Camille Flammarion, Mrs. Norman Lockyer Wonders of the Heavens

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Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. O Majestic Night! Nature's great ancestor! Day's elder-born And fated to survive the transient sun By mortals and immortals seen with awe A starry crown thy raven brow adorns An azure zone, thy waist clouds in heaven's loom Wrought through varieties of shape and shade, In ample folds of drapery divine, Thy flowing mantle form, and, heaven throughout, Voluminously pour thy pompous train. Thy gloomy grandeurs (nature's most august, Inspiring aspect!) claim a grateful verse; And like a sable curtain starr'd with gold, Drawn o'er my labours pass'd, shall close the scene.