Seasons
(Macmillan’s Magazine, Dec. 1866.)
Oh the cheerful Budding-time!When thorn-hedges turn to green,When new leaves of elm and limeCleave and shed their winter screen;Tender lambs are born and ‘baa,’North wind finds no snow to bring,Vigorous Nature laughs ‘Ha, ha,’In the miracle of spring.
Oh the gorgeous Blossom-days!When broad flag-flowers drink and blow, 10In and out in summer-blazeDragon-flies flash to and fro;Ashen branches hang out keys,Oaks put forth the rosy shoot,Wandering herds wax sleek at ease,Lovely blossoms end in fruit.
Oh the shouting Harvest-weeks!Mother earth grown fat with sheavesThrifty gleaner finds who seeks;Russet-golden pomp of leaves 20Crowns the woods, to fall at length;Bracing winds are felt to stir,Ocean gathers up her strength,Beasts renew their dwindled fur.
Oh the starving Winter-lapse!Ice-bound, hunger-pinched and dim;Dormant roots recall their saps,Empty nests show black and grim,Short-lived sunshine gives no heat,Undue buds are nipped by frost, 30Snow sets forth a winding-sheet,And all hope of life seems lost.