CANTO I. I. It was the time of year when cockneys flyFrom town to country, and from there to town.I am not sure, but think it was July;I would not swear it was, nor bet a crown,When, as I told you, cockneys hurry downIn two hours' railway journey far away,And rush to places of immense renown,Bright with the thoughts of coming holiday,Full well determined to enjoy it while they may. II. They were the days when all who care to wanderO'er... more...

I.  KING VALDEMAR’S WOOING. Valdemar King and Sir Strange bold   At table sat one day,So many a word ’twixt them there passed   In amicable way. “Hear Strange, hear! thou for a time   Thy native land must leave;Thou shalt away to Bohemia far   My young bride to receive.” Then answered Strange Ebbesen,   To answer he was not slow:“Who shall attend me of thy... more...

ARGUMENT In this Threnody and Birth-song of the Elements, written in California some five years ago, I have striven to capture and present some of the chief-factors and phases of the eternal drama of Life and Death in the Universe. These powers, elements and agents I have endowed with human attributes and human emotions as though it were Man himself who uttered himself through them. The actors in this cosmic masque or pageant of the planets are... more...

1 At Palaiseau, there liv’d a maid,In form and features mild;The stings of conscience never prey’d,On this devoted child. 2 She serv’d a wealthy farmer there,An honest soul was he;Her comforts were his only care,And all he wish’d to see. 3 His wife was of another mould,And prematurely smart;Hasty, and rash, with that a scold,Yet still a feeling heart. 4 One summers eve’, her labor done,She sat in pensive... more...

INTRODUCTION. There is scarcely an UN-DRAMATIC writer of the Seventeenth Century, whose poems exhibit so many and such gross corruptions as those of the author of LUCASTA. In the present edition, which is the first attempt to present the productions of a celebrated and elegant poet to the admirers of this class of literature in a readable shape, both the text and the pointing have been amended throughout, the original reading being always given... more...

THE LORD OF MISRULE “On May days the wild heads of the parish would choose a Lord of Misrule, whom they would follow even into the church, though the minister were at prayer or preaching, dancing and swinging their may-boughs about like devils incarnate.”—Old Puritan Writer. A LL on a fresh May morning, I took my love to church, To see if Parson Primrose were safely on his perch. He scarce had got to... more...

HUSH-a-bye, baby, on the tree top, When the wind blows, the cradle will rock; When the bough bends, the cradle will fall. Down will come baby, cradle, and all. CURRAHOO, curr dhoo, Love me, and I'll love you! [Imitate a Pigeon] WHEN the days begin to lengthen The cold begins to strengthen. CANTALOUPES! Cantaloupes! What is the price? Eight for a dollar, and all very nice.... more...

THE THREE CHERRY TREES There were three cherry trees once,Grew in a garden all shady;And there for delight of so gladsome a sight,Walked a most beautiful lady,Dreamed a most beautiful lady. Birds in those branches did sing,Blackbird and throstle and linnet,But she walking there was by far the most fair—Lovelier than all else within it,Blackbird and throstle and linnet. But blossoms to berries do come,All hanging on stalks light and... more...

Author's Introduction   To you who have lifted the veil of mists o'er-blown  And gazed in the eyes of dawn when night had flown—  Have felt in your hearts a thrill of sheer delight  As you scanned the scene below from some alpine height—  I extend this fleeting glimpse across a world  Of forest and meadow land—at last unfurled—  Through vistas of... more...

Walter Scott was born in Edinburgh, August 15, 1771, of an ancient Scotch clan numbering in its time many a hard rider and good fighter, and more than one of these petty chieftains, half-shepherd and half-robber, who made good the winter inroads into their stock of beeves by spring forays and cattle drives across the English Border. Scott's great-grandfather was the famous "Beardie" of Harden, so called because after the exile of the Stuart... more...