melodious bird took up its song, and sang, not an ordinary bird-song,
with constant repetitions of the same melody, but what sounded like
a continuous strain, in which one thought was expressed, deepening in
intensity as evolved in progress. It sounded like a welcome already
overshadowed with the coming farewell. As in all sweetest music, a tinge
of sadness was in every note. Nor do we know how much of the pleasures
even of life we owe to the intermingled sorrows. Joy cannot unfold
the deepest truths, although deepest truth must be deepest joy. Cometh
white-robed Sorrow, stooping and wan, and flingeth wide the doors she
may not enter. Almost we linger with Sorrow for very love.

As the song concluded the stream bore my little boat with a gentle sweep
round a bend of the river; and lo! on a broad lawn, which rose from the
water's edge with a long green slope to a clear elevation from which the
trees receded on all sides, stood a stately palace glimmering ghostly in
the moonshine: it seemed to be built throughout of the whitest marble.
There was no reflection of moonlight from windows--there seemed to be
none; so there was no cold glitter; only, as I said, a ghostly shimmer.
Numberless shadows tempered the shine, from column and balcony and
tower. For everywhere galleries ran along the face of the buildings;
wings were extended in many directions; and numberless openings, through
which the moonbeams vanished into the interior, and which served
both for doors and windows, had their separate balconies in front,
communicating with a common gallery that rose on its own pillars.
Of course, I did not discover all this from the river, and in the
moonlight. But, though I was there for many days, I did not succeed
in mastering the inner topography of the building, so extensive and
complicated was it.

Here I wished to land, but the boat had no oars on board. However, I
found that a plank, serving for a seat, was unfastened, and with that I
brought the boat to the bank and scrambled on shore. Deep soft turf sank
beneath my feet, as I went up the ascent towards the palace.

When I reached it, I saw that it stood on a great platform of marble,
with an ascent, by broad stairs of the same, all round it. Arrived on
the platform, I found there was an extensive outlook over the forest,
which, however, was rather veiled than revealed by the moonlight.

Entering by a wide gateway, but without gates, into an inner court,
surrounded on a