Poems (Hoffman)/Lily of the Nile
LILY OF THE NILE
Queenly lily, fair and fragrant, I have watched thy charms unroll'Till thy gold embossed scepter Gleams against thy spotless scroll. Stately Ethiopian princess From thy realm a fair exile Vieing with the rose in sweetness. Queenly lily of the Nile.
Lovely in thy child-like beauty, Yet majestic in thy pride;Could'st thou be more sweetly gracious Nodding by the river side? Breath like zephyrs freshly laden From some flower-wreathed ocean isle; Snow-white Ethiopian maiden, Modest lily of the Nile.
Dost thou feel no pang of longing, Dost thou breathe no weary sighFor thy native, Orient splendor— For thy native, sunlit sky? Far away, thou knowest not whither, Many, many a weary mile, Thy fair sisters bloom and wither, Stately lily of the Nile.
Bloom beneath the palm-tree's shadow Just along the river's brink,Where gay birds, with brilliant plumage Soar to sing, and stoop to drink. Plucked by Egypt's dark-eyed daughters To adorn some granite pile— Fresher from their native waters, Snowy lily of the Nile.
'Midst those scenes of Eastern splendor Thy ancestral race began—Where the night of heathen darkness Spread abroad its withering ban; Yet no spot of man's transgressing Could thy purity defile, Looking heavenward for each blessing, Saintly lily of the Nile.
Did they view thy purer glory With their darkened minds unawed?Did they learn of thee no lesson Of the power and love of God? Like a spotless, white-winged angel Sent to them untouched by guile, Did they spurn thy glad evangel, Spotless lily of the Nile?
O, could they have looked from Nature Unto Nature's God alone,Would they not have scorned to worship Images of wood and stone? Would they not, thy beauty seeing, Have looked up in faith erewhile To the God who gave thee being Matchless lily of the Nile?