  By ADA IDDINGS GALE. Midst clash of arms, she comes, and glittering spear, Bold, bright and beautiful, her flashing eye; Crowned, gemmed and robed in cloth of Tyrian dye. Palmyra’s pride, unequaled far or near. Proudly she moves and with imperious mien Views with a sweeping glance each column o’er, While they in rapture kneeling do adore, And rising, vow allegiance to their queen. The trumpet’s peal, a thousand helmets shine, The long ranks into perfect order pass, And at the command move on. Alas! That fortune’s star for such should e’er decline, That pomp of pride, that dreams of regal sway Should like the mists of morning melt away. decorative line The man of the least mental powers may be perfect if he move within the limits of his own capacities and abilities, but even the noblest advantages become obscured, annulled, and annihilated, when symmetry, that is so indispensable, is broken through. This mischief will still oftener appear in these present times; for who will be able to satisfy the requirements of a present ever calling for more exertion and in the highest state of excitement?—Goethe. decorative line |
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