FROM A CONCHOLOGIST

Were I a murm'ring ocean shell

Pressed close against your ear,

My constant whisperings would tell

A story sweet to hear.

I'd make the message from the sea

Love's tidings on the shore,

And I would woo with words so true

That you could ask no more.

So if some silvern nautilus

Lay close beside your cheek,

And you should hear a language dear

Unto the heart I seek,

You'll know within the simple shell

That murmurs o'er and o'er

I send to you a love more true

Than e'er was breathed before.