The Snowy Eve. A Sonnet.
’Tis night, and Darkness o’er the
land and sea1
Outstretches gloomily her ebon wings ;2
Downward, with biting breath, the tempest flings3
The whirling snow-flake, dancing giddily.4
What is my thought ?—the traveller on the moor,5
Benighted, lonely, urging on his steed,6
Where all is solitude, and none to heed.7
What is my thought ?—the ocean’s awful roar8
Recalls the wandering mariner, afar9
Upon the rayless deep, whose flashing gun,10
The signal of distress, is heard by none,11
Save Him, who placed in heaven the evening star.12
What is my thought ?—that feeling is distress,13
And human life a wintry wilderness.14