TO THE YOUNGEST DAUGHTER OF LADY **. An! why with tell-tale tongue reveal* What most her blushes would conceal? Why lift that modest veil to trace The seraph-sweetness of her face? Some fairer, better sport prefer; And feel for us, if not for her. For this presumption, soon or late, Know, thine shall be a kindred fate. Alluding to some verses which she had written on an elder sister. Another shall in vengeance rise Sing Harriet's cheeks, and Harriet's eyes; And, echoing back her wood-notes wild, -Trace all the mother in the child! As thro' the hedge-row shade the violet steals, And the sweet air its modest leaf reveals; Her softer charms, but by their influence known, Surprise all hearts, and mould them to her own. A bee-hive's hum shall sooth my ear; A willowy brook, that turns a mill, With many a fall shall linger near. The swallow, oft, beneath my thatch, Shall twitter from her clay-built nest; Oft shall the pilgrim lift the latch, And share my meal, a welcome guest. Around my ivied porch shall spring Each fragrant flower that drinks the dew; And Lucy, at her wheel, shall sing, In russet gown and apron blue. The village-church, among the trees, Where first our marriage-vows were giv'n, With merry peals shall swell the breeze, And point with taper spire to heav'n. |