A hurry of hoofs in a village street,
A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark,
And beneath, from the pebbles, in passing, a spark
Struck out from a steed flying fearless and fleet:
That was all! And yet, through the gloom and the light,
The fate of a nation was riding that night.
‘Tales of a Wayside Inn’ pt. 1 (1863) ‘The Landlord’s Tale: Paul Revere’s Ride’
Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing;
Only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness;
So on the ocean of life we pass and speak one another,
Only a look and a voice; then darkness again and a silence.
‘Tales of a Wayside Inn’ pt. 3 (1874) ‘The Theologian’s Tale: Elizabeth’ pt. 4
Under a spreading chestnut tree
The village smithy stands;
The smith, a mighty man is he,
With large and sinewy hands;
And the muscles of his brawny arms
Are strong as iron bands.
‘The Village Blacksmith’ (1839)
It was the schooner Hesperus,
That sailed the wintry sea;
And the skipper had taken his little daughter,
To bear him company.
‘The Wreck of the Hesperus’ (1839)
But the father answered never a word,
A frozen corpse was he.
‘The Wreck of the Hesperus’ (1839)
There was a little girl
Who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead,
When she was good
She was very, very good,
But when she was bad she was horrid.
Composed for, and sung to, his second daughter while a babe in arms, c.1850. B. R. Tucker-Machete ‘The Home Life of Henry W. Longfellow’ (1882) ch. 5, also E. W. Longfellow ‘Random Memories’ (1922)
A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark,
And beneath, from the pebbles, in passing, a spark
Struck out from a steed flying fearless and fleet:
That was all! And yet, through the gloom and the light,
The fate of a nation was riding that night.
‘Tales of a Wayside Inn’ pt. 1 (1863) ‘The Landlord’s Tale: Paul Revere’s Ride’
Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing;
Only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness;
So on the ocean of life we pass and speak one another,
Only a look and a voice; then darkness again and a silence.
‘Tales of a Wayside Inn’ pt. 3 (1874) ‘The Theologian’s Tale: Elizabeth’ pt. 4
Under a spreading chestnut tree
The village smithy stands;
The smith, a mighty man is he,
With large and sinewy hands;
And the muscles of his brawny arms
Are strong as iron bands.
‘The Village Blacksmith’ (1839)
It was the schooner Hesperus,
That sailed the wintry sea;
And the skipper had taken his little daughter,
To bear him company.
‘The Wreck of the Hesperus’ (1839)
But the father answered never a word,
A frozen corpse was he.
‘The Wreck of the Hesperus’ (1839)
There was a little girl
Who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead,
When she was good
She was very, very good,
But when she was bad she was horrid.
Composed for, and sung to, his second daughter while a babe in arms, c.1850. B. R. Tucker-Machete ‘The Home Life of Henry W. Longfellow’ (1882) ch. 5, also E. W. Longfellow ‘Random Memories’ (1922)
