Penny Dreadfuls, 1812 · page 99 of 258
Psyche, and other poems — page 99: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Page 81 of a Victorian Penny Dreadful This is a text-only page of running poetry, numbered 81. The verse concerns romantic love and trust, opening with the speaker's wish that suspicion never chill their beloved's faith, and expressing preference for "pleasing error" and "blind reliance" over cold prudence. The passage shifts midway to narrative verse describing an evening scene: gathering darkness, wind-nymphs foretelling a coming storm, absent stars and moon, and mysterious sounds and "strange forms" perceived through the gloom. The text appears to be advancing a melodramatic plot involving love, anxiety, and supernatural or ominous atmosphere typical of penny dreadful sensationalism.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
St Oh! never may suspicion’s gloomy sky - Chill the sweet glow of fondly trusting love ! Nor ever may he feel the scowling eye Of dark distrust his confidence reprove ! In pleasing error may I rather rove, With blind reliance on the hand so dear, Than let cold prudence from my eyes remove Those sweet delusions, where nor doubt nor fear — Nor foul disloyalty nor cruel change appear. The noble mind is ever prone to trust ; Yet love with fond anxiety is joined ; And timid tenderness is oft unjust; The coldness which it dreads too prompt to find, And torture the too susceptible mind. Hence rose the gloom which oft o’er Psyche stole Lest he she loved, unmindful or unkind, Should careless slight affection’s soft control, Or she long absent lose her influence o’er his souk °*T was evening, and the shades which sudden fell Seem to forebode a dark unlovely night ; The sighing wood-nymphs from their caves foretel The storm which soon their quiet shall affright : Nor cheering star nor moon appears in sight, Nor taper twinkles through the rustling leaves And sheds afar its hospitable light : But hark! a dismal sound the ear’ receives, And through the obscuring gloom the eye strange forms perceives. Conicloooks.comn)