To a correspondent of a provincial journal, published in the south of England, we are indebted for our introduction to Mr. Kerridge, who has contributed the following poems to our "Souvenir."
BEAUTY wanders o'er the sea,
Dwelleth in the leafy tree,
Reigneth in the sky above,
Revels in the face I love.
Rove I wheresoe'er I will
Beauty glides before me still;
O'er the land and o'er the sea
'Tis outspread continually.
Day is beautiful and bright,
Through the air come streams of light,
Light from yonder sun on high,
Threading upwards through the sky
Watch him out the east arise,
At his presence darkness flies;
See him climb by slow degrees,
Spreading lustre o'er the seas;
See him throw his rosy hue
O'er the spaceless vault of blue;
See him scatter mists, and see
At his presence dew-drops flee.
Man and beast and bird arise,
And a chorus fills the skies.
See him trend towards the west,
Clouds they hang upon its breast;
Clouds of crimson rightly dight,
Dazzling to our mortal sight.
Sight majestic sight sublime,
Dazzling streaks they glowing shine;
But these fade, and soon they flee,
Meantime twilight decks the lea.
Night comes solemn, holy, still,
Beauty all the sky doth fill.
Stars they glow and twinkle bright
With a pure and radiant light;
Some are large and some are small,
Infinite wisdom form'd them all.
There they hang in mighty space,
And the blue of heaven they grace.
May they not be angels' eyes
Looking from those clear blue skies,
Guarding, watching men at rest
On sweet slumber's soothing breast.
Dead, or seeming dead to life,
Hush'd awhile from toil and strife?
Beauty wanders o'er the sea,
Dwelleth in the leafy tree,
Reigneth in the sky above,
Revels in the face I love.
Rove I wheresoe'er I will,
Beauty glides before me still.
OLD Christmas, thou art come again,
With thy cold wintry weather;
Thou seem'st to me a golden chain
To bind dear friends together.
Thou comest when the trees are bare,
And Nature robbed of beauty;
Thou comest when the fading year
Hath run his round of duty.
Thou comest, and thy coming brings
A time of joy and gladness;
Thou comest, and thy coming flings
A veil o'er grief and sadness.
Thou comest, and we welcome thee
With happy hearts and singing;
Thou comest, king-like, mirthfully,
Eternal tidings bringing.
Thou comest, and our thoughts we raise
To God, all-wise Corrector;
Thou comest, and with songs of praise
We know Him our protector.
Thou comest, and we love thee well,
Bright time of mirth and gladness!
Thou throwest forth a joyous spell,
A veil o'er grief and sadness.
I WONDER WHO MY LOVE WILL BE.
I WONDER Who my love will be,
To cheer me in my leisure hours;
To wander o'er the fields with me,
And cull therefrom the scented flowers.
To share with me the ills of life,
To cheer me through its chequered way,
To nerve my arm in every strife,
To be my love from day to day.
To be my best and dearest friend,
Sincerest in this world of strife;
To love me to the very end
Of this great round of life.
To share my joys whate'er they be,
To share my cares, (may they be few!)
To gladden life's tempestuous sea,
Who will it be? Thought answers, Who!
I have before mine eyes, a form
Of graceful mien and lustrous eye,
With nerve to buffet many a storm,
And every trivial care defy.
It is a shadow, and it wants
The substance to be all to me;
'Tis an ideal beauty, haunts
My every thought continually.
Be patient! though loud wails the wind as it wends, And the snow from the dark clouds in soft flakes
Be patient! fierce winter 's the herald of spring,
When the glade and the dingle with bird-music ring.
Be patient! stern winter he waneth away,
And signs of the fair spring they herald each day;
Both the snowdrop and crocus already are come,
And higher and higher each day rolls the sun.
Be patient! the fair spring will soon come again,
And with her the swallows from over the main ;
Be patient! the lapse of these days short and cold,
They will bring us rich blessings in field and in fold.
Be patient! though loudly and wildly the storm
Beats over thee, fear not, though weak be thy arm;
Look upwards, look onwards, see far, far away,
Comes beautiful spring-time triumphant and gay.
Be patient, though beauty hath left us awhile,
Yet beauty again, she will come to beguile;
And the birds they will sing and the foliage wave,
And the flowers shall bloom in the field-o'er the grave.
O'er the grave, it may be, of some loved one who died,
On whom and in whom you for solace relied;
Be patient! thou'lt follow, thou'lt meet him for aye
In the regions beyond thee, the regions of day.
DOWNWARDS the sun descends into the glowing west; A thousand and a thousand tints, they follow him to
Cradled upon the fleecy clouds, 'neath the blue and boundless sky;
Orange and crimson, shade on shade, there unsurpass'd they lie.
Like a great globe of fire he speeds down, down below the hill:
His level rays the broad landscape with magic beauty
And the wide ocean undulates, upon whose kingly
Tint upon tint, from clouds above, seem lastingly impress'd.
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