POETRY. 925 



THE EGYPTIAN LOTOS*. 



BY THE SAME. 



EMBLEM sublime of that primordial pow'r 

 That on the vast abyss of chaos mov'd ; 

 What pen shall paint thy charms, majestic flow'r! 

 By mortals houour'd, and by gods belov'd. 



From Ethiopia's lofty mountains ToU'd, 



Where iSile's proud stream thro' gladden'd Egypt pou^s ; 

 In raptur'd strains thy praise was hymn'd of old, 



And still resounds on Ganges' faithful shores. 



Within thy beauteous coral's full-blown bell 



Long since th' immortals plac'd their fond abode; 



There, day's bright source, Osiris lov'd to dwell, 

 While by his side enamour'd Isis glow'd. 



Hence, not unconscious to his orient beam, 



At dawn's first blush thy radiant petals spread, 



Drink deep th' efi\ilgence of the solar stream, 

 And, as he mounts, still brighter glories shed : 



Wh n, at their noontide height, his fervid rays 



In a bright deluge burst on Cairo's spires. 

 With what new lustre then thy beauties blaze. 



Full of the God, and radiant with his fires! 



To brave the Tropic's fiery beam is thine. 



Till in the distant west his splendors fade ; 

 Then, too, thy beauty and thy fire decline, 



With morn to rise in lovelier charms array'd. 



What mystic treasures, in thy form conceal'd, 



Perpetual transport to the sage supply ! 

 Where Nature, in her secret plans reveal'd. 



Awes wondering man, and charms th' exploring eye. 



From thy prolific vase and fertile seeds 



Are trac'd her grand regenerative pow'rs; 

 Life springing warm from loath'd putrescence breeds, 



And lovelier germs shoot forth, and brighter llow'rs. 



' Dr. Thornton informs us that the true Egyptian Loto<i is wliito ; tint there are 

 three other species or varieties of this water-lily, liie pale red, the blue, and 

 the yellow. 



Thus, 



