No longer, no longer, resounds at morn, The harp and the viol, have ceased to weave, Is carried a captive to FAIRY LAND, IV. 'Twas thus, when the brave SIR HUGH ST. CYR, Vowed by the beauty of ERMENGARDE; To win her again, be she far or near, Or the gates of her prison house demon-barred For he had a HORN, whose magic sound, Would guide him the way to FAIRY LAND; Scatter the Goblins and Elves around, And loosen the strongest spel-wrought band: So away went he to the roaring sea, And he blew a call right merrily. V. Calm and sunny was the wave, Calm as the ripples are, which flow And their pebbly margents lave; And on that sea, so calm, so bright, Moored by a silken cord of blue, Lay a VESSEL Of Delight, A bark of amber hue; Gently it rose, and it fell above, Like a bosom heaved by a sigh of Love. VI. It had no sail, it had no oar, Two azure pinions waved before, Lovely as are the wings, that bear HER borne of PLEASURE and the SUN, VIT. The knight the silken cord untied, Odours more fragrant than are shed, VIII. He sailed along, the light gale died, So calm the wave, he scarce could tell IX. Not alone is SIR HUGH ST. CYR, x. Now swells a note of joyance gay, On an ITALIAN holiday; And now, like that of evening hour, Sung in some rose enwoven bower, By melancholy maiden pale; There singing, all alone, and lorn, From summer eve, till break of morn, In sorrow like the Nightingale. XI. The bark sailed on, the day was bright, No feather moved on his plumy crest, Nor waved the favor that hung from his breast; XII. The bark sailed an -The even came, And as the flood of radiance streamed, But fair in the beam the white cliffs stood, And the grots of spar where the GENII dwell; The columns of pearl, and the shell paved streets, The OCEAN QUEEN rode abroad that night; Of pearl, and of spar, And her steeds, two many hued dolphins bright; Embossed with purest golden ore: The sea flower waved amidst her hair, And the crown of gem shone paly there; A flowing vest she wore. XVI. He saw the sea meads, and the turtle flocks, That graze like sheep on the weed covered rocks Along the ocean lea; And he saw the keeper watch them nigh, At the trunk of a coral tree: In a bower of rock, by a coral wood, For XVII. It has passed in a creek, that magic bark, The moon is sinking in the sky, But the moon shone through a chink, and made A speck of light amidst the shade, And there, and there, it drew to shore, And the fairy minstrels sung once more, Farewell SIR KNIGHT! Success attend thee, And thy lady's star befriend thee! XVILL Light from the bark sprang SIR HUGH ST. CYR, With moss, and lichen over spread, And the rock flower bloomed above his head, Round and round, the staircase wound, Above a bolted port he found, But he blew a call, and the barriers all, By one, and one, began to fall. On steps of pearl and marbly snows, A vase received the beauteous stream; XXI. There were a smiling shepherdess band As they danced and sang, And these were the words of their song. XXII. Ah! Well a day! 'tis over now, And the queen of the palace no more will weep; But flowrets gay, shall bound the brow, Of the knight that our lady brought over the deep. XXIII. They danced, and they sang, and they led him along, Ere the life-giving fire from heaven had warmed; Void of motion, and void of breath, Pale, and fixed, and still as death: Dark as the raven was her hair, Her brow and her arm as snow were fair, Sable as jet, the garb she wore, Her hand her down bent forehead bore; She seemed to awake, as the knight drew nigh, And she pierced to his soul with her snake like eye, XXIV. Meanwhile a laughing young maid of the band, Lightly untied, The horn at his side, And bore it away in her hand; SIR HUGH! SIR HUGH! A captive in fairyland! |