311
—Whence comes it, then, that yonder we behold
Five graves, and only five, that lie apart,
Unsociable company and sad;
And, furthermore, appearing to encroach
On the smooth play-ground of the Village-school?"
The Vicar answered. "No disdainful pride
In them who rest beneath, nor any course
Of strange or tragic accident, hath helped
To place those Hillocks in that lonely guise.
—Once more look forth, and follow with your eyes
The length of road which from yon mountain's base
Through bare enclosures stretches, 'till its line
Is lost among a little tuft of trees,—
Then, reappearing in a moment, quits
The cultured fields,—and up the heathy waste
Mounts, as you see, in mazes serpentine,
Towards an easy outlet of the Vale.
—That little shady spot, that sylvan tuft,
By which the road is hidden, also hides
A Cottage from our view,—though I discern,
(Ye scarcely can) amid its sheltering trees,
