Page:The Seaside and the Fireside.djvu/82

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By the Fireside.
Or caravans, that from Bassora's gate With westward steps depart;Or Mecca's pilgrims, confident of Fate, And resolute in heart!
These have passed over it, or may have passed! Now in this crystal towerImprisoned by some curious hand at last, It counts the passing hour.
And as I gaze, these narrow walls expand;— Before my dreamy eyeStretches the desert with its shifting sand, Its unimpeded sky.
And borne aloft by the sustaining blast, This little golden threadDilates into a column high and vast, A form of fear and dread.
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