Ballads and Songs Author:John Davidson 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: A BALLAD OF A NUN From Eastertide to Eastertide For ten long years her patient knees Engraved the stones—the fittest bride Of Christ in all the diocese. ... more » She conquered every earthly lust; The abbess loved her more and more; And, as a mark of perfect trust, Made her the keeper of the door. High on a hill the convent hung, Across a duchy looking down, Where everlasting mountains flung Their shadows over tower and town. The jewels of their lofty snows In constellations flashed at night; Above their crests the moon arose; The deep earth shuddered with delight. Long ere she left her cloudy bed, Still dreaming in the orient land, On many a mountain's happy head Dawn lightly laid her rosy hand. The adventurous sun took Heaven by storm; Clouds scattered largesses of rain; The sounding cities, rich and warm, Smouldered and glittered in the plain. Sometimes it was a wandering wind, Sometimes the fragrance of the pine, Sometimes the thought how others sinned, That turned her sweet blood into wine. Sometimes she heard a serenade Complaining sweetly far away : She said,' A young man woos a maid' ; And dreamt of love till break of day. Then would she ply her knotted scourge Until she swooned; but evermore She had the same red sin to purge, Poor, passionate keeper of the door! For still night's starry scroll unfurled, And still the day came like a flood : It was the greatness of the world That made her long to use her blood. In winter-time when Lent drew nigh, And hill and plain were wrapped in snow, She watched beneath the frosty sky The nearest city nightly glow. Like peals of airy bells outworn Faint laughter died above her head In gusts of broken music borne : ' They keep the Carnival,' she ...« less