Poems (Emma M. Ballard Bell)/The Song-Land
THE SONG-LAND.
O lovely and ideal realm of thought!
O land of poet-dreams! how soft the airs
That o'er thy valleys and thy mountains blow!
And bright thy bow'rs and fountains sparkling clear,
And flow'rs of brilliant hues bedeck thee o'er.
A noble being over thee presides:
The goddess fair of mountain, vale, and fount.
Majestic, and yet gentle, is her mien.
A diadem of light rests on her brow,
And golden sunbeams gleam amid her hair,
And all her soul doth speak its language clear
From out the glances of her beaming eye.
The sweet inspirer of high thought is she,
And Inspiration is the goddess' name.
O land of poet-dreams! how soft the airs
That o'er thy valleys and thy mountains blow!
And bright thy bow'rs and fountains sparkling clear,
And flow'rs of brilliant hues bedeck thee o'er.
A noble being over thee presides:
The goddess fair of mountain, vale, and fount.
Majestic, and yet gentle, is her mien.
A diadem of light rests on her brow,
And golden sunbeams gleam amid her hair,
And all her soul doth speak its language clear
From out the glances of her beaming eye.
The sweet inspirer of high thought is she,
And Inspiration is the goddess' name.
O lovely and entrancing land of song!
So sacred unto all that's pure and bright,
The lights and shadows that upon thee fall
Before my mental vision e'er appear.
I love thy hills and vales, thy founts and bow'rs;
But, oh! I love thy tow'ring mountains more,
Where echoings immortal ever ring,
And where the heavens, lit with God's own smile,
In love and peace bend o'er their summits grand.
And there, too, Poesy her garlands twines
To grace with beauty Science' noble brow.
The Muses Science as a sister claim,
And many off'rings unto her they bring
In token of their reverence and love.
So sacred unto all that's pure and bright,
The lights and shadows that upon thee fall
Before my mental vision e'er appear.
I love thy hills and vales, thy founts and bow'rs;
But, oh! I love thy tow'ring mountains more,
Where echoings immortal ever ring,
And where the heavens, lit with God's own smile,
In love and peace bend o'er their summits grand.
And there, too, Poesy her garlands twines
To grace with beauty Science' noble brow.
The Muses Science as a sister claim,
And many off'rings unto her they bring
In token of their reverence and love.
Or how or whensoe'er to me were oped
Thy gates, O fair and wondrous land of song!
This do I know; the paths and winding ways
I to that entrance back can ne'er retrace.
For fetters, light as if of ether made,
Yet strong as if of iron texture wrought,
Have cast their mystic links about my soul
And bound it ever to the soul of Song.
Thy gates, O fair and wondrous land of song!
This do I know; the paths and winding ways
I to that entrance back can ne'er retrace.
For fetters, light as if of ether made,
Yet strong as if of iron texture wrought,
Have cast their mystic links about my soul
And bound it ever to the soul of Song.
May He who unto all a mission gives,
Shield from the too rough blasts that sometimes sweep
Relentless o'er the wilds of earth's dark land,
And safely guide through life's meand'ring way,
Till in the song-land of the realms above,
All bright with poet-visions clearer far
Than e'er to mental gaze on earth are giv'n,
The soul shall sing in noblest strains to Him,
Creator of the beautiful and bright.
Shield from the too rough blasts that sometimes sweep
Relentless o'er the wilds of earth's dark land,
And safely guide through life's meand'ring way,
Till in the song-land of the realms above,
All bright with poet-visions clearer far
Than e'er to mental gaze on earth are giv'n,
The soul shall sing in noblest strains to Him,
Creator of the beautiful and bright.