ISHTAR AND HER MAIDS IN THE FAVORITE HAUNT OF IZDUBAR


The king while hunting where a forest grows,
Around sweet hyacinths and budding rose,
Where a soft zephyr o'er them gently flows
From the dark _sik-ka-ti_[1] where Kharsak[2] glows;
And Sedu[3] softly dances on the leaves,
And a rich odorous breath from them receives;
Where tulips peep with heliotrope and pink,
With violets upon a gleaming brink
Of silver gliding o'er a water-fall
That sings its purling treasures o'er a wall
Of rugged onyx sparkling to the sea:
A spot where Zir-ri[4] sport oft merrily,
Where Hea's[5] arm outstretched doth form a bay,
Wild, sheltered, where his sea-daughters play;
A jasper rock here peeps above the waves
Of emerald hue; with them its summit laves.

Around, above, this cool enchanting cove
Bend amorous, spicy branches; here the dove
Oft coos its sweetest notes to its own mate,
And fragrance pure, divine, the air doth freight,
To sport with gods no lovelier place is found,
With love alone the mystic woods resound.

Here witching Zi-na-ki[6] oft drag within
The waves unwilling Zi-si;[7] here the din