Eldest daughter of the Spring 
We hail thy early birtli, 
And the promise thou dost bring 
Of beauty, to the earth. 
Broken is the icy spell 
Which Nature stemly bound; 
A gentle ray thy fairy bell 
Sheds o’er the unclad ground. 
Hope can thus the mourning heart 
Illumine with a gleam, 
Bid the gloom of sorrow part 
Before its gentle beam. 
Fit emblem art thou then, meek flower, 
Of consolation bright, 
Nor will we in a sunnier hour 
Forget thy early light. 
