The cincture from beneath her breast :
Her silken robe, and inner vest,
Dropt to her feet, and full in view,
Behold! her bosom and half her side-
A sight to dream of, not to tell !
O shield her! shield sweet Christabel !

Yet Geraldine nor speaks nor stirs ;
Ah! what a stricken look was hers !
Deep from within she seems half-way
To lift some weight with sick assay,
And eyes the maid and seeks delay ;
Then suddenly, as one defied,
Collects herself in scorn and pride,
And lay down by the maiden's side !
And in her arms the maid she took,

Ah well-a-day!
And with low voice and doleful look
These words did say:

In the touch of this bosom there worketh a spell, Which is lord of thy utterance, Christabel ! Thou knowest to-night, and wilt know to-morrow, This mark of my shame, this seal of my sorrow;

But vainly thou warrest,

For this is alone in
Thy power to declare,

That in the dim forest

Thou heard'st a low moaning,
And found'st a bright lady, surpassingly fair ;
And didst bring her home with thee in love

and in charity, To shield her and shelter her from the damp air.

THE RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER.

IN SEVEN PARTS.

PART 1.

and detaineth one.

An ancient It is an ancient Mariner,
Mariner
meeteth three And he stoppeth one of three.
den to a wed: ‘By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
ding-feast, Now wherefore stopp’st thou me ?

'The Bridegroom's doors are open'd wide,
And I am next of kin ;
The guests are net, the feast is set :
May'st hear the merry din.'
He holds him with his skinny hand,
• There was a ship,' quoth he.
‘Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon!'

Eftsoons his hand dropt he.
The Wed- He holds him with his glittering eye-
ding-Guest is
spell-bound

The Wedding-Guest stood still,
by the eye of And listens like a three years' child :
the old sea-
faring-man, The Mariner hath his will.
strained to
hear his tale.

The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone:
He cannot choose but hear ;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.
*The ship was cheer'd, the harbour clear'd,
Merrily did we drop
Below the kirk, below the hill,

Below the light-house top.
The Mariner "The sun came up upon the left,
ship sailed Out of the sea came he!
southward
with a good

and con

'Higher and higher every day,
Till over the mast at noon-
The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast,
For he heard the loud bassoon.

The bride hath paced into the hall,
Red as a rose is she ;
Nodding their heads before her goes
The merry minstrelsy.

The Wedding-Guest heareth the bridal music; but the Ma. riner continus eth his taie.

The Wedding-Guest he beat his breast,
Yet he cannot choose but hear ;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.

And now the storm-blast came, and he
Was tyrannous and strong :
He struck with his o’ertaking wings,
And chased us south along.

The ship drawn by a storm toward the south pole.

With sloping masts and dipping prow,
As who pursued with yell and blow
Still treads the shadow of his foe,
And forward bends his head,
The ship drove fast, loud roar'd the blast,
And southward aye we fled.

And now there came both mist and snow,
And it grew wondrous cold :
And ice, mast-high, came floating by,
As green as emerald.

And through the drifts the snowy clifts
Did send a dismal sheen :
Nor shapes of men nor beasts we ken –
The ice was all between.

The land of ice, and of fearful sounds, where no living thing was to be seen,

The ice was here, the ice was there,
The ice was all around :
It crack'd and growl’d, and roar'd and howl'd,
Like noises in a swound!

Till a great

At length did cross an Albatross : sea-bird, called the

Thorough the fog it came ; Albatross, As if it had been a Christian soul, came through the snow-fog, We hail'd it in God's name. and was received with

It ate the food it ne'er had eat, great joy and hospitality And round and round it flew.

The ice did split with a thunder-fit ;

The helmsman steer'd us through! And lo ! the And a good south wind sprung up behind ; Albatross provetha bird The Albatross did follow, ofg odomen; And every day, for food or play, the ship as it came to the mariners' hollo ! northward through fog In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud, and floating It perch'd for vespers nine ; (white, ice,

Whiles all the night, through fog-smoke

Glimmer'd the white moon-shine. The ancient 'God save thee, ancient Mariner ! inhospitably

From the fiends, that plague thee thus !

Why look'st thou so ?'— With my cross-bow pious bird of good omen. I shot the Albatross !!!

returned

Mariner

killeth the

PART II.

The Sun now rose upon the right :
Out of the sea came he,
Still hid in mist, and on the left
Went down into the sea.
And the good south wind still blew behind,
But no sweet bird did follow,
Nor any day for food or play

Came to the mariners' hollo !
His ship-

And I had done a hellish thing, mates cry out

And it would work 'em woe ;
against the
ancient Mari- For all averr'd, I had kill'd the bird
ing the bird That made the breeze to blow,
of good luck.

Ah wretch! said they, the bird to slay,
That made the breeze to blow !

Nor diin nor red, like God's own head,
The glorious Sun uprist :
Then all averr'd, I had kill'd the bird
That brought the fog and mist.
'Twas right, said they, such birds to slay,
That bring the fog and mist.

But when the fog cleared off, they justify the same, and thus make them. selves accomplices in the crime.

The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew, The fair

breeze conThe furrow streamdytt free ;

tinues, the We were the first that ever burst

ship enters

the Pacific Into that silent sea.

Ocean, and sails north

ward, even Down dropt the breeze, the sails dropt till it reaches

the Line. 'Twas sad as sad could be ; [down,

The ship hath And we did speak only to break

been sudden

ly becalmed. The silence of the sea !