Over the rough-hewn limestone wall,
I watched the serpenting river crawl
Adown the dale, thro' dimpled fields,
Daisy-brimmed, where Almscliffe shields
With rocky crest
The lambs that play on the old Earth's breast.
Gently I felt God's hand in mine,
As the sun came forth with a strength benign:
" I have one request to make, dear God:
That when my body is 'neath the sod,
My spirit still
May over this country roam at will. "
On the wings of the wind I heard Him sigh:
"Unheedingly many—so many—pass by,
Tho' the world is full of My fairest thought,
Of all that My servant Time hath wrought,
It is so rare
To hear that My work is surpassing fair."
" O! Grant my prayer, and let me stay
In this land where Thy little rivers stray,
For I love them, God, with a love so true,
Remembering they are a part of You.
O! Speak and bless! "
And the wind from the uplands echoed "Yes."
WHARFEDALE.