The Water Nymphs

Ellis Parker Butler 1869 (Muscatine) – 1937 (Williamsville)



They hide in the brook when I seek to draw nearer,
Laughing amain when I feign to depart;
Often I hear them, now faint and now clearer—
Innocent bold or so sweetly discreet.
Are they Nymphs of the Stream at their playing
Or but the brook I mistook for a voice?
Little care I; for, despite harsh Time’s flaying,
Brook voice or Nymph voice still makes me rejoice.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

21 sec read
363

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABACDEDE
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 366
Words 70
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 8

Ellis Parker Butler

Ellis Parker Butler was an American author. more…

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