George James De Wilde

TO thy fresh slopes and hazel-shadowed lanes,

And sedgy river with its deep green nooks,

Where sits the watching hen, and skyward looks

The water-lily;—to thy breezy plains

And village homes, long years gone by I came,

Lured by the magic of a mighty name,

A glad enthusiast. I come once more,—

Not with the exulting heart which then I bore,

But with a heavy memory that never

Shall fail to shadow what bright hour soever,—

To find thee still as lovely as of yore,

And feel the poet’s truth is written here,—

“A thing of beauty is a joy forever”;

Hearty and homely, loving Hertfordshire.