Selections from Wordsworth Author:William Wordsworth, William Trego Webb Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: RUTH. When Ruth was left half desolate, Her father took another mate ; And Ruth, not seven years old, A slighted child, at her own will Went wandering over da... more »le and hill, In thoughtless freedom bold. And she had made a pipe of straw, And from that oaten pipe could draw All sounds of winds and floods ; Had built a bower upon the green, As if she from her birth had been An infant of the woods. Beneath her father's roof, alone She seemed to live ; her thoughts her own ; Herself her own delight; Pleased with herself, nor sad, nor gay ; And, passing thus the livelong day, She grew to woman's height. There came a youth from Georgia's shore— A military casque he wore, With splendid feathers drest; He brought them from the Cherokees ; The feathers nodded in the breeze, And made a gallant crest. From Indian blood you deem him sprung t Ah no! he spake the English tongue, And bore a soldier's name ; And when America was free From battle and from jeopardy, He 'cross the ocean came. With hues of genius on his cheek In finest tones the youth could speak : —While he was yet a boy, The moon, the glory of the sun, And streams that murmur as they run, Had been his dearest joy. He was a lovely youth ! I guess The panther in the wilderness Was not so fair as he; And, when he chose to sport and play, No dolphin ever was so gay Upon the tropic sea. Among the Indians he had fought And with him many tales he brought Of pleasure and of fear ; Such tales as told to any maid By such a youth, in the green shade, Were perilous to hear. He told of girls, a happy rout ! Who quit their fold with dance and shout, Their pleasant Indian town, To gather strawberries all day long ; Returning with a choral song When daylight is gone down. He s...« less