The Project Gutenberg EBook of Graded Poetry: Third Year, by Various
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
Title: Graded Poetry: Third Year
Author: Various
Editor: Katherine D. Blake
Georgia Alexander
Release Date: April 12, 2010 [EBook #31967]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GRADED POETRY: THIRD YEAR ***
Produced by Emmy, Juliet Sutherland and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
[1]
GRADED POETRY
THIRD YEAR
EDITED BY
KATHERINE D. BLAKE
PRINCIPAL GIRLS' DEPARTMENT PUBLIC SCHOOL NO. 6,
NEW YORK CITY
AND
GEORGIA ALEXANDER
SUPERVISING PRINCIPAL, INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
NEW YORK
MAYNARD, MERRILL, & CO.
1906
[2]
Copyright, 1905,
BY
MAYNARD, MERRILL, & CO.
[3]
INTRODUCTION
Poetry is the chosen language of childhood and
youth. The baby repeats words again and again for
the mere joy of their sound: the melody of nursery
rhymes gives a delight which is quite independent
of the meaning of the words. Not until youth approaches
maturity is there an equal pleasure in the
rounded periods of elegant prose. It is in childhood
therefore that the young mind should be stored with
poems whose rhythm will be a present delight and
whose beautiful thoughts will not lose their charm
in later years.
The selections for the lowest grades are addressed
primarily to the feeling for verbal beauty, the recognition
of which in the mind of the child is fundamental
to the plan of this work. The editors have
felt that the inclusion of critical notes in these little
books intended for elementary school children would
be not only superfluous, but, in the degree in which
critical comment drew the child's attention from the
text, subversive of the desired result. Nor are there
any notes on methods. The best way to teach children
to love a poem is to read it inspiringly to them.
The French say: "The ear is the pathway to the
heart." A poem should be so read that it will sing
itself in the hearts of the listening children.
In the brief biographies appended to the later books
the human element has been brought out. An effort
has been made to call attention to the education of
the poet and his equipment for his life work rather
than to the literary qualities of his style.
[5]
CONTENTS
FIRST HALF YEAR |
| PAGE |
The Owl and the Pussy-cat. | Edward Lear | 7 |
Wishing | William Allingham | 9 |
The Piper | William Blake | 10 |
A Year's Windfalls | Christina G. Rossetti | 11 |
The Voice of Spring | Mary Howitt | 16 |
The Spring Walk | Thomas Miller | 18 |
"Over Hill, Over Dale" | William Shakespeare | 21 |
The Throstle | Alfred Tennyson | 22 |
The Violet | Jane Taylor | 23 |
Bobolink | Clinton Scollard | 24 |
The Four Winds | Frank Dempster Sherman | 26 |
The Violet | Lucy Larcom | 27 |
Pebbles | Frank Dempster Sherman | 28 |
The Tree | Björnstjerne Björnson | 29 |
September | Frank Dempster Sherman | 30 |
The Swallow | Christina G. Rossetti | 32 |
Thanksgiving Day | Lydia Maria Child | 32 |
Hiawatha's Childhood | Henry Wadsworth Longfellow | 34 |
Hiawatha's Sailing | Henry Wadsworth Longfellow | 39 |
Child's Evening Prayer | Sabine Baring-Gould | 44 |
SECOND HALF YEAR |
Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean | | 45 |
Corinna going a-Maying | Robert Herrick | 47 |
[6]Sweet Peas | John Keats | 49 |
The Bluebird | Emily Huntington Miller | 50 |
Where go the Boats? | Robert Louis Stevenson | 51 |
The Magpie's Nest | Charles Lamb, Mary Lamb | 52 |
The Sandman | Margaret Vandegrift | 56 |
The Fairies of the Caldon-Low | Mary Howitt | 58 |
Night-scented Flowers | Felicia Dorothea Hemans | 63 |
Indian Summer | John Greenleaf Whittier | 64 |
November | Alice Cary | 65 |
The Frost Spirit | John Greenleaf Whittier | 67 |
The Owl | Alfred Tennyson | 69 |
The Wind and the Moon | George Macdonald | 70 |
The Tempest | James T. Fields | 74 |
A Visit from St. Nicholas | Clement C. Moore | 76 |
Lucy Gray | William Wordsworth | 81 |
The Wonderful World | William Brighty Rands | 84 |
To a Child. Written in her Album | William Wordsworth | 85 |
Consider | Christina G. Rossetti | 86 |
Lullaby of an Infant Chief | Sir Walter Scott | 87 |
Dutch Lullaby | Eugene Field | 88 |
The Night Wind | Eugene Field | 91 |
Marjorie's Almanac | Thomas Bailey Aldrich | 93 |
A Child's Prayer | Betham Edwards | 96 |
The poems by Longfellow, Whittier, Alice Cary, J. T. Fields,
and Frank Dempster Sherman are published by special arrangement
with the publishers, Messrs. Houghton, Mifflin, & Company.
[7]
THIRD YEAR—FIRST HALF
EDWARD LEAR
England, 1812-1888
The Owl and the Pussy-Cat
The Owl and the Pussy-Cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat.
They took some honey, and plenty of money
Wrapped up in a five-pound note.
The Owl looked up to the moon above,
5
And sang to a small guitar,
"O lovely Pussy! O Pussy, my love!
What a beautiful Pussy you are,—
You are;
What a beautiful Pussy you are!" 10
Pussy said to the Owl, "You elegant fowl!
[8]How wonderful sweet you sing!
Oh let us be married,—too long we have tarried,—
But what shall we do for a ring?"
They sailed away for a year and a day
To the land where the Bong-tree grows,
And there in a wood, a piggy-wig stood
5
With a ring in the end of his nose,—
His nose;
With a ring in the end of his nose.
"Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?" Said the piggy, "I will." 10
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined upon mince and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon,
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
15
They danced by the light of the moon,—
The moon;
They danced by the light of the moon.
[9]
WILLIAM ALLINGHAM
Ireland, 1828-1889
Wishing
Ring ting! I wish I were a Primrose,
A bright yellow Primrose, blowing in the spring!
The stooping bough above me,
The wandering bee to love me,
The fern and moss to creep across,
5
And the Elm-tree for our king!
Nay,—stay! I wish I were an Elm-tree,
A great lofty Elm-tree, with green leaves gay!
The winds would set them dancing,
The sun and moonshine glance in, 10
And birds would house among the boughs,
And sweetly sing.
Oh—no! I wish I were a Robin,—
A Robin, or a little Wren, everywhere to go,
Through forest, field, or garden, 15
[10]And ask no leave or pardon,
Till winter comes with icy thumbs
To ruffle up our wing!
Well,—tell! where should I fly to,
Where go sleep in the dark wood or dell?
Before the day was over, 5
Home must come the rover,
For mother's kiss,—sweeter this
Than any other thing.
WILLIAM BLAKE
England, 1757-1827
The Piper
Piping down the valleys wild,
Piping songs of pleasant glee,
10
On a cloud I saw a child,
And he, laughing, said to me:
"Pipe a song about a lamb."
So I piped with merry cheer,
"Piper, pipe that song again."
15
[11]So I piped; he wept to hear.
"Drop thy pipe, thy happy pipe,
Sing thy songs of happy cheer."
So I sung the same again,
While he wept with joy to hear.
"Piper, sit thee down and write
5
In a book that all may read."
So he vanish'd from my sight;
And I pluck'd a hollow reed,
And I made a rural pen,
And I stain'd the water clear,
10
And I wrote my happy songs
Every child may joy to hear.
CHRISTINA G. ROSSETTI
England, 1830-1894
A Year's Windfalls
On the wind of January
Down flits the snow,
Traveling from the frozen North
15
[12]As cold as it can blow.
Poor robin redbreast,
Look where he comes;
Let him in to feel your fire,
And toss him of your crumbs.
On the wind in February
5
Snowflakes float still,
Half inclined to turn to rain,
Nipping, dripping, chill.
Then the thaws swell the streams,
And swollen rivers swell the sea:— 10
If the winter ever ends
How pleasant it will be.
In the wind of windy March
The catkins drop down,
Curly, caterpillar-like,
15
Curious green and brown.
With concourse of nest-building birds
And leaf-buds by the way,
We begin to think of flower
And life and nuts some day. 20
With the gusts of April
[13]Rich fruit-tree blossoms fall,
On the hedged-in orchard-green,
From the southern wall.
Apple trees and pear trees
Shed petals white or pink,
Plum trees and peach trees;
5
While sharp showers sink and sink.
Little brings the May breeze
Beside pure scent of flowers,
While all things wax and nothing wanes
In lengthening daylight hours. 10
Across the hyacinth beds
The wind lags warm and sweet,
Across the hawthorn tops,
Across the blades of wheat.
In the wind of sunny June
15
Thrives the red rose crop,
Every day fresh blossoms blow
While the first leaves drop;
White rose and yellow rose
And moss rose choice to find, 20
And the cottage cabbage rose
[14]Not one whit behind.
On the blast of scorched July
Drives the pelting hail,
From thunderous lightning-clouds, that blot
Blue heaven grown lurid-pale.
Weedy waves are tossed ashore,
5
Sea-things strange to sight
Gasp upon the barren shore
And fade away in light.
In the parching August wind
Cornfields bow the head, 10
Sheltered in round valley depths,
On low hills outspread.
Early leaves drop loitering down
Weightless on the breeze,
First fruits of the year's decay
15
From the withering trees.
In brisk wind of September
The heavy-headed fruits
Shake upon their bending boughs
[15]And drop from the shoots; 20
Some glow golden in the sun,
Some show green and streaked,
Some set forth a purple bloom,
Some blush rosy-cheeked.
In strong blast of October
5
At the equinox,
Stirred up in his hollow bed
Broad ocean rocks;
Plunge the ships on his bosom,
Leaps and plunges the foam, 10
It's oh! for mothers' sons at sea,
That they were safe at home.
In slack wind of November
The fog forms and shifts;
All the world comes out again
15
When the fog lifts.
Loosened from their sapless twigs
Leaves drop with every gust;
Drifting, rustling, out of sight
In the damp or dust. 20
Last of all, December,
[16]The year's sands nearly run,
Speeds on the shortest day
Curtails the sun;
With its bleak raw wind
Lays the last leaves low,
Brings back the nightly frosts,
5
Brings back the snow.
MARY HOWITT
England, 1804-1888
The Voice of Spring
I am coming, I am coming!
Hark! the little bee is humming;
See, the lark is soaring high
In the blue and sunny sky;
10
And the gnats are on the wing,
Wheeling round in airy ring.
See, the yellow catkins cover
All the slender willows over!
And on the banks of mossy green
15
[17]Starlike primroses are seen;
And, their clustering leaves below,
White and purple violets blow.
Hark! the new-born lambs are bleating,
And the cawing rooks are meeting
In the elms,—a noisy crowd;
5
All the birds are singing loud;
And the first white butterfly
In the sunshine dances by.
Look around thee, look around!
Flowers in all the fields abound;
10
Every running stream is bright;
All the orchard trees are white;
And each small and waving shoot
Promises sweet flowers and fruit.
Turn thine eyes to earth and heaven:
15
God for thee the spring has given,
Taught the birds their melodies,
Clothed the earth, and cleared the skies,
For thy pleasure or thy food:
Pour thy soul in gratitude.
[18]
THOMAS MILLER
England, 1807-1874
The Spring Walk
We had a pleasant walk to-day
Over the meadows and far away,
Across the bridge by the water-mill,
By the woodside and up the hill;
And if you listen to what I say,
5
I'll tell you what we saw to-day.
Amid a hedge, where the first leaves
Were peeping from their sheathes so sly,
We saw four eggs within a nest,
And they were blue as a summer sky.
10
An elder branch dipped in the brook;
We wondered why it moved, and found
A silken-haired smooth water-rat
Nibbling, and swimming round and round.
Where daisies open'd to the sun,
15
[19]In a broad meadow, green and white,
The lambs were racing eagerly—
We never saw a prettier sight.
We saw upon the shady banks
Long rows of golden flowers shine,
And first mistook for buttercups
5
The star-shaped yellow celandine.
Anemones and primroses,
And the blue violets of spring,
We found, while listening by a hedge
To hear a merry plowman sing.
10
And from the earth the plow turned up
There came a sweet, refreshing smell,
Such as the lily of the vale
Sends forth from many a woodland dell.
And leaning from the old stone bridge,
15
Below, we saw our shadows lie;
And through the gloomy arches watched
The swift and fearless swallows fly.
We heard the speckle-breasted lark
[20]As it sang somewhere out of sight,
20
And tried to find it, but the sky
Was filled with clouds of dazzling light.
We saw young rabbits near the woods
And heard the pheasant's wings go "whir";
And then we saw a squirrel leap
5
From an old oak tree to a fir.
We came back by the village fields,
A pleasant walk it was across 'em,
For all behind the houses lay
The orchards red and white with blossom.
10
Were I to tell you all we saw,
I'm sure that it would take me hours;
For the whole landscape was alive
With bees, and birds, and buds, and flowers.
[21]
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
England, 1564-1616
"Over Hill, Over Dale"
Over hill, over dale,
Thorough bush, thorough brier,
Over park, over pale,
Thorough flood, thorough fire.
I do wander everywhere,5
Swifter than the moone's sphere.
And I serve the Fairy Queen,
To dew her orbs upon the green;
The cowslips tall her pensioners be,
In their gold coats spots you see,—10
Those be rubies, Fairy favors:
In those freckles live their savors.
I must go seek some dew-drops here,
And hang a pearl in every cowslip's ear.
[22]
ALFRED TENNYSON
England, 1809-1892
The Throstle
"Summer is coming, summer is coming,
I know it, I know it, I know it.
Light again, leaf again, love again."
Yes, my wild little Poet.
Sing the new year in under the blue.5
Last year you sang it as gladly.
"New, new, new, new!" Is it then so new
That you should carol so madly?
"Love again, song again, nest again, young again."
Never a prophet so crazy!10
And hardly a daisy as yet, little friend,
See, there is hardly a daisy.
"Here again, here, here, here, happy year!"
O warble, unchidden, unbidden!
Summer is coming, is coming, my dear,15
And all the winters are hidden.
[23]
JANE TAYLOR
England, 1783-1824
The Violet
Down in a green and shady bed
A modest violet grew,
Its stalk was bent, it hung its head,
As if to hide from view.
And yet it was a lovely flower, 5
Its colors bright and fair!
It might have graced a rosy bower
Instead of hiding there.
Yet there it was content to bloom
In modest tints arrayed; 10
And there diffused its sweet perfume
Within the silent shade.
Then let me to the valley go,
This pretty flower to see,
That I may also learn to grow 15
In sweet humility.
[24]
CLINTON SCOLLARD[1]
America, 1860-
Bobolink
Bobolink—
He is here!
Spink-a-chink!
Hark, how clear
Drops the note
5
From his throat,
Where he sways
On the sprays
Of the wheat
In the heat!
10
Bobolink,
Spink-a-chink!
Bobolink
Is a beau.
See him prink!
15
Watch him go
[25]Through the air
To his fair!
Hear him sing
On the wing,—
Sing his best
O'er her nest!
5
"Bobolink,
Spink-a-chink!"
Bobolink,
Linger long!
There's a kink
10
In your song
Like the joy
Of a boy
Left to run
In the sun,—
15
Left to play
All the day.
Bobolink,
Spink-a-chink!
[26]
FRANK DEMPSTER SHERMAN
America, 1860-
The Four Winds
In winter, when the wind I hear,
I know the clouds will disappear;
For 'tis the wind who sweeps the sky
And piles the snow in ridges high.
In spring, when stirs the wind, I know
5
That soon the crocus buds will show;
For 'tis the wind who bids them wake
And into pretty blossoms break.
In summer, when it softly blows,
Soon red I know will be the rose;
10
For 'tis the wind to her who speaks,
[27]And brings the blushes to her cheeks.
In autumn, when the wind is up,
I know the acorn's out its cup;
For 'tis the wind who takes it out,
And plants an oak somewhere about.
LUCY LARCOM
America, 1826-1893
The Violet
Dear little violet,
5
Don't be afraid!
Lift your blue eyes
From the rock's mossy shade.
All the birds call for you,
Out of the sky; 10
May is here waiting,
And here, too, am I.
Why do you shiver so,
Violet, sweet?
Soft is the meadow grass,
15
[28]Under my feet.
Wrapped in your hood of green,
Violet, why
Peep from your earth door,
So silent and shy?
FRANK DEMPSTER SHERMAN
America, 1860-
Pebbles
Out of a pellucid brook
5
Pebbles round and smooth I took:
Like a jewel every one
Caught a color from the sun,—
Ruby red and sapphire blue,
Emerald and onyx too,
10
Diamond and amethyst,—
Not a precious stone I missed:
Gems I held from every land
In the hollow of my hand.
Workman Water these had made
15
Patiently through sun and shade,
With the ripples of the rill
[29]He had polished them until,
Smooth, symmetrical, and bright,
Each one sparkling in the light
Showered within its burning heart
All the lapidary's art;
And the brook seemed thus to sing:
5
Patience conquers everything!
BJÖRNSTJERNE BJÖRNSON
Norway, 1832-
The Tree
The Tree's early leaf buds were bursting their brown;
"Shall I take them away?" said the Frost, sweeping down.
"No, leave them alone
Till the blossoms have grown," 10
Prayed the Tree, while he trembled from rootlet to crown.
[30]The Tree bore his blossoms, and all the birds sung;
"Shall I take them away?" said the Wind, as he swung.
"No, leave them alone
Till the berries have grown,"
Said the Tree, while his leaflets quivering hung.
The Tree bore his fruit in the midsummer glow;
5
Said the girl: "May I gather thy berries now?"
"Yes, all thou canst see:
Take them; all are for thee,"
Said the Tree, while he bent down his laden boughs low.
FRANK DEMPSTER SHERMAN
America, 1860-
September
Here's a lyric for September,
10
[31]Best of all months to remember;
Month when summer breezes tell
What has happened, wood and dell,
Of the joy the year has brought,
And the changes she has wrought.
She has turned the verdure red;
5
In the blue sky overhead,
She the harvest moon has hung,
Like a silver boat among
Shoals of stars—bright jewels set
In the earth's blue coronet;
10
She has brought the orchard's fruit
To repay the robin's flute
Which has gladdened half the year
With a music liquid, clear;
And she makes the meadow grass
15
Catch the sunbeams as they pass,
Till the autumn's floor is rolled
With a fragrant cloth of gold.
[32]
CHRISTINA ROSSETTI
England, 1830-1894
The Swallow
Fly away, fly away, over the sea,
Sun-loving swallow, for summer is done.
Come again, come again, come back to me,
Bringing the summer, and bringing the sun.
When you come hurrying home o'er the sea, 5
Then we are certain that winter is past;
Cloudy and cold though your pathway may be,
Summer and sunshine will follow you fast.
LYDIA MARIA CHILD
America, 1802-1880
Thanksgiving Day
Over the river and through the wood,
[33]To grandfather's house we go; 10
The horse knows the way
To carry the sleigh
Through the white and drifted snow.
Over the river and through the wood—
Oh, how the wind does blow! 5
It stings the toes
And bites the nose,
As over the ground we go.
Over the river and through the wood,
To have a first-rate play; 10
Hear the bells ring,
"Ting-a-ling-ding!"
Hurrah for Thanksgiving Day!
Over the river and through the wood,
Trot fast, my dapple-gray! 15
Spring over the ground,
Like a hunting hound!
For this is Thanksgiving Day.
Over the river and through the wood,
[34]And straight through the barn-yard gate. 20
We seem to go
Extremely slow—
It is so hard to wait!
Over the river and through the wood—
Now grandmother's cap I spy! 5
Hurrah for the fun!
Is the pudding done?
Hurrah for the pumpkin pie!
HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW
America, 1807-1882
Hiawatha's Childhood
By the shores of Gitche Gumee,
By the shining Big-Sea-Water,
10
Stood the wigwam of Nokomis,
Daughter of the Moon, Nokomis.
Dark behind it rose the forest,
Rose the black and gloomy pine-trees,
Rose the firs with cones upon them;
15
Bright before it beat the water,
[35]Beat the clear and sunny water,
Beat the shining Big-Sea-Water.
There the wrinkled old Nokomis
Nursed the little Hiawatha,
Rocked him in his linden cradle,
Bedded soft in moss and rushes,
5
Safely bound with reindeer sinews;
Stilled his fretful wail by saying,
"Hush! the Naked Bear will hear thee!"
Lulled him into slumber, singing,
"Ewa-yea! my little owlet!
10
Who is this, that lights the wigwam?
With his great eyes lights the wigwam?
Ewa-yea! my little owlet!"
Many things Nokomis taught him
Of the stars that shine in heaven;
15
Showed him Ishkoodah, the comet,
Ishkoodah, with fiery tresses;
Showed the Death-Dance of the spirits,
Warriors with their plumes and war-clubs,
Flaring far away to northward
20
In the frosty nights of Winter;
Showed the broad white road in heaven,
[36]Pathway of the ghosts, the shadows,
Running straight across the heavens,
Crowded with the ghosts, the shadows.
At the door on summer evenings,
Sat the little Hiawatha;
Heard the whispering of the pine-trees,
5
Heard the lapping of the water,
Sounds of music, words of wonder;
"Minne-wawa!" said the pine-trees,
"Mudway-aushka!" said the water.
Saw the fire-fly, Wah-wah-taysee,
10
Flitting through the dusk of evening,
With the twinkle of its candle
Lighting up the brakes and bushes.
And he sang the song of children,
Sang the song Nokomis taught him:
15
"Wah-wah-taysee, little fire-fly,
Little, flitting, white-fire insect,
Little, dancing, white-fire creature,
Light me with your little candle,
Ere upon my bed I lay me,
20
Ere in sleep I close my eyelids!"
Saw the moon rise from the water,
[37]Rippling, rounding from the water,
Saw the flecks and shadows on it,
Whispered, "What is that, Nokomis?"
And the good Nokomis answered:
"Once a warrior, very angry,
Seized his grandmother, and threw her
5
Up into the sky at midnight;
Right against the moon he threw her;
'Tis her body that you see there."
Saw the rainbow in the heaven,
In the eastern sky the rainbow,
10
Whispered, "What is that, Nokomis?"
And the good Nokomis answered:
"'Tis the heaven of flowers you see there:
All the wild-flowers of the forest,
All the lilies of the prairie,
15
When on earth they fade and perish,
Blossom in that heaven above us."
When he heard the owls at midnight,
Hooting, laughing in the forest,
"What is that?" he cried in terror;
20
"What is that," he said, "Nokomis?"
And the good Nokomis answered:
[38]"That is but the owl and owlet,
Talking in their native language,
Talking, scolding at each other."
Then the little Hiawatha
Learned of every bird its language,
Learned their names and all their secrets,
5
How they built their nests in summer,
Where they hid themselves in winter,
Talked with them whene'er he met them,
Called them "Hiawatha's Chickens."
Of all beasts he learned the language,
10
Learned their names and all their secrets,
How the beavers built their lodges,
Where the squirrels hid their acorns,
How the reindeer ran so swiftly,
Why the rabbit was so timid,
15
Talked with them whene'er he met them,
Called them "Hiawatha's Brothers."
[39]
HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW
America, 1807-1882
Hiawatha's Sailing
"Give me of your bark, O Birch Tree!
Of your yellow bark, O Birch Tree!
Growing by the rushing river,
Tall and stately in the valley!
I a light canoe will build me,
5
Build a swift Cheemaun for sailing,
That shall float upon the river,
Like a yellow leaf in autumn,
Like a yellow water lily!
"Lay aside your cloak, O Birch Tree! 10
Lay aside your white skin wrapper,
For the summer time is coming,
And the sun is warm in heaven,
And you need no white skin wrapper!"
Thus aloud cried Hiawatha 15
In the solitary forest,
By the rushing Taquamenaw,
When the birds were singing gaily,
[40]In the Moon of Leaves were singing,
And the Sun, from sleep awaking,
Started up and said, "Behold me!
Geezis, the great Sun, behold me!"
And the tree with all its branches
Rustled in the breeze of morning,
5
Saying, with a sigh of patience,
"Take my cloak, O Hiawatha!"
With his knife the tree he girdled;
Just beneath its lowest branches,
Just above the roots, he cut it,
10
Till the sap came oozing outward;
Down the trunk, from top to bottom,
Sheer he cleft the bark asunder,
With a wooden wedge he raised it,
Stripped it from the trunk unbroken.
15
"Give me of your boughs, O Cedar!
Of your strong and pliant branches,
My canoe to make more steady,
Make more strong and firm beneath me!"
Through the summit of the Cedar 20
Went a sound, a cry of horror,
Went a murmur of resistance;
[41]But it whispered, bending downward,
"Take my boughs, O Hiawatha!"
Down he hewed the boughs of cedar,
Shaped them straightway to a framework,
Like two bows he formed and shaped them,
Like two bended bows together.
5
"Give me of your roots, O Tamarack!
Of your fibrous roots, O Larch Tree!
My canoe to bind together,
So to bind the ends together
That the water may not enter,
10
That the river may not wet me!"
And the Larch with all its fibers,
Shivered in the air of morning,
Touched his forehead with its tassels,
Said, with one long sigh of sorrow,
15
"Take them all, O Hiawatha!"
From the earth he tore the fibers,
Tore the tough roots of the Larch Tree,
Closely sewed the bark together,
Bound it closely to the framework.
20
"Give me of your balm, O Fir Tree!
Of your balsam and your resin,
[42]So to close the seams together
That the water may not enter,
That the river may not wet me!"
And the Fir Tree, tall and somber,
Sobbed through all its robes of darkness,
Rattled like a shore with pebbles,
5
Answered wailing, answered weeping,
"Take my balm, O Hiawatha!"
And he took the tears of balsam,
Took the resin of the Fir Tree,
Seamed therewith each seam and fissure,
10
Made each crevice safe from water.
"Give me of your quills, O Hedgehog!
All your quills, O Kagh, the Hedgehog!
I will make a necklace of them,
Make a girdle for my beauty,
15
And two stars to deck her bosom!"
From a hollow tree the Hedgehog
With his sleepy eyes looked at him,
Shot his shining quills, like arrows,
Saying, with a drowsy murmur,
20
Through the tangle of his whiskers,
"Take my quills, O Hiawatha!"
[43]From the ground the quills he gathered,
All the little shining arrows,
Stained them red and blue and yellow,
With the juice of roots and berries;
Into his canoe he wrought them,
Round its waist a shining girdle,
5
Round its bows a gleaming necklace,
On its breast two stars resplendent.
Thus the Birch Canoe was builded,
In the valley, by the river,
In the bosom of the forest;
10
And the forest's life was in it,
All its mystery and its magic,
All the lightness of the birch tree,
All the toughness of the cedar,
All the larch's supple sinews;
15
And it floated on the river
Like a yellow leaf in autumn,
Like a yellow water lily.
Paddles none had Hiawatha,
Paddles none he had or needed,
20
For his thoughts as paddles served him,
And his wishes served to guide him;
Swift or slow at will he glided,
Veered to right or left at pleasure.
[44]
SABINE BARING-GOULD
England, 1834-
Child's Evening Prayer
Now the day is over, 5
Night is drawing nigh,
Shadows of the evening
Steal across the sky.
Now the darkness gathers,
Stars begin to peep,
Birds and beasts and flowers
Soon will be asleep.
Through the long night-watches
May Thine angels spread 10
Their white wings above me,
Watching round my bed.
When the morning wakens,
Then may I arise
Pure and fresh and sinless 15
In Thy holy eyes.
[45]
THIRD YEAR—SECOND HALF
Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean
O, Columbia, the gem of the ocean,
The home of the brave and the free,
The shrine of each patriot's devotion,
A world offers homage to thee;
Thy mandates make heroes assemble,
5
When Liberty's form stands in view;
Thy banners make tyranny tremble,
When borne by the red, white, and blue,
When borne by the red, white, and blue,
When borne by the red, white, and blue,
10
Thy banners make tyranny tremble,
When borne by the red, white, and blue.
When war wing'd its wide desolation,
And threaten'd the land to deform,
The ark then of freedom's foundation,
15
[46]Columbia rode safe thro' the storm:
With the garlands of vict'ry around her,
When so proudly she bore her brave crew,
With her flag proudly floating before her,
The boast of the red, white, and blue,
The boast of the red, white, and blue,
5
The boast of the red, white, and blue,
With her flag proudly floating before her
The boast of the red, white, and blue.
The star-spangled banner bring hither,
O'er Columbia's true sons let it wave;
10
May the wreaths they have won never wither,
Nor its stars cease to shine on the brave.
May the service united ne'er sever,
But hold to their colors so true;
The army and navy forever,
15
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue,
The army and navy forever,
Three cheers for the red, white, and blue.
20
[47]
ROBERT HERRICK
England, 1591-1674
Corinna going a-Maying
Get up, get up, for shame the blooming morn
Upon her wings presents the gods unshorn.
See how Aurora throws her fair,
Fresh-quilted colors through the air;
Get up, sweet slug-a-bed, and see 5
The dew-bespangled herb and tree.
Each flower has wept, and bowed toward the East
Above an hour since, yet you are not drest,
Nay not so much as out of bed,
When all the birds have matins said, 10
And sung their thankful hymns; 'tis sin,
Nay, profanation to keep in,
When as a thousand virgins on this day
[48]Spring sooner than the lark to fetch in May.
Come, my Corinna, come, and coming, mark
How each field turns a street—each street a park,
Made green and trimmed with trees! see how
Devotion gives each house a bough,
Or branch! each porch, each door, ere this 5
An ark, a tabernacle is,
Made up of whitethorn neatly interwove,
As if he were those cooler shades of love.
Can such delights be in the street
And open fields, and we not see't? 10
Come we'll abroad, and let's obey
The proclamation made for May.
And sin no more, as we have done, by staying,
But, my Corinna! come, let's go a-Maying.
[49]
JOHN KEATS
England, 1795-1821
Sweet Peas
Here are sweet peas, on tiptoe for a flight:
With wings of gentle flush o'er delicate white,
And taper fingers catching at all things,
To bind them all about with tiny rings.
Linger awhile upon some bending planks 5
That lean against a streamlet's rushy banks,
And watch intently Nature's gentle doings,
They will be found softer than ringdove's cooings.
How silent comes the water round that bend!
Not the minutest whisper does it send 10
To the o'erhanging sallows: blades of grass
Slowly across the chequer'd shadows pass.
[50]
EMILY HUNTINGTON MILLER
America, 1862-
The Bluebird
I know the song that the bluebird is singing,
Out in the apple-tree where he is swinging:
Brave little fellow! the skies may be dreary:
Nothing cares he while his heart is so cheery.
Hark! how the music leaps out from his throat—
5
Hark! was there ever so merry a note?
Listen awhile, and you'll hear what he's saying,
Up in the apple-tree, swinging and swaying.
"Dear little blossoms, down under the snow,
[51]You must be weary of winter, I know;
10
Hark while I sing you a message of cheer—
Summer is coming! and
spring-time is here!
"Little white snowdrop! I pray you, arise;
Bright yellow crocus! come, open your eyes;
Sweet little violets, hid from the cold,
5
Put on your mantles of purple and gold:
Daffodils! daffodils! say, do you hear?—
Summer is coming! and
spring-time is here!"
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON
Scotland, 1850-1894
Where go the Boats?
Dark brown is the river,
Golden is the sand, 10
It flows along forever,
[52]With trees on either hand.
Green leaves a-floating,
Castles of the foam,
Boats of mine a-boating—
Where will all come home?
On goes the river
5
And out past the mill,
Away down the valley,
Away down the hill.
Away down the river,
A hundred miles or more, 10
Other little children
Shall bring my boats ashore.
CHARLES LAMB, MARY LAMB
England, 1775-1834, England, 1764-1847
The Magpie's Nest
When the arts in their infancy were,
In a fable of old 'tis expressed
A wise magpie constructed that rare
15
[53]Little house for young birds, called a nest.
This was talked of the whole country round;
You might hear it on every bough sung;
"Now no longer upon the rough ground
Will fond mothers brood over their young:
"For the magpie with exquisite skill
5
Has invented a moss-covered cell
Within which a whole family will
In the utmost security dwell."
To her mate did each female bird say:
"Let us fly to the magpie, my dear; 10
If she will but teach us the way,
A nest we will build us up here.
"It's a thing that's close arched overhead,
With a hole made to creep out and in;
We, my bird, might make just such a bed
15
If we only knew how to begin."
To the magpie soon all the birds went,
[54]And in modest terms made their request,
That she would be pleased to consent
To teach them to build up a nest.
She replied: "I will show you the way,
So observe everything that I do:
First, two sticks 'cross each other I lay—"
5
"To be sure," said the crow, "why I knew
"It must be begun with two sticks,
And I thought that they crossed should be."
Said the pie, "Then some straw and moss mix
In the way you now see done by me." 10
"Oh, yes, certainly," said the jackdaw,
"That must follow, of course, I have thought;
Though I never before building saw,
I guessed that without being taught."
"More moss, more straw, and feathers, I place
15
[55]In this manner," continued the pie.
"Yes, no doubt, madam, that is the case;
Though no builder myself, so thought I."
Whatever she taught them beside,
In his turn every bird of them said,
Though the nest-making art he ne'er tried,
5
He had just such a thought in his head.
Still the pie went on showing her art,
Till the nest she had built up halfway;
She no more of her skill would impart,
But in her anger went fluttering away. 10
And this speech in their hearing she made,
As she perched o'er their heads on a tree:
"If ye all were well skilled in my trade,
Pray, why came ye to learn it of me?"
[56]
MARGARET VANDEGRIFT
America, 1845-
The Sandman
The rosy clouds float overhead,
The sun is going down;
And now the sandman's gentle tread
Comes stealing through the town.
"White sand, white sand," he softly cries,
5
And as he shakes his hand,
Straightway there lies on babies' eyes
His gift of shining sand.
Blue eyes, gray eyes, black eyes, and brown,
As shuts the rose, they softly close, when he goes through the town,
10
From sunny beaches far away—
Yes, in another land—
He gathers up at break of day
His store of shining sand.
No tempests beat that shore remote,
15
[57]No ships may sail that way;
His little boat alone may float
Within that lovely bay.
Blue eyes, gray eyes, black eyes, and brown,
As shuts the rose, they softly close, when he goes through the town.
He smiles to see the eyelids close
5
Above the happy eyes;
And every child right well he knows,—
Oh, he is very wise!
But if, as he goes through the land,
A naughty baby cries, 10
His other hand takes dull gray sand
To close the wakeful eyes.
Blue eyes, gray eyes, black eyes, and brown,
As shuts the rose, they softly close, when he goes through the town.
So when you hear the sandman's song
15
Sound through the twilight sweet,
[58]Be sure you do not keep him long
A-waiting on the street.
Lie softly down, dear little head,
Rest quiet, busy hands,
Till, by your bed his good night said,
He strews the shining sands. 5
Blue eyes, gray eyes, black eyes, and brown,
As shuts the rose, they softly close, when he goes through the town.
MARY HOWITT
England, 1804-1888
The Fairies of the Caldon-Low
A MIDSUMMER LEGEND
"And where have you been, my Mary,
And where have you been from me?"
"I've been to the top of the Caldon-Low,
10
The midsummer night to see!"
"And what did you see, my Mary,
All up on the Caldon-Low?"
"I saw the blithe sunshine come down,
[59]And I saw the merry winds blow." 15
"And what did you hear, my Mary,
All up on the Caldon Hill?"
"I heard the drops the water made,
And I heard the corn-ears fill."
"Oh, tell me all, my Mary—
5
All, all that ever you know;
For you must have seen the fairies
Last night on the Caldon-Low."
"Then take me on your knee, mother,
And listen, mother of mine: 10
A hundred fairies danced last night,
And the harpers they were nine;
"And merry was the glee of the harp-strings,
And their dancing feet so small;
But, oh! the sound of their talking
15
Was merrier far than all!"
"And what were the words, my Mary,
That you did hear them say?"
"I'll tell you all, my mother,
[60]But let me have my way. 20
"And some they played with the water,
And rolled it down the hill;
'And this,' they said, 'shall speedily turn
The poor old miller's mill;
"'For there has been no water
5
Ever since the first of May;
And a busy man shall the miller be
By the dawning of the day!
"'Oh, the miller, how he will laugh,
When he sees the mill-dam rise! 10
The jolly old miller, how he will laugh
Till the tears fill both his eyes!'
"And some they seized the little winds,
That sounded over the hill,
And each put a horn into his mouth,
15
And blew so sharp and shrill:
"'And there,' said they, 'the merry winds go
Away from every horn;
And those shall clear the mildew dank
[61]From the blind old widow's corn: 20
"'Oh, the poor blind widow—
Though she has been blind so long,
She'll be merry enough when the mildew's gone,
And the corn stands stiff and strong!'
"And some they brought the brown linseed,
5
And flung it down from the Low:
'And this,' said they, 'by the sunrise,
In the weaver's croft shall grow!
"'Oh, the poor lame weaver!
How he will laugh outright 10
When he sees his dwindling flax-field
All full of flowers by night!'
"And then up spoke a brownie,
With a long beard on his chin:
'I have spun up all the tow,' said he,
15
'And I want some more to spin.
"'I've spun a piece of hempen cloth,
[62]And I want to spin another—
A little sheet for Mary's bed,
And an apron for her mother.'
"And with that I could not help but laugh,
And I laughed out loud and free;
And then on top of the Caldon-Low
5
There was no one left but me.
"And all on top of the Caldon-Low
The mists were cold and gray,
And nothing I saw but the mossy stones
That round about me lay. 10
"But, as I came down from the hill-top,
I heard, afar below,
How busy the jolly miller was,
And how merry the wheel did go.
"And I peeped into the widow's field,
15
And sure enough were seen
The yellow ears of the mildewed corn
[63]All standing stiff and green!
"And down by the weaver's croft I stole,
To see if the flax were high;
But I saw the weaver at his gate,
With the good news in his eye!
"Now this is all I heard, mother,
5
And all that I did see;
So, prithee, make my bed, mother,
For I'm tired as I can be!"
FELICIA DOROTHEA HEMANS
England, 1793-1835
Night-scented Flowers
"Call back your odors, lonely flowers,
From the night-wind call them back; 10
And fold your leaves till the laughing hours
Come forth in the sunbeam's track.
"The lark lies couched in her grassy nest,
And the honey-bee is gone,
And all bright things are away to rest;
15
[64]Why watch ye here alone?"
"Nay, let our shadowy beauty bloom
When the stars give quiet light,
And let us offer our faint perfume
On the silent shrine of night.
"Call it not wasted, the scent we lend
5
To the breeze when no step is nigh:
Oh! thus forever the earth should send
Her grateful breath on high!
"And love us as emblems, night's dewy flowers,
Of hopes unto sorrow given, 10
That spring through the gloom of the darkest hours,
Looking alone to heaven."
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER
America, 1807-1892
Indian Summer
From gold to gray
Our mild, sweet day
[65]Of Indian summer fades too soon;
15
But tenderly
Above the sea
Hangs, white and calm, the hunter's moon.
In its pale fire
The village spire 5
Shows like the zodiac's spectral lance;
The painted walls
Whereon it falls
Transfigured stand in marble trance.
ALICE CARY
America, 1820-1871
November
The leaves are fading and falling,
10
The winds are rough and wild,
The birds have ceased their calling,
But let me tell you, my child,
Though day by day, as it closes,
Doth darker and colder grow, 15
The roots of the bright red roses
[66]Will keep alive in the snow.
And when the winter is over
The boughs will get new leaves,
The quail will come back to the clover,
And the swallow back to the eaves.
The robin will wear on his bosom
5
A vest that is bright and new,
And the loveliest wayside blossoms
Will shine with the sun and dew.
The leaves to-day are whirling,
The brooks are all dry and dumb, 10
But let me tell you, my darling,
The spring will be sure to come.
There must be rough, cold weather,
And winds and rains so wild;
Not all good things together
15
Come to us here, my child.
So when some dear joy loses
Its beauteous summer glow,
Think how the roots of the roses
Are kept alive in the snow. 20
[67]
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER
The Frost Spirit
He comes,—he comes,—the Frost Spirit comes! You may trace his footsteps now
On the naked woods and the blasted fields and the brown hill's withered brow.
He has smitten the leaves of the gray old trees where their pleasant green came forth,
And the winds, which follow wherever he goes, have shaken them down to earth.
He comes,—he comes,—the Frost Spirit comes!—from the frozen Labrador,—
5
From the icy bridge of the Northern seas, which the white bear wanders o'er,—
Where the fisherman's sail is stiff with ice, and the luckless forms below
[68]In the sunless cold of the lingering night into marble statues grow!
He comes,—he comes,—the Frost Spirit comes!—on the rushing Northern blast,
And the dark Norwegian pines have bowed as his fearful breath went past.
With an unscorched wing he has hurried on, where the fires of Hecla glow
On the darkly beautiful sky above and the ancient ice below.
He comes,—he comes,—the Frost Spirit comes!—and the quiet lake shall feel
5
The torpid touch of his glazing breath, and ring to the skater's heel;
And the streams which danced on the broken rocks, or sang to the leaning grass,
Shall bow again to their winter chain, and in mournful silence pass.
[69]He comes,—he comes,—the Frost Spirit comes!—let us meet him as we may,
And turn with the light of the parlor-fire his evil power away;
And gather closer the circle round, when that firelight dances high,
And laugh at the shriek of the baffled Fiend as his sounding wing goes by!
ALFRED TENNYSON
England, 1809-1892
The Owl
I
When cats run home and the light is come
And the dew is cold upon the ground, 5
And the far-off stream is dumb,
And the whirring sail goes round,
And the whirring sail goes round;
Alone and warming his five wits,
The white owl in the belfry sits. 10
II
When merry milkmaids click the latch,
[70]And rarely smells the new-mown hay,
And the cock hath sung beneath the thatch
Twice or thrice his roundelay,
Twice or thrice his roundelay;
Alone and warming his five wits,
The white owl in the belfry sits. 5
GEORGE MACDONALD
Scotland, 1824-
The Wind and the Moon
Said the Wind to the Moon, "I will blow you out.
You stare
In the air
Like a ghost in a chair,
Always looking what I am about;
10
I hate to be watched; I will blow you out."
The Wind blew hard, and out went the Moon.
[71]So, deep,
On a heap
Of clouds, to sleep,
Down lay the Wind, and slumbered soon—
Muttering low, "I've done for that Moon."
He turned in his bed; she was there again!
5
On high
In the sky,
With her one ghost eye,
The Moon shone white and alive and plain.
Said the Wind—"I will blow you out again."
10
The Wind blew hard, and the Moon grew dim.
"With my sledge
And my wedge
I have knocked off her edge!
If only I blow right fierce and grim,
15
[72]The creature will soon be dimmer than dim."
He blew and blew, and she thinned to a thread.
"One puff
More's enough
To blow her to snuff!
One good puff more where the last was bred,
5
And glimmer, glimmer, glum will go the thread!"
He blew a great blast and the thread was gone;
In the air
Nowhere
Was a moonbeam bare;
10
Far off and harmless the shy stars shone;
Sure and certain the Moon was gone!
The Wind he took to his revels once more;
On down
In town,
15
Like a merry mad clown,
[73]He leaped and hallooed with whistle and roar,
"What's that?" The glimmering thread once more!
He flew in a rage—he danced and blew;
But in vain
Was the pain
Of his bursting brain;
5
For still the broader the Moon-scrap grew,
The broader he swelled his big cheeks and blew.
Slowly she grew—till she filled the night,
And shone
On her throne
10
In the sky alone,
A matchless, wonderful, silvery light,
Radiant and lovely, the Queen of the Night.
Said the Wind—"What a marvel of power am I!
With my breath,
15
Good faith!
[74]I blew her to death—
First blew her away right out of the sky—
Then blew her in; what a strength am I!"
But the Moon she knew nothing about the affair,
For, high
In the sky,
5
With her one white eye,
Motionless, miles above the air,
She had never heard the great Wind blare.
JAMES T. FIELDS
America, 1817-1881
The Tempest
We were crowded in the cabin,
Not a soul would dare to sleep,— 10
It was midnight on the waters,
And a storm was on the deep.
'Tis a fearful thing in winter
[75]To be shattered in the blast,
And to hear the rattling trumpet
Thunder, "Cut away the mast!"
So we shuddered there in silence,—
For the stoutest held his breath,
While the hungry sea was roaring,
5
And the breakers talked with Death.
As thus we sat in darkness,
Each one busy in his prayers,—
"We are lost!" the captain shouted,
As he staggered down the stairs. 10
But his little daughter whispered,
As she took his icy hand,
"Is not God upon the ocean,
Just the same as on the land?"
Then we kissed the little maiden,
15
And we spoke in better cheer;
And we anchored safe in harbor
When the morn was shining clear.
[76]
CLEMENT C. MOORE
America, 1779-1863
A Visit from St. Nicholas
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
5
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And Mamma in her kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap,
[77]When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shatters and threw up the sash.
The moon, on the breast of the new-fallen snow,
Gave a luster of midday to objects below;
5
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
10
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:
"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
[78]On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen—
To the top of the porch, to the top of the wall!
Now, dash away, dash away, dash away, all!"
As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,
So, up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
5
With the sleigh full of toys—and St. Nicholas, too.
And then in a twinkling I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.
10
He was dressed all in fur from his head to his foot,
[79]And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry;
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
5
And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow.
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly
That shook, when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly.
10
He was chubby and plump—a right jolly old elf;
[80]And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself.
A wink of his eye, and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
5
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle;
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"
10
[81]
WILLIAM WORDSWORTH
England, 1770-1850
Lucy Gray
Oft I had heard of Lucy Gray;
And, when I crossed the wild,
I chanced to see at break of day
The solitary child.
No mate, no comrade, Lucy knew;
5
She dwelt on a wide moor,—
The sweetest thing that ever grew
Beside a human door!
You yet may spy the fawn at play,
The hare upon the green; 10
But the sweet face of Lucy Gray
Will never more be seen.
"To-night will be a stormy night—
You to the town must go:
And take a lantern, child, to light
15
[82]Your mother through the snow."
"That, father, will I gladly do:
'Tis scarcely afternoon—
The minster-clock has just struck two;
And yonder is the moon."
At this the father raised his hook,
5
And snapped a fagot-band;
He plied his work;—and Lucy took
The lantern in her hand.
Not blither is the mountain roe:
With many a wanton stroke 10
Her feet disperse the powdery snow,
That rises up like smoke.
The storm came on before its time,
She wandered up and down;
And many a hill did Lucy climb,
15
But never reached the town.
The wretched parents all that night
Went shouting far and wide;
But there was neither sound nor sight
[83]To serve them for a guide. 20
At daybreak on a hill they stood
That overlooked the moor;
And thence they saw the bridge of wood,
A furlong from their door.
They wept—and, turning homeward, cried,
5
"In heaven we all shall meet!"
When in the snow the mother spied
The print of Lucy's feet.
Then downwards from the steep hill's edge
They tracked the footmarks small; 10
And through the broken hawthorn hedge,
And by the low stone wall:
And then an open field they crossed;
The marks were still the same;
They tracked them on, nor ever lost;
15
And to the bridge they came.
They follow from the snowy bank
Those footmarks, one by one,
Into the middle of the plank;
[84]And further there were none! 20
—Yet some maintain that to this day
She is a living child;
That you may see sweet Lucy Gray
Upon the lonesome wild.
O'er rough and smooth she trips along.
5
And never looks behind;
And sings a solitary song
That whistles in the wind.
WILLIAM BRIGHTLY RANDS
England, 1823-1880
The Wonderful World
Great, wide, wonderful, beautiful world,
With the beautiful water about you curled,
10
And the wonderful grass upon your breast—
World, you are beautifully dressed!
The wonderful air is over me,
And the wonderful wind is shaking the tree;
It walks on the water and whirls the mills,
15
[85]And talks to itself on the tops of the hills.
You friendly earth, how far do you go,
With wheat fields that nod, and rivers that flow,
And cities and gardens, and oceans and isles,
And people upon you for thousands of miles?
Ah, you are so great and I am so small,
5
I hardly can think of you, world, at all;
And yet, when I said my prayers to-day,
A whisper within me seemed to say:
"You are more than the earth, though you're such a dot;
You can love and think, and the world cannot."
10
WILLIAM WORDSWORTH
England, 1770-1850
To a Child
WRITTEN IN HER ALBUM
Small service is true service while it lasts.
[86]Of humblest friends, bright creature! scorn not one:
The daisy, by the shadow that it casts,
Protects the lingering dewdrop from the sun.
CHRISTINA G. ROSSETTI
England, 1830-1894
Consider
Consider
The lilies of the field whose bloom is brief:
We are as they; 5
Like them we fade away,
As doth a leaf.
Consider
The sparrows of the air of small account:
Our God doth view 10
Whether they fall or mount,—
He guards us too.
Consider
The lilies that do neither spin nor toil,
Yet are most fair: 15
What profits all this care
[87]And all this toil?
Consider
The birds that have no barn nor harvest-weeks;
God gives them food:
Much more our Father seeks
To do us good. 5
SIR WALTER SCOTT
Scotland, 1771-1832
Lullaby of an Infant Chief
Oh, hush thee, my baby, thy sire was a knight,
Thy mother a lady, both lovely and bright;
The woods and the glens from the tower which we see,
They all are belonging, dear baby, to thee.
Oh, fear not the bugle, though loudly it blows,
10
It calls but the warders that guard thy repose;
[88]Their bows would be bended, their blades would be red,
Ere the step of a foeman draws near to thy bed.
Oh, hush thee, my baby, the time will soon come,
When thy sleep shall be broken by trumpet and drum;
Then hush thee, my darling, take rest while you may,
For strife comes with manhood, and waking with day.
5
EUGENE FIELD
America, 1850-1895
Dutch Lullaby[2]
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night
Sailed off in a wooden shoe—
Sailed on a river of crystal light,
Into a sea of dew.
"Where are you going, and what do you wish?" 10
The old moon asked the three.
[89]"We have come to fish for the herring fish
That live in this beautiful sea;
Nets of silver and gold have we!"
Said Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod. 5
The old moon laughed and sang a song,
As they rocked in the wooden shoe,
And the wind that sped them all night long
Ruffled the waves of dew.
The little stars were the herring fish
10
That lived in that beautiful sea—
"Now cast your nets wherever you wish—
Never afeard are we";
So cried the stars to the fishermen three:
Wynken, 15
Blynken,
And Nod.
All night long their nets they threw
To the stars in the twinkling foam—
Then down from the skies came the wooden shoe,
20
[90]Bringing the fishermen home;
"Twas all so pretty a sail it seemed
As if it could not be,
And some folks thought 'twas a dream they'd dreamed
Of sailing that beautiful sea—
But I shall name you the fishermen three: 5
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.
Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes:
And Nod is a little head, 10
And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies
Is a wee one's trundle-bed.
So shut your eyes while mother sings
Of wonderful sights that be,
And you shall see the beautiful things
15
As you rock in the misty sea,
Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three:
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod. 20
[91]
EUGENE FIELD
America, 1850-1895
The Night Wind[3]
Have you ever heard the wind go "Yoooo"?
'Tis a pitiful sound to hear!
It seems to chill you through and through
With a strange and speechless fear.
'Tis the voice of the night that broods outside
5
When folks should be asleep,
And many and many's the time I've cried
To the darkness brooding far and wide
Over the land and the deep:
"Whom do you want, O lonely night, 10
That you wail the long hours through?"
And the night would say in its ghostly way:
"Yoooooooo!
Yoooooooo!
Yoooooooo!" 15
My mother told me long ago
[92](When I was a little lad)
That when the wind went wailing so
Somebody had been bad;
And then, when I was snug in bed,
Whither I had been sent,
With the blankets pulled up round my head,
5
I'd think of what my mother'd said,
And wonder what boy she meant!
And "Who's been bad to-day?" I'd ask
Of the wind that hoarsely blew,
And the voice would say in its meaningful way:
10
"Yoooooooo!
Yoooooooo!
Yoooooooo!"
That this was true I must allow—
You'll not believe it, though! 15
Yes, though I'm quite a model now,
I was not always so.
And if you doubt what things I say,
Suppose you make the test;
Suppose, when you've been bad some day
20
And up to bed are sent away
[93]From mother and the rest—
Suppose you ask, "Who has been bad?"
And then you'll hear what's true;
For the wind will moan in its ruefulest tone:
"Yoooooooo!
Yoooooooo! 5
Yoooooooo!"
THOMAS BAILEY ALDRICH
America, 1836-
Marjorie's Almanac[4]
Robins in the tree top,
Blossoms in the grass,
Green things a-growing
Everywhere you pass
Sudden little breezes,
5
Showers of silver dew,
Black bough and bent twig
[94]Budding out anew;
Pine tree and willow tree,
Fringed elm, and larch,—
Don't you think that May-time's
Pleasanter than March?
Apples in the orchard
5
Mellowing one by one;
Strawberries upturning
Soft cheeks to the sun;
Roses faint with sweetness,
Lilies fair of face, 10
Drowsy scents and murmurs
Haunting every place;
Lengths of golden sunshine,
Moonlight bright as day—
Don't you think that summer's
15
Pleasanter than May?
Roger in the corn patch
Whistling negro songs;
Pussy by the hearth side
Romping with the tongs; 20
[95]Chestnuts in the ashes,
Bursting through the rind;
Red leaf and gold leaf
Rustling down the wind;
Mother "doin' peaches"
All the afternoon,— 5
Don't you think that autumn's
Pleasanter than June?
Little fairy snow-flakes
Dancing in the flue;
Old Mr. Santa Claus,
10
What is keeping you?
Twilight and firelight
Shadows come and go;
Merry chime of sleigh bells
Tinkling through the snow; 15
Mother knitting stockings,
Pussy's got the ball,
Don't you think that winter's
Pleasanter than all?
[96]
M. BETHAM EDWARDS
America, 1836-
A Child's Prayer
God make my life a little light,
Within the world to glow—
A tiny flame that burneth bright,
Wherever I may go.
God make my life a little flower, 5
That bringeth joy to all,
Content to bloom in native bower,
Although its place be small.
God make my life a little song,
That comforteth the sad, 10
That helpeth others to be strong,
And makes the singer glad.
Transcriber's Notes:
On pages 22 and 24 the author's location was printed in all capitals
instead of small capitals. These were changed to match the rest of the
text.
Page 53, the line number for line 5 was added.
Page 59, the line number 5 was moved up one line.
Page 63, single quotation mark changed to a double quotation mark. ("The
lark lies)
End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Graded Poetry: Third Year, by Various
*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GRADED POETRY: THIRD YEAR ***
***** This file should be named 31967-h.htm or 31967-h.zip *****
This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
https://www.gutenberg.org/3/1/9/6/31967/
Produced by Emmy, Juliet Sutherland and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
will be renamed.
Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules,
set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project
Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you
do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is
subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
redistribution.
*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
https://gutenberg.org/license).
Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the
collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an
individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in
a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check
the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning
the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
States.
1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
copied or distributed:
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked
to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg-tm License.
1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or
distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
that
- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is
owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments
must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License. You must require such a user to return or
destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
Project Gutenberg-tm works.
- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
of receipt of the work.
- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the
Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
1.F.
1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
your equipment.
1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGE.
1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with
the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy
is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
opportunities to fix the problem.
1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any
provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists
because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
people in all walks of life.
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org.
Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at
809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact
information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
page at https://pglaf.org
For additional contact information:
Dr. Gregory B. Newby
Chief Executive and Director
gbnewby@pglaf.org
Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation
Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
status with the IRS.
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To
SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
particular state visit https://pglaf.org
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
approach us with offers to donate.
International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
ways including including checks, online payments and credit card
donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate
Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works.
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily
keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
https://www.gutenberg.org
This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.