THE HOMES OF ENGLAND. THE stately Homes of England, How beautiful they stand! Amidst their tall ancestral trees, O'er all the pleasant land; The deer across their greensward bound Through shade and sunny gleam, And the swan glides past them with the sound Of some rejoicing stream. The merry Homes of England! Around their hearths by night, What gladsome looks of household love There woman's voice flows forth in song, Or childish tale is told; Or lips move tunefully along Some glorious page of old. The blessed Homes of England! How softly on their bowers Is laid the holy quietness That breathes from Sabbath hours! Solemn, yet sweet, the church-bell's chime Of breeze and leaf are born. The cottage Homes of England! By thousands on her plains, THE HOMES OF ENGLAND. 'The cottage-homes of England By thousands on her plains, They are smiling o'er the silvery brooks And round the hamlet-fanes." -FELICIA HEMANS, After an original drawing by Harry Fenn. |