Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1893-08-20
For tho Sunday Register.
THE CUCKOO
AND THE
NIGHTINGALE.

AND IdE
NIGHTINGALE.
Cbauoer Drsameth That he Heareth the
Cuckoo and the Nightingale Contend for
Excellence.
Mod. ra,ssd from ChducSr bvJ. r. d.
The god Of love- hail benedict!
How mighty and now great lofo Is ne
For he can lift the lOwly heart on hlgh'
The bigb can press Down till II cen Woulo ole
And bard hearts he can tender make and free
He oan. within one brief, swift minutes round
The SIC sened soul make whole aud iresh ana
And Them .be whole make sick and rAcked
with pain;
He can unbind and he can bind again
Them that he will nave bounden or UNBOUND.
To tell his might would more than my wit take
For he of wise folk fools enough can make,
And should it h1p to please his fancy nice,
The wicked can make enemies OF vice,
And brave and proud hearts can he cause 70
quake.
In brief nought that he wills may any stay;
Against him dare no wight say nay:
For whom he liketn he can grleye or glsa'
A =
And most his might he puJteth Iofth IN May
For gentle hearts OF truth and purity
That are beneath his sway, or dream 70 De-
In MAY shall feel the current that ootR tufn
A life 10 JOY forever, OF TO mourn,
More potent than else while, as seemeth mo-
For when do gentle hearts the birds hear sing
And see the tender flowers and leaflets spring
These prompt sweet medltatlOus or NE
OF 10y, yet still with mingled sorrow rlie,
And thoughts ali full Of mighty longing bring
nd q, that longing cometh heaviness;
Thence mortal sickness must those hearts con-
fesS,
And all for lack OF that that they desire;
And thus in May be true hearts set on nre,
So that they burn aOlaze IN great olstresl'
And speak thus OF feeling truthfully;
FOR though oden and unlusty be,
Yet nave I felt the sickness sore OF May,
With fresh access OF heat and chllis each DAY,
As-nay, twas never n Wn as known Dy me-
Fen now 90 shaken with the fevers white
/ am, that all this May lis but mite
sleep; nor doth 1t likely seem to me
That any heart should ever sleepy be
That Love with his keen, fiery dart may smlts'
The other night lay sleep vainly wooed),
And thought OF lovers tokens, and renewed
Remembrance OF the very common tale
THAT il were good to hear the nightingale
sing rather than to hear the cuckoo lewd.
And then thought, as soon as it was day
forth would sally, somewhere 70 essay
ria nightingale might haply hear;
For vet none had heard, o all the year,
And it was e en- the third night then OF Nay
And so. anon ss / the day espied,
No longer would In my beu ABIDE,
Rut ont unto a wood that was fast by
Ali boldly and alone forth fastened |,
And held nv way down by a brookletS side,
Till came to q spot all white and green
A falrer one methOught had never been;
The ground was green, with mingled daisies
sIewn
The aow'rs and trees, in hueS like varied,
So that naught else but green and white was
seen.
There sat down among the beauteous flowers,
Ans saw the birds fit lightly from their bowers,
Where having rested all throughout the
They were so Joyous at the new days light,
To honor May first turned they all their pow
erS
That tupeful service knew they well by rote,
And. sooth, there was full many lovely note;
Some auayered forth as though they had COM
planned,
And some the voices strange Of others fsigned,
While SEINE again sang out in fullest throat
They trimmed their plumage up right fine and
gay, ,,
And danced aud hoped among the leafy spray,
And evermore By TO and two they we're
just as In pairs they mated for the year,
On Valentines famed February day.
The little brook whose brink sat upon
Made noisy babbliug as adown 1t ran,
Accordant with thu soft bird harmony;
a no
That might De ever heard by any man.
Uucopsciously, from sheer delight, 'twOuld
seem,
fell into a slumbrous sort OF dream,
Not all asleep, yet fully waking not,
And IN that dreaming heard l sing, me-
thought
The cuckoo, sorry bird of lewd esteem.
II sat upon a spreading tree fast by;
Alas who was then evil paid but
"Now. God" / cried, that died upon the
Heap sorrow on thy bodlng voice and thesi
Full little JOY have now OF tny cry
And as I with the cuckoo thus did chide
gepan there in the bush just ueXtbeside
A nightingale so Justify 70 sing
TEat ner clear duicet voice she mace 70 TN
Throughout the merry greenwood lar aud wide.
"Ab. dearest nightingale, =" then did say,
"a little TOD long hast thou been away;
For here already hath the cuckoo vlle
i,etore tbee been, a.singing songs the while;
THAT evil FIRE may burn her, God pray.
Rut now TO YOU woudrous thing I'll tell;
So long as lay in the dreamy SPELL
Meihoucht l comptehended what was meant
And said by all the birds, aud the intent
OF their bird speech understood IuIl we'll
And so heard the nightingale thus say:
"Come. good cuckoo. pray 60 thou away,
a. III US that know how 10 sing dwell here;
FOR everybody hates thy singing drear,
Thy song is such a cherries sort OF lay.
.vhst - ouoth the cuckoo, whats the matter
7, ,ssns 10 me sing as we'll as thou;
FOR nine Is both truthful song and plain,
And though cannot trill from throat (hoW
AS thou d'm truly glad don't know howl
Yet everybody understandeth me,
And everybody. nightingale, don't thee;
Thou hGst so many a quaint and curious cry;
I've heard you say. sometimes, 'o-cy, o-cy;'
Now. how AN 20 know what that should bes''
"oh. fool" replied she, ''dost not know what
It's
I mean By plain 'o-cy. COY" It's this:
thereby mean / would be wondrous fAin
Ifeveryone oiSgracefully were slain
That mssnsth sught against true love AmisS.
"Aud as would that all Of them may die
That think not e'er life OF love 70 Try;
For who will not the god ofloVs obey
Is worthy we'll 10 StaFve, dare to say,
And tbs for that, COY, o-cy,' CRY.
ave. IS then the cuckoo, that's law, indeed
Each wight shall love, or else, 80 hang or
But viii none of all such company;