# An Anthology of Australian Verse/A Song for the Night

O the Night, the Night, the solemn Night,  When Earth is bound with her silent zone, And the spangled sky seems a temple wide,  Where the star-tribes kneel at the Godhead's throne; O the Night, the Night, the wizard Night,  When the garish reign of day is o'er, And the myriad barques of the dream-elves come  In a brightsome fleet from Slumber's shore!  O the Night for me,  When blithe and free, Go the zephyr-hounds on their airy chase;  When the moon is high  In the dewy sky, And the air is sweet as a bride's embrace!
O the Night, the Night, the charming Night!  From the fountain side in the myrtle shade, All softly creep on the slumbrous air  The waking notes of the serenade; While bright eyes shine 'mid the lattice-vines,  And white arms droop o'er the sculptured sills, And accents fall to the knights below,  Like the babblings soft of mountain rills.  Love in their eyes,  Love in their sighs, Love in the heave of each lily-bright bosom;  In words so clear,  Lest the listening ear And the waiting heart may lose them.
O the silent Night, when the student dreams  Of kneeling crowds round a sage's tomb; And the mother's eyes o'er the cradle rain  Tears for her baby's fading bloom; O the peaceful Night, when stilled and o'er  Is the charger's tramp on the battle plain, And the bugle's sound and the sabre's flash,  While the moon looks sad over heaps of slain;  And tears bespeak  On the iron cheek Of the sentinel lonely pacing,  Thoughts which roll  Through his fearless soul, Day's sterner mood replacing.
O the sacred Night, when memory comes  With an aspect mild and sweet to me, But her tones are sad as a ballad air  In childhood heard on a nurse's knee; And round her throng fair forms long fled,  With brows of snow and hair of gold, And eyes with the light of summer skies,  And lips that speak of the days of old.  Wide is your flight,  O spirits of Night, By strath, and stream, and grove,  But most in the gloom  Of the Poet's room Ye choose, fair ones, to rove.
This work is in the public domain in Australia because it was created in Australia and the term of copyright has expired. According to Australian Copyright Council - Duration of Copyright, the following works are public domain:
* published non-government works whose author died before January 1, 1955,
* anonymous or pseudonymous works and photographs published before January 1, 1955, and
* government works published more than 50 years ago (before January 1, 1974).
This work is also in the public domain in the United States because it was first published outside the United States (and not published in the U.S. within 30 days), and it was first published before 1989 without complying with U.S. copyright formalities (renewal and/or copyright notice) and it was in the public domain in Australia on the URAA date (January 1, 1996). This is the combined effect of Australia having joined the Berne Convention in 1928, and of 17 USC 104A with its critical date of January 1, 1996.
Because the Australian copyright term in 1996 was 50 years, the critical date for copyright in the United States under the URAA is January 1, 1946.
This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.
Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse
This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse