102
SIEGE OF VALENCIA.
ELMINA.
Should thus be call'd to stand i' the tempest's path,
And bear the token and the hue of death
On a bright soul so soon! I had not shrunk
From mine own lot, but thou, my child, shouldst move
As a light breeze of heaven, thro' summer-bowers,
And not o'er foaming billows. We are fall'n
On dark and evil days!
XIMENA.
All to their tasks!—Youth may not loiter now
In the green walks of spring; and womanhood
Is summon'd unto conflicts, heretofore
The lot of warrior-souls. But we will take
Our toils upon us nobly! Strength is born
In the deep silence of long-suffering hearts;
Not amidst joy.
ELMINA.
That thus thou speak'st?
XIMENA.
Unknown to thee?
