ALONE by the Schuylkill a wanderer roved, And bright were its flowery banks to his eye; But far, very far were the friends that he loved, And he gazed on its flowery banks with a sigh! O Nature! though blessed and bright are thy rays, O'er the brow of creation enchantingly thrown, Yet faint are they all to the lustre that plays In a smile from the heart that is dearly our own! Nor long did the soul of the stranger remain Unblest by the smile he had languish'd to meet; Though scarce did he hope it would soothe him again, Till the threshold of home had been kiss'd by his feet! But the lays of his boyhood had stolen to their ear, And they loved what they knew of so humble a name, And they told him, with flattery welcome and dear, That they found in his heart something sweeter than fame! Nor did woman -- O woman! whose form and whose soul Are the spell and the light of each path we pursue, Whether sunn'd in the tropics, or chill'd at the pole, If woman be there, there is happiness too! -- Nor did she her enamouring magic deny, That magic his heart had relinquish'd so long, Like eyes he had loved was @3her@1 eloquent eye, Like them did it soften, and weep at his song! Oh! blest be the tear, and in memory oft May its sparkle be shed o'er his wandering dream! Oh! blest be that eye, and may passion as soft, As free from a pang ever mellow its beam! The stranger is gone -- but he will not forget, When at home he shall talk of the toil he has known, To tell, with a sigh, what endearments he met, As he stray'd by the wave of the Schuylkill alone! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...ON GEORGE HERBERT'S BOOK, THE TEMPLE, SENT TO A GENTLEWOMAN by RICHARD CRASHAW CELIA'S HOMECOMING by AGNES MARY F. ROBINSON MONNA INNOMINATA, A SONNET OF SONNETS: 6 by CHRISTINA GEORGINA ROSSETTI COLIN CLOUTS COME HOME AGAIN by EDMUND SPENSER POLYHYMNIA: SONNET TO LADY FALKLAND UPON HER GOING TO INTO IRELAND by WILLIAM BASSE |