Frank Dempster Sherman (1860-?)
"From Madrigals and Catches, 1887." (Sharp)
A Butterfly in Wall Street
Winged wanderer from clover meadows sweet,
Where all day long beneath a smiling sky
You drained the wild-flowers' cups of honey dry
And heard the drowsy winds their loves repeat,
What idle zephyr whispering deceit
Has won your heart and tempted you to fly
Unto this noisy town and vainly pry
Into the secrets of this busy street?
To me your unexpected presence brings
A thought of fragrant pastures, buds and flowers,
And sleepy brooks, and cattle in the fold;
Or, watching as you soar on trembling wings,
I think for those who toil through weary hours
You are a type of their uncertain gold.
A Pacific Dawn
When pale Selene in her crescent boat
Sails down into the margin of the West
Through shoals of stars that twinkle in unrest,
In fancy's bark I follow her, and float
O'er sapphire seas to dreamy realms remote,
And at my side there goes a feathered guest
Who sings to cheer me, and the air is blest
With melody responsive to his note.
On, on I journey in the starry wake,
And all about me is the purple dark
Whence blow the winds by which my bark is borne;
And suddenly the poppy fetters break,
The moon is gone, and in the field a lark
Pays tribute to the faint Pacific morn.
(Text from American Sonnets)
