IN a crowded room I seemed to stand, Yet not in the throng; alone, apart, And all about me the hot air fanned, Moved by the throbs of society's heart. A band was playing somewhere near ('T was a waltz of Strauss, so soft and sweet), And the ripple of voices came to my ear, And the merry tap of dancing feet. The rustle of silk, the wave of a fan, The gleam of gems, the scent of a rose, The laugh of a girl, the vows of a man, -- And the wave of society ebbs and flows. As I was wishing to join the throng The book fell down; I woke with a start To find it closed, and ended the song Whose gay, glad cadence lived on in my heart. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...AUTUMN WOODS by WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT ENVOY, TO 'MORE SONGS FROM VAGABONDIA' by RICHARD HOVEY ARMY CORRESPONDENT'S LAST RIDE; FIVE FORKS, APRIL 1, 1865 by GEORGE ALFRED TOWNSEND THE BROOK: WINTER by LAURA ABELL THE OLD BRIDGE by AUGUSTE ANGELLIER TO THEOPHILE GAUTIER by THEODORE FAULLAIN DE BANVILLE THE COMPLAINT OF CHASTITIE by RICHARD BARNFIELD VERSES TO THE MEMORY OF P. BURGESS; A CHILD OF SUPERIOR ENDOWMENTS by BERNARD BARTON |