The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-01-20
STEELE FOLK.
BY AUGUSTA LARNED.

The wonderful people
That live IN the stecplc,
There chanting and singing
With the great bells swinging,
Swaying with poud'rous motion to and fro,
With a mighty cling! clanh.
A sullen clash and bangl
booming OF noises,
Myriads Of voices,
Smitten out from dull metal with blow.
And then the wild, wild glee,
or elf folk frolic free!
As they skip on the rope,
II will verify smoke,
And they hang head down in spiders web,
Or gulnbol on the beams
Like weird pgmieS in dreams,
These goblin rope.dancerS
And marvellous pranccrs
That leap TO and fro on shining thread.
O, the sound Of far bells,
Borne in on windy swells,
The faint, silver Ginning,
And sweet broken rhyming,
Like some poets lines that run in the head;
We walk in grassy fields,
And the brain almost reels
With the mem'ry of bliss,
A fond wOru or a kiss,
And the rose she wore-the rose was ripe red.
And now there comes q hum
When all the air is dumb,
Like innumcrable bees
In freshly blossomed trees;
What is it those elves are whispering to eacf
other
In secret low sound,
That seems to heave the ground,
A soft buzz and Jingle
No jangle or jingle
Like baby crooued TO sleep by its mother:
Weird music not CT earth,
Thin and fine as elf mirth,
Comes winding round and round,
ia spiral OF sound,
And moves rs to tears with its haunting strain
BY its Intimations,
And faint rcverberatiOns,
or tenderest heart thrills,
That the grave alone stills
That quicken the cells Of the coolest brain.
Strange wailngs and sighings,
Loud sobbings and cryings,
And their plaintive knell
From the great tuiling bell,
Heard over the green, daisy.sprnklcd mead,
Yes, there is some one dead,
And she was newly wed;
\ fortnight but Just gone
Bells rang clearly ding dong,
To this woful day did the elves give heed?
They knew it was coming,
And woke a strange hummlng,
That propheses Of i'll
When the wind blasts ore still;
And If hearts do break what is it to them;
1t is, | ween, the same,
For their loss or their gain,
Whether bells merry TO-
Or bells toll sad and slow
They care not what happens TO ants or men.
Fantasies Of motion,
High in that great ocean
OF blue, pelucid air,
With calm everywhere;
Above this earth is the vast serenity,
Above the want and woe,
And running 10 and fro,
Above the pain and loss,
And dragging heavy cross,
Above the dull cares OF poor humanity.
Good, church.going people,
Gaze up ut yOn stcepe;
As it seems to reel and rock
They hear voices that mock;
And " Hush! was that a whisper in the breast:
Or was it wicked fays
That heed not prayer or praise,
That never bow the knee,
But live Goddess and free
In the holy house OF worship and rcst?'
The ills we cannot know,
Like the gathering Of snow,
These elves see advancing,
When sunbeums are dancing,
wisp Of vapor wreath Of smoke;
And they laugh to see us play,
And sport the time away,
Till thunder gust and showers
Have spoiled our pretty bowers,
Or out OF clear heaven falls the stroke.
But from the oyer.soul,
The great enduring whole,
There falls sweetcr chime,
more enchanting rhyme
Far, far above the Changing Of the bell,
Above the blended strain
or human JOY and pain,
From that eternal calm,
The universal psalm,
Sounds, all is well all is well, all is well,