More mighty scenes may rise—more glaring shine
But none unite in one enchanted gaze
The fertile—fair—and soft—the glories of old days.—[MS.]
[310] [The "negligently grand" may, perhaps, refer to the glories of old days, now in a state of neglect, not to the unstudied grandeur of the scene taken as a whole; but the phrase is loosely thrown out in order to convey a general impression, "an attaching maze," an engaging attractive combination of images, and must not be interrogated too closely.]
Around in chrystal grandeur to where falls
The avalanche—the thunder-clouds of snow.—[MS.]
[311] [Compare the opening lines of Coleridge's Hymn before Sunrise in the Valley of Chamouni—
"Hast thou a charm to stay the morning star
In his steep course? So long he seems to pause
On thy bald awful head, O sovran Blanc!"
The "thunderbolt" (line 6) recurs in Manfred, act i. sc. 1—
"Around his waist are forests braced,
The Avalanche in his hand;
But ere its fall, that thundering ball
Must pause for my command.">[
[312] [{255}] [The inscription on the ossuary of the Burgundian troops which fell in the battle of Morat, June 14, 1476, suggested this variant of Si monumentum quæris—
"Deo Optimo Maximo.