Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Longfellow could well have been a prolific writer but, so far as most of the world knows, he is remembered only for The Song of Hiawatha.  I have included it in this blog because my first school prize, in 1949, was an illustrated version of this poem. 

Again, I loved the rhythm of the words and could recite it without having to think about it.  The following   Isn't the simplified version I remember and it is only an excerpt from a much longer poem.

By the shore of Gitche Gumee,
By the shining Big-Sea-Water,
At the doorway of his wigwam,
In the pleasant Summer morning,
Hiawatha stood and waited.
All the air was full of freshness,
All the earth was bright and joyous,
And before him, through the sunshine,
Westward toward the neighboring forest
Passed in golden swarms the Ahmo,
Passed the bees, the honey-makers,
Burning, singing in the sunshine.

  Bright above him shone the heavens,
Level spread the lake before him;
From its bosom leaped the sturgeon,
Sparkling, flashing in the sunshine;
On its margin the great forest
Stood reflected in the water,
Every tree-top had its shadow,
Motionless beneath the water.

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