A Specimen of Clare's rough drafts

A Specimen of Clare's rough drafts     In a huge cloud of mountain hue     The sun sets dark nor shudders through     One single beam to shine again     Tis night already in the lane     The settled clouds in ridges lie     And some swell mountains calm and high     Clouds rack and drive before the wind     In shapes and forms of every kind     Like waves that rise without the roars     And rocks that guard untrodden shores     Now castles pass majestic bye     And ships in peaceful havens lie     These gone ten thousand shapes ensue     For ever beautiful and new     The scattered clouds lie calm and still     And day throws gold on every hill     Their thousand heads in glorys run     As each were worlds and owned a sun     The rime it clings to every thing     It beards the early buds of spring     The mossy pales the orchard spray     Are feathered with its silver grey     Rain drizzles in the face so small     We scarce can say it rains at all     The cows turned to the pelting rain     No longer at their feed remain     But in the sheltering hovel hides     That from two propping dotterels strides     The sky was hilled with red and blue     With lighter shadows waking through     Till beautiful and beaming day     Shed streaks of gold for miles away     The linnet stopt her song to clean     Her spreading wings of yellow green     And turn his head as liking well     To smooth the dropples as they fell     One scarce could keep one's path aright     From gazing upward at the sight     The boys for wet are forced to pass     The cuckoo flowers among the grass     To hasten on as well they may     For hedge or tree or stack of hay     Where they for shelter can abide     Safe seated by its sloping side     That by the blackthorn thicket cowers     A shelter in the strongest showers     The gardens golden gilliflowers     Are paled with drops of amber showers     Dead leaves from hedges flirt about     The chaff from barn doors winnows out     And down without a wing to flye     As fast as bees goes sailing bye     The feather finds a wing to flye     And dust in wirl puffs winnows bye     When the rain at midday stops     Spangles glitter in the drops     And as each thread a sunbeam was     Cobwebs glitter in the grass     The sheep all loaded with the rain     Try to shake it off in vain     And ere dryed by wind and sun     The load will scarcely let them run     The shepherds foot is sodden through     And leaves will clout his brushing shoe     The buttercups in gold alloyed     And daiseys by the shower destroyed     The sun is overcast clouds lie     And thicken over all the sky     Crows morn and eve will flock in crowds     To fens and darken like the clouds     So many is their cumberous flight     The dull eve darkens into night     Clouds curl and curdle blue and grey     And dapple the young summers day     Through the torn woods the violent rain     Roars and rattles oer the plain     And bubbles up in every pool     Till dykes and ponds are brimming full     The thickening clouds move slowly on     Till all the many clouds are one     That spreads oer all the face of day     And turns the sunny shine to grey     Now the meadow water smokes     And hedgerows dripping oaks     Fitter patter all around     And dimple the once dusty ground     The spinners threads about the weeds     Are hung with little drops in beads     Clover silver green becomes     And purple blue surrounds the plumbs     And every place breaths fresh and fair     When morning pays her visit there     The day is dull the heron trails     On flapping wings like heavy sails     And oer the mead so lowly swings     She fans the herbage with her wings     The waterfowl with suthering wings     Dive down the river splash and spring     Up to the very clouds again     That sprinkle scuds of coming rain     That flye and drizzle all the day     Till dripping grass is turned to grey     The various clouds that move or lye     Like mighty travellers in the sky     All mountainously ridged or curled     That may have travelled round the world     The water ruckles into waves     And loud the neighbouring woodland raves     All telling of the coming storm     That fills the village with alarm     Ere yet the sun is two hours high     Winds find all quarters of the sky     With sudden shiftings all around     And now the grass upon the ground     And now the leaves they wirl and wirl     With many a flirting flap and curl