s primitive Nausicaa, on Hockessin Farm, the
wanderer abides as herdsman. Soon, under the propaganda of Ruth's
soft eyes and the drowsy spell of the Delawarean society, he joins the
peaceful sect amongst which he labors. It is easier, though, to
change his plural pronouns to the scriptural _thou_ and _thee_ of King
James's translators than to tame his heroic Viking blood, swift to
boil into wrath at the show of oppression. Such an outburst leads to a
quaint scene of acknowledgment and repentance, where lies

Up beyond the woods, at crossing-roads,
The heart of all, the ancient meeting-house.

Lars, prayed over by the brethren, bursts forth in tears and
supplications among the worshipers, and is received into full harmony
with them:

So into joy revolved the doubtful year,
And, ere it closed, the gentle fold of Friends
Sheltered another member, even Lars....
And all the country-side assembled there
One winter Sabbath, when in snow and sky
The colors of transfiguration shone,
Within the meeting-house. There Ruth and Lars
Together sat upon the women's side;
And when the peace was perfect, they arose:
He took her by the hand, and spake these words,
As ordered: "In the presence of the Lord
And this assembly, by the hand I take
Ruth Mendenhall, and promise unto her,
Divine assistance blessing me, to be
A loving and a faithful husband, even
Till death shall separate us." Then spake Ruth
The like sweet words; and so the twain were one.

It is not often that a liturgy has been translated into metre with
less change of its form and substance.

The imbedding of a raw Northern native in this lap of repose and in
this transfiguring matrimonial alliance is the grand problem of the
poem. What will Lars do, now that he is a man of peace and a Child of
Light, with the burden of conscience? In America he is a saint and an
apostle. In Europe he is known but as a proscribed murderer. The later
scenes, where Lars, accompanied by his true and tender wife, meets his
old love, his neighbors, and his rival restored to life, are of a more
ambitious character than any that have preceded. The holy principles
imbibed on the shores of Delaware are made to triumph, and Lars,
dropping the sharp blade from his hand in the thronged arena whither
he is forced once more, stands first as a laughing-stock, and then as
an apostle, among his old neighbors. It is a position full of moral
force, and we find ours