Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). A Victorian Anthology, 1837–1895. 1895.
Ethel CastillaAn Australian Girl
S
A beauty of a paler tone
Than English belles.
The Southern sun and Southern air
Have kissed her cheeks until they wear
The dainty tints that oft appear
On rosy shells.
Old-world traditions fail to bind.
She is not shy
Or bold, but simply self-possessed;
Her independence adds a zest
Unto her speech, her piquant jest,
Her quaint reply.
With joy; and some scholastic lore
Will often gain.
In sports she bears away the bell,
Nor under music’s siren spell
To dance divinely, flirt as well,
Does she disdain.