A carpet is thy daisied sod, A narrow street thy boundless wood, Else is wreck wrought in aught so fair! Child of the country! on the lawn Or share with thee thy venturous throne. Child of the town and bustling street, A story in each stream and bower; THE POET'S BRIDAL-DAY SONG.1 Oh! ny love's like the steadfast sun, 1 Some beautiful lines of yours in a former number of the "Literary Souvenir" introduced me to your wife, and inade me feel much interested in her. Pray, offer her my kind remem brances.-Mrs. Hemans to Allan Cunningham. Nor mirth, nor sweetest song that flows Even while I muse, I see thee sit We stay'd and woo'd, and thought the moon Or linger'd 'mid the falling dew, Though I see smiling at thy feet, Oh, when more thought we gave, of old, To silver, than some give to gold, 'Twas sweet to sit and ponder o'er How we should deck our humble bower: 'Twas sweet to pull, in hope, with thee, The golden fruit of Fortune's tree; And sweeter still to choose and twine A garland for that brow of thine: A song-wreath which may grace my Jean, While rivers flow, and woods grow green. At times there come, as come there ought, A mother's heart shine in thine eye, The best of all things not divine. A WET SHEET AND A FLOWING SEA. A wet sheet and a flowing sea, A wind that follows fast, And fills the white and rustling sail, And bends the gallant mast, my boys, Away the good ship flies, and leaves Oh for a soft and gentle wind! But give to me the snoring breeze, There's tempest in yon horned moon, The wind is piping loud, my boys, THE MARINER. Ye winds, which sweep the grove's green tops, Oh softly stir the ocean-waves Which sleep along the shore! For my love sails the fairest ship Oh bend his masts with pleasant gales, Oh leave nae mair the bonnie glen, Clear stream, and hawthorn grove, Where first we walk'd in gloaming gray, For faithless is the ocean-wave, And faithless is the wind: Then leave nae mair my heart to break ROBERT SOUTHEY, 1774-1843. THIS distinguished poet and prose writer was the son of a linen-draper in Bristol, and was born in that city on the 12th of August, 1774. After going through the ordinary preparatory course of study, he entered Baliol College, Oxford, in 1 I look upon "A wet sheet and a flowing sea," as one of the best songs going.-SIR WAL TER SCOTT: Diary, 14 Nov. 1826. 1792, with the design of entering the church; but as his religious views underwent a change, inclining to Unitarianism, he left the university in 1794, and in the same year published his first poems, in conjunction with Mr. Lovell. Of his appearance and character at this time, Joseph Cottle thus speaks: "One morning, Robert Lovell called on me, and introduced Robert Southey. Never will the impression be effaced produced on me by this young man. Tall, dignified, possessing great suavity of manners; an eye piercing, with a countenance full of genius, kindliness, and intelligence. I gave him at once the right hand of feilowship, and, to the moment of his decease, that cordiality was never withdrawn."1 About this time he took part in the famous Pantisocratic scheme,2 "to which all the eager contributors brought golden theories, but so little of the more tangible coin that the Utopian project was necessarily relinquished." In November of the following year, (1795,) he married Miss Fricker, of Bristol, the sister of Mrs. Coleridge. In the winter of the same year, while he was on his way to Lisbon, "Joan of Arc" was published. In the following summer he returned to Bristol, and in the next year removed to London, and entered Gray's Inn. He passed part of the years 1800 and 1801 in Portugal, and from Lisbon wrote to Joseph Cottle the following poetical letter, which, for ease, vivacity, and vigorous description, stands at the head of that class of compositions: LISBON, May 9th, 1800. Dear Cottle, d'ye see, in writing to thee, For I lay like a log, as sick as a dog; And whoever this readeth, will pity poor Edith: Indeed it was shocking, the vessel fast rocking, The timbers all creaking; and when we were speaking, And to vow we would never go voyaging more. The fear of our fighting did put her a fright in, And I had alarms for my legs and my arms. When the matches were smoking, I thought 'twas no joking, When I knew that my head might remain on my shoulder. On the deck to stand, and look at the land; The pleasure was even like getting to Heaven! I could eat and drink, as you may think; I could sleep at ease, except for the fleas; 1 "Reminiscences of Coleridge and Southey." p. 4. Read "North British Review," xii. 371, and xiii. 225; “Edinburgh," lxxxvii. 391; "Gentlemen's Magazine," April, June, and September, 1850; "London Athenæum," March, 1850. 2 See an account of this in the notice of Coleridge. But still the sea-feeling-the drunken reeling- Like a cradle, the bed seem'd to rock my head, My Edith here thinks all things queer, But then the street she thinks not neat, And does not like the smell. Nor do the fleas her fancy please, They at first view fell merrily to, But oh the sight! the great delight! This view so fine, this scene divine! The Tagus here, so broad and clear, And it lies light, all silver white, Adieu, adieu, farewell to you, Write when you may, I need not say How gladly we shall hear. I leave off rhyme, and so next time But in rhyme or prose, dear Joseph knows ROBERT SOUTHEY. Soon after Southey's return to England, he established himself at Keswick, in the Lake country, where he lived for the remainder of his life. In 1805, he published his "Madoc," and in 1810 the "Curse of Kehama." In 1813, on the death of Mr. Pye, Southey was appointed poet laureate. In 1814, he published "Roderic, the Last of the Goths," and in 1821 "The Vision of Judgment." The same year he received his doctor's degree from the University of Oxford. In 1825, appeared "The Tale of Paraguay," the latest of his longer poems. Besides these, he wrote a great number of smaller pieces of poetry, and numerous prose works, which have given him the character of one of the best prose-writers in the language, for a clear, vigorous, manly, and graceful style. Of these, the most important are the "Book of the Church," the "History of the Peninsular War," the "History of the Brazils," and the Lives of "Nelson," " "Wesley," "Cowper," "Chatterton," and "Henry Kirke White." He was a regular contributor for many years to the "Quarterly Review," and was the author of that remarkable book, "The Doctor." In his "Life of Nelson," I regret to say, there are some most exceptionable sentimentssentiments utterly at variance with the spirit and teachings of Christianity. 2 The following is a list of his articles in the "London Quarterly," as given by Joseph Cot tle in his "Reminiscences," up to 1825: In No. 1, Baptist Mission in India; 2, Portuguese Literature; 3, South Sea Missions-Lord Valentia's Travels; 4, American Annals; 5, Life of Nelson; 6, Season at Tongataboo-Graham's Georgics; 7, Observador Portuguez; 8, Feroe Islands-On the Evangelical Sects; 11, Bell and Lancaster; 12, The Inquisition-Montgo |