The Project Gutenberg eBook of Poetry of the Supernatural, by Earle F. Walbridge.
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Poetry of the Supernatural
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online
at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States,
you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located
before using this eBook.
Title: Poetry of the Supernatural
Compiler: Earle Francis Walbridge
Release date: April 20, 2012 [eBook #39494]
Language: English
Credits: Produced by David Starner, Lisa Reigel, and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
book was produced from images made available by the
HathiTrust Digital Library.)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK POETRY OF THE SUPERNATURAL ***
Transcriber's Notes:
Page 4 is blank in the original. Ellipses match the original.
Click on the page number to see an image of the page.
Lafcadio Hearn, in his Interpretations of Literature (one of the most
valuable and delightful books on literature which has been written in
our time), says: "Let me tell you that it would be a mistake to suppose
that the stories of the supernatural have had their day in fine
literature. On the contrary, wherever fine literature is being produced,
either in poetry or in prose, you will find the supernatural element
very much alive. . . But without citing other living writers, let me
observe that there is scarcely any really great author in European
literature, old or new, who has not distinguished himself in the
treatment of the supernatural. In English literature, I believe, there
is no exception,—even from the time of the Anglo-Saxon poets to
Shakespeare, and from Shakespeare to our own day. And this introduces us
to the consideration of a general and remarkable fact,—a fact that I do
not remember to have seen in any books, but which is of very great
philosophical importance; there is something ghostly in all great art,
whether of literature, music, sculpture, or architecture."
Feeling this, Mr. Walbridge has compiled the following list. It is not a
bibliography, nor even a "contribution toward" a bibliography, nor a
"reading list," in the usual sense, but the intelligent selection of a
number of instances in which poets, major and minor, have turned to
ghostly themes. If it causes you, reading one of its quotations, to hunt
for and read the whole poem, it will have served its purpose. If it
tells you of a poem you have never read—and so gives you a new
pleasure—or if it reminds you of one you had forgotten, it will have
been sufficiently useful. But for those who are fond of poetry, and fond
of recollecting poems which they have enjoyed, it is believed that the
list is not without interest in itself. Its quotations are taken from
the whole great range of English poetry, both before and after the time
of him "who made Prospero the magician, and gave him Caliban and Ariel
as his servants, who heard the Tritons blowing their horns round the
coral reefs of the Enchanted Isle, and the fairies singing to each other
in a wood near Athens, who led the phantom kings in dim procession
across the misty Scottish heath, and hid Hecate in a cave with the weird
sisters."
FOOTNOTES:
[3:1] The picture on the front cover is from an illustration by
Mr. Gerald Metcalfe, for Coleridge's "Christabel," in The Poems of
Coleridge, published by John Lane.
Like one that on a lonesome road Doth walk in fear and dread, And having once turned round, walks on, And turns no more his head; Because he knows a frightful fiend Doth close behind him tread.
—Rime of the Ancient Mariner.
THE OLDER POETS
Allingham, William. A Dream. (In Charles Welsh's The Golden Treasury of
Irish Songs and Lyrics.)
I heard the dogs howl in the moonlight night. I went to the window to see the sight: All the dead that ever I knew Going one by one and two by two.
Arnold, Matthew. The Forsaken Merman.
In its delicate loveliness "The Forsaken Merman" ranks high
among Mr. Arnold's poems. It is the story of a Sea-King,
married to a mortal maiden, who forsook him and her children
under the impulse of a Christian conviction that she must
return and pray for her soul.—H. W. Paul.
She sate by the pillar: we saw her clear; "Margaret, hist! Come quick, we are here! Dear heart," I said, "We are long alone; The sea grows stormy, the little ones moan." But, ah, she gave me never a look, For her eyes were seal'd to the holy book.
—— St. Brandan.
. . . a picturesque embodiment of a strange mediaeval legend
touching Judas Iscariot, who is supposed to be released from
Hell for a few hours every Christmas because he had done in
his life a single deed of charity.—H. W. Paul.
Barlow, Jane. Three Throws and One. (In Walter Jerrold's The Book of
Living Poets.)
At each throw of my net there's a life must go down into death on the sea. At each throw of my net it comes laden, O rare, with my wish back to me. With my choice of all treasures most peerless that lapt in the oceans be.
Boyd, Thomas. The King's Son. (In Padric Gregory's Modern Anglo-Irish
Verse.)
Who rideth through the driving rain At such a headlong speed? Naked and pale he rides amain, Upon a naked steed.
Browning, Elizabeth Barrett. The Lay of the Brown Rosary.
Who meet there, my mother, at dawn and at even? Who meet by that wall, never looking at heaven? O sweetest my sister, what doeth with thee The ghost of a nun with a brown rosary And a face turned from heaven?
Browning, Robert. Mesmerism.
And the socket floats and flares, And the house-beams groan And a foot unknown Is surmised on the garret stairs And the locks slip unawares. . .
Buchanan, Robert. The Ballad of Judas Iscariot. (In Stedman's Victorian
Anthology.)
The beauty is chiefly in the central idea of forgiveness, but
the workmanship of this composition has also a very remarkable
beauty, a Celtic beauty of weirdness, such as we seldom find
in a modern composition touching religious
tradition.—Lafcadio Hearn.
The body of Judas Iscariot Lay stretched along the snow. 'Twas the soul of Judas Iscariot Ran swiftly to and fro.
Carleton, William. Sir Turlough, or The Churchyard Bride. (In Stopford
Brooke's A Treasury of Irish Poetry.)
The churchyard bride is accustomed to appear to the last
mourner in the churchyard after a burial, and, changing its
sex to suit the occasion, exacts a promise and a fatal kiss
from the unfortunate lingerer.
He pressed her lips as the words were spoken, Killeevy, O Killeevy! And his banshee's wail—now far and broken— Murmured "Death" as he gave the token By the bonny green woods of Killeevy.
Chatterton, Thomas. The Parliament of Sprites.
"The Parliament of Sprites" is an interlude played by
Carmelite friars at William Canynge's house on the occasion of
the dedication of St. Mary Redcliffe's. One after another the
"antichi spiriti dolenti" rise up and salute the new edifice:
Nimrod and the Assyrians, Anglo-Saxon ealdormen and Norman
knights templars, and citizens of ancient Bristol.—H. A.
Beers.
The thing attempted in "Christabel" is the most difficult of
execution in the whole field of romance—witchery by
daylight—and the success is complete.—John Gibson
Lockhart.
—— The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.
About, about, in reel and rout The death-fires danced at night; The water, like a witch's oils, Burnt green, and blue, and white.
Cortissoz, Ellen Mackay Hutchinson. On Kingston Bridge. (In Stedman's
American Anthology.)
'Twas all souls' night, and to and fro The quick and dead together walked, The quick and dead together talked, On Kingston bridge.
Crawford, Isabella Valancy. The Mother's Soul. (In John Garvin's
Canadian Poets and Poetry.)
Another elaborate variation on the theme of the return of a
mother from her grave to rescue her children. Miss Crawford's
mother does not go as far as the ghost in Robert Buchanan's
"Dead Mother," who not only makes three trips to assemble her
neglected family, but manages to appear to their delinquent
father, to his great discomfort and the permanent loss of his
sleep.
Dobell, Sydney. The Ballad of Keith of Ravelston. (In The Oxford Book of
English Verse.)
A ballad unsurpassed in our literature for its weird
suggestiveness.—Richard Garnett.
She makes her immemorial moan, She keeps her shadowy kine; O, Keith of Ravelston, The sorrows of thy line!
Drummond, William Henry. The Last Portage. (In Wilfred Campbell's The
Oxford Book of Canadian Verse.)
An' oh! mon Dieu! w'en he turn hees head I'm seein' de face of my boy is dead.
Eaton, Arthur Wentworth Hamilton. The Phantom Light of the Baie des
Chaleurs. (In T. H. Rand's A Treasury of Canadian Verse.)
This was the last of the pirate crew; But many a night the black flag flew From the mast of a spectre vessel sailed By a spectre band that wept and wailed For the wreck they had wrought on the sea, on the land, For the innocent blood they had spilt on the sand Of the Baie des Chaleurs.
Field, Eugene. The Peter-bird. (In his Songs and Other Verse.)
These are the voices of those left by the boy in the farmhouse, When, with his laughter and scorn, hatless and bootless and sockless, Clothed in his jeans and his pride, Peter sailed out in the weather, Broke from the warmth of his home into that fog of the devil, Into the smoke of that witch brewing her damnable porridge!
Freneau, Philip. The Indian Burying-ground. (In Stedman's American
Anthology.)
By midnight moons, o'er moistening dews, In habit for the chase arrayed, The hunter still the deer pursues, The hunter and the deer—a shade.
Graves, Alfred Perceval. The Song of the Ghost. (In Padric Gregory's
Modern Anglo-Irish Verse.)
O hush your crowing, both grey and red, Or he'll be going to join the dead; O cease from calling his ghost to the mould And I'll come crowning your combs with gold.
Guiney, Louise Imogen. Peter Rugg, the Bostonian. (In Warner's Library
of the World's Best Literature, v. 41.)
Upon those wheels on any path The rain will follow loud, And he who meets that ghostly man Will meet a thunder-cloud. And whosoever speaks with him May next bespeak his shroud.
Harte, Francis Bret. A Greyport Legend.
Still another phantom ship, a treacherous hulk that broke from
its moorings and drifted with a crew of children into the fog.
Hawker, Robert Stephen. Mawgan of Melhuach. (In Stedman's Victorian
Anthology.)
Hard was the struggle, but at the last With a stormy pang old Mawgan past, And away, away, beneath their sight, Gleam'd the red sail at pitch of night.
Hawthorne, Julian. Were-wolf. (In Stedman's American Anthology.)
Dabbled with blood are its awful lips Grinning in horrible glee. The wolves that follow with scurrying feet Sniffing that goblin scent, at once Scatter in terror, while it slips Away, to the shore of the frozen sea.
Herrick, Robert. The Hag.
The Hag is astride, This night for to ride, The Devil and she together. Through thick, and through thin, Now out, and then in, Though ne'er so foul be the weather.
Hood, Thomas. The Haunted House.
O'er all there hung a shadow and a fear A sense of mystery the spirit daunted And said, as plain as whisper in the ear, "The place is Haunted!"
Houghton, George. The Handsel Ring. (In Stedman's American Anthology.)
A man and maid are plighting their troth in the tomb of an old
knight, the girl's father, when the man lucklessly drops the
ring through a crack in the floor of the tomb.
"Let not thy heart be harried and sore For a little thing!" "Nay! but behold what broodeth there! See the cold sheen of his silvery hair! Look how his eyeballs roll and stare, Seeking thy handsel ring!"
[7]Hugo, Victor. The Djinns. (In Charles A. Dana's The Household Book of
Poetry.)
Ha! they are on us, close without! Shut tight the shelter where we lie! With hideous din the monster rout, Dragon and vampire, fill the sky!
Joyce, Patrick Weston. The Old Hermit's Story. (In Padric Gregory's
Modern Anglo-Irish Verse.)
My curragh sailed on the western main, And I saw, as I viewed the sea, A withered old man upon a wave, And he fixed his eyes on me.
Keats, John. La Belle Dame sans Merci.
I saw pale kings, and princes too, Pale warriors, death-pale were they all; Who cry'd—-"La belle dame sans merci Hath thee in thrall."
—— Lamia.
"A serpent!" echoed he; no sooner said, Than with a frightful scream she vanished: And Lycius' arms were empty of delight, As were his limbs of life, from that same night.
Kingsley, Charles. The Weird Lady.
The swevens came up round Harold the earl Like motes in the sunnès beam; And over him stood the Weird Lady In her charmèd castle over the sea, Sang "Lie thou still and dream."
Leconte de Lisle, Charles. Les Elfes. (In The Oxford Book of French
Verse.)
—Ne m'arrête pas, fantôme odieux! Je vais épouser ma belle aux doux yeux. —O mon cher époux, la tombe éternelle Sera notre lit de noce, dit-elle. Je suis morte!—Et lui, la voyant ainsi, D'angoisse et d'amour tombe mort aussi.
Lockhart, Arthur John. The Waters of Carr. (In T. H. Rand's A Treasury
of Canadian Verse.)
'Tis the Indian's babe, they say, Fairy stolen; changed a fay; And still I hear her calling, calling, calling, In the mossy woods of Carr!
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth. The Ballad of Carmilhan.
For right ahead lay the Ship of the Dead The ghostly Carmilhan! Her masts were stripped, her yards were bare, And on her bowsprit, poised in air, Sat the Klaboterman.
Macdonald, George. Janet. (In Linton and Stoddard's Ballads and
Romances.)
The night was lown and the stars sat still A glintin' down the sky; And the souls crept out of their mouldy graves A' dank wi' lying by.
McKay, Charles. The Kelpie of Corrievreckan. (In Dugald Mitchell's The
Book of Highland Verse.)
And every year at Beltan E'en The Kelpie gallops across the green On a steed as fleet as the wintry wind, With Jessie's mournful ghost behind.
Mackenzie, Donald A. The Banshee. (In The Book of Highland Verse.)
The linen that would wrap the dead She beetled on a stone, She stood with dripping hands, blood-red, Low singing all alone— "His linen robes are pure and white, For Fergus More must die tonight."
Mallet, David. William and Margaret. (In W. M. Dixon's The Edinburgh
Book of Scottish Verse.)
The hungry worm my sister is, The winding sheet I wear. And cold and weary lasts our night, Till that last morn appear.
Moore, Thomas. The Lake of the Dismal Swamp.
They made her a grave too cold and damp For a soul so warm and true; And she's gone to the Lake of the Dismal Swamp Where all night long, by a firefly lamp, She paddles her birch canoe.
Morris, William. The Tune of Seven Towers.
No one walks there now; Except in the white moonlight The white ghosts walk in a row, If one could see it, an awful sight. "Listen!" said Fair Yolande of the flowers, "This is the tune of Seven Towers."
Österling, Anders. Meeting of Phantoms. (In Charles Wharton Stork's
Anthology of Swedish Lyrics from 1750 to 1915.)
I in a vision Saw my lost sweetheart, Fearlessly toward me I saw her stray. So pale! I thought then; She smiled her answer: "My heart, my spirit, I've kissed away."
O'Sullivan, Vincent. He Came on Holy Saturday. (In Padric Gregory's
Modern Anglo-Irish Verse.)
To-night on holy Saturday The weary ghost came back, And laid his hand upon my brow, And whispered me, "Alack! There sits no angel by the tomb, The Sepulchre is black."
Poe, Edgar Allan. The Conqueror Worm.
Through a circle that ever returneth in To the self-same spot, And much of Madness, and more of Sin, And Horror the soul of the plot.
—— Ulalume.
And we passed to the end of a vista, But were stopped by the door of a tomb— By the door of a legended tomb; And I said—"What is written, sweet sister, On the door of that legended tomb?" She replied—"Ulalume—Ulalume— 'Tis the vault of thy lost Ulalume."
She never doubts but she always wonders. Again and again in
imagination she crosses the bridge of death and explores the
farther shore. Her ghosts come back with familiar forms,
familiar sensations, and familiar words.—Elisabeth Luther
Cary.
—— A Chilly Night.
I looked and saw the ghosts Dotting plain and mound. They stood in the blank moonlight But no shadow lay on the ground. They spoke without a voice And they leaped without a sound.
—— Goblin Market.
"Lie close," Laura said, Pricking up her golden head: "We must not look at goblin men. We must not buy their fruits; Who knows upon what soil they fed Their hungry thirsty roots?"
Rossetti, Dante Gabriel. Eden Bower.
It was Lilith the wife of Adam. (Eden Bower's in flower) Not a drop of her blood was human, But she was made like a soft sweet woman.
—— Sister Helen.
Its forty-two short verses unfold the whole story of the
wronged woman's ruthless vengeance on her false lover as she
watches the melting of the "waxen man" which, according to the
old superstitions, is to carry with it the destruction, body
and soul, of him in whose likeness it was fashioned.—H. R.
Fox-Bourne.
"Ah! What white thing at the door has cross'd, Sister Helen? Ah! What is this that sighs in the frost?" "A soul that's lost as mine is lost, Little brother!" (O Mother, Mary Mother, Lost, lost, all lost, between Hell and Heaven!)
Scott, Sir Walter. Child Dyring.
'Twas lang i' the night, and the bairnies grat. Their mither she under the mools heard that.
—— The Dance of Death.
A vision appearing to a Scottish sentinel on the eve of
Waterloo.
. . . Down the destined plain 'Twixt Britain and the bands of France Wild as marsh-borne meteor's glance, Strange phantoms wheeled a revel dance And doom'd the future slain.
Scott, William Bell. The Witch's Ballad. (In The Oxford book of English
verse.)
Drawn up I was right off my feet, Into the mist and off my feet, And, dancing on each chimney top I saw a thousand darling imps Keeping time with skip and hop.
Shairp, John Campbell. Cailleach bein-y-vreich. (In Stedman's Victorian
Anthology.)
Then I mount the blast, and we ride full fast, And laugh as we stride the storm, I, and the witch of the Cruachan Ben And the scowling-eyed Seul-Gorm.
Shanly, C. D. The Walker of the Snow. (In Stedman's Victorian
Anthology.)
. . . I saw by the sickly moonlight As I followed, bending low, That the walking of the stranger Left no footmarks on the snow.
Sharp, William. ("Fiona McLeod.") Cap'n Goldsack.
Down in the yellow bay where the scows are sleeping, Where among the dead men the sharks flit to and fro— There Cap'n Goldsack goes creeping, creeping, creeping, Looking for his treasure down below.
Southey, Robert. The Old Woman of Berkeley.
I have 'nointed myself with infant's fat, The fiends have been my slaves. From sleeping babes I have sucked the breath, And breaking by charms the sleep of death, I have call'd the dead from their graves. And the Devil will fetch me now in fire My witchcrafts to atone; And I who have troubled the dead man's grave Will never have rest in my own.
Stephens, Riccardo. The Phantom Piper. (In The Book of Highland Verse.)
But when the year is at its close Right down the road to Hell he goes. There the gaunt porters all agrin Fling back the gates to let him in, Then damned and devil, one and all, Make mirth and hold high carnival.
Swinburne, Algernon Charles. After Death. (In Poems and Ballads, First
Series.)
The four boards of the coffin lid Heard all the dead man did.
The first curse was in his mouth, Made of grave's mould and deadly drouth.
Taylor, William. Lenore.
The most successful rendering of Bürger's much-translated
"Lenore," and the direct inspiration of Scott's "William and
Helen."
Tramp, tramp across the land they speede, Splash, splash across the sea: "Hurrah! The dead can ride apace. Dost fear to ride with me?"
Watson, Rosamund Marriott-. The Farm on the Links. (In The Oxford Book
of Victorian Verse.)
What is it cries with the crying of the curlews? What comes apace on those fearful, stealthy feet? Back from the chill sea-deeps, gliding o'er the sand dunes, Home to the old home, once again to meet?
Whittier, John Greenleaf. The Dead Ship of Harpswell.
No foot is on thy silent deck, Upon thy helm no hand, No ripple hath the soundless wind That smites thee from the land.
—— The Old Wife and the New.
Ring and bracelet all are gone, And that ice-cold hand withdrawn; But she hears a murmur low, Full of sweetness, full of woe, Half a sigh and half a moan: "Fear not! Give the dead her own."
The darkness behind me is burning with eyes, It needs not my turning, I know otherwise: The air is a-quiver with rustle of wings And I feel the cold shiver of spiritual things!
—"Instinct and Reason" from "The Book of Winifred Maynard."
Benét, William Rose. Devil's Blood. (Second Film in "Films," in "The
Burglar of the Zodiac.")
. . . Down the path— Is it but shadow?—steals a thread of wrath, A red bright thread. It reaches him. He reels. Wet! Warm! Wily athwart his step it steals And stains his white court footgear, toes to heels.
Brooke, Rupert. Dead Men's Love. (In his Collected Poems. 1918.)
There was a damned successful Poet. There was a Woman like the sun. And they were dead. They did not know it. They did not know their time was done.
—— Hauntings.
So a poor ghost, beside his misty streams, Is haunted by strange doubts, evasive dreams.
Burnet, Dana. Ballad of the Late John Flint. (In his Poems. 1915.)
The Bridegroom smiled a twisted smile, "The wine is strong," he said. The Bride she twirled her wedding ring Nor lifted up her head; And there were three at John Flint's board, And one of them was dead.
Campbell, William Wilfred. The Mother. (In John W. Garvin's Canadian
Poets and Poetry.)
I dreamed that a rose-leaf hand did cling; Oh, you cannot bury a mother in spring! . . . . . . . . I nestled him soft to my throbbing breast, And stole me back to my long, long rest.
—— The Were-wolves. (In Stedman's Victorian Anthology.)
Each panter in the darkness Is a demon-haunted soul, The shadowy, phantom were-wolves That circle round the pole.
Carman, Bliss. The Nancy's Pride. (In his Ballads of Lost Haven.)
Her crew lean forth by the rotting shrouds With the Judgment in their face; And to their mates' "God save you!" Have never a word of grace.
—— The Yule Guest. (In Ballads of Lost Haven.)
But in the Yule, O Yanna, Up from the round dim sea And reeling dungeons of the fog, I am come back to thee!
Chalmers, Patrick R. The Little Ghost. (In his Green Days and Blue
Days.)
Down the long path, beset With heaven-scented, haunting mignonette, The gardeners say A little grey Ghost-lady walks!
Colum, Padraic. The Ballad of Downal Baun. (In Wild Earth and Other
Poems.)
"O dream-taught man," said the woman— She stood where the willows grew, A woman from the country Where the cocks never crew.
Couch, Arthur Quiller-. Dolor Oogo. (In John Masefield's A Sailor's
Garland.)
Thirteen men by Ruan Shore, Dolor Oogo, Dolor Oogo, Drownèd men since 'eighty-four Down in Dolor Oogo: On the cliff against the sky, Ailsa, wife of Malachi That cold woman— Sits and knits eternally.
De La Mare, Walter. The Keys of Morning. (In his The Listeners.)
She slanted her small bead-brown eyes Across the empty street And saw Death softly watching her In the sunshine pale and sweet.
—— The Listeners.
But only a host of phantom listeners That dwelt in the lone house then Stood listening in the quiet of the moonlight To that voice from the world of men: Stood thronging the faint moonbeams on the dark stair That goes down to the empty hall, Hearkening in an air stirred and shaken By the lonely Traveller's call.
—— The Witch.
All of these dead were stirring Each unto each did call, "A witch, a witch is sleeping Under the churchyard wall."
Dollard, Father. Ballad of the Banshee. (In J. W. Garvin's Canadian
Poets and Poetry.)
Mother of mercy! there she sat, A woman clad in a snow-white shroud, Streamed her hair to the damp moss-mat, White the face on her bosom bowed!
[10]Fletcher, John Gould. The Ghosts of an Old House. (In his Goblins and
Pagodas.)
Yet I often wonder If these things are really dead. If the old trunks never open Letting out grey flapping things at twilight. If it is all as safe and dull As it seems?
Furlong, Alice. The Warnings. (In Padric Gregory's Modern Anglo-Irish
Verse.)
I was weaving by the door-post, when I heard the Death-Watch beating; And I signed the Cross upon me, and I spoke the Name of Three. High and fair, through cloud and air, a silver moon was fleeting, But the night began to darken as the Death-Watch beat for me.
Gibson, Wilfrid Wilson. The Blind Rower. (In his Collected Poems. 1917.)
Some say they saw the dead man steer— The dead man steer the blind man home— Though, when they found him dead, His hand was cold as lead.
—— Comrades.
As I was marching in Flanders A ghost kept step with me— Kept step with me and chuckled, And muttered ceaselessly.
—— The Lodging House.
And when at last I stand outside My garret door I hardly dare To open it, Lest when I fling it wide With candle lit And reading in my only chair I find myself already there.
Hagedorn, Hermann. The Last Faring. (In Poems and Ballads.)
The Father Into the storm he drives! Full is the sail; But the wind blows wilder and shriller!
The Son 'Tis the ghost of a Sea-King, my father, rigid and pale, That holds so firm the tiller!
—— The Cobbler of Glamorgan.
He coughed, he turned; and crystal-eyed He stared, for the bolted door stood wide, And on the threshold, faint and grand, He saw the awful Gray Man stand. His flesh was a thousand snails that crept, But his face was calm though his pulses leapt.
Herford, Oliver. Ye Knyghte-mare. (In The Bashful Earthquake.)
Ye log burns dimme, and eke more dimme, Loud groans each knyghtlie gueste, As ye ghost of his grandmother, gaunt and grimme, Sits on each knyghte hys cheste.
Kilmer, Joyce. The White Ships and the Red. (In W. S. Braithwaite's
Anthology of Magazine Verse for 1915.)
The red ship is the Lusitania. "She goes to the bottom all in
red to join all the other dead ships, which are in white."
Le Gallienne, Richard. Ballad of the Dead Lover. (In his New Poems.
1910.)
She took his head upon her knee And called him love and very fair. And with a golden comb she combed The grave-dust from his hair.
Lowell, Amy. The Crossroads. (In her Men, Women, and Ghosts.)
In polyphonic prose. The body buried at the crossroads
struggles for twenty years to free itself of the stake driven
through its heart and wreak vengeance on its enemy. It is
finally successful as the funeral cortège of this enemy comes
down the road.
"He wavers like smoke in the buffeting wind. His fingers blow
out like smoke, his head ripples in the gale. Under the sign
post, in the pouring rain, he stands, and watches another
quavering figure drifting down the Wayfleet road. Then swiftly
he streams after it. . ."
Marquis, Don. Haunted. (In his Dreams and Dust.)
Drink and forget, make merry and boast, But the boast rings false and the jest is thin. In the hour that I meet ye ghost to ghost, Stripped of the flesh that ye skulk within, Stripped to the coward soul 'ware of its sin, Ye shall learn, ye shall learn, whether dead men hate!
Masefield, John. Cape Horn Gospel. (In his Collected Poems. 1918.)
"I'm a-weary of them there mermaids," Says old Bill's ghost to me, "It ain't no place for Christians, Below there, under sea. For it's all blown sands and shipwrecks And old bones eaten bare, And them cold fishy females With long green weeds for hair."
—— Mother Carey.
She lives upon an iceberg to the norred 'N' her man is Davy Jones, 'N' she combs the weeds upon her forred With poor drowned sailors' bones.
Maynard, Winifred. Saint Catherine. (In The Book of Winifred Maynard.)
. . . "Saint Catherine," in which the spotless virginity of the
saint is made ashamed by the pitiful ghosts, who whisper their
humanity to her in a dream.—William Stanley Braithwaite.
Middleton, Jesse Edgar. Off Heligoland. (In his Seadogs and
Men-at-arms.)
Ghostly ships in a ghostly sea. . .
Millay, Edna St. Vincent. The Little Ghost. (In her Renascence.)
I knew her for a little ghost That in my garden walked; The wall is high—higher than most— And the green gate was locked.
Monroe, Harriet. The Legend of Pass Christian. (In her You and I.)
Now we, who wait one night a year Under these branches long, May see a flaming ship, and hear The echo of a song.
[11]Noyes, Alfred. The Admiral's Ghost. (In his Collected Poems. 1913.)
—— A Song of Sherwood.
The dead are coming back again, the years are rolled away, In Sherwood, in Sherwood, about the break of day.
Scollard, Clinton. A Ballad of Hallowmass. (In his Ballads Patriotic and
Romantic.)
It happed at the time of Hallowmass, when the dead may walk abroad, That the wraith of Ralph of the Peaceful Heart went forth from the courts of God.
Seeger, Alan. Broceliande. (In his Poems. 1917.)
Untroubled, untouched by the woes of this world are the moon-marshalled hosts that invade Broceliande.
Shorter, Dora Sigerson. All Souls' Night. (In Stedman's Victorian
Anthology.)
. . . Deelish! Deelish! My woe forever that I could not sever coward flesh from fear. I called his name and the pale ghost came; but I was afraid to meet my dear.
Sterling, George. A Wine of Wizardry. (In A Wine of Wizardry and Other
Poems. 1909.)
And, ere the tomb-thrown mutterings have ceased, The blue-eyed vampire, sated at her feast, Smiles bloodily against the leprous moon.
Widdemer, Margaret. The Forgotten Soul. (In her The Factories.)
'Twas I that stood to greet you on the churchyard pave— (O fire o' my heart's grief, how could you never see?) You smiled in pleasant dreaming as you crossed my grave And crooned a little love-song where they buried me!
—— The House of Ghosts.
Out from the House of Ghosts I fled Lest I should turn and see The child I had been lift her head And stare aghast at me.
Yeats, William Butler. The Ballad of Father Gilligan. (In Burton
Stevenson's The Home Book of Verse.)
How an angel obligingly took upon itself the form and
performed the duties of Father Gilligan while the father was
asleep at his post.
—— The Host of the Air.
Based upon a scrap of folklore in "The Celtic Twilight" and
apparently among the simplest of his poems, nothing he has
ever done shows a greater mastery of atmosphere, or a greater
metrical mastery.—Forrest Reid.
He heard, while he sang and dreamed, A piper piping away, And never was piping so sad, And never was piping so gay.
THE OLD BALLADS
"From Ghaisties, Ghoulies, and long-leggity Beasties
and Things that go Bump in the night—
Good Lord, deliver us."
The ballads that follow have all been selected from The Oxford Book of
Ballads, edited by Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch. Clarendon Press, Oxford,
1910.
Alison Gross.
She's turned me into an ugly worm And gar'd me toddle about the tree.
Clerk Saunders.
The most notable of the ballads of the supernatural, from the dramatic
quality of its story and a certain wild pathos in its expression.
"Is there ony room at your head, Saunders, Is there ony room at your feet? Or ony room at your side, Saunders, Where fain, fain I wad sleep?"
The Daemon Lover.
And aye as she turned her round about, Aye taller he seemed to be; Until that the tops o' that gallant ship Nae taller were than he.
King Henry.
O he has doen him to his ha' To make him bierly cheer, An' in it came a griesly ghost Steed stappin' i' the fleer.
The Laily Worm.
For she has made me the laily worm, That lies at the fit o' the tree, And my sister Masery she's made The machrel of the sea.
A Lyke-wake Dirge.
This ae nighte, this ae nighte, —Every nighte and alle, Fire and sleet and candle-lighte, And Christ receive thy saule.
Tam Lin.
And pleasant is the fairy land For those that in it dwell, But ay at end of seven years They pay a teind to hell; I am sae fair and fu' of flesh I'm fear'd 'twill be mysell.
*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK POETRY OF THE SUPERNATURAL ***
Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will
be renamed.
Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright
law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works,
so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United
States without permission and without paying copyright
royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part
of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™
concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark,
and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following
the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use
of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for
copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very
easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation
of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project
Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may
do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected
by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark
license, especially commercial redistribution.
START: FULL LICENSE
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free
distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project
Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full
Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at
www.gutenberg.org/license.
Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg™
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or
destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your
possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a
Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be bound
by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person
or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this
agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™
electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the
Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection
of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual
works in the collection are in the public domain in the United
States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the
United States and you are located in the United States, we do not
claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing,
displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as
all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope
that you will support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting
free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™
works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the
Project Gutenberg™ name associated with the work. You can easily
comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the
same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when
you share it without charge with others.
1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are
in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States,
check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this
agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing,
distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any
other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes no
representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any
country other than the United States.
1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other
immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear
prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ work (any work
on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the
phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed,
performed, viewed, copied or distributed:
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most
other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online
at www.gutenberg.org. If you
are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws
of the country where you are located before using this eBook.
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is
derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not
contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the
copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in
the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are
redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project
Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply
either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or
obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg™
trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted
with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any
additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms
will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works
posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the
beginning of this work.
1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™.
1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg™ License.
1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including
any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access
to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work in a format
other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official
version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website
(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense
to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means
of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain
Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the
full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
provided that:
• You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed
to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, but he has
agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid
within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are
legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty
payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in
Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation.”
• You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™
License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all
copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue
all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™
works.
• You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of
any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of
receipt of the work.
• You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project
Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than
are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing
from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of
the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set
forth in Section 3 below.
1.F.
1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project
Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™
electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may
contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate
or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other
intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or
other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or
cannot be read by your equipment.
1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right
of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGE.
1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium
with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you
with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in
lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person
or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second
opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If
the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing
without further opportunities to fix the problem.
1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO
OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT
LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of
damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement
violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the
agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or
limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or
unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the
remaining provisions.
1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in
accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the
production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™
electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses,
including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of
the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this
or any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or
additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any
Defect you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™
Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It
exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations
from people in all walks of life.
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will
remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future
generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see
Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org.
Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit
501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification
number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by
U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws.
The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West,
Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up
to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website
and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact
Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation
Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread
public support and donations to carry out its mission of
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest
array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
status with the IRS.
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND
DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state
visit www.gutenberg.org/donate.
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
approach us with offers to donate.
International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation
methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To
donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate.
Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be
freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of
volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in
the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not
necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper
edition.
Most people start at our website which has the main PG search
facility: www.gutenberg.org.
This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™,
including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
