Tag: Goat Island
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Francis Abbott; The Recluse of Niagara by James Bird
PREFACE, THE “Note” from Alexander’s Transatlantic Sketches,* which is appended to the following Poem, “FRANCIS ABBOTT,” will supply the particulars of “The Last Days” of that singularly unfortunate being. As so little is known of the earlier history of his life, I considered it no infringement of the licence universally allowed to the Poet, in…
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Stanzas by Almira
Addressed to the sojourners at Niagara Falls, on commencing building the Pagoda, Aug. 11, 1843 Those who have rambled o’er the wild domain, And still desire to view it once again, Enter the garden where an Abbott dwelt, And roam where he, enraptured, gazed and knelt. Still, even yet those plaintive strains I hear, Which once he wakened — and the pensive tear Steals softly o’er my cheek, while the full heart Essays to know what sorrow winged the dart Which sent him forth, a wanderer from his home, ‘Mid these majestic scenes in silent grief to roam. Say, wanderers ! would ye dare the wild excess Of joy and wonder words can ne’er express ? Would ye fain steal a glance o’er life’s dark sea, And gaze, though trembling, on eternity ? Would ye look out, look down,where God has set His mighty signet ? Come — come higher yet, And from the unfinished structure gaze abroad, And wonder at the power of God ; To the Pagoda’s utmost height ascend, And see earth, air, and sky, in one alembic blend ! Up — though the trembling limb and nerveless hand Strive to detain thee on the solid land ; Up — though the heart may fail, the eye grow dim, Soon will the spirit nerve the quivering limb. Up the rude ladder ! gain the utmost verge ; Far, far below, behold the angry surge ; Beneath your feet the rainbow’s arch declines, Gleaming with richer gems than India’s mines ; And deep within the gulf, yet farther down, ‘Mid mist, and foam, and spray, behold Niagara’s crown. Source: Tunis, W.E. Tunis’s Topographical and Pictorial Guide to Niagara. Niagara Falls, NY: W.E.…
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Niagara by Julia Older
What I remember most is not the barrage, the beating, the thunderous surge in my plugged ears. Or the faces drenched in rivulets of tears. Not the rubber ducky shoes, or hooked yellow slickers and hats lined up in a row like Gloucester ghosts in the fog of the women’s undressing room. But how, being…
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A Legend of Goat Island by Peter A. Porter
porter Ascribed to Father Louis Hennepin, who visited Niagara in 1678 It is told in Indian story, Dim tradition of the race, How, to God’s eternal glory, And through His all-saving grace, Many a warrior’s heart was stirred To belief in His ever-living Word, And the Faith that saves us all, By a Priest, whose…
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The Hermit of Niagara by Professor James A. Martling
martling “Though in thy veil of mist thou hid’st from me, ‡‡Thy glistening footsteps have I hither tracked : Here on this rock I sit and wait for thee — ‡‡Thee love, thou Spirit of the Cataract. O list again my tale of constancy ! “I’ve dreamed of thee since boyhood. I have thought ‡‡Of thee…