Ossian Collection > Ossian, his principal poems

THE FIVE BARDS. 291
The doubtful ford yon traveller tries ;
But hark, that shriek ! — he falls, he dies )
The cattle %, — the beating rain
Drives them from the wat'ry plain ]
They tremble as the torrents fall,
And seek with eager eyes the stall.
The hunter starts, from sleep dismay'd,
And -wakes the lone hut's fire decay 'd ;
His dripping dogs smoke round his hearth ;
He stops the opening chinks with earth.
Loud roar two mountain streams ; they meet
Beside his booth ; while sad doth sit
The shepherd by the mountain's side ;
He waits till the full streams subside ;
But gathering waters roll around,
And groaning trees above him sound ;
He Avaits the moon's arising light,
To his lov'd home to bear him right.
Ghosts ride upon the storm to-night ;
Sweet is their voice the winds among ;
Their songs to other worlds belong.
The rain is past, and tempests blow,
Windows flap and rivers flow ;
Oold drops from the roof descend ;
The sky is clear, no clouds impend.
But ah ! see there the gathering showers ;
The western sky with darkness lours ;
The night is stormy, void of light, —
My friends, receive me from the night.