'singing ever soars, and soaring ever sings.' Who has not stopped, sweet bird, to listen to that loud, wild lay of thine?-and how often we strain our eyes to get a glimpse of thee, when thou art far away above the clouds Where, on thy dewy wing, Where art thou journeying? Thy lay is in heaven, thy love is on earth. 'Herald of the morn,' Romeo tells his Juliet; and truly-but all day long thou singest, descending ever and again, perchance, from a fear that thy loved one cannot hear thee- Lawful sway-The time that winter is supposed to last according to the almanac. Wreak his spite-To take vengeance; spring is generally represented as a maiden scattering flowers along her path. Flora-The goddess of flowers. Migratory-Removing from place to place; staying for a part of the year only, as the cuckoo, swallow, &c. Matin hymn-Morning song, as opposed to vesper or evening song. Perennial-Lasting through the year, like the holly and other evergreens, as opposed to annuals which drop their leaves on the approach of winter. 'Ere a leaf, &c.—From Wordsworth's 'Celandine.' 'Bird of the wilderness,' &c., Where, on thy dewy wing,' &c., 'Then when the gloaming comes,' &c.-from Hogg's 'Skylark.' Romeo and Juliet-The two principal characters in Shakespeare's play of Romeo and Juliet.' Bird of the wilderness, Blithesome and cumberless, Sweet be thy matin o'er moorland and lea! Emblem of happiness, Blest is thy dwelling-place O to abide in the desert with thee! Wild is thy lay and loud, Far in the downy cloud ; Where art thou journeying? Thy lay is in heaven, thy love is on earth. O'er fell and fountain sheen, O'er moor and mountain green, O'er the red streamer that heralds the day; Over the cloudlet dim, Over the rainbow's rim, Musical cherub, soar, singing, away; Then, when the gloaming comes, Low in the heather blooms, Sweet will thy welcome and bed of love be ! Blest is thy dwelling-place O to abide in the desert with thee! HOGG. James Hogg-A farmer in Selkirk, and known as the Ettrick shepherd. Wilderness-Not used in the sense of desert, but as a wild uninhabited place. Blithesome and cumberless-Cheerful and without care. Matin-Morning song. Lea-Meadow or grassland as opposed to the wild moorland. Love gives it energy—Implying that the lark's lay or song springs out of love for its mate. Dewy wing-In rising to sing its morning song it has to spring from the dewy grass. Fell-Rocky hill-side. Sheen-Bright. Red streamer, &c.-The first ray of the sun which heralds or announces the coming day. DESCRIPTION OF A JAPANESE 1. To-day, being the Japanese New Year's Day, all the little shrines in the houses and along the road were prettily decorated, and had offerings of rice, saki, and fruit deposited upon them. The spirits of the departed are supposed to come down and partake not of the things themselves, but of the subtile invisible essence that rises from them. The road now became very pretty, winding through the valleys, climbing up and dipping down the various hills, and passing through picturesque villages, where all the people, leaving their meals or their games, came out to look at us, while some of the children scampered on to secure a good view of the foreigners, and others ran away frightened and screaming. They were all dressed in dark blue clothes, turned up with red, with 2 February 13. 1 From A Voyage in the Sunbeam. |