Nutting

—————————It seems a day,One of those heavenly days which cannot die,When forth I sallied from our cottage-door,And with a wallet o'er my shoulder slung,A nutting crook in hand, I turn'd my stepsTowards the distant woods, a Figure quaint,Trick'd out in proud disguise of Beggar's weedsPut on for the occasion, by adviceAnd exhortation of my frugal Dame.Motley accoutrements! of power to smileAt thorns, and brakes, and brambles, and, in truth,More ragged than need was. Among the woods,And o'er the pathless rocks, I forc'd my wayUntil, at length, I came to one dear nookUnvisited, where not a broken boughDroop'd with its wither'd leaves, ungracious signOf devastation, but the hazels roseTall and erect with milk-white clusters hung,A virgin scene!—A little while I stood,Breathing with such suppression of the heartAs joy delights in; and with wise restraintVoluptuous, fearless of a rival, eyedThe banquet, or beneath the trees I sateAmong the flowers, and with the flowers I play'd;A temper known to those, who, after longAnd weary expectation, have been bless'dWith sudden happiness beyond all hope.——Perhaps it was a bower beneath whose leavesThe violets of five seasons re-appearAnd fade, unseen by any human eye,Where fairy water-breaks do murmur onFor ever, and I saw the sparkling foam,And with my cheek on one of those green stonesThat, fleec'd with moss, beneath the shady trees,Lay round me scatter'd like a flock of sheep,I heard the murmur and the murmuring sound,In that sweet mood when pleasure loves to payTribute to ease, and, of its joy secureThe heart luxuriates with indifferent things,Wasting its kindliness on stocks and stones,And on the vacant air. Then up I rose,And dragg'd to earth both branch and bough, with crashAnd merciless ravage; and the shady nookOf hazels, and the green and mossy bowerDeform'd and sullied, patiently gave upTheir quiet being: and unless I nowConfound my present feelings with the past,Even then, when from the bower I turn'd away,Exulting, rich beyond the wealth of kingsI felt a sense of pain when I beheldThe silent trees and the intruding sky.—

Then, dearest Maiden! move along these shadesIn gentleness of heart with gentle handTouch,——for there is a Spirit in the woods.