‘Tis said, fantastic ocean doth enfold
The likeness of whate’er on land is seen;
But, if the Nereid Sisters and their Queen,
Above whose heads the tide so long hath rolled,
The Dames resemble whom we here behold,
How fearful were it down through opening waves
To sink, and meet them in their fretted caves,
Withered grotesque, immeasurably old,
And shrill and fierce in accent! Fear it not:
For they Earth’s fairest daughters do excel;
Pure undecaying beauty is their lot;
Their voices into liquid music swell,
Thrilling each pearly cleft and sparry grot,
The undisturbed abodes where Sea-nymphs dwell!
Read all of William Wordsworth's poems · About William Wordsworth
More by William Wordsworth
- Memorials Of A Tour On The Continent, 1820 - II. - Bruges
- Memorials Of A Tour On The Continent, 1820 - III. - Bruges
- Memorials Of A Tour On The Continent, 1820 - IV. - After Visiting The Field Of Waterloo
- Memorials Of A Tour On The Continent, 1820 - IX. - Hymn - For The Boatmen, As They Approach The Rapids Under The Castle Of Heidelberg
- Memorials Of A Tour On The Continent, 1820 - V. - Between Namur And Liege
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