Contents -BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD

Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). An American Anthology, 1787–1900. 1900.

By Elizabeth AkersAllen

551 Sea-Birds

O LONESOME sea-gull, floating far

Over the ocean’s icy waste,

Aimless and wide thy wanderings are,

Forever vainly seeking rest:—

Where is thy mate, and where thy nest?

’Twixt wintry sea and wintry sky,

Cleaving the keen air with thy breast,

Thou sailest slowly, solemnly;

No fetter on thy wing is pressed:—

Where is thy mate, and where thy nest?

O restless, homeless human soul,

Following for aye thy nameless quest,

The gulls float, and the billows roll;

Thou watchest still, and questionest:—

Where is thy mate, and where thy nest?