Human Life - A Ballad

Human Life - A Ballad

I stood by the towers of Ardenville,
And the bells rang out a joyous peal,
Loudly and merrily rang they then,
O'er field, and valley, and sylvan glen;
And each voice sounded gay as the forester's horn,
And each heart was glad: for an heiress was born.

I stood by those time-worn towers again,
And prancing forth came a gallant train;
There was a priest, in his robes of white,
And there was a maiden, lovely and bright,
And a gallant Knight rode by her side.
And the shouts of joy sounded far and wide,
For the heiress was Rudolph de Courcy's bride.

And again by those portals proud did I stand,
And again came forth a gallant band;
And I saw that same priest, but sad was his pace,
And I saw that same Knight, but he shrouded his face;
And I am not that maiden in beauty's bloom,
But a shroud, and a bier, and a sable plume;
For the heiress was borne to her forefather's tomb.

And such is human life at best;
A mother's - a lover's - the green earth's breast;
A wreath that is formed of flowrets three,
Primrose, and myrtle, and rosemary;
A hopeful, a joyful, a sorrowful stave -
A launch, a voyage, a whelming wave -
The cradle, the bridal bed, and the grave.

Unattributed

1:7, p. 28

1827.04.27