Classic Poem

I dream of the days when, in youth, I roamed
Through those dear old Oxford streets,
And gazed on the marvels of art and grace
That ever the glad eye meets;
On college and hall and stately tower,
All hoary and scarred with age,
And peopled by many of those whose names
Are written on history's page.

As Magdalen's beautiful bridge I cross
I gaze on the stream below;
Ah! many the scenes of a boy's delight
That through memory's chambers flow.
I stroll through the wonderful street called High,
That never has known a peer;
The buildings that border its stately breadth
Have, each one, some memory dear.

I wander again on the grassy banks
Of beautiful Isis' stream;
The cheers of the crowd as the boats shoot past
Come back to me like a dream.
The 'Varsity barge with its merry crew,
And flaunting its colors gay,
The skiffs that by muscular arms are rowed —
I picture them all to-day.

I also recall with what venturous glee
I, too, o'er its bosom fared,
Or passed the big locks in a fragile shell
And blindly their perils dared.
Sweet river! I view with delight the scenes
By memory's pencil traced,
Of village and lock and of emerald fields
Where swiftly thy waters raced.

Ah! Iffley and Sandford and Nuneham! names
That wealth of sweet memories hold!
And Iffley's dear church with its Norman arch
That dates from the Conqueror bold!
Fair Oxford! historical fields lie rich
Surrounding thy towers gray,
And legend and tale in profusion wait
Wherever the footsteps stray.

But foremost among the dear scenes of youth
Doth memory give a place
To that precious spot to which source so much
Of my boyhood's joys I trace:
Rose Hill! 'tis to thee and thy inmates dear
My kindliest thoughts will tend,
Till meeting again in the realms, dear hearts,
Where friendship shall know no end.

Oh! dear are the dreams of our boyhood's days,
And sweet are the joys recalled
To hearts that keep touch with the things of youth
And whose senses are never palled
With life and its losses and gains; but true
To each well-loved boyhood scene,
They till a deep spot in their heart of hearts
And keep it forever green.