Page:Roses in Rain, by Lilian Wooster Greaves, 1910.pdf/48

 But the deepest delight of those glad sum­
 * mer hours
 * I never could utter nor write.

Where the sea on pebbly beaches Murmurs endless tuneful speeches,
 * I wandered long and lone;

Feeling every strange emotion Of the ever-changing ocean—
 * Learning every tone.

"Watching sunny surface flashes, Foamy leaps and sportive dashes
 * Of the dancing waves;

Heedless in their careless gladness Of their underlying sadness;
 * Forgetting they are graves.

Then again I heard the moaning, And the sobbing and the groaning
 * Of the sea in pain;

Shrinking as the wind abused her, Threatened, tortured and ill-used her, Till the wounded main

Rose in furious indignation, Shrieked in clamorous protestation,
 * Howled in maddened rage;

Scattered frightened sands around her, Clutched the rocky cliffs that bound her,
 * Like lion in a cage.