Page:A Sheaf Gleaned in French Fields.djvu/210

The green tree threw its branches wide
Above the turf and trembling rose,
And dewdrops shed, with pearls that vied,
Pearls that on beauty's neck repose.
Now all is changed. A skeleton
The oak appears; the storms affray;
Light breezes and the rose are gone,
And snows hide all the wealth of May.

How can we stay much longer here?
Each day the sun becomes more pale,
The dim horizon more austere,
And earth more dreary in her mail.
God gave us wings and made us free;
Hail, waves tempestuous of the sea!

Thus sang the wildbirds as they fled.
They gained a fairer country soon,
Where clustering vines the elmtrees wed,
And jasmines smile beneath the moon,
And rivers murmur under boughs
Of myrtles and of olives green,
And forests smooth their sombre brows
To hear sweet songs from throats unseen.

When earthly happiness shall fade
And change into a long regret,
When sorrow shall the prospect shade,
And hope, e'en hope the star shall set,
When autumn winds shall doleful sigh,
Grieve not, poor soul: look up on high.

Beyond the seas another land,
A fairer land than that they knew,