Poem: “The Maryland Yellow-Throat” by Henry Van Dyke

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American Literature – Children Books – American Poetry – Henry Van Dyke – Poems by Henry Van Dyke
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The Maryland Yellow-Throat

When May bedecks the naked treesWith tassels and embroideries,And many blue-eyed violets beamAlong the edges of the stream,I hear a voice that seems to say,Now near at hand, now far away, “Witchery—witchery—witchery.”

An incantation so serene,So innocent, befits the scene:There’s magic in that small bird’s note—See, there he flits—the Yellow-throat;A living sunbeam, tipped with wings,A spark of light that shines and sings “Witchery—witchery—witchery.”

You prophet with a pleasant name,If out of Mary-land you came,You know the way that thither goesWhere Mary’s lovely garden grows:Fly swiftly back to her, I pray,And try to call her down this way, “Witchery—witchery—witchery!”

Tell her to leave her cockle-shells,And all her little silver bellsThat blossom into melody,And all her maids less fair than she.She does not need these pretty things,For everywhere she comes, she brings “Witchery—witchery—witchery!”

The woods are greening overhead,And flowers adorn each mossy bed;The waters babble as they run—One thing is lacking, only one:If Mary were but here to-day,I would believe your charming lay, “Witchery—witchery—witchery!”

Along the shady road I look—Who’s coming now across the brook?A woodland maid, all robed in white—The leaves dance round her with delight,The stream laughs out beneath her feet—Sing, merry bird, the charm’s complete, “Witchery—witchery—witchery!”

1895.

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A November Daisy > > >

American Literature – Children Books – American Poetry – Henry Van Dyke – Poems by Henry Van Dyke

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The Maryland Yellow-Throat

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