Dance, magpies!
Among the branches downward pressed,
Dance, flowers, dance, every nest,
All that comes from the skies is blest.”
“Fernand Severin, who was lecturer in French literature at the University of Ghent, is a poet of great charm. His diction is apparently that of Racine, but in substance he is essentially modern.” The following lines, from the translation by Bithell, will give an idea of the grace and beauty of his style:
“Her sweet voice was a music in mine ear;
And in the perfume of the atmosphere
Which, in that eve, her shadowy presence shed,
’Sister of mystery,’ trembling I said,
’Too like an angel to be what you seem,