The Columbiad by Joel Barlow
page 53 of 390 (13%)
page 53 of 390 (13%)
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In frosty regions, claim a stronger birth;
Where heavy beams the sheltering dome requires, And copious trunks to feed its wintry fires. But warmer suns, that southern zones emblaze, A cool thin umbrage o'er their woodland raise; Floridia's shores their blooms around him spread. And Georgian hills erect their shady head; Whose flowery shrubs regale the passing air With all the untasted fragrance of the year. Beneath tall trees, dispersed in loose array, The rice-grown lawns their humble garb display; The infant maize, unconscious of its worth, Points the green spire and bends the foliage forth; In various forms unbidden harvests rise, And blooming life repays the genial skies. Where Mexic hills the breezy gulph defend, Spontaneous groves with richer burdens bend. Anana's stalk its shaggy honors yields, Acassia's flowers perfume a thousand fields, Their cluster'd dates the mast-like palms unfold, The spreading orange waves a load of gold, Connubial vines o'ertop the larch they climb, The long-lived olive mocks the moth of time, Pomona's pride, that old Grenada claims, Here smiles and reddens in diviner flames; Pimento, citron scent the sky serene, White woolly clusters fringe the cotton's green, The sturdy fig, the frail deciduous cane |
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