POEMS FROM POETICAL SKETCHES
O thou with dewy locks, who lookest down1
Thro' the clear windows of the morning, turn
Thine angel eyes upon our western isle,
Which in full choir hails thy approach, O Spring!
The hills tell each other, and the list'ning5
Vallies hear; all our longing eyes are turned
Up to thy bright pavillions: issue forth,
And let thy holy feet visit our clime.
Come o'er the eastern hills, and let our winds9
Kiss thy perfumed garments; let us taste
Thy morn and evening breath; scatter thy pearls
Upon our love-sick land that mourns for thee.
O deck her forth with thy fair fingers; pour13
Thy soft kisses on her bosom; and put
Thy golden crown upon her languish'd head,
Whose modest tresses were bound up for thee!
Poetical Sketches, pp. 1, 2.
5 tell each] do tell each DGR: tell to each EY.7 pavillions] pavilion DGR.14 soft] softest DGR.
O thou who passest thro' our vallies in1
Thy strength, curb thy fierce steeds, allay the heat
That flames from their large nostrils! thou, O Summer,
Oft pitched'st here thy golden tent, and oft
Beneath our oaks hast slept, while we beheld5
With joy thy ruddy limbs and flourishing hair.
Poetical Sketches, p. 2.
6 ruddy… hair] Cp. MS. Book, xxv.
'Abstinence sows sand all over
The ruddy limbs & flaming hair.'
