Page:The New Penelope.djvu/333

Rh For the choicest of species the gardener fears!

, queen of the lilies shall be,

Fair, tall and graceful—queenly in will;

a Provence rose—rarely sweet she;

—white daffodil—

And the "vine," once more strong, shall entwine around the three!

WHAT THE SEA SAID TO ME.

One evening as I sat beside the sea,

A little rippling wave stole up to me,

And whispered softly, yet impressively,

The word Eternity:

I smiled, that anything so small should utter,

A word the ocean in its wrath might mutter;

And with a mirthful fancy, vainly strove,

To suit its cadence to some word of love—

But all the little wave would say to me,

Was, over and again, Eternity!

After a time, the winds, from their dark caves,

Arose, and wrestled with the swelling waves,

Shrieking as doth a madman when he raves;

Yet still Eternity

Was spoken audibly unto my hearing;

While foaming billows, their huge crests up-rearing,

Rushed with a furious force upon the shore,

That only answered with a sullen roar;

As if it hoarsely echoed what the sea

Said with such emphasis—Eternity!

And by and by, the sky grew dun and dim;

Soon all was darkness, save the foam's white gleam;

And all was silence save the sea's deep hymn—

That hymn Eternity: