Could I from this valley drear, br Where the mist hangs heavily, br Soar to some more blissful sphere, br Ah! how happy should I be! br Distant hills enchant my sight, br Ever young and ever fair; br To those hills I'd take my flight br Had I wings to scale the air. br br Harmonies mine ear assail, br Tunes that breathe a heavenly calm; br And the gently-sighing gale br Greets me with its fragrant balm. br Peeping through the shady bowers, br Golden fruits their charms display. br And those sweetly-blooming flowers br Ne'er become cold winter's prey. br br In you endless sunshine bright, br Oh! what bliss 'twould be to dwell! br How the breeze on yonder height br Must the heart with rapture swell! br Yet the stream that hems my path br Checks me with its angry frown, br While its waves, in rising wrath, br Weigh my weary spirit down.