E. H.)

I.

SLEEP, sweetest babe, and dream
In the red firelight's gleam;
The storm clouds fill the sky.
Thou canst not dream of harm,
Soothed by the mother-charm,
A tender lullaby.

Sleep! Though the wild wind blows
And drifts the blinding snows,
All feathery soft they lie.
The rhythm of the sleet
Reaches thy hushed retreat,
A gentle lullaby.

Close to thy mother's side
Sleep, warm and satisfied.
How sweet thy baby sigh!
Dear dove! the storm is o'er;
The waves lisp on the shore
A ceaseless lullaby.

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