Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 28, Pages 982-983
TO A PICTURE OF THE MADONNA.
BY MRS HEMANS.
Ave Maria! May our spirits dare
Look up to thine, and to thy Son's above?
Byron.
Fair vision! thou'rt from sunny skies,
Born where the rose hath richest dyes;
To thee a southern heart hath given
That glow of Love, that calm of Heaven,
And round thee cast th' ideal gleam,
The light that is but of a dream.
Far hence, where wandering music fills
The haunted air of Roman hills,
Or where Venetian waves of yore
Heard melodies, they hear no more,
Some proud old minster's gorgeous aisle
Hath known the sweetness of thy smile.
Or haply, from a lone, dim shrine,
'Mid forests of the Apennine,
Whose breezy sounds of cave and dell
Pass like a floating anthem-swell,
Thy soft eyes o'er the pilgrim's way
Shed blessings with their gentle ray.
Or gleaming through a chestnut wood,
Perchance thine island-chapel stood,
Where from the blue Sicilian sea,
The sailor's hymn hath come to thee,
And bless'd thy power to guide, to save,
Madonna! watcher of the wave!
