Page:The Excursion, Wordsworth, 1814.djvu/145

119 And the sea breeze as innocently breathes,

On Devon's leafy shores;—a sheltered Hold,

In a soft clime encouraging the soil

To a luxuriant bounty!—As our steps

Approach the embowered Abode, our chosen Seat,

See, rooted in the earth, its kindly bed,

The unendangered Myrtle, decked with flowers,

Before the threshold stands to welcome us!

While, in the flowering Myrtle's neighbourhood,

Not overlooked but courting no regard

Those native plants, the Holly and the Yew,

Gave modest intimation to the mind

Of willingness with which they would unite

With the green Myrtle, to endear the hours

Of winter, and protect that pleasant place.

—Wild were the walks upon those lonely Downs,

Track leading into track, how marked, how worn

Into bright verdure, among fern and gorse

Winding away its never-ending line,

On their smooth surface, evidence was none:

But, there, lay open to our daily haunt,

A range of unappropriated earth,

Where youth's ambitious feet might move at large;