Mrs. Felicia Dorothea Hemans (1793–1835)

I LOVE to hail the mild and balmy hour,

When evening spreads around her twilight veil;

When dews descend on every languid flower,

And sweet and tranquil is the summer gale.

Then let me wander by the peaceful tide,

While o’er the wave the breezes lightly play;

To hear the waters murmur as they glide,

To mark the fading smile of closing day.

There let me linger, blest in visions dear,

Till the soft moonbeams tremble on the seas;

While melting sounds decay on fancy’s ear,

Of airy music floating on the breeze.

For still when evening sheds the genial dews,

That pensive hour is sacred to the muse.