| |
| AH! what pleasant visions haunt me | |
| As I gaze upon the sea! | |
| All the old romantic legends, | |
| All my dreams, come back to me. | |
| |
| Sails of silk and ropes of sandal, | 5 |
| Such as gleam in ancient lore; | |
| And the singing of the sailors, | |
| And the answer from the shore! | |
| |
| Most of all, the Spanish ballad | |
| Haunts me oft, and tarries long, | 10 |
| Of the noble Count Arnaldos | |
| And the sailor’s mystic song. | |
| |
| Telling how the Count Arnaldos, | |
| With his hawk upon his hand, | |
| Saw a fair and stately galley, | 15 |
| Steering onward to the land;— | |
| |
| How he heard the ancient helmsman | |
| Chant a song so wild and clear, | |
| That the sailing sea-bird slowly | |
| Poised upon the mast to hear, | 20 |
| |
| Till his soul was full of longing, | |
| And he cried, with impulse strong,— | |
| ‘Helmsman! for the love of heaven, | |
| Teach me, too, that wondrous song!’ | |
| |
| ‘Wouldst thou,’—so the helmsman answered,— | 25 |
| ‘Learn the secret of the sea? | |
| Only those who brave its dangers | |
| Comprehend its mystery!’ | |
| |
