5 MARCH 1881, Page 14

NATURIE PENETRALIA.

A SLUGGISH little stream, that loiters slow Between gnarled tree-trunks and thick tangled grass.

And giant reeds, in a deep, wet morass

For many a league, screened from the fiery glow

Of tropic sunlight ; here and there a row Of small red bitterns, sitting patiently, Watch for the passing of their finny prey, All silent as the water's voiceless flow.

Flash, like live opals through the gloom, a pair Of bronze-winged doves; and in the inmost heart Of this deep wilderness, alone, apart, With mighty limbs outstretched and half-shut eyes, Lord of the pathless forest, dreaming lies The dreadful tiger, in his reedy lair. H. C. I.