Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, ed. Poems of Places: An Anthology in 31 Volumes.
America: Vols. XXV–XXIX. 1876–79.

Southern States: Reedy River, S. C.

The Falls

By S. A. Crittenden

THE SUN looked o’er the eastern steep,

Where mountain breezes freely sweep,

To greet the hurrying flood,

That breaks in many a foamy line,

Breaks, but to laughingly combine

In sweet, coquettish mood.

We stood upon the shelving shore,

With scenes of beauty spread before,

Touched by the master’s hand,—

The glancing light, the sparkling dew,

The living green, the upper blue,

The mountains old and grand.

The dancing waters at our feet

Stayed not, our eager souls to greet,

But ever hastened on.

They sparkled in the morning light

One moment, then were lost to sight,

Gone! ah, forever gone!

This life is but a restless stream,

And fitful lights may sometimes gleam

Where shadows soon must be;

Stern rocks will break the silent flow,

And fret the waters as they go

To that eternal sea.