Page:Poems Sigourney, 1834.pdf/170

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''word! no sound!'' But yet a solemn rite Proceedeth through the festive-lighted hall. Hearts are in treaty and the soul doth take That oath which unabsolved must stand, till death With icy seal doth stamp the scroll of life. ''No word! no sound!'' But still yon holy man With strong and graceful gesture doth impose The irrevocable vow, and with meek prayer Present it to be registered in Heaven. Methinks this silence heavily doth brood Upon the spirit. Say, thou flower-crowned bride! What means the sigh that from thy ruby lip Doth scape, as if to seek some element Which angels breathe? ''Mute! mute! 'tis passing strange!'' Like necromancy all. And yet 'tis well. For the deep trust with which a maiden casts Her all of earth, perchance her all of heaven, Into a mortal's hand, the confidence With which she turns in every thought to him, Her more than brother, and her next to God, Hath never yet been shadowed out in words, Or told in language. So ye voiceless pair, Pass on in hope. For ye may build as firm Your silent altar in each other's hearts, And catch the sunshine through the clouds of time As cheerily as though the pomp of speech Did herald forth the deed. And when ye dwell