[Editor: A poem, possibly written by Henry Halloran (1811-1893), published in The Australian, 14 February 1834.]
We Met.
(By H. H.)
I.
We met — we met in early years,
Mere children among flowers;
We shared each other’s joys and fears,
Each other’s varied hours.
II.
We met, we met, when childhood ceased,
When speaking blushes told
That each, each other’s love increased —
And would not be controll’d.
III.
We met, we met, amidst a throng,
Of bright and glancing eyes;
Yet dance, and minstrelsy and song
Hushed not our mutual sighs.
IV.
We met, we met — but ’twas to part
For many lingering years;
We prest each other’s throbbing heart,
We felt each other’s tears.
V.
We met, we met — too long delayed;
Consumption’s silent tooth,
Had on her matchless beauty preyed,
And chased the glow of youth.
VI.
We met, we met — I caught her breath,
Her latest faintest sigh;
I saw the shadowy wing of death,
Pass o’er her beamless eye.
VII.
We met, we met — ’twas at the tomb,
In which her reliques rest:
I saw the sacred earth resume,
And clasp her to her breast.
VIII.
And shall we meet again great God,
No more, no more — to part?
I bow beneath thy chastening rod
With worn and broken heart.
Sydney, February 11, 1834.
Source:
The Australian (Sydney, NSW), 14 February 1834, p. 4
Editor’s notes:
consumption = progressive wasting of the body; the phrase was especially used regarding pulmonary tuberculosis (tuberculosis of the lungs)
prest = pressed (as distinct from two archaic meanings: ready, or, a loan of money)
relique = an archaic spelling of “relic”
[Editor: Corrected “others varied” to “other’s varied”.]
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