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1849–1916

JUDITH

James Whitcomb Riley

O Her eyes are amber-fine — Dark and deep as wells of wine, While her smile is like the noon Splendor of a day of June,

If she sorrow — lo! her face It is like a flowery space In bright meadows, overlaid With light clouds and lulled with shade.

If she laugh — it is the trill Of the wayward whippoorwill Over upland pastures, heard Echoed by the mocking-bird

In dim thickets dense with bloom And blurred cloyings of perfume. If she sigh — - a zephyr swells Over odorous asphodels

And wall lilies in lush plots Of moon-drown'd forget-me-nots. Then, the soft touch of her hand — Takes all breath to understand

What to liken it thereto!— Never roseleaf rinsed with dew Might slip soother-suave than slips Her slow palm, the while her lips

Swoon through mine, with kiss on kiss Sweet as heated honey is.

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JUDITH · James Whitcomb Riley · Poetry Cove