SONNET. Life ever seems as from its present site Not the near daisies, but yon distant height The fine, faint limit of the bounding day. ENGLISH KATIE. (From Katie.) away! It may be through some foreign grace, It may be that across the foam Which bore her from her childhood's home, Some English sunshine, warmth, and air! A thousand billowy leagues away From that green isle whose twilight skies I meet her on the dusty street, I roam with her through fields of cane, Now walk through rippling waves of wheat, HYMN SUNG AT THE CONSECRATION OF MAGNOLIA CEMETERY, CHARLESTON, S. C. Whose was the hand that painted thee, O Death! In the false aspect of a ruthless foe, Despair and sorrow waiting on thy breath,— O gentle Power! who could have wronged thee so? Of lasting fragrance and celestial hue; Or be thy couch amid funereal bowers, But let the stars and sunlight sparkle through. So, with these thoughts before us, we have fixed Heaven! shed thy most propitious dews around! PAUL HAMILTON HAYNE. 1830-1886. PAUL HAMILTON HAYNE has been justly called the "Laureate of the South." He was born at Charleston, and being left an orphan by the death of his father, Lieutenant Hayne of the Navy, he was reared and educated by his uncle, Robert Young Hayne. His fortune was ample, but he studied law although he never practised. He became editor of "Russell's Magazine" and a contributor to the "Southern Literary Messenger." His genius and lovely nature made him a favorite with all of his companions, among whom were notably William Gilmore Simms and Henry Timrod. During the Civil War, he served in the Confederate Army; his entire property, the inheritance of several generations, was destroyed in the bombardment of Charleston. From 1865 till his death he resided at "Copse Hill," a small cottage home in the pine hills near Augusta, Georgia, "keeping the wolf from the door only by the point of his pen," dearly honored and loved by all who knew him or his poems. His son, William H. Hayne, is also a poet of much ability, and has published a volume of "Sylvan Lyrics.” WORKS. Poems; containing Sonnets, Avolio, Lyrics, Mountain of the Lovers. Preceded by a Sketch of the Poet by Mrs. M. J. Preston (1882). Life of Robert Young Hayne (1878). "There is no poet in America who has written more lovingly or discriminatingly about nature in her ever varying aspects. We are sure that in his loyal allegiance to her, he is not a whit behind Wordsworth, and we do not hesitate to say that he has often a grace that the old Lake-poet lacks."-Mrs. Preston. "Hayne has the lyric gift, and his shorter poems have a ring and richness that recall the glories of the Elizabethan period; each shows the same careful and artistic workmanship."-Collier. THE MOCKING-BIRD.. (At Night.) (From Poems, 1882.*) A golden pallor of voluptuous light The moon, clear orbed, above the sylvan scene So rife with conscious beauty all the while, At her own perfect loveliness below, Glassed in the tranquil flow Of crystal fountains and unruffled streams? Half lost in waking dreams, As down the loneliest forest dell I strayed, Lo! from a neighboring glade, Flashed through the drifts of moonshine, swiftly came It rose in dazzling spirals overhead, Whence, to wild sweetness wed, Poured marvellous melodies, silvery trill on trill; The very leaves grew still On the charmed trees to hearken; while, for me, Heart-thrilled to ecstasy, I followed-followed the bright shape that flew, *By permission of the Lothrop Publishing Co., Boston; as also the others following. |