by Robert Underwood Johnson (1858 - 1937)
The Housatonic at Stockbridge
Language: English
Contented river! In thy dreamy realm The cloudy willow and the plumy elm: Thou beautiful! From ev'ry dreamy hill what eye but wanders with thee at thy will, Contented river! And yet over-shy To mask thy beauty from the eager eye; Hast thou a thought to hide from field and town? In some deep current of the sunlit brown Ah! there's a restive ripple, And the swift red leaves September's firstlings faster drift; Wouldst thou away, dear stream? Come, whisper near! I also of much resting have a fear: Let me tomorrow thy companion be, By fall and shallow to the adventurous sea!
Text Authorship:
- by Robert Underwood Johnson (1858 - 1937), from "Poems"  [author's text not yet checked 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 Charles Edward Ives (1874 - 1954), "The Housatonic at Stockbridge", 1921. [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 18
Word count: 103