Poems (Charlotte Allen)/Introduction

by Charlotte Allen

INTRODUCTION. ——

Go little book, and through the world,
 Unprefaced wend thy way;
And seek amid life's busy scenes,
 To breathe thy humble lay.

It is not with a wreath of fame,
 I seek to bind my brow;
Nor undeserved applause to gain,
 That I thus venture now.

To cast before the public eye,
 The offerings of my muse,
Which, though not faultless, fondly still
 Your approbation woos.

Parnassus' top I never gained,
 To win a metric race;
But am content to be allowed,
 To flutter 'round its base.

I never yet have dipped my pen,
 In deep poetic lore;
But merely as a pastime sought,
 Its surface to explore.

And now with many hopes and fears,
 I launch my little barque;
And trembling wait the world's opine,
 With the critic's cold remark.