HAPPY the land, round which the ocean flows,
Whose ebbing waves its fertile soil compose.
The shepherd fearless leads his flocks to feed;
In peace the cheerful labourer sows the seed.
But curst that clime the billows never lave,
Whose lofty hills the clouds indignant brave.
Unhappy those, who till the treacherous soil;
Oft shall they mourn their ill-requited toil.
Rich fruits and flagrant flowers luxuriant show,
But hide the dreadful gulf that yawns below.
The secret fires, that all within devour,
O’er the fair surface boundless plenty pour.
A fatal gift! see, earth tremendous rends,
And wide its jaws a dread abyss extends.
Such QUITO’S plains appear’d, as nature’s pride;
Such flames destructive in their bosoms hide.
‘Twas on the evening of a sultry day;
The parting sun shot forth a fiery ray.
Still was the air, no gently fanning breeze
O’er-curl’d the lake, or whisper’d thro’ the trees;
Scarce to the shore the languid, billows crept;
And all the elements in silence slept.
Around the fertile fields the busy swains
Or till, or sow, or reap the ripen’d grains.
For all the various labours of the year
United on these smiling fields appear:
Birth and maturity together grow;
At once the bud expands, the clusters glow.
Within their dome retir’d, the vestal fair
A curious texture from the wool prepare:
Their snowy hands the slender threads divide,
Or thro’ the web the rapid shuttle guide.
When all is still, a sudden, hollow sound
Bursts from the fierce volcano’s dread profound;
Deep as, when pent within their echoing cave,
The struggling tempests in hoarse murmurs rave;
Eager at once o’er earth and air to sweep,
And high in watery mountains heave the deep.
Loud, and more loud, the rattling thunders rise,
Roll thro’ the air, and echo to the skies.
The trembling earth the dire convulsion feels;
A pitchy cloud the face of heaven conceals;
The mountain bursts, the wreathing flames aspire;
Adown its side descends the liquid fire;
O’er hills of snow its dreadful course it bends,
And sure destruction on its route attends.
Now from the mountain’s burning entrails torn,
On whirling flames the shatter’d rocks are born;
Thro’ the thick gloom the sparkling shivers fly,
As fiery meteors shoot along the sky:
Wild desolation reigns, and dread dismay;
The boldest hearts with terrour melt away.
The fearful priests or from their temples fly,
Or prostrate at their altars trembling lie.
The sacred virgins from their cloister run,
And try in flight the threaten’d fate to shun.
But soon the wall with horrour strikes their eyes,
And ev’n the wretched hope of flight denies.
They lift their suppliant hands, and all dismay’d,
In vain they pray, and call in vain for aid.
Amidst this scene of horrour and affright,
ALONZO towards the enclosure took his flight.
Their plaintive cries with anxious heart he hears,
Yet for his CORA ‘s danger only fears.
‘Tis thus, with fluttering heart, the tender dove
Hangs round the prison that confines his love.
‘Tis thus the lioness disdains to fly,
As round the pit she rolls her glowing eye,
Where, struggling in the toils, her young ones lie.
Eager he search’d, and chance at last betray’d,
Where thro’ the wall an ample rent was made.
With trembling joy he leaps the sacred bound,
And fearless enters the forbidden ground.
Such hard achievements are by love pursu’d,
For love can dare, when valour sinks subdu’d.
The bold attempt propitious darkness shrouds,
And safely wraps him in a veil of clouds:
For light was none, save when the mountain’s blaze
Shot thro’ the dismal gloom its transient rays.
But, ah! how faint a beam will oft suffice
To guide the ardent lover’s piercing eyes.
He saw by starts the fear-distracted maids,
Like nightly phantoms, gliding thro’ the shades.
Love taught him to distinguish from the rest
That form, so deeply on his heart impress’d.
Not fear, nor darkness self those charms conceal’d,
That to the lover’s eye the fair reveal’d.
With cautious tenderness the youth drew near,
Lest sudden transports might encrease her fear,
Soft as the accents of the amorous dove,
His faltering tongue pronounc’d the fears of love:
My CORA , sure, some guardian power befriends;
He watches o’er her, and from ill defends.
The affrighted Vestal heard with new amaze:
Earth shook, the mountain sent a sudden blaze;
That for a moment chas’d the shades of night,
And gave at once ALONZO to her sight.
Impell’d by fondness, or by fear oppress’d,
She trembling sunk upon her lover’s breast:
Around the fainting maid he threw his arms,
And strove to dissipate her wild alarms.
O thou, whose beauties my fond heart subdu’d,
That blissful hour, when first thy form I view’d;
For whose dear sake alone I value breath,
Quick let me guard thee from the scene of death.
Nor less his accents than her fears persuade;
Half in his arms he bears the trembling maid.
Pensive they stray’d, no word the silence broke;
At length, recovering utterance, CORA spoke:
I know not where my devious footsteps lead;
Nor who thou art, companion of my speed.
Ah! see, he cries, thy lover and thy friend,
Who only lives to love thee and defend.
Haste; let me lead thee to some safe recess,
Where joy and freedom all our days shall bless.
Thus she: Ah! tell me rather where to fly,
And hide my guilt from every human eye.
Thy sex renounc’d, yet here with thee I stray,
Myself dishonour, and my God betray.
O my soul’s joy! the ardent youth rejoin’d;
Calm the wild terrours of thy timid mind;
From danger to escape, and life to save,
Is the first law unerring nature gave.
What vows, what ties, but must to that resign?
Nor guilt, nor shame, too fearful maid, are thine.
But, ere the curtains of the night are drawn,
Ere the faint twilight ushers in the dawn,
Back to the prison shall I guide thy way,
While yet no busy tongues thy flight betray.
But now the fury of the storm was o’er;
The flames were sunk, the mountain ceas’d to roar,
And earth to tremble; while a gentle breeze
Dispell’d the rolling clouds by slow degrees;
The sky again its azure tint resum’d,
The silver moon the mountain’s top illum’d;
The warring elements obey’d their lord,
And peace to nature was anew restor’d.
Meanwhile ALONZO and the tender maid
Along these rich and beauteous meadows stray’d;
Where the full trees their loaded boughs declin’d,
And in a leafy arch their branches twin’d:
The quivering moon-beams, darting thro’ the shade,
A brighter verdure o’er the fields display’d.
The smiling scene to soft repose invites,
And sooths each various sense with soft delights.
O’erspent with wandering, and with heat oppress’d,
The weary lovers here resolve to rest.
The swelling moss a fragrant couch supplied,
That with the down’s luxurious softness vied.
Beneath their feet a crystal fountain play’d,
And thro’ the matted grass meandering stray’d.
High o’er their heads thick-woven shades depend,
Whose yielding boughs with purple clusters bend.
ALONZO cull’d the fairest and the best,
And to her lips their melting sweetness press’d.
The luscious jambo, that with honey vied,
The rich ananas, Western India’s pride,
And juicy shadock’s pulp their feast supplied.
Here, cried ALONZO , all our toils are paid:
How sweet this cool repast, this friendly shade!
How fair appears yon radiant orb of light,
But late in gloomy horrours hid from sight!
How soft and still these vernal scenes appear,
Where desolation’s reign deform’d the rear!
To me far sweeter thus to view thy charms,
All warm and glowing from thy past alarms.
Sure, heaven itself my guiltless flame approves,
And with this happy moment crowns our loves.
The earthquake’s rage, the fierce volcano’s fire,
To aid two tender lovers’ bliss conspire:
The awful darkness of this fatal night
From all her guards conceals my CORA’S flight.
But soon the blissful moments will be o’er;
Those blissful moments time can ne’er restore:
Oh! bid me then be blest, my love, he cried;
And be thou blest, the love-lost maid replied.
She spoke: nor longer reason held the rein;
Religion, honour, virtue, pled in vain.
Love o’er their minds his soft delusion threw,
And hid the dread futurity from view.
Now to their eyes each object fairer show’d;
More fresh the earth, the moon more radiant glow’d:
The opening blooms a richer scent exhal’d;
A secret charm o’er every sense prevail’d.
Sure, love, said CORA , owns this blissful seat,
Why wander to explore a new retreat?
These groves, these flowery meadows seem to say,
Ah! where in search of pleasure would ye stray?
Can cooler shades, or purer streams appear,
Or richer fruits, than what invite you here?
For ever, O my love, the youth rejoin’d,
May’st thou each various scene as blissful find.
But further from thy prison must we fly,
Before to-morrow’s dawn salutes the eye.
I know not where our wanderings now shall end,
Nor what at last our future fates intend.
But, blest with thee, each scene affords delight,
The desert blossoms, and the gloom is bright.
With joy and sorrow mix’d, the fair one heard,
And mingled tears and smiles at once appear’d.
Why, gracious Heaven, with boding sighs, she cried,
Why are our joys to bitterness allied?
His name, till now unknown, she asks to hear,
And with the dear-lov’d sound delights her ear.
In various talk the happy moments flew;
They spoke of all they wish’d, and all they knew.
Of SPAIN he talk’d, and all those pleasures show’d,
That from refinement and from knowledge flow’d.
With her ere long he hop’d those joys to share,
And see her charms outshine IBERIA’S fair;
When ties more sacred should their hearts unite,
And pure religion sanctify delight.
At last soft slumbers o’er their eyelids creep,
And each emotion is subdu’d by sleep.
Soon as the morning-star proclaim’d the day,
The feather’d songsters pour their early lay.
Wak’d with their strains, ALONZO lifts his eyes,
While wrapt in sleep his beauteous partner lies;
In silence hangs enamour’d o’er her charms,
While every look with tender transport warms,
Her rosy lips, yet smiling with delight,
A fervent pressure from his own invite;
Her fragrant breath, than opening, blooms more sweet,
His amorous soul impatient springs to meet.
CORA awakes, her radiant eyes unseals,
And to her lover brighter day reveals.
Confus’d emotions all her soul possess,
And joy and shame by turns her looks confess.
And do I still, she cried, behold thy face?
As soft she sunk within his fond embrace.
I dream’d, my love, thou wert for ever gone,
And I abandon’d, wretched, and alone.
Ah! cease to wound with doubts thy gentle heart,
Returns the youth; we meet no more to part.
But, see! the unwelcome morn already glows;
Ah! haste, my love; how fearful light it grows!
Let us yon mountain’s lofty side ascend,
And trust to heaven, whose cares to all extend:
There may we now the sweets of freedom prove;
Freedom, the best of blessings, next to love.
And dare I hope, she cries, where freedom reigns,
In pathless forests, or in desert plains,
Unseen, unknown, with thee alone to dwell;
And, thee possessing, bid the world farewell?
But ah; I dread–in bitterness of woe
Her voice is lost, the tears of anguish flow.
The cause unknown, amaz’d ALONZO hears
Her tender moan, and sees her streaming tears;
In softest phrase conjures her to explain
What may relieve, or whence proceeds her pain.
But how, alas! the fatal cause impart,
And plant a dagger in her lover’s heart?
His hand she press’d, and to his listening ear
Utter’d her griefs, and bade the truth appear:
My lov’d ALONZO , my soul’s only joy,
Must I so soon our dawning bliss destroy?
My heart the keenest pangs of anguish tear,
And thine, alas! an equal part must bear.
Tho’ by the strictest bands our souls are tied,
A dreadful vow compels us to divide.
Love pleads, and pleasure spreads in vain her charms;
A God more powerful tears me from thine arms;
With fury fir’d, he threatens to destroy
And take due vengeance for our guilty joy.
Farewell, ALONZO –O my bursting heart!
Farewell, my love; we must for ever part!
Just heavens! am I awake! ALONZO , hear;
Ah! think not for myself alone I fear:
But know, my guilt, O blind inhuman law!
Must on my parents sure destruction draw.
For me their lives are pledg’d; and can I fly,
A perjur’d wretch, while they in tortures die?
Ah! hapless pair! he cries, accurst of heav’n!
Outcasts of earth, to shame and misery driv’n!
Why not, long since, the fatal truth reveal?
Why from mine eyes the dreadful gulf conceal?
But leave me–go–no more my honour move;
Nor rack me with thy grief, thy guilt, thy love.
O heavens! and must I drive her from my arms?
Must I renounce her hardly tasted charms?
Detain her–must I then a monster prove,
And with her parents’ blood cement our love?
She goes–inhuman–stop–Ah! see me die!
And art thou, CORA , in such haste to fly?
With pity mov’d, his wild despair she sees,
Sinks at his feet, and trembling clasps his knees.
Her griefs, her charms his former flame renew;
And gushing tears their moisten’d cheeks bedew.
Resolve, she cries, resolve, ere yet too late,
To save my parents from impending fate.
Methinks already I behold the fire,
Where father, mother, children must expire.
Thus he: Ah! now the war of nature’s o’er;
Reign, reason, reign, and love shall plead no more.
Her hand he seiz’d, reluctant o’er the plain
They measur’d now their former course again,
Those walls to reach, where thou, poor, perjur’d maid!
In vain shalt seek thy shame and guilt to shade.
Love, till this fatal night, in CORA’S breast
Seem’d like an image, by a dream impress’d,
A vague idea, a delusive fire,
Delirium wild of uncontroll’d desire.
Amidst the horrours of that fatal night,
No prying eye had mark’d the Vestal’s flight;
Who, if by love and favouring fortune bless’d,
Few dangers fear’d, and small remorse express’d.
Far other thoughts ALONZO’S bosom fill,
Prescient of woes, he dreads approaching ill.
He trembled, lest the busy hand of time
Should soon reveal their passion and their crime.
The sweetest sound that blesses human ear,
A parent’s sacred name, he dreads to hear,
The joys so fondly sought his torment prove;
He blames his rashness, and detests his love.
Ah! guilt! fell poison, bane of our repose!
Thou turn’st the dearest blessings into woes:
Thy fatal gifts are wretchedness and pain,
Remorse, and miseries, an endless train.
(Elizabeth Scot)
More Poetry from Elizabeth Scot:
Elizabeth Scot Poems based on Topics: Hope, Joy & Excitement, Love, Youth, Art, Fairness, Anger, Sadness, Night, Fate & Destiny, Fear- Leander And Hero (Elizabeth Scot Poems)
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- Alonzo And Cora - Part I (Elizabeth Scot Poems)
- Edwin And Edith - Part II (Elizabeth Scot Poems)
- Edwin And Edith - Part I (Elizabeth Scot Poems)
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