Page:Felicia Hemans in The Literary Gazette 1821.pdf/4



In the silence and grandeur of midnight I tread, Where Savannas in boundless magnificence spread; And bearing sublimely, their snow-wreaths on high, The far Cordilleras unite with the sky.

The Fern-tree waves o'er me, the fire-fly's red light, With its quick-glancing splendor illumines the night; And I read, in each tint of the skies and the earth, How distant my steps from the land of my birth.

But to thee, as thy lode-stars resplendently burn, In their clear depths of blue, with devotion I turn, Bright Cross of the South! and beholding thee shine, Scarce regret the lov'd land of the Olive and Vine.

Thou recallest the ages when first o'er the main, My fathers unfolded the streamer of Spain, And planted their faith in the regions that see Its unperishing symbol emblazon'd in thee.

How oft, in their course o'er the oceans unknown, Where all was mysterious and awfully lone, Hath their spirit been cheer'd by thy light, when the deep Reflected its brilliance, in tremulous sleep!

As the vision that rose to the Lord of the world,† When first his bright banner of faith was unfurl'd; E'en such, to the heroes of Spain, when their prow Made the billows the path of their glory, wert thou!

And to me, as I traverse the world of the west, Thro' deserts of beauty, in stillness that rest; By forests and rivers untam'd in their pride, Thy beams have a language, thy course is a guide.