Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882). Complete Poetical Works. 1893.
The Seaside and the FiresideBy the Seaside. Twilight
T
The wind blows wild and free,
And like the wings of sea-birds
Flash the white caps of the sea.
There shines a ruddier light,
And a little face at the window
Peers out into the night.
As if those childish eyes
Were looking into the darkness
To see some form arise.
Is passing to and fro,
Now rising to the ceiling,
Now bowing and bending low.
And the night-wind, bleak and wild,
As they beat at the crazy casement,
Tell to that little child?
And the night-wind, wild and bleak,
As they beat at the heart of the mother
Drive the color from her cheek?