LESSON 52 AUSTRALIA FAIR

AUSTRALIA FAIR

1. Australia fair, I love thee,

The dear land of my birth;

To me thou art the sweetest,

The brightest spot on earth.

2. I love thy golden sunshine,

Thy sky of peerless [1] hue [2] ,

The soft grays of the distance,

The hills' faint tints of blue.

3. I love thy yellow beaches,

The clear waves tipped with foam,

The capes that stand like bulwarks [3]

To guard my native home.

4. I love the mossy gullies,

Where palm and fern-tree hide,

The tall, gray gums that clamber

On every steep hill-side.

5. I love the ferny pathways,

Where wattle blossoms fall;

While in the leafy distance

The bell-bird [4] rings his call.

6. Dear Southern Land, Australia,

Wherever I may roam

My heart will turn for ever

To thee, my native home.

—MAYBANKE ANDERSON

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[1] peerless: Without equal.

[2] hue: Colour.

[3] bulwarks: Means of safety; the bulwarks of a ship are the pieces of wood or other material used to protect the sides of the ship.

[4] bell-bird: An Australian bird with a call like a bell.