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Edgar Allan Poe – The Haunted Palace

In the greenest of our valleys
By good angels tenanted
Once a fair and stately palace
Radiant palace – reared its head.
In the monarch Thought’s dominion –
It stood there
Never seraph spread a pinion
Over fabric half so fair.

Banners yellow, glorious golden
On its roof did float and flow
This – all this – was in the olden
Time long ago,
And every gentle air that dallied
In that sweet day
Along the ramparts plumed and pallid
A winged odour went away.

Wanderers in that happy valley
Through two luminous windows, saw
Spirits moving musically
To a lute’s well tuned law
Round about a throne where, sitting
Porphyrogene
In state his glory well befitting
The ruler of the realm was seen.
 
And all with pearl and ruby glowing
Was the fair palace door
Thought which came flowing, flowing , flowing
And sparkling evermore
A troop of Echoes, whose sweet duty
Was but to sing
In voices of surpassing beauty
The wit and wisdom of their king.
 
But evil things, in robes of sorrow,
Assailed the monarch’s high estate.
(Ah, let us mourn!— for never morrow
Shall dawn upon him desolate!)
And round about his home the glory
That blushed and bloomed,
Is but a dim-remembered story
Of the old time entombed.

And travellers, now, within that valley,
Through the red-litten windows see
Vast forms, that move fantastically
To a discordant melody,
While, like a ghastly rapid river,
Through the pale door
A hideous throng rush out forever
And laugh — but smile no more.