Although he was appalled by the idea of ​​practicing law for the rest of his life, as he wanted to do nothing more than produce poetry, Bryant continued his studies in law and moved to the town of West Bridgewater in 1814 to study with Congressman William Baylies. Although his discomfort with the law continued to grow, Bryant still had a good relationship with Baylies and described him as an "honest lawyer". (Bryant 19) Baylies often chastised Bryant for “loitering in taverns wasting his time reading poetry” (Bryant 20) instead of studying law and Bryant subsequently vowed to abstain completely from the literary arts and concentrate entirely on his current career. In 1815 Bryant managed to conquer his studies and was admitted to the bar. The first and fourth stanzas are iambic trimitters and the second and third stanzas are iambic pentameters. This method is then copied in the next four stanzas. It is a romantic poem that uses several references to nature, as well as the anaphora of the word "soon" and the personification of waterfowl. The poem compares the journey of a water bird and the difficulties it may face to the journey of a person and the difficulties it may face. The beginning of the poem is shrouded in doubt and uncertainty, then the veil is lifted and the end is reassuring, almost as if it were a prayer request that is then answered. It is loosely based on the Christian religion with the complete content of each stanza completely corresponding to a topic, and all eight stanzas together reference various aspects of the religion. His death occurred in 1876 after giving an introductory speech for the statue of the Italian patriot Mazzini. He wore no hat and suffered from extreme tiredness after giving the speech, but being stubborn he refused to sit down and rest. Instead he walked across the park and partially up the stairs where he fell backwards and hit his head on the stone below. He died at home, aged 84. He was buried next to his wife in Roslyn after the conclusion of funeral services in New York. (Simonds; Poetry