I.
The opal hath a baleful gleam,
And sheds a spectral light;
Like a weird moonbeam on a turbid stream
Where witches dance by night.
The restless ruby decks the breast
Of many a weary one;
But I seem to see in its sorcery
Heart's blood congealed to stone.
The icy diamond dazzleth me
With its glittering, soulless light;
Like a vessel's wake o'er a freezing lake,
Too pitilessly bright.
The topaz hath a yellow flash,
Like the eye of a savage thing;
And the pallid pearl is a fragile girl,
Who fades ere blossoming.
Green emeralds for a diadem
Cast but a sickly hue;
But sapphires have a tender light,
And mirror heaven's blue:
Then crown my queen with the sapphire's sheen
For my queen is tender and true.