THE PLANTING OF THE APPLE TREE WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT COME, let us plant the apple tree. Cleave the tough greensward with the spade; Wide let its hollow bed be made; There gently lay the roots, and there Sift the dark mold with kindly care, And press it o'er them tenderly, As round the sleeping infant's feet We softly fold the cradle sheet; So plant we the apple tree. What plant we in this apple tree? Buds, which the breath of summer days Shall lengthen into leafy sprays; Boughs where the thrush, with crimson breast, Shall haunt and sing and hide her nest; We plant, upon the sunny lea, A shadow for the noontide hour, What plant we in this apple tree? We plant with the apple tree. What plant we in this apple tree? And drop, when gentle airs come by, While children come, with cries of glee, And when, above this apple tree, The winter stars are quivering bright And winds go howling through the night, Girls, whose young eyes o'erflow with mirth, Shall peel its fruit by cottage hearth, And guests in prouder homes shall see, Heaped with the grape of Cintra's vine, And golden orange of the line, The fruit of the apple tree. The fruitage of this apple tree Where men shall wonder at the view, Each year shall give this apple tree A deeper maze of verdurous gloom, The years shall come and pass, And time shall waste this apple tree. What shall the tasks of mercy be, Amid the toils, the strifes, the tears "Who planted this old apple tree?” The children of that distant day Thus to some aged man shall say; And, gazing on its mossy stem, The gray-haired man shall answer them: "A poet of the land was he, Born in the rude but good old times; 'Tis said he made some quaint old rhymes On planting the apple tree." ROBERT OF LINCOLN WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT MERRILY swinging on brier and weed, Near to the nest of his little dame, Over the mountain side or mead, Robert of Lincoln is telling his name: Bob-o-link, bob-o-link; Spink, spank, spink; Snug and safe is that nest of ours, Robert of Lincoln is gayly drest, Wearing a bright black wedding coat; Pretty and quiet, with plain brown wings. Passing at home a patient life, Broods in the grass while her husband sings. Bob-o-link, bob-o-link, Spink, spank, spink; Brood, kind creature; you need not fear Thieves and robbers while I am here. Chee, chee, chee. Modest and shy as a nun is she; One weak chirp is her only note. Braggart and prince of braggarts is he, Pouring boasts from his little throat:Bob-o-link, bob-o-link, Spink, spank, spink; Never was I afraid of man; Catch me, cowardly knaves, if you can! Chee, chee, chee. Six white eggs on a bed of hay, Robert is singing with all his might:- Spink, spank, spink; Nice good wife that never goes out, Soon as the little ones chip the shell, Spink, spank, spink; This new life is likely to be Hard for a gay young fellow like me. Robert of Lincoln at length is made Sober with work, and silent with care; |