Classic Poem

Daylight was fading o'er the billowy deep;
A noble ship approached the wished-for shore;
And watching eyes, which often used to weep
For distant friends, now hope to weep no more.

A few hours only, and they hope to moor
Their bark beside the land they love so well,—
To hear fond welcomes from that longed-for shore,
Sweeter than music-tones or vesper-bell.

As from the west the rose-tint faded fast,
The stars hung out their banners in the sky,
The lighthouse gleamed afar, the evening blast
Sank to a zephyr like a lover's sigh.

With throbbing hearts the waiting ones reposed,
To gather strength for joys with coming day;
Yet scarce their eyelids with sweet slumber closed,
Ere they were wakened by the dash of spray.

And by the sudden shock which told a tale
Of ocean shipwreck and its horrors dire:
For them in vain, though hushed the stormy gale,
Now gleamed across the deep the beacon-fire.

The boats were crowded till they held no more,
And frantic cries arose from many there,—
That, though the night was calm, the distant shore
And all its blessings they could never share.

Ah, why this sad close of a voyage so near
Its happiest end upon the destined shore!
Oh! had the wine-cup never sparkled there,
No death-cry would have blent with ocean's roar.