Pleasant, peaceful, quiet river,
Limpid, constant, onward ever,
Gentle waters roll away ;
Calm as summer, bright as morning,
Not a look, or sign of warning,
Naught of danger dost thou say,
But gliding along, mild and strong,
To the Rapids.
Then
Sporting, murm'ring, tossing, splashing,
Storming, raving, crossing, dashing,
Troubled waters fret away ;
Hasting, pushing, staving, darting,
Islands mad'ning thee to parting,
Yet thy tumult cannot stay;
But, tearing along, mad and strong,
To the chasm.
Then
Curving, bending, bursting, breaking,
Sliding, leaping, rushing, quaking,
Flying waters dart away ;
Flashing, sparkling, wailing, rumbling,
O'er the brink an ocean tumbling,
To a world of foam and spray,
Fierce shooting along, proud and strong,
We see thee now
In
Stately grandeur, awful wonder,
Hear thy voice in terms of thunder;
Falling waters roar away,
Pouring, showering, misting, streaming,
Rob'd in rainbow colors beaming,
Deck'd by Sol's, or Luna's ray,
Swift plunging along, grand and strong,
To the bottom.
Then
Foaming, boiling, surging, thrashing,
Breaching, swelling, heaving, crashing,
Furious waters foam away,
Babbling, roaring, brawling, curling,
Gurgling, wailing, whisking, whirling ;
Fanciful thy currents play,
Still pressing along, bold and strong,
Dimpling, pouting.
Then
Gathering, kissing, whispering, hushing,
Panting, smiling, frisking, rushing,
Lovely waters roll away ;
Winding, eddying, purling, playing,
Lakeward still, and never staying,
Rustling on thy shining way ;
Free coursing along, calm and strong,
Soon to mingle
With
Ontario's tideless waters—
Long to be thy prison quarters ;
Noble river die away.
But I err, a poet's blunder,
Still I hear thy deaf'ning thunder ;
Here thou art, and here must stay
World-wide wonder, mighty, strong
Niagara !
Source: J.B. Waid. Variety : Poetry and Prose. Montreal : J. Lovell, 1872.
Waid, born 1804, was (self?)styled The Bard of Niagara