_  p . _ . TH E CADEKD. l 29 ~ ` l  
.  ___...... _..I.._ .- ¤ .
  ‘ WITHIN THE SLAGLE FOREST  if ' _ ~’A_ »
A  \Vitl1 majesty the forest stands,
V  A guardian of the vestal lands,
  Locked within its verdant breast; =
j  Half veiled and misty are its lines. i
  And chill the gloom among its pines, ,
{  Wl1e1·e lurks a sombre, silent rest. A
  Its depths no vandal’s foot has paced,
  Nor marks of cultured ways are traced, ~
  To mar the beauty of the glade;
  Here noble oaks and ilowers, abide,
_‘  In sweet communion side by side, i
  . In gorgeous hues of every shade.
  No sound within the copse is heard,
  Save when the restless leaves are stirred, A
  By gentle breaths from scented dellsr A
  The wooing word from tree to vine, . -
  Proclaims a unity sublime ;
  A regnant law of life it tells.
  The tuneful lay of liquid throats, i
  Upon the air, anon it floats, I
  In waves of music rich and clear;
  The tangled thicket quickly parts, .
  And through the opening swiftly darts, ·
  A bounding, graceful, antlered deer.
  When sunlight’s golden rain is past,
  And night’s kind shroud is falling fast,
  Within the forest’s virile heart;
  As o’e1· a maiden’s blushing cheek,
  Or in a field of waving wheat,
  Softly, the elfin shadows part. _