Classic Poem

Erwin Saves Linda From Fire

One sunny day, when freaky winds swam o'er
The timber-shaded lawn before her door;
While flutt'ring on its slack-bow'd cords, uphung
From tree to tree, the snow-white linen swung,
She stood in hall with slightly bending back,
And cheeks behung with sidelocks raven-black,
And smooth'd, below the iron's slow-drawn weight,
With lily hands, some garment's snow-white plait;
When, springing from the fire with sudden glow,
A tiny firebolt track'd its shining bow,
And, like a bee, pitch'd down with fiery bite
Within her frock-tail's folds, and out of sight.
And as she skipp'd athwart the lawn to bring
Some waving kerchief from its loose-hung string,
The playsome air, that soon began to flirt
In eddies round her softly flutt'ring skirt,
Fann'd up the smould'ring fire, until it came
Out-bursting in a wildly-twisting flame;
And drove it quickly on to mar, within
Her frock, the iv'ry polish of her skin.
But Erwin, coming o'er the lawn to do
Some business with her father, wildly flew,
And caught, with ready hands, a sheet that hung
Upon its low-bow'd line, and deftly flung
Its heavy length up o'er her, trailing slack
Its folds behind her trimly-bending back,
And quench'd the flame, still looking, to his cost,
On her that he had sav'd, as only lost.
And then, when Linda saw that God had sent,
To save a life that seem'd so nearly spent,
The man to whom she best of all could give
The days that through him she had yet to live,
She thanked him with a broken voice, and kept
Her hidden love within her heart, and wept.
This happen'd then, but something else befel
Poor Linda afterwards, that you may tell.