The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-09-25

penis OF Syria, doing homage TO their sovereign,
| the sun.
Hand IN hand about this valley, for fifteen
years roamed with Eeanora before love en-
tered within our hearts. Ii was one evening at
the close OF the third lustrum of her life, and of
the fourth OF my own, that we sat, locked in
| each others embrace, beneath the serpent-lke
trees, and looked down within the waters Of the
| river OF Silence at our images therein We
spoke no words during the rest of that sweet
day, and our words upon the morrow were trem-
ulous and few.
We had drawn the God Eros from that wave;
| and now we felt that he had enkinded within US
the fiery souls of our fathers. The passions
| which had for centuries distinguished our race
| came thronglng with the fancies for which they
had been equally noted, and together breathed a
dehrlous bliss over the valley of the Many CO.
| lored Grass. A change fell upon all things.
Strange brilliant flowers, star-shaped, burst out
| upon the trees, where no flowers had been
known before. The tints of the green carpet
deepened, and when, one by one, the white dali
sizes shrank away there sprang up in place Of
them ten by ten of the nby-red asphodel. And
life arose in our paths, for the tall famingo, hith
erto unseen, with all gay, glowing birds, faunt-
ed his scarlet plumage before us, and golden and
silver fish haunted the river, out Of the bosom OF
which issued, little by little, murmur that
swelled at length into lulling melody more d.
vine than that Of the harp of Kolus-sweeter
than all save the voice Of Eleanora. And now
too, vast and voluminous cloud, which we had
long watched in the regions OF Hesper, ioated
out thence all gorgeous IN crimson and gold, and
settling in peace above us, sank day by day low
er and lower, until its edges rested upon the tops
Of the mountains, turning all their dimness into
magnifcence, and shutting us up, as if forever,
within magic prison-house ofgrandeur and Of
glory.
The loneliness Of Eleanora was that of the
Seraphim, and here, as in all things referring to
this epoch, my memory is wildly distinct In
stature she was tall, and slender even TO fragl-
ity. The exceeding delicacy of her frame, as
well as of the hues Of her cheek, speaking pain
fully of the feeble tenure by which she held cxis
tence. The lilies of the valley were'hot more
fair. With the nose, lips, and chin of the Greek
Venus, she had the majestic forehead, the natu-
rally waving auburn hair, and the large, lumi-
nous eyes of her kindred. Her beauty, never
theless, was Of that nature which leads the heart
to wonder not less than to love. The grace Of
hei motion was surely ethereal Her fantastic
step left no impress upon the asphodel, and l
could not but dream, as gazed, enrapt, upon
her alternate moods of melancholy and of mirth,
that two separate souls were enshrined within
her. So radical were her changes Of counte-
nance, that al one instant fancied her possess
ed by some spirit of smiles, at another y some
demon of tears.
She was a maiden artless and innocent as the
brief life she had led among the flowers. No guile
disguised the fervor Of love which animated her
heart-and she examined with me its inmost
recesses, as we walked together in the Valley
of the Many Colored Grass, and discoursed of
the mighty changes which had lately taken
place. AT length, having spoken, one day, in
nj ha met cad oh vUhl m hpf
humanity, she thenceforward dwelt only upon
this one sorrowful theme, Intervening it into
all our converse-as in the songs Of the Bard Of
ShraZ the same images are found occurring
again and again in every impressive variation Of
phrase.
She had seen that the finger Of death was up
on her bosom-that, like the ephemera, she had
been made perfect in loneliness only to die but
the terrors of the grave, to her, lay solely in a
consideration which she revealed to me, one still
evening at twilight, by the banks Of the River of
Silence. She grieved to think that, having en-
tombed her in the Valley Of the Many -Colored
Grass, would quit for ever its happy recesses,
transferring thelove which was now so passion
ately her own to some maiden of the outer and
every day world.
And then and there threw myself hurriedly
at the feet of Eleonora, and offered up VOW to
herself and to Heaven that would never bind
myself in marriage to any daughter of earth
that would in no manner prove recreant to her
dear memory, or to the memory of the devout
affection with which she had blessed me. And
| called the Mighty Ruler of the universe to
witness the pious solemnity OF my VOW. And
the curse which invoked ofhim, and of her,
saint in Ely sum, should prove traitorous TO
that promise, involved penalty the exceeding
great horror of which will not permit me to make
record Of il here. And the bright eyes of Eleo-
nora grew brighter at my words; but she made
acceptance of the yow--for what was she but a
child and it made easy to her the bed OF her
death And she said to me, not many days al
terward, TRANQUILITY dying, that because OF what
had done for the comfort of her spirit, she
would watch over me in that spirit when she de-
parted, and, if so il were permitted her, return
to me visibly in the watches of the night; buff
this thing were indeed beyond the power of the
souls in Paradise that she would at least give
me frequent indications Of her presence, signing
upon me in the evening winds, or filling the air
which breathed with perfume from the censers
of the angels. And with these words upon her
lips she yielded up her innocent life, putting end
TO the first epoch of my own.
Thus far have faithfully said; but, as pass
the barrier in Times path formed by the death
Of my beloved, and proceed into the second era
of my existence, | feel that vague shadow ga
Tiers over my brain, and ] mustrust the perfect
sanity of the record But let me on. Years
dragged themselves along heavily and still, with
the aged mother Of Eeonoia, dwelt within the
Valley of the Many -Coored Grass. second
change had come upon all things. The star
shaped flowers shrank into the stems Of the
trees and appeared no more. The tints of the
green carpet faded, and only one by one the ru
BY red asphodels withered away, and there
sprang up, in place of them, ten by ten, dark
eye-like violets that quivered uneasily. And life
departed from our paths: for the tall iiamingo
Haunted no longer his scarlet Plumage before us,
but few sadly from the vale into the hills, with
all the gay, glowing birds that had arrived in his
oo,,n,nv And tho roden md silver fish swan