The Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1822-1829, 1827-05-01
LOVES LAST MEETING.
( Uodcrnized from an old Manuscript
found among The Records ofthe Ne

The days ofmy youth ! the DAYS of
my youth how deeply do your recol-
lections dwell within my soul how
wildly does memory recall YOU, and the
deeds to which You gave rise your bright
hopes, your burning wishes, your blight
OF heart, your absolute despair. He
who receives n stunning blow early in
life, will probably, through physical
strength, rise, after time, from under
| II and, ii he be thrown into full COLI
sion with the world, the wound will heal
over, though from time TO time, the scar
which it leaves will ache. In his breast
there will be the reverse of the oasis of
The desert , for, however thelafger por-
ton of the soul may bloom--to what ex-
tent socver it may be lcrtle--thcre will
be always one spot of barren and burn
lng waste, to contrast with and To check
the Towering meads around it.
Oh, Florence ! thou whitod srpulchre
of outward beauty-thou inward char
nel-houso of all my happness-ofm my
souls hopes how bitterly do haze
what others love so much-thy streets of
palaces, and thy flowing Arno With
| whit lcaden heart have looked down,
from thy surrounding ampitheatro Of
hills, upon thyiilne villas, glitlering a.
mong the dusky olives and Thy noble
church, rising ikea crown, to complete
tins scene of queenly beauty What
indeed, is the loNelneSs of natural OBJ
lect, If the associations connected with
| II be sad 1.-The tidings be mournful,
Of what avail is the speakers voice
When / went again to Florence, after
long years it WIS recalling into new lfo
| the great, the one misfortune ofmy youth.
My heart beat against my side with the
innu!uous throb ofrc-awakened agony !;
felt once more the dcsolation ola blpi-
sed spirit. Alas how strong are the
impressions of local memory A sick
shnddcr came over me as | passed the
house where =!
Beauty beamed upon her brow-lovc
flashed from her eyes, and mantlod on
her glowing lips. The full confidence
and utter unreserre of young affection,
gave to her the dignity oftheir own SIM
gleness and simplicity. What, indeed,
is more holy than female love in its first
force and puIty-beiore the world has
chilled it, or repetition sullicd the exqu-
site bloom of its unity and abandon
ment 1t is one Of the highest d. most
intense of the mysteries ofhuman nature
One of the most beautiful of its phc-
nomena-the most expressing of its i'm
pulses The sophisticated may sheer
at its simple feelings--tho corrupt may
mistake its purity for GOODNESS but that
very simplicity is the cause, at once, and
the effect of its strength and condensa-
ton: the very purity of the flame beto-
kenS its intense heat
How beautiful she was Beauty loh,
beauty which mak'st the senses drunk,
and spirits reel under thy influence
which, like the wild honey of the an
Gent story, art delicious to the taste,
but maddenning TO the brain how thy
force and thy sweetness, are they not
increased when we behold thee in the
women of our souls love! lIere.is her
picture! How lovely are their fea-
lures !---their fine outine-tiIeir rich
deyelopment--their placid expression
How the eye teasts upon them how
the soul is fed by the deep, calm thoughts
which that countenance exhales Yet
does not this treasured image moro excel
the most i'll favoured of the daughters of
Eve, than it falls short of the samo face
when lighted with the fire OF loves hea-
yen-when the ceStus of affection added
to it the lustre of its charm-confcrrin
spell In my bosom hast thou been
nestled for years the pulses Of my
heart have beat under thee ; thou hast
been to me what the figure of his pat
ron saint is to an anchorite--a treasure
far more than earthly Yet couldst
thou but for a moment possess that look
oi love which those eyes were wont to
shed upon me--that smile, which spakc
of londncss, as the glance did OF intensi-
ty--l would be content to part with thee
torever--aye, even though my heart
should burst in the effort it would need.
Truly have / compared the feelings
with which | regard this image to those
excited by devotion. Buried love- has
all the force and warmth of earthly pas
sion, freed from all the grosser particles
of earth sit has all the ETHEREAL purity
ofspiritual alteration, with fervour
and reality superadded, which, alas !
our corporal nature eau scarcely ever
feel towards that which is only spiritu-
al Our thoughts are turned towards
being whom we have adored when in the
flesh, who now is raised to state more
exalted and purer than our own. The
passion we feel for the woman, is tenn
pered by the reverence with which we
regard the spirit !; and the two feelings
united, form, probably, the highest and
= Al. f I