I How swiftly through heaven's wide expanse Bright day's resplendent colors fade! How sweetly does the moonbeam's glance With silver tint St. Irvyne's glade! II No cloud along the spangled air, Is borne upon the evening breeze; How solemn is the scene! how fair The moonbeams rest upon the trees! III Yon dark gray turret glimmers white, Upon it sits the mournful owl; Along the stillness of the night Her melancholy shriekings roll. IV But not alone on Irvyne's tower The silver moonbeam pours her rays; It gleams upon the ivied bower, It dances in the cascade's spray. V 'Ah! why do darkening shades conceal The hour when man must cease to be? Why may not human minds unveil The dim mists of futurity? VI 'The keenness of the world hath torn The heart which opens to its blast; Despised, neglected, and forlorn, Sinks the wretch in death at last.' | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...FAIR HARVARD by GEORGE SANTAYANA THE COMMON LOT by JAMES MONTGOMERY THE HEART KNOWETH ITS OWN BITTERNESS' (2) by CHRISTINA GEORGINA ROSSETTI DEDICATIONS AND INSCRIPTIONS: 8. BEAM-VERSES AT WELL KNOWE by GORDON BOTTOMLEY |