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Home  »  An American Anthology, 1787–1900  »  815 The Song in the Dell

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

By Charles EdwardCarryl

815 The Song in the Dell

I KNOW a way

Of hearing what the larks and linnets say:

The larks tell of the sunshine and the sky;

The linnets from the hedges make reply,

And boast of hidden nests with mocking lay.

I know a way

Of keeping near the rabbits at their play:

They tell me of the cool and shady nooks

Where waterfalls disturb the placid brooks

That I may go and frolic in the spray.

I know a way

Of catching dewdrops on a night in May,

And threading them upon a spear of green,

That through their sides translucent may be seen

The sparkling hue that emeralds display.

I know a way

Of trapping sunbeams as they nimbly play

At hide-and-seek with meadow-grass and flowers,

And holding them in store for dreary hours

When winds are chill and all the sky is gray.

I know a way

Of stealing fragrance from the new-mown hay

And storing it in flasks of petals made,

To scent the air when all the flowers fade

And leave the woodland world to sad decay.

I know a way

Of coaxing snowflakes in their flight to stay

So still awhile, that, as they hang in air,

I weave them into frosty lace, to wear

About my head upon a sultry day.