Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-04-14
TO A COUSIN DYING OF CONSUME.
THON.



They tell me thou art dying, and thy voice,
Faint as a broken haTp-string's dying tone,
And the strange sp~irtt-beauty OF thine eyes,
So wild, and yet 50 tendertn their gaze,
And the bright hectic on thy pale. white cheek
Like a red cloud upon hes sunset heaven,
Yes, dear girl,
A few brief days, and earth no more viii be
The home Of thy young spirit Ahfmy heart
shTinks shaddering at the thought Wehaye
save as we might have loved If thou hadst
been
Ny gentle sister; yet I feel that thou
Hast been the dear companion of my life
Ny brightest spirit-Inate. Proud ones have
In worship TO thee, and have uttered words
OF deep imprisoned eloquence, TO win
Thy beautiful affections; but thy heart
Preferred my pure and holy spirit-love
To their wild passions. From our ~ehildhood's
We've told each other every Joy and grief,
And hope and aspiration. We have smiled
Wept together; aye, our smiles and tears
have been each others. Thou hast formed q
OF my hearts every gentle thought; my soul
Has never had u dream OF happiness
But thy loved face was pictured In that dream,
A portion Of Its beauty. l have known
A pilgrimage OF toll and WEAKNESS,
But in Thy spirit 1 have ever found
A bright Isle of LIES desert, with Its fount,
Its rose-tree and its song-bird-
Dear one, now
Thou soon wilt leave me. Oh, I do not know
That can bear the parting. Would TO God
That We might never part. Would that our
souls
Might intertwine so closely that the one
Could ne'er be rended from the earth away
Without its partner. Though my love for thee
Is not more earthly than the love thatI
Might feel for some bright, disembodied soul,
some pure and holy spirit OF tne an,
Throbs in my deep heart, rlpples in my blood,
CLOVIS in my smiles and tears, breathes in my
breath
lives in all my life. Dear girl, I've felt
That It's a grief TO be away from thee,
Though parted but by forests, hills and wales;
But oh, the thought, the sad and awful
That We mus dwell awhile In separate worlds,
In different states Of being, with the gulf
OF death between US. Earth Will be TO me
Very, oh, very desOlate. A cold
And dismal shadow to my eyes viii seem
To stretelfrom thy lone tomb, and dimly fall
the green earth with all Its myriad flowers,
And the blue sea with all Its myriad isles,
And the blue sky with all its myriad stars,
Its chill anddarkuessw will be on my soul
Like winter midnight. Yetone blessing still,
rhy beautiful u holy memory,
WI linger with me. Gentle thoughts OF thee
of the joy that we have shared will float
Upon the gloomy ~currentof my life,
Like lovely water-lilies on the breast
ozark, turbid stream.
Ineed not ask
thee my sweet and lovely spirit-mate,
That when thou dwellest in the better land,
When thy high nome is mid the glorious stars
which thy soul eveninit its mortal chains,
Has nightly wandered OF TO gather strength,
For life's great conflict, thou wilt love me still,
M sometimes visit me on this dim
And cherries earth. All, dear one, well 1
know
That thy sweet spirit in my lonely hours,
When life is but one mournful memory
Will often stoop from its own home TO me-,
no dull nights, no fogs, no cold drear rains,
driving tempests of the earth can soil
Thy bright angelic wing. And OH, dear love,
/ know That in my closing hour Of life,
the last pulse Is futteTing in my veins,
And the last CLEAN Is fading IN my eyes
wilt be there to bear me company
the bright realms Of thy own paradise,
and teach me my first flight upon the wings,
The new wings OF my immortality.