The Sea-Fern [pp. 548]

The Sea-Fern.
THE SEA-FERN.
SEA-FERN. they call thee, web of rosy lace,
And fernlike are thy fronds, except in hue,
And never, in the mossy woodland, grew
The Lady Fern with more of airy grace.
And yet we know who her companions be,
Shade-loving flowers, the moss, the lichen gray,
The brooding bird, the squirrel at its play,But thou dost share the great sea's mystery.
What wonders may the cool, green waters hide;
Those coarser weeds that still to thee are kin,
And curious forms endowed with shell or fin,
That through thy delicate branches creep or glide.
And we must wait till wind and tide are fain,
We may not stoop to gather at our will,
Like ferns that grow beside the woodland rill,
The dainty little treasure of the main.
But when the crystal wave that cradled thee
Hath cast its tiny foundling on the shore,
We'll prize our little rescued token more
Than all the rooted herbs of wood or lea.
Seddie E. Anderson.
548
[Nov.