Thursday, November 27, 2025

A Wish

by the author of "Orion" [Richard Henry Horne].

Originally published in Douglas Jerrold's Shilling Magazine (Punch) vol.1 #6 (Jun 1845).


                        On, for a Forest-cave—and time!
                        With silence broken by no chime;
                Around me solitude, the friendly heavens above,
                And life so free, its wheels unheard to move;
                                        There to allow my soul
                                        Its fall expansion, and unroll
                Its mystery—and read, from first to last, the scroll!

                        Thus strengthen'd, would I forth again,
                        And fully use my freshen'd brain,
                And pour new wisdom's stream into the world's old wounds,
                Urging high natures tow'rds their utmost bounds:
                                        Then slowly back repair
                                        Through the inclement air,
                And in my forest cave live on the heart's deep prayer.

The Picture Hunter

by Laman Blanchard. Originally published in Ainsworth's Magazine: A Miscellany of Romance (Chapman and Hall) vol. 2 # 4 (1847). Few...