rain_ must know."

"Thou art unseen, but yet I hear _thy shrill delight_."

"The moon _rains out her beams_, and heaven is overflowed."

"The blue deep thou _wingest_."

5. PERSONIFICATION. In this poem the poet personifies the lark,
beginning with "Blithe spirit, bird thou never wert," in the first
stanza and closing with "Teach me half the gladness that thy brain must
know," in the last stanza.

6. APOSTROPHE. Most odes have in them something of the nature of an
apostrophe. The _Ode to a Skylark_ begins

"Hail to thee, blithe spirit!"

Further along in the lyric we find the line,

"Teach us, bird or sprite."

* * * * *

Young children will not appreciate the ode as it deserves; accordingly
it will be better to use simpler poems for the first lessons. The
obvious figures may well be shown first, leaving the more finished and
brilliant ones till the minds of the children become more mature. For
instance, as the simile is the most obvious of figures and may be found
in nearly every poem of any length, it is the best with which to begin.
Notice what a number can be found in _A Visit from Saint Nicholas_
(Volume II, page 202). Explain those that are used in the description of
Saint Nicholas:

"And he looked _like a peddler just opening his pack_."

"His cheeks were _like roses_, his nose _like a cherry_;
His droll little mouth was drawn up _like a bow_,
And the beard on his chin was _as white as the snow_."

"The smoke, it encircled his head _like a wreath_."

"That shook, when he laughed, _like a bowl full of jelly_."

Encourage the children to find other similes themselves--the
characteristic _like_ and _as_ will make the task easy.

In _The First Snowfall_ (Volume II, page 403) are a number of metaphors
which may be easily explained to children. For instance, the following
will be readily understood:

"Every pine and fir and hemlock
Wore _ermine_ too dear for an earl,
And the poorest twig on the elm tree
Was ridged inch deep with _pearl_."

"The stiff rails were softened to _swan's-down_."

SUMMARY

We have considered the most common and expressive figures, and if one
accustoms himself to the recognition of these and an explanation of
their meaning as has been indicated here, he will soon recognize others
of more complex type. Mere classification is valueless; our purpose is
to learn to see an