And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill, And there lay the steed, with his nostril all wide, And there lay the rider distorted and pale, With the dew on his brow, and the rust on his mail; And the widows of Asshur 2 are loud in their wail, 1 Sennacherib was the most powerful of Assyrian monarchs; he invaded Palestine in the time of Hezekiah for the purpose of preventing the union of the Hebrew and Egyptian armies. After the fearful overthrow narrated in the poem, he was assassinated by two of his sons (2 Chron. xxxii. 21). 2 Asshur was the second son of Shem, Byron. and gave his name to the vast territory of Assyria. 3 Baal, Bel, or Belus was, in one form or other, the supreme god of the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Syrians, and many other nations. 4 Gentile. This term was applied to all who did not belong to the Jewish nation. THE SOLDIER'S DREAM. Our bugles sang truce 1-for the night-cloud had lowered,2 When reposing that night on my pallet 3 of straw, And thrice ere the morning I dreamed it again. Methought, from the battle-field's dreadful array, To the home of my fathers, that welcomed me back. I flew to the pleasant field, traversed so oft In life's morning march,5 when my bosom was young; I heard my own mountain-goats bleating aloft, And knew the sweet strain that the corn-reapers sung. Then pledged we the wine-cup, and fondly I swore, From my home and my weeping friends never to part; My little ones kissed me a thousand times o'er, And my wife sobbed aloud in her fullness of heart: 'Stay, stay with us-rest, thou art weary and worn ;' 1 Bugles sang truce, gave the signal to cease fighting for a time. 2 The night-cloud had lowered, darkness had set in. 3 Pallet, couch or bed. Campbell. 4 Wolf-scaring fagot, a fire lighted to frighten away wolves. 5 Life's morning march, boyhood. THE BRIDGE. I stood on the bridge at midnight, I saw her bright reflection In the waters under me, And far in the hazy distance Among the long black rafters The wavering shadows lay, And the current that came from the ocean Seemed to lift and bear them away; As sweeping and eddying through them, Rose the belated tide, And streaming into the moonlight, The sea-weed floated wide. And like those waters rushing How often, oh, how often, In the days that had gone by, 62 LORD ULLIN'S DAUGHTER. Yet whenever I cross the river On its bridge with wooden piers, And I think how many thousands Each bearing his burden of sorrow, I see the long procession Still passing to and fro, The young heart hot and restless, And for ever and for ever, As long as the river flows, As long as the heart has passions, The moon and its broken reflection As the symbol of love in heaven, LORD ULLIN'S DAUGHTER. A chieftain to the Highlands bound, 'Now, who be ye would cross Lochgyle, 'Oh, I'm the chief of Ulva's Isle,1 And this, Lord Ullin's daughter. Longfellow. 'And fast before her father's men Three days we've fled together; For should he find us in the glen, My blood would stain the heather. "His horsemen hard behind us ride; Should they our steps discover, Then who will cheer my bonny bride, When they have slain her lover?' Out spoke the hardy Highland wight: 2 'And, by my word! the bonny bird In danger shall not tarry; So, though the waves are raging white, I'll row you o'er the ferry.' By this the storm grew loud apace, The water-wraith 3 was shrieking; And in the scowl of heaven each face Grew dark as they were speaking. The boat has left a stormy land, A stormy sea before her When, oh! too strong for human hand, The tempest gathered o'er her. |