Page:The Fall of the Alamo.djvu/30

 Oh, Travis! my unmaidenlike transgression, In what a light must it appear to thee?

Unmaidenlike, thou say est! Ah, as high As are the heavens above the earth, as wide As lies the East divided from the West. So is thy step from impropriety. 'Tis true, the charm of gentle womanhood Blooms in the even path of sweet retirement. In the pursuit of calm domestic life O'er which, as Springtime strews the earth with flowers, She sheds a grace of loveliness and peace. And wantonly to overstep these bounds. By nature set, is to destroy her balance. But when the hand of stark Necessity Has broken in upon a woman's fate And threats to tap her feeling's holy fount. When staking, offering up her all for one. When disregarding usage, scorn and power. Acknowledging no law save this: her love,— At last she rises like an earth-born Titan And irresistibly, victoriously Clears every obstacle that blocks her way. She adds the highest earthly glory then, A heroine's halo, to her womanly crown.