SELECTED POETRY.

Evening Star, Issue 4045, 12 February 1876, Page 2 (Supplement)

SELECTED POETRY.

NEW POEM BY TENNYSON.

[The following appears for the first time in the cabinet edition of Tennyson's poems recently published. It is supposed to refer to events in the poet's life.]

THE LETTERS. bull on the tower Btaod iho vane, A black yew gloomed the stagnant air, I peered athwart the channel pane And saw the altar cold and bare. Acog (f lead was round my f jet, „ A band of pain acros3 my brow; Bold altar, iaeavea and earth Bhall mett Before you hear my marriage vow."

1 t m rn ' <i and h,lm m'd a bitter song Thitt the wholesome hu-nan heart: w wo mel; in wr ath «nd wrong— We met, bur. only met to part. £ ull coll my gre 'ling was. and dry; bhy faintly *mil d, >he hardly moved: I saw W/th half um!r.n«cious eye She wore the colours I approved.

She took the Utile ivory chest, With hal- a sigh she W ned the key, IHen raned her head wiih lips compiest, And gave my letters back to me. ■$ gave the tnnkl -ts »n 1 the rings. My gift when gif r. 0 { mine could pleaseAs looks a fattier on the things o , of h J* dead son, I looked on these, one told me all ber friends bad said: I raged against the publ : c liar; one talked as if her love were dead, « w lamv w were seeds of fire. No. mora of love; your sex is known: I never will be twice deceived. Henceforth. I trust the man alone: The woman cxnnotbe believed."

Thro s'ander, meanest spawn of hell— And woman s sknder is the worst— And you, whom once I loved so well • 1 nro you my life wi 1 be accursed."' I spoke with heart, and beat, bn i force, J. shook her breast with vain alarms—.Like torrents from a mountain source We rushed into each other's arms

We pai-t-'d ; sweetly gleamed the stars, Ani sweet the vap ur-bratU d blue; Low breezes finned the belfry b<rs As homeward by the church I drew. Ihe very graves appeared to smile, So fie hj they rose in shadowed swell ; Park porcb/' said I, " an.l s lent lnere comes a sound of mintage bells." "THE BLOOMIN' FLOWER OF RORTY GULCH." It is not often, says the literary correspondent of the 'Argus,' that I quote books, but a very amusing one has been lately published, chiefly directed against the prevalent taste for Western (American) literature, which most happily hits off the characteristic extravagance of that school. The following example, " The Bloomin' Flower of Rorty Gulch, appears to me to fulfil all the conditions of parody : It war Pob war the Rloomia' Flower, I hey know'd him on Poker Flat; He d goug d a few down <iil al way, But no one comi>la;ned o that. He scored his stiffs on the heft of bis knife— J? ortv, I ve heern Vm s.ty ; It miyht have been more—Bob kept his ac* counts In a loops, sh sorter way.

Bob wWt an angel ter 1 >ok at, And the Bible ic wurn'fc his hook; He swore the most oaths that war swor'd in the camp, Or bla medly I am nvstook; A fc * WarQ,t a out r -' ut b ' d 'ua, And he d got a heirt you could touch; And he never iron on boy or man As didn t provoke him much. This gentleman, however, on a certain occasion, being, I suppose, provoked very much indeed, shot a good many folks in a liquor store. And

When the fun was over in there, Bob ran a muck in the street;' And he speared and potted each derned cuss As he chanced to meet. A ml qmet foilcs snul; «P *heir doors— They thought it saf .r, you see—--77,l ut a man with his wife and child, ibat was s.ttin' down to tea.

Into their parlor ru-dipd Blootnin' Bob tu£ 'J 3 ?* fatbe - anr * mother's surprise ; Jobbad his bome through oue, and took Ihe tother between the eyes. b he . c "*cheJ the innocent slumbering Ji»t me win* to knock out ita bra'as; But at i hat mom nt the. e reached his ear home k n o ' fo. g.-tton strains. * * ■ *, * *

Some *oft and t-.ujcnm* music this, Mu-ic solemn I swertt, Played by a common orgm nvm Down at the.eid of the sreet, And it weut Btra ght home to. the, digger's he rt, And he Itid not *qu*ich. tH child, But lay ic dowfn, in its 1 tt'e cot, And rooked the same--and smiled.

Talk Foft J. They say the an?els That night unol- down on Bub,; A.nd a sorter r.nii»nt halo Gleamed bii-btly rouudibVi nob. I cm t. smae to. all this for certain, And it do. Fediu a quearish start; Bur. I wou't set by and heir none o' you sav. But hadn't a tender he,irt! The lady who took everybody's eye must have a lot of them. • • w

PRISON LABOR IN AMERICA. VERSUS OTAGO. The New Orleans 'Picayune* newspaper, in its remarks relative to prison labor, most strongly recommends the New Zealand system of prison labor so efficiently carried out by Mr Caldwell, and so universally known, to be introduced into the State of Kentucky. The following is the remarks of a Francisco paper respecting prison labor in the State gaol, and we confess that his arguments in favor of every prisoner who can work, being made to earn his daily bread are capable of general applica-

# Punishing petty criminals by long terms of seems to punish only the taxp yeis for their support; ana, as a lenwiy, lie suggests " work in the chain-gwig." Thiß is as true as " proofs of Holy Writ." Our city is infested with gangs of petty larceny loafers, young and old, t> whom i-u prison men t is no penalty whatever. Uur gaol is .snug and blankets are provided, «nd they are fed on coffee, bread, and beef; they eat and sleep and play cards, enjoj themselves and grow fat, wnile tin poor devils of taxpayers wiio, through some notions of f<ilsep ide, thing it not r si ectable t • steal and go to gaol, a e compelled to work and pay taxes for the support of these idlers. Once a new warden was elected to tne PVniten'taty of Kentucky. When he assumed thedutußof h-s portion he made a speech to th < prisoners, and declared if they oid not behave themselves in ai ordeily mincer, and obey the rules, he would turn every devil of them out to ean their own living." Now we would not propose to carry things to this extreme ; but we would be glad to eee about one hu dr d of these fat and lazy vagab nds sent togade <he public street with pick, shovel, and wh-elbarrow. Let their fare be brown bread and boiled vegetables; let th*ir stomichs experience the nov 1 seusation of co'd water; let their hands and muscles be strengthened by labor, which would be as good for them as the health-lift. Let tiem, after a good honest day s work, enjoy t»ie delightful experience of that slumber which is the reward of honest toil