Classic and Contemporary Poetry
SAN GABRIEL, by LYMAN WHITNEY ALLEN Poet's Biography First Line: San gabriel! / I stand and wonder at thy walls Last Line: I own thy sweet and mystic spell. Subject(s): California; San Gabriel Mission | ||||||||
San Gabriel! I stand and wonder at thy walls So old, so quaint; a glory falls Upon them as I view the past, And read the story which thou hast Preserved so well. San Gabriel! I gaze and marvel at thy towers, Thy belfry strange through which the hours Fleet-footed crowd two hundred years, Whose echoing music yet appears In each sweet bell. San Gabriel! What souls were they who fashioned thee To be a blessed charity! What faith was theirs who bore the cross, And counted wealth and ease but loss Of Christ to tell! San Gabriel! Before thy gates what heavy tolls Have fallen from sin-burdened souls! Within thy walls what new desires Of love have quenched fierce hatred's fires, From nave and cell! San Gabriel! What guidance hast thou flashed along The ways of savagery and wrong, And shamed the unholy and unkind, The theftuous hand, the murderous mind, Ere ravage fell! San Gabriel! A glamour of the ancient time Remains with thee! Thou hast the rime Of some old poem, and the scent Of some old rose's ravishment Naught can dispel! San Gabriel! From Mexico to Monterey Thy sisters greet thee 'midst decay; But thou dost stand a living thing, And round thee living passions cling And voices swell! San Gabriel! Within thee all my doubtings cease; I find the holy Prince of Peace; And feel the thrill of brotherhood Betwixt my soul and those who stood For this same faith, for this same world, And Christ's one flag of love unfurled! San Gabriel! San Gabriel! I own thy sweet and mystic spell. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...BEETHOVEN'S SEVENTH SYMPHONY by LYMAN WHITNEY ALLEN CELEBRATION ODE by LYMAN WHITNEY ALLEN PRINCETON by LYMAN WHITNEY ALLEN THE COMING OF HIS FEET by LYMAN WHITNEY ALLEN THE WANTS OF MAN by JOHN QUINCY ADAMS HALLOWED GROUND by THOMAS CAMPBELL THE PLAINT OF THE CAMEL by CHARLES EDWARD CARRYL THE MOURNER A LA MODE by JOHN GODFREY SAXE AN UNTIMELY THOUGHT by THOMAS BAILEY ALDRICH THE 'NAME UNKNOWN' (IN IMITATION OF KLOPSTOCK) by THOMAS CAMPBELL |
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