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Classic and Contemporary Poetry


ON CHICATAWBUT HILL by CHARLES LOUIS HENRY WAGNER

First Line: ON CHICATAWBUT HILL I CLIMBED
Last Line: ON CHICATAWBUT HILL.
Subject(s): MEMORY; MILTON, MASSACHUSETTS; MOUNTAINS; NATURE; HILLS; DOWNS (GREAT BRITAIN);

On Chicatawbut Hill I climbed,
On Chicatawbut Hill,
Upon its crest sweet verse I rhymed
Responsive to the thrill
Of Nature's works which all around
Lay stretched before my gaze,
For, as I looked, again I found
The charms of bygone days.

I saw the hills of Milton plain
From Chicatawbut Hill,
And they recalled to me again
The days I roamed at will;
I used to tramp the whole range o'er
When I was but a lad;
Since then old Time has closed youth's door,
And memories make me sad.

I saw the great stone water tower
From Chicatawbut Hill,
The quarries and the crags that lower
And fearsome thoughts instil.
I've sat upon the crag-top's height
Full many and many a time,
And oft exclaimed in glad delight
O'er views which were sublime.

I saw the distant ocean's bay
From Chicatawbut Hill,
And white-winged boats sped on their way
To seas of good or ill.
I thought that sometime I must sail
On unknown seas, somewhere,
My craft must weather storm and gale,
And I its fate must share.

I saw the calm, blue sky aloft
From Chicatawbut Hill,
A few white fleecy clouds, as soft
As swansdown, rested still;
It seemed as if God's artist, sly,
Had dipped his brush in white
And wiped it out upon the sky
Ere toning shades of light.

I saw a blue-jay flying fast
On Chicatawbut Hill,
I watched him close as he flew past,
His call was harsh and shrill,
That cry alone, of all, to me
Discordant seemed that day,
And I was pleased indeed to see
That blue-jay fly away.

If I could rhyme @3all@1 joys I found
On Chicatawbut Hill,
My verse would spread the earth around
And every corner fill;
But mayhap, friend, you'll climb its height,
And then take up your quill,
Where I've left off, begin to write
On Chicatawbut Hill.



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