Page images
PDF
EPUB

the Caliph again went on his way, with Giafar his vizier and Mesrour his executioner. Passing from the abodes of want and misery, they at length reached a splendid palace; and, seeing lights glimmering from the windows, the Caliph approached, and, looking through the silken curtains, beheld a man walking backward and forward with languid steps, as if oppressed with a load of cares. At length, casting himself down on a sofa, he stretched out his limbs, and, yawning desperately, exclaimed, “O Allah! what shall I do? what will become of me? I am weary of life: it is nothing but a cheat, promising what it never purposes, and affording only hopes that end in disappointment, or, if realized, only in disgust."

10. The curiosity of the Caliph being awakened to know the cause of his despair, he ordered Mesrour to knock at the door; which being opened, they pleaded the privilege of strangers to enter for rest and refreshments. Again, in accordance with the precepts of the Koran and the custom of the East, the strangers were admitted to the presence of the lord of the palace, who received them with welcome and directed refreshments to be brought. But, though he treated his guests with kindness, he neither sat down with them, nor asked any questions, nor joined in their discourse, walking back and forth languidly and seeming oppressed with a heavy burden of sorrows.

11. At length the Caliph approached him reverently, and said, "Thou seemest sorrowful, O my brother! If thy suffering is of the body, I am a physician, and peradventure can afford thee relief; for I have traveled into distant lands, and collected very choice remedies for human infirmity."-" My sufferings are not of the body, but of the mind," answered the other.-"Hast thou lost the beloved of thy heart, the friend of thy bosom, or been

disappointed in the attainment of that on which thou hast rested all thy hopes of happiness ?”

12. " Alas, no! I have been disappointed, not in the means, but in the attainment of happiness. I want nothing but a want. I am cursed with the gratification of all my wishes and the fruition of all my hopes. I have wasted my life in the acquisition of riches that only awakened new desires, and honors that no longer gratify my pride or repay me for the labor of sustaining them. I have been cheated in the pursuit of pleasures that weary me in the enjoyment, and am perishing for lack of excitement of some new want. I have everything I wish, yet enjoy nothing."

13. "Thy case is beyond my skill,” replied the Caliph; and the man cursed with the fruition of all his desires turned his back on him in despair. The Caliph, after thanking him for his hospitality, departed with his companions, and when they had reached the street exclaimed, "Allah preserve me! I will no longer fatigue myself in a vain pursuit, for it is impossible to confer happiness on such a perverse generation. I see it is all the same, whether a man wants one thing, everything, or nothing. Let us go home and sleep."

DEFINITIONS.-1. Per ăm′bū lā ting, walking about. Vĭz'ier, councilor of state. Ăľ ́lah, the Arabic name of the Supreme Being. 7. Dĩ vănş ́, cushioned seats. 10. Kō'ran, the Scriptures of the Mohammedans. 11. Pěr ad vent'ūre, by chance; perhaps. 12. FrụI'tion, fulfillment. 13. Per verse', stubborn.

NOTES.-1. Ha roun' Äl Răsch'id (“Haroun the Just ") is chiefly celebrated as the hero of the Arabian Nights' Entertainments. He was Caliph from 786 to 809 A. D. Giä'far was his favorite prime minister.

Băğ'dăd, a celebrated city of Asiatic Turkey, situated on both sides of the river Tigris; formerly the capital of the empire of the Caliphs. 2. Commander of the Faithful, a title given to the Caliphs.

72.-LORD ULLIN'S DAUGHTER.

THOMAS CAMPBELL was born in Glasgow, July 27, 1777. He was educated at the university of his native town, and distinguished himself in spite of the difficulties which arose from his straitened circumstances. In 1826 he was elected Lord Rector of the University of Glasgow, which he considered the greatest honor of his life. As a lyrical poet Campbell ranks very high; his genius and taste resemble those of Gray. Among his best poems are The Pleasures of Hope, Lochiel's Warning, Hohenlinden, Gertrude of Wyoming, The Battle of the Baltic, and O'Connor's Child, the latter being an exquisitely-finished and pathetic story. He died June 15, 1844.

1. A CHIEFTAIN, to the Highlands bound,

Cries, "Boatman, do not tarry!
And I'll give thee a silver pound
To row us o'er the ferry."

2. "Now who be ye, would cross Lochgyle,
This dark and stormy water?"
"Oh, I'm the chief of Ulva's isle,
And this Lord Ullin's daughter.

3. "And fast before her father's men
Three days we've fled together;
For should he find us in the glen,

My blood would stain the heather.

4. "His horsemen hard behind us ride:
Should they our steps discover,

Then who will cheer my bonny bride
When they have slain her lover?"

5. Out spoke the hardy Highland wight :
"I'll go, my chief: I'm ready;

It is not for your silver bright,
But for your winsome lady;

6. "And, by my word, the bonny bird
In danger shall not tarry;

So, though the waves are raging white,
I'll row you o'er the ferry.”

7. By this the storm grew loud apace:
The water-wraith was shrieking;

And in the scowl of heaven each face
Grew dark as they were speaking.

8. But still, as wilder blew the wind,
And as the night grew drearer,
Adown the glen rode arméd men;
Their trampling sounded nearer.

9. "Oh haste thee, haste," the lady cries,
"Though-tempests round us gather;
I'll meet the raging of the skies,
But not an angry father."

10. The boat has left a stormy land,
A stormy sea before her,

When, oh, too strong for human hand,
The tempest gathered o'er her.

11. And still they rowed amidst the roar
Of waters fast prevailing ;

Lord Ullin reached that fatal shore:
His wrath was changed to wailing;

12. For, sore dismayed, through storm and shade, His child he did discover:

One lovely hand she stretch'd for aid,

And one was round her lover.

13. "Come back! come back!" he cried in grief, "Across this stormy water;

And I'll forgive your Highland chief.

My daughter! oh, my daughter!”

14. 'Twas vain! The loud waves lashed the shore, Return or aid preventing :

The waters wild went o'er his child,

And he was left lamenting.

DEFINITIONS.-5. Wight, a being; a person. Win'some, gay; light-hearted.

NOTE.-2. Ŭl'va's isle, an island of the inner Hebrides, county of Argyle, Scotland.

7. Wa'ter-wraith (rāth), a spirit supposed to preside over the waters.

73.-THE EXILE OF ERIN.

1. THERE came to the beach a poor exile of Erin ;
The dew on his thin robe was heavy and chill;
For his country he sighed when at twilight repairing
To wander alone by the wind-beaten hill.
But the day-star attracted his eye's sad devotion,
For it rose o'er his own native isle of the ocean,
Where once, in the fire of his youthful emotion,
He sang the bold anthem of Erin go bragh.

2. "Sad is my fate!" said the heart-broken stranger.
"The wild deer and wolf to a covert can flee;
But I have no refuge from famine and danger :
A home and a country remain not to me.

Never again in the green sunny bowers

Where my forefathers lived shall I spend the sweet hours,
Or cover my harp with the wild woven flowers,
And strike to the numbers of Erin go bragh.

« PreviousContinue »