| Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). An American Anthology, 1787–1900. 1900. |
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| 942. Ghost-Flowers |
| | | (Monotropa Uniflora) |
| | | By Mary Thacher Higginson |
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| IN shining groups, each stem a pearly ray, | |
| Weird flecks of light within the shadowed wood, | |
| They dwell aloof, a spotless sisterhood. | |
| No Angelus, except the wild bird’s lay, | |
| Awakes these forest nuns; yet night and day | 5 |
| Their heads are bent, as if in prayerful mood. | |
| A touch will mar their snow, and tempests rude | |
| Defile; but in the mist fresh blossoms stray | |
| From spirit-gardens just beyond our ken. | |
| Each year we seek their virgin haunts, to look | 10 |
| Upon new loveliness, and watch again | |
| Their shy devotions near the singing brook; | |
| Then, mingling in the dizzy stir of men, | |
| Forget the vows made in that cloistered nook. | |
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