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THE THEMES OF SONG.
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Or where a yearning heart of old,
A dream of shepherd men,
With forms of more than earthly mould
Hath peopled grot or glen.
There may the bard's high themes be found-
—We die, we pass away:
But faith, love, pity—these are bound
To earth without decay.
The heart that burns, the cheek that glows,
The tear from hidden springs,
The thorn and glory of the rose—
These are undying things.
Wave after wave of mighty stream
To the deep sea hath gone:
Yet not the less, like youth's bright dream,
The exhaustless flood rolls on.