FROM THE GERMAN OF UHLAND.
There sits a lovely maiden,
The ocean murmuring nigh;
She throws the hook, and watches;
The fishes pass it by.
A ring, with a red jewel,
Is sparkling on her hand;
Upon the hook she binds it,
And flings it from the land.
Uprises from the water
A hand like ivory fair.
What gleams upon its finger?
The golden ring is there.
Uprises from the bottom
A young and handsome knight;
In golden scales he rises,
That glitter in the light.
The maid is pale with terror–
‘Nay, Knight of Ocean, nay,
It was not thee I wanted;
Let go the ring, I pray.’
‘Ah, maiden, not to fishes
The bait of gold is thrown;
The ring shall never leave me,
And thou must be my own.’
(William Cullen Bryant)
More Poetry from William Cullen Bryant:
William Cullen Bryant Poems based on Topics: Light, Fairness, Youth, Gold, Water- Catterskill Falls (William Cullen Bryant Poems)
- A Meditation On Rhode-Island Coal (William Cullen Bryant Poems)
- An Indian Story (William Cullen Bryant Poems)
- A Hymn of The Sea (William Cullen Bryant Poems)
- A Walk at Sunset (William Cullen Bryant Poems)
- An Indian at the Burial-Place of his Fathers. (William Cullen Bryant Poems)
Readers Who Like This Poem Also Like:
Based on Topics: Light Poems, Youth Poems, Fairness Poems, Gold Poems, Water PoemsBased on Keywords: uprises, uhland
- Book III - Part 03 - The Soul is Mortal (Lucretius Poems)
- Out Of The East (John Freeman Poems)
- Alma; or, The Progress of the Mind. In Three Cantos. - Canto III. (Matthew Prior Poems)
- Of The Nature Of Things: Book II - Part 03 - Atomic Forms And Their Combinations (Lucretius Poems)
- Rhodon And Iris. Act III (Ralph Knevet Poems)