Page:Poems - Southey (1799) volume 1.djvu/208

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

192

And wisest of Immortals, aweful MaidAthenian Pallas. Venerable Powers!Hearken your hymn of praise! Tho' from your ritesEstranged, and exiled from your altars long,I have not ceased to love you, Household Gods!In many a long and melancholy hourOf solitude and sorrow, has my heartWith earnest longings prayed to rest at lengthBeside your hallowed hearth—for Peace is there!
Yes I have loved you long. I call on youYourselves to witness with what holy joy,Shunning the polished mob of human kind,I have retired to watch your lonely firesAnd commune with myself. Delightful hoursThat gave mysterious pleasure, made me knowAll the recesses of my wayward heart,Taught me to cherish with devoutest careIts strange unworldly feelings, taught me tooThe best of lessons—to respect myself!
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.