And tipsy merriment. On the spacious walls, ... Then went the king, Flushed with the wine, and in his pride of power Glorying; and with his own strong arm upraised From out its rest the Assyrian banner broad, Purple and edged with gold; and standing then Upon the utmost summit of the mount - Round and yet round - for two strong men a task Rocking the clouds; from all the swarming plain ATTERBOM. ATTERBOM, PER DANIEL AMADEUS. An eminent and scholarly Swedish poet; born in the parish of Asbo, East-Gothland, Jan. 19, 1790; died in Upsala, July 21, 1855. He was early influenced by German literature, and having visited Germany and Italy in 181719, he formed ties of friendship with Schelling and Thorwaldsen; he became instructor to Crown Prince Oscar in 1820, and professor at the university in Upsala in 1828. Although unquestionably the foremost among the lyric poets of the romantic school in Sweden, it must be acknowledged that his rare talent was much impaired by his groping in Schelling's and Hegel's philosophy. His most celebrated work is "The Isle of Blessedness" (1823), a romantic drama in the manner of Tieck; but he also wrote: "The Flowers," a cycle of lyrics; "The Blue Bird," a play, and "Swedish Seers and Poets," a volume of criticisms. THE MERMAID. Leaving the sea, the pale moon lights the strand. And by the rune-ring waits a woman fair, Woven of lustrous pearls her robes appear, Blue are her eyes: she looks upon him - bound, Heaven and death are there He feels the chill of ice, the in his desire, heat of fire. Graciously smiling, now she whispers low: "The runes are dark, would you their meaning know? Follow my dwelling is as dark and deep; You, you alone, its treasure vast shall keep!" "Where is your dwelling, charming maid, now say?" "Built on a coral island far away, Crystalline, golden, floats that castle free. Meet for a lovely daughter of the sea!" Still he delays and muses, on the strand; "Ah! Do you tremble, you who were so bold?" "Let not the mounting waves your spirit change! Take, as a charm, my ring with sea-runes strange. Here is my crown of water-lilies white, Here is my harp, with human bones bedight." Blithely she dances on the pearl-strewn sand, "Follow me, youth! through ocean deeps we 'll rove; There is my castle in its coral grove; There the red branches purple shadows throw, "Heaven and earth to win you I abjure! Lo, as she speaks, a thousand starlights gleam, High on the shore the rushing waves roll in. High overhead, the stars, like torches, burn: "Haste! to my golden castle I return. Save me, ye runes!" "Yes, try them now; they fail. Pupil of heathen men, my spells prevail!" VOL. II.-7 Proudly she turns; her sceptre strikes the wave. Roaring, it parts; the ocean yawns, a grave. Mermaid and youth go down; the gulf is deep. Over their heads the surging waters sweep. Often, on moonlight nights, when bluebells ring, When for their sports the elves are gathering, Out of the waves the youth appears, and plays Tunes that are merry, mournful, like his days. SVANHVIT'S SONG. HUSH thee, Oh, hush thee, Now is the time for thee to die, Hours hasten onward; For thee the last will soon be o'er. And my poor heart, what would'st thou more? Shadows should darkly Enveil thy past delights and woes. 'Tis thus that eve its shadow throws; Slumber, Oh, slumber! No friend hast thou like kindly snow; For whom no second spring will blow:- Hush thee, Oh, hush thee! Resign thy life-breath in a sigh; Listen no longer; Life bids farewell to thee; - then die. 639 JOHN JAMES AUDUBON. AUDUBON, JOHN JAMES, an American naturalist, born in Louisiana, of French parentage, May 4, 1780; died at his residence near the city of New York, January 27, 1851. At the age of fourteen he was sent to Paris, where he studied art under the direction of the painter David. But the whole bent of his mind was toward natural history, and especially toward birds. Returning to America in 1798, his father established him on a farm in Pennsylvania; but his vocation was not that of an agriculturist. In 1810, accompanied by his wife and child, he boated down the Ohio River on a birdsketching expedition. A year later he set out for Florida with like intent. For ten or a dozen years more one may find him traversing American forests in order to become acquainted with their winged inhabitants in their own habitats. He had during these years planned his great work, "The Birds of America," and in 1826 he went to Europe in order to try to make arrangements for its publication. He received the warmest encouragement from all British men of letters and science. In two years the beginning of the mighty work was ready for the subscribers. It consisted of eightyseven parts, in what is technically known as "elephant folio," a size sufficient to render it possible for the largest birds to be represented in life size. The work, as finally completed, consisted of five of these huge volumes of colored engravings, containing 448 plates of birds, and five octavo volumes of letter-press, which together constitute the "American Ornithological Biography." The subscription price of the entire work was £182, 14s. - equivalent to a little less than $1,000. An edition much reduced in size, but with some additional plates, was issued in 1844. A DANGEROUS ADVENTURE. (From "The American Ornithological Biography.") ON my return from the Upper Mississippi, I found myself obliged to cross one of the wide prairies which, in that portion of the United States, vary the appearance of the country. The weather was fine, all around me was as fresh and blooming |