by Adelaide Anne Procter (1825 - 1864)
I can scarcely hear," she murmured
Language: English
"I can scarcely hear," she murmured, "For my heart beats loud and fast, But surely, in the far, far distance, I can hear a sound at last." "It is only the reapers singing, As they carry home their sheaves, And the evening breeze has risen, And rustles the dying leaves." "Listen! there are voices talking." Calmly still she strove to speak, Yet her voice grew faint and trembling, And the red flushed in her cheek. "It is only the children playing Below, now their work is done, And they laugh that their eyes are dazzled By the rays of the setting sun." Fainter grew her voice, and weaker As with anxious eyes she cried, "Down the avenue of chestnuts, I can hear a horseman ride." "It was only the deer that were feeding In a herd on the clover grass, They were startled, and fled to the thicket, As they saw the reapers pass." Now the night arose in silence, Birds lay in their leafy nest, And the deer couched in the forest, And the children were at rest: There was only a sound of weeping From watchers around a bed, But Rest to the weary spirit, Peace to the quiet Dead!
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with The Project Gutenberg eBook, Legends and Lyrics: First Series, by Adelaide Anne Procter, et al.
Text Authorship:
- by Adelaide Anne Procter (1825 - 1864), "Verse: Hush", appears in Legends and Lyrics [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Ellen Dickson (1819 - 1878), as Dolores, "Hush!", published 1861 [ voice and piano ], London [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2023-07-06
Line count: 32
Word count: 202