Under The Willows And Other Poems Author:James Russell Lowell General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1869 Original Publisher: Fields, Osgood Subjects: United States Literary Criticism / General Literary Criticism / General Literary Criticism / American / General Literary Criticism / Poetry Poetry / General Poetry / American / General Notes: This is a black and... more » white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: THE WIND-HARP. T TREASURE in secret some long, fine hair Of tenderest brown, but So inwardly golden I half used to fancy the sunshine there, So shy, so shifting, so wnywardly rare, Was only caught for the moment and holden While I could say DearestI and kiss it, and then In pity let go to the summer again. I twisted this magic in gossamer strings Over a wind-harp's Delphian hollow ; Then called to the idle breeze that swings All day in the pine-tops, and clings, and sings 'Mid the musical leaves, and said, " O, follow The will of those tears that deepen my words, And fly to my window to waken these chords." So they trembled to life, and, doubtfully Feeling their way to my sense, sang, " Say . whether They sit all day by the greenwood tree, The lover and loved, as it wont to be, When we" but grief conquered, and all together They swelled such weird murmur as haunts a shore Of some planet dispeopled, -- " Nevermore " I Then from deep in the past, as seemed to mo, The strings gathered sorrow and sang forsaken, " One lover still waits 'neath the greenwood tree, But 't is dark," and they shuddered, " where lioth she Dark and cold I Forever must one be taken ? " But I groaned, " O harp of all ruth bereft, This Scripture is sadder, -- ' the other left' I " There murmured, as if one strove to speak, And tears came instead ; then the sad tones wander...« less