Andersen. — The Verse-unit. 635 



14. " And when/ thou trea/dest the house/ of wca/i)ons in/, 

 Let thy lips/ 'neath thy cra/moisy in no/ smiling twin/. 



15. " And when/ thou setts't/ on kirk-floor/ thy feet/. 

 Must thou not/ turn aside/ to thy mo/ther's dear seat/. 



16. " And when named/ by the priest/ is the High/est, / 

 See thou/ in no bend/ing compli/est." / 



17. But now/ when she in/to the Idrk/ should go/. 

 She decked/ herself/ with gold's/ ruddy glow/. 



18. And when/ she had stepp'd/ in kirk-/yard there/, 

 Agne/te shook free/ her love/ly gol/'den hair/. 



19. And as/ she stepp'd/ the house/ of wea'pons in/, 

 With smi/ling 'neath cra/moisy her lips/ did she twm/. 



20. And when/ she on ldrk-/floor set/ her feet/, 

 Agne/te went in/ to her mo/ther's dear seat/. 



21. And when named/ by the priest/ was the Ho/ly, / 

 Her bo/dy she ben/ded low/ly. / 



22. Then whis/pered low/' her mo/ther, who stood/ full near/ : 

 " Ao-ne/te ! Agne/te ! whence co/mest thou here ?/ 



23. " Agne/te ! Agne/te ! dear daugh/ter so mild !/ 

 Where/ hast thou tar/ried these years/, my child ?/ 



24. " Where/ hast thou tar/ried so long/ a time ?/ 

 And why/ is thy cheek/ as the win/ter rime ? "/ 



25. " My dwel/ling stands/ in o/cean's green growth/. 

 And there/ have I gi/ven the Mer/man my troth/. 



26. " There/ shines no sun/ as here/ so bright/ly, 

 There/fore my cheeks/ are blan/ched so wliite/ly. 



27. " Se/ven good sons/ in's arm/ have I laid/. 

 The eighth/ one dear/ is so tin/y a maid "/. 



28. " What gift/ did the Mer/man on thee/ bestow/ 

 When thy/ bride-fes/tal was held/ below ? "/ 



29. " Me/ he gave/ five cir/clets of gold/. 



And therein/ lay both ro/ses and li/lies untold/. 



30. " And me/ he gave/ the gol/den red band/. 



The queen/ herself/ no bet/ter may bind/ on her hand/. 



31. " And me/ he gave/ the gold-/buckled shoe/, 



The queen/ herself/ no bet/ter on foot/ ever knew/. 



32. " And me/ he gave/ a gold-framed harp/. 



To play/ on if sor/row should sting/ me sharp/. 



33. " But now/ will I dwell/ on the green-/growing shore/, 

 And ne/ver will/ I down/ to the o/cean more "/. 



34. They deemed/ them alone/ and that none/ else knew/, 

 But'near/ stood the Mer/man and hear/kened thereto/. 



35. The Mer/man he trod/ the kirk-door/ -way within/. 



All/ the ho,'ly i/mages they turned/ themselves/' from luni/- 



36. As pu/rest gold-/glimmer so/ was his hair/. 

 His sor/row of heart/ in his ej^es/ lay bare/. 



37. " Agne/te ! Agne/te ! come to o/cean with me !/ ^^ 

 For the small/ things, thy chil/dren, long/ for thee '/. 



