"So was he lifted gently from the ground,

And with their freight homeward the shepherds1 moved
Through the dull mist, I following—when a step,
A single step, that freed me from the skirts

Of the blind vapour, opened to my view
Glory beyond all glory ever seen

By waking sense or by the dreaming soul !
The appearance,2 instantaneously disclosed,

1 1836.

2 1827.

the Shepherds homeward

dreaming soul !

-Though I am conscious that no power of words
Can body forth, no hues of speech can paint
That gorgeous spectacle-too bright and fair
Even for remembrance; yet the attempt may give
Collateral interest to this homely Tale.

The Appearance,

1814.

1814.

830

Ruth Jackson, and she was exactly such a person as I describe. The ruins of the old chapel, among which the old man was found lying, may yet be traced, and stood upon the ridge that divides Paterdale from Boardale and Martindale, having been placed there for the convenience of both districts."-I. F.

The following is Dorothy Wordsworth's account of the same occurrence, given in a record of what she called "a Mountainous Ramble," written in 1805. Her brother afterwards incorporated this passage, with a few alterations, in his Description of the Scenery of the Lakes.

"Looked into Boar Dale above Sanwick-deep and bare, a stream winding down it. After having walked a considerable way on the tops of the hills, came in view of Glenridding and the mountains above Grisdale. Luff then took us aside, before we had begun to descend, to a small ruin, which was formerly a chapel or place of worship where the inhabitants of Martindale and Paterdale were accustomed to meet on Sundays. There are now no traces by which you could discover that the building had been different from a common sheepfold; the loose stones and the few which yet remain piled up are the same as those which lie about on the mountain; but the shape of the building being oblong is not that of a common sheepfold, and it stands east and west. Whether it was ever consecrated ground or not I know not; but the place may be kept holy in the memory of some now living in Paterdale; for it was the means of preserving the life of a poor old man last summer, who, having gone up the mountain to gather peats, had been overtaken by a storm, and could not find his way down again. He happened to be near the remains of the old chapel, and, in a corner of it, he contrived, by laying turf and ling and stones from one wall to the other, to make a shelter from the wind, and there he lay all night. The woman who had sent him on his errand began to grow uneasy towards night, and the neighbours went out to seek him. At that time the old man had housed himself in his nest, and he heard the voices of the men, but could not make them hear, the wind being so loud, and he was afraid to leave the spot lest he should not be able to find it again, so he remained there all night; and they returned to their

Was of a mighty city-boldly say
A wilderness of building, sinking far
And self-withdrawn into a boundless 1 depth,
Far sinking into splendour-without end!
Fabric it seemed of diamond and of gold,
With alabaster domes, and silver spires,
And blazing terrace upon terrace, high
Uplifted; here, serene pavilions bright,
In avenues disposed; there, towers begirt

835

840

With battlements that on their restless fronts
Bore stars-illumination of all gems!

845

By earthly nature had the effect been wrought
Upon the dark materials of the storm

Now pacified; on them, and on the coves

And mountain-steeps and summits, whereunto

The vapours had receded, taking there
Their station under a cerulean sky.

850

Oh, 'twas an unimaginable sight!

Clouds, mists, streams, watery rocks and emerald turf,
Clouds of all tincture, rocks and sapphire sky,

Confused, commingled, mutually inflamed,
Molten together, and composing thus,

Each lost in each, that marvellous array

Of temple, palace, citadel, and huge
Fantastic pomp of structure without name,
In fleecy folds voluminous, enwrapped.

Right in the midst, where interspace appeared
Of open court, an object like a throne
Under 2 a shining canopy of state

855

860

homes, giving him up for lost; but the next morning the same persons discovered him huddled up in the sheltered nook. He was at first stupefied and unable to move; but after he had eaten and drunk, and recollected him. self a little, he walked down the mountain, and did not afterwards seem to have suffered."-ED.

Stood fixed; and fixed resemblances were seen
To implements of ordinary use,

865

But vast in size, in substance glorified;

Such as by Hebrew Prophets were beheld

In vision *-forms uncouth of mightiest power

For admiration and mysterious awe.

This little Vale, a dwelling-place of Man,1

870

Lay low beneath my feet; 'twas visible

I saw not, but I felt that it was there.

That which I saw was the revealed abode

874

Of Spirits in beatitude: my heart

Swelled in my breast. I have been dead,' I cried,

'And now I live! Oh! wherefore do I live?'
And with that pang I prayed to be no more!-
-But I forget our Charge, as utterly

I then forgot him :-there I stood and gazed:
The apparition faded not away,

And I descended. †

"Having reached the house,

I found its rescued inmate safely lodged,

880

And in serene possession of himself,

Beside a fire whose genial warmth seemed met
By a faint shining from the heart, a gleam

885

1 1845.

Below me was the earth; this little Vale

1814.

* Compare Ezekiel, chap. i.-ED.

"The glorious appearance disclosed above and among the mountains, was described partly from what my friend Mr. Luff, who then lived in Paterdale, witnessed upon that melancholy occasion, and partly from what Mary and I had seen, in company with Sir George and Lady Beaumont, above Hartshope Hall, on our way from Paterdale to Ambleside."-I. F.

Compare the lines 827-881 with the account of the view from the top of Snowdon, in The Prelude, book xiv. ll. 11-62 (vol. iii. pp. 367-68), and see Charles Lamb's remarks in his letter to Wordsworth (Aug. 14, 1814) on receiving a copy of The Excursion. (Letters of Charles Lamb, edited by Alfred Ainger, vol. i. p. 271.) In his Table Talk Coleridge expresses a wish "that the first two books of The Excursion had been published separately under the name of 'The Deserted Cottages.' They would have formed, what indeed they are, one of the most beautiful poems in the language.' This advice has been followed more than once.-ED.

Of comfort, spread over his pallid face.1
Great show of joy the housewife made, and truly
Was glad to find her conscience set at ease;
And not less glad, for sake of her good name,
That the poor Sufferer had escaped with life.
But, though he seemed at first to have received
No harm, and uncomplaining as before
Went through his usual tasks, a silent change
Soon showed itself: he lingered three short weeks;
And from the cottage hath been borne to-day.

"So ends my dolorous tale, and glad I am That it is ended." At these words he turnedAnd, with blithe air of open fellowship,

Brought from the cupboard wine and stouter cheer, Like one who would be merry.

Seeing this,

890

895

900

My grey-haired Friend said courteously—“ Nay, nay,
You have regaled us as a hermit ought;
Now let us forth into the sun!"-Our Host
Rose, though reluctantly, and forth we went.

Book Third

DESPONDENCY

ARGUMENT

Images in the Valley-Another Recess in it entered and described -Wanderer's sensations-Solitary's excited by the same objects Contrast between these-Despondency of the Solitary gently reproved-Conversation exhibiting the Solitary's past and present opinions and feelings, till he enters upon his own History at length-His domestic felicity-Afflictions— Dejection-Roused by the French Revolution-Disappointment and disgust-Voyage to America-Disappointment

1 1836.

Beside a genial fire; that seemed to spread
A gleam of comfort o'er his pallid face.

1814.

and disgust pursue him-His return-His languor and
depression of mind, from want of faith in the great truths
of Religion, and want of confidence in the virtue of
Mankind.

A HUMMING BEE—a little tinkling rill—
A pair of falcons wheeling on the wing,
In clamorous agitation, round the crest
Of a tall rock, their airy citadel—

By each and all of these the pensive ear
Was greeted, in the silence that ensued,

When through the cottage threshold we had passed,
And, deep within that lonesome valley, stood
Once more beneath the concave of a 1 blue
And cloudless sky.-Anon exclaimed our Host,
Triumphantly dispersing with the taunt

The shade of discontent which on his brow
Had gathered,—" Ye have left my cell,—but see
How Nature hems you in with friendly arms!
And by her help ye are my prisoners still.
But which way shall I lead you?—how contrive,
In spot so parsimoniously endowed,

That the brief hours, which yet remain, may reap
Some recompense of knowledge or delight?"
So saying, round he looked, as if perplexed;
And, to remove those doubts, my grey-haired Friend
Said—“ Shall we take this pathway for our guide ?——
Upward it winds, as if, in summer heats,

Its line had first been fashioned by the flock
Seeking a place of refuge 2 at the root

Of yon black Yew-tree, whose protruded boughs
Darken the silver bosom of the crag,*

5

ΙΟ

15

20

25

* There is still a single "yew-tree" high up the eastern side of the valley on the face of Lingmoor Fell,

Darkening the silver bosom of the crag.

ED.