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M Entered, according to the Act of the Provincial Parliament, in the year one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, by Isidore G. Aschbb, In the Office of the Kegistrar of the Province of Canada. CONTENTS. PAOB iQtroductioQ, ' ' 9 Dedication, 15 By the Hearth, Reaving, ......,.,[. 23 Work, • ' 25 A Game of Cards, _,. Shadow, Sunlight "" gjj Esther, ........!.!!!..... 34 Only a Plank ........* 37 My Darlings, 2^ Twilight, !!!.!!!!!!!!![ 4l ^*^«« ...! 42. Sundown in the City, . . \^^ .. Who Cares?...... ^^ Under the Maple-Tree, ....».,.. 4R The Traveller and the Tree, \ qq ^°°» ...*.*..'.'.* 63 Old Letters, ^,..., .. CONTENTS. PAGB Starlight, ; 56 Pygmalion, 67 Fa", 66 Thanksgiving, 68 Katie, ►fO Under the Trees, "72 Light for Canada's Sages, "74 Song, 1^6 ■^^^t 78 The Fisherman's Watch, 80 Merchandize, 84 Spiritus Sanctus, 88 Poor» 90 I Love You, 92 A Tribute, go J>nnk,.... 94 ^08t» 96 To the Memory of Lady Montefiore, 97 An Autumn Idyl, gg Flowers, 2q, A Search for Spring, 1Q3 The Child of the Lake, IO4 lUrapoken, , , . A Summer's Day, ^ j jg ^ Hero, J Jg " Nocte Tacentia Late," 119 On an Ambrotype, 12i Childhood,. jgj CONTENTS. A Welcome, ^ 224 Begeneration, 126 The Lover Star, , ^ 129 The Three Rings, 133 Echoes of the Seasons, 143 New Year, 1^5 By the Firelight 14g S^o^j 160 Short Days, 152 May-Time, I54 The Elixir of Spring, 156 Summer Calm, 155 Indian Summer, Igl Falling Leaves, 163 A Madrigal, 166 i-'Envoi, 167 ■I ;! INTHODUCTIOK iir fbe course of a conVefsaf ion vritli ai nameless acquamtanctf-^ #Hd lias a predilection for hard Tc^c and unvarnished facts, I haii ^ecaaidn to discuss my project of publishing, which tie viewed witn i dbld indifference, not unmihgled with a bertain scorn, mf tltbical firiend having then descanted on the supreme excellence of Shakespeare, I asked his opinioh— whether minor poems possess^ ing beaut/, truth, fire, and melody are not only more congenial ^ the miultitude, but have alwuya exercised a more ijbtent infl'ueii6& and benefit over mankind than even great epic or dramatic wof^s. He assented to this ; but endeavored to assure me that poem's of this class were seldom found. J^ot feeling any inclination to ^e»- tion this statement, I drc^peni the subject. Now, my interview with t'his steml'y-visaged acqnaintaiice has- suggested me a few thoughts regtirding lyrical poetry and its infl^u- etice, which I shall endeavor to mbody in i^lain prose, instead oT in measured couplets. It is impossible to give an exhaustive definition of minor poenl. Th&s niay be comprised under the names of ballads, l^ends, songs, odes, hymns, and lyrics. They are nearly all distinguished by brevity, and generally turn oh an emotion, tbought, incident, or dVetit. Mr. Giles happily characterizes them, when he remarks that "a simple song is like a compressed draiha; and within the circle of these songs we haw impulses from" every stage of life,, ftfoih the perturbations of youth to the chills of age." All true- liliObY jJoems, or we shall call' them lyric*— fW tlus word presu]k INTRODUCTION. poses that whicli contributes to their perfection, namely melody- must be spontaneou', and therefore natural. The writer must feel his thought before giving it expression. Artifice of words, pomp of metaphor, add to its beauty, but it is the vivida vis animi thrown into it, which gives it vitality and makes it enduring. Consequently, all favorite lyrics do not, as we are apt to suppose, owe their success to the caprice of the world, or to the fame of their authors. " The Burial of Sir John Moore at Corunna" is familiar to all, but I am net aware that its composer, C. Wolfe, was particu- larly celebrated as a poet. The certain distinctive excellencies then which, in my opinion, have made minor poems popular^ are eamestnest and tt^uthfulneaa. They must not only proceed firom the intellect, but also flow from the heart The secret of Lord Byron's fame, is that his thoughts glow with feeling. None of us are in love with his preachings, his morals, philosophy, or morbid views of mankind; but the impassioned melody, and par- ticularly the ferv'd warmth of his words, awake our sympathies and excite our .otions, until we are apt to exclaim, " O that this genius had, possessed the piety of Cowper and the philosophy of Montgomery, and these gentlemen the genius of Byron !" There is an anecdote related of G«orge II, who being asked to patronize the poets, only cursed them, remarking, that " they were all a set of mechanics." I am aAraid his remarks apply to many of our modem wooers of the muse. We have in our midst a deal of vague, misty poetry, which requires a concentration of our faculties to understand and appreciate; fine intellectual mechanical com- positions, which might as well have been written in prose. But a true puem, as I comprehend the matter, ought to thrill and arrest the mind on perusing it. Aristotle, more than two thousand years ago, informed us, that a poet must either possess ftrenzy or art. A minor poem all art is merely " a sad mechanic exercise." A minor poem all A*enzy, with little or no art, must reach and move our sensibilities, and thus Ailfll the purpose for which it ID i INTRODUCTION. wait composed. In my opinion, modiocrity may be tolerated in a poem imbued with real and not sham feeling, in spite of Horace's assertion to the contrary. Thus, good lyrics excite the common heart of humanity, because they contain "The music to whose tone The common piilse of man keeps time, lu cot or castle's mirth or moan, In cold or sanny clime." Long descriptive, dramatic, or epic poems, firom their very length, will only find their fit and few audience. This higher poetry will always prove a joy forever to highly cultivated minds ; but lyrics that "have a perfection commensurate with their aim, a finish in proportion to brevity," which are either "simple, sensuous, or pas- sionate," are common to all ages and in all times, and, by awakening man's loftier impulses and purer emotions, " fade not into the light of common day," but, like the soul from which they proceed and the imperishable forms of nature herself, are unchangeable and eternal I It is sometimes asked, whether there is not sufficient lyrical poetry in the world for now, and for all time ; and also if it is not vain and presumptuous for any one to attempt to increase the store; particularly, when this any one has not received the poet's "awful crown," as Gerald Massey terms it. This question is easily answered. Everything in nature and art, and in the mind of man, is for ever being reproduced. The pansies of the garden were onco the violets of the woods. The variegated tulip was originally of an unmixed simple color; yet the distinctive peculiarities of these, like al' flowers, are the same now as when Eve in the Garden of Eden «tooped, as Milton tells us, "To support Each flower of slender stock, whoso head, tbo' gay, Carnation, purple, azure, or speok'd with gold, Hung drooping uusustainod " ; U • iJmCdMd'hoJr^ 80 tHe lyrical impulse dies not wiili man's death, but is perpetti- alljr faking new forms and phases, or modifications of old forms; and this faculty is enlarged with tne march of intellect, the prog- ress of civilization, and the increase of refinement. As knowledge spreads itself, our poetry becomes (iil)er and truer. If, says Charles Kingsley, Pope had been afive now,' he would jdave written his "Dunciad" much better. Ceirvantes bears out my assertion when he remarks, ** Poetry I regard as a tender virgin, young and ex- tremely beautiAiI, whom divers other virgins, namely all the other mnenoes, are assiduous to enrich, to iVolish and adorn. She is to be served b^ them, and they are to be ennobled through her." Ten- niyson's passages descriptive of English scenery in "In Memo- moriam" outrival those in the "Seasons," because our modern bard, with deej^er ledming and finer instincts, has penetrated into fhe vary heart o^ the landscape: and his poetry, not being dis- fl^red with false conceits arising from defective knowledge, is truer and more perfect. The first half of this present century is rich in lyrics, and, judging ft'om the numerous array of singers around us, thf) latter half gives promise of finer songs than here- tofore. It is therefore idle to assert, that tlie harp and lyre of Al^ollo can ever be silent, or the harpers lose command over the stiings and produce new combinatioub of melody no more. As long as the mysterious heart ot man beats in joy, or is dulled with (frief ; as long as the eternal glory and goodness of the Cre- ator fill him with awe, and the infinite variety, grandeur, beauty of His creations inspire him witli love, fVom a necessity in his nature he will ever give expression to "thoughts too deep, for toBirs," which will often naturally take a lyrical form. Now, the desire and the faculty are seldom eqUal. The instinct which bids us write our ideas, and the power which gives them utterance, are rarelj^ in the same relation. AH who write verse are not poets, and many dream beautiiPUl thougnts anii yet can never impart them, and po these slluut singers "die with all their musio 1^ INTRODUCTION. .:'..'iV!rMiCViV^l. „, in them." Still, amid the profusion of verses, scattered everyo where and anywhere, how mucli is hot hidden, like violets iinde^ mossy stones, whicli, if 'brought to light, and in places where iney could be understood, would not bring fame and Ibonor to tlieir s\ «■.- •lui. i <«t ■wim authors. ' lilvery writer of verse then, does so Arom pure necessity, to sat- isf!^' a hidden cravihg'after 'the 'beiaiutifull ' ' He cannot llielp it. Me spins his thoughts, like the spidieir weaves Us welb), ^rom impuW. It is in fact a growth of his mind, like tlie leaves of a tree. ' ^ never occurs to the writer, that lie or she may only be incliting feeble commonplace, or, in the powerful languagis of Mrs. Brown- " What make-believe, With so much earnest! what ell^ie resnlto, From virile eiTorts ! what cold wire*drawit odes, From such wliite heats!" And very often the higher the idea aimed at, the more worthless its form; and so, the set of verses conceived in true spirit, furns out to be spiritless. We jannot embody our'dreain. The plan is seemly and nolble, but the execution i>roves a failure. Wel^ supposing that such is the case, 'what'iili[aiter? Lei 'tis console oui^elves with the reflection tliat impeitection must mix itseff wfth all human effort, and say. In ihe WutilUl philosophy of Hawthorne, '"'I ain afVaid th&t a sense of shortedming niust* always be the reward and punishment of those who try to grapple with a great or beautiful idea. It only proves that yod have l)een able to imagine things too high for mortal faculties to execute." Having thus unburdened, I hope not too presumptuously, my beliefs regarding minor poems, I beg to present my own trifles of verse. I have no excuses to offer for their appearance; no re- marks about early efforts and kind indulgences, and all those tham apologies so common to prefixes in first books. None of them may reach my ovm ideal of a true lyric, and I am almosi 13 f ' INTRODUCTION. oerinin they will not fulfil the requirements of my rigid, Shaks- pearian friend; still, a few, as they were published in Montreal and copied elsewhere, have already won the kindly notice— I hope deservedly — of many an unknown friend, and of not a few poetical critics; therefore, without fear, I have collected them Arom a host of others written firom time to time. As a number have floated about the country, leading a vagabond and precarious existence in odd comers of newspapers, and in strange nondescript collections of poetry, I certainly feel justified in gathering my fold— in placing within a certain compass all those pieces which I care to acknowledge now, together with other MSS. which have never attained the dignity of print. It is my dearest wish that the magnates of criticism should look into them ; and if theiV verdict, in spite of certain honied approval already received, should prave unfavorable, I shall endeavor to lin no more in rhyme. In the meantime, fervently thanking all those whose words of encouragement and hope have been my sweetest satisfaction, I launch my little venture, on the broad, variable sea of public opinion, freighted with the usual human hope attending all human projects; while I patiently await the issue, if there is ever to be one, — or, if such is to be its fate, calmly enduring the forgetfulness of a busy world engrossed with its own visions and regrets. MoHT&BAL, August 1808. U Il-A '/ ■ • h'i' ^-.-y , DEDICATION. 4 In trust — in love — I lay ? « :* , ^ My lowly oflfering, mother, at thy feet; — :« All that mjTheart for years has fancied sweet, My songs from day to day. Accept them, for they are The hopeful thoughts of many a lonely hour, When every other balm had lost its power To still life's fret and jar; For every fervent Jine, '^ Syllabled amid dull worldly strife, ' Whispered sweet hope and solace, till my life Seemed tinged with hues divine I" Broken and few and faint, , ? I give them to thy keeping—to thy care— So that thy love around them everywhere May free them from earth's taint. li ti, immmmmmim DEDICATION. i.i If thy nnselfisli love, O mother I were attuned to rhythmic song, The melody would ever roU along, And reach the skies above I So keep these homely lays, For they are all my life can giy^ thee now ; And tho' the world's neglect may iend me low, I only wait iky praise. li Not for their doubtful worth Accept them ; only glean the 1qv<9 ^at Uqs Hidden among th^ feeble ^lCjlQd|e9, m^e springs wi^P tfc§ eiH:^^, > / r I- And tho' the faults abound Numerous as shells within the sea, Thy love will make the rhyme and harmony To fill them with sweet sound I "' j , I . I . . I then no more would ^ : Let Fame's uproarious ^§pe| ^l^^i^ CojJJl The|p<?0'8lo^^rmusw^t^^^ Be mine a ^^^^ y^- To sing the songs of ^ome. When dove^yed Truth with torch of vestal vhl^ Has lit the ^te upon the hearth at night, Hallowing its sacred dome. ^ ■ '*! • <i% DEDICATION. ,^, Or when the sunny eyes Of Innocence have beamed upon my heart, Till the loved children's glances seemed a part Of looks in Paradise I Vague fancies of my brain, And visions which my heart yearned to express, Which seemed o'ertinted with strange loveliness Shining thro' mists and rainj Vain griefs that idly ilow. Which memory longed in rhythmic speech to tell. Thy love can fathom and interpret well, And give them meaning now. The song-buds scant of mine, May ripen and may blossom into flowers, Whene'er thy dear approval richly dowers Each thought with smiles of thine I Therefore, in joy, Hay . This book of verses fondly at thy feet So that thy voice may make these voices sweet, Where'er they chance to stru^% 11 "")» \ jiWM. [nmwiwpi^ sBBommmm ?:*: I>f. ■■ir > - / Mr. 1 I Wiitn imm %\t WtAv(\ BY THE HEARTH, As iEncas, fires eternal, To old Latium's shores brought home, So may thoughts of Home diurnal, Chastened with the vestal fire, Ever soaring upwards, higher, Be as pure where'er they roam. With the sacred hearth before me. Kneeling down before its shrine. And the fear of Heaven o'er me, I have striven to learn the teachings, All the wondrous, reverent preaching)^ Of the love of home divine I 19 \ BY THE HEARTH^ And this strong love, lying hidden In its fulness on my heart In my lonely hours, unbiddei, Oft has taken outward draping, Till each fervid, homely shaping Of this idle verse forms part. What if this untutored singing Wake no echo thro' the earth ? 'Tis a human voice upspringing And the strains, though faint and broken, btill shall be a living token That they have a purer birth. Tho' the mists of care around me. Shroud my thought and cloud niy rhyme; Tho complaints to earth have bound me: Ktill these simple lays have given Faith in man and hope in Heaven, Now and in the future time. So my thoughts are ever yearning To the hearth, lit from above-' And the while the flame is burning I have prayed that God the giver, ' Watchful, might extinguish never All the sacred fires of love I 2a BY THE HEARTH, Not in fear, nor unattended, Shall this idle verse go forth. For AflFection's tones have blended With these voices all their power, When in many a blissful hour Home and Love have given them birth. Smiles have made the hearthstone brighter ! Words have filled with joy the air ! Loots have made life's burden lighter ! When around me gathered faces. Beaming with the kindly traces Of a ministering, watchful care. And when deeper Night has hastened, Soft unfolding raven wings, All the firelights seeming chastened, Purged from dross, in ashes lying ; Purer, brighter, flames were flying In the soul's imagimngs. Through the tide of rolling hours, Through dim vistas of the years. Through life's mead of daisy flowers, Still these voices sweet are ringino- To my fancy ever singing Joys that hush my plaints and fears. / V i t k BY THE HEARTH. Soaring visions, far above me, Glimmering like God's host of stare, Phantom shapes that yearn to love me, Till on earth I seem to grasp them, And in love my soul doth clasp them Through earth's narrow, prison bars. ■ I." If Though life's toil and fret have jarred them, Dimmed these broken, wandering strains. And earth's dust and drought have marred them, And they fade and die in ashes, Still the hearth-fire ever flashes. And the Love of Home remains. 22 WEAVING. A maiden was weaving at noonday, A maiden with gold-rippling hair, Whose heart was as warm as the sunrays That softly encircled her there ; And her eyes were like starlights in shadow, And her thoughts were like sweet summer air* I knew by the light of her smiling, She was wea^^ing a tissue of dreams, A web of a million of fancies, Illuming her life with their gleams ; That she saw the far future before her O'ertinted with halcyon beams. I did not disturb her with questions, Nor mar those sweet thoughts with n»y own, For the sunlight that played with her fancies From heavenly pathways had flown, And she wound them in hues of the rainbow, As she sat in the noonday alone. 38 WEAVING. And soon when the shadows had fallen, An old man with grey-silvered hair ' Was weaving a tissue of visions In the gloan3ing that fell on him there; And his thoughts were like hues of the evening, In the chamber so ghostly and bare. I knew hy the lines on his temples, And by the wan smiles on his face, That from the dead past he was calling • A host of regrets from their place: And so he tept weaving his sorrows, In a dream that was mournful to trace. And thus we are weaving forever Our hopes, our regrets, and our fears, And time soon dispels every vision Or we summon them back with our tears; And still we are none of us wiser. As we glide thro' life's current of years ! 24 WORK. Arise from your dreamy slumber, And with stalwart heart go forth, And be you one of the number, Brave workers here on earth. Tho' the world is wide. There is room beside For those who are staunch and true ; So be at your post 'Mid the busy host. For there's work for you to do. It is no time to be dreaming, When the workers abroad are gone, So throw off your sloth and seeming And with vigorous arms ply on j For the sun is high And there comes a cry That the laborers still are few; So make the most Of tho time, and beast That there 's work for you to do. as WORK. There are forests to clear before you, There are fields to plow and sow, * And the sunlight is streaming o'er 'you That your labors may thrive and grow • So murmur a song While your voice is strong And your heart is ready and true. And thank your God On the fruitful sod That there 's work for you to do. Let the miser boast of his hoard of gold, Let riches and care keep pace : In the works of your hand there is worth untold, And joy in the toilsome race; There is vigorous health In your life's true wealth. Not prized by an indolent few- So in grief or glee Let your watchword be That there 's work for you to do. 26 A GAME OF CARDS. Come love, where the fire light gleams on the walls, Let me sit where thy glances meet mine, While warm on the heart, like the rays on the floor, The light of thy sweet looks shall shine ; And love, for a change let life's serious game, Forgotten and lost in thy smile. Be changed to a lighter and pleasanter sport, To charm our attention awhile. First shuffle the cards and deal mo a hand And not a dark card by mistake, Tho' fortune is changeful, we must not complain, Whatever she gives we must take ; And tho' I suspect all the trumps are not mine, I need not endeavor to prove The man is a trump who can win with poor cards Tho gift of a true maiden's love. aT \ ^ A GAME OF CAKDS. The honors yoli hold in your hand, by and by These points to your game I'll annex, For no one can ever deprive you of them ; They are yours by the right of your sex ! Don't play all your diamonds, their lustre can't fade, For diamonds must win in the main. And yet I will hold to the true suit of hearts, Though the world calls the play poor and vain. "iou've made all the tricks by a woman's finesse, Save one by mistake which you passed, With ill luck on my side, I still persevered. And kept my best card for the last j I've won the game fairly, but what have I won ? I played not, a poor skill to prove ; And surely it was not for money ; 'twas naught But a game in real earnest for love 1 28 SHADOW. His voice was hoarse and loud ; And in earnest tones he beckoned and Me me turn and see A dark and ominous shadow, that was gathering over me. I looked — and saw a crowd Of busy, noisy workers, who, with hand and heart and brain Were dreaming not of shadows, but of schemes, and toil and gain j So I said, his words were vain, 'Twas a fancy of his brain. He bade me look once more : Then, all the throng had vanished and the star-girt, saintlv night *r Was spreading, o'er the skies of God, vast tracks of endless light; The heaven was tasselled o'er With solemn gleams of splendor ; so I raised my eyes above And said, '' There were no shadows in the glory of God's love ;" So I told him then again, *Twas a fancy of his brain. 29 SHADOW. He bade me glance again : As glowing Morn was peeping through the folds of duskj Night. I said — my visions teeming with a gush of new-born light,— *•' You surely speak in vain : Upon the paths of Morning, walk the angels Love and Truth, And God bestrews no shadow o'er the thrilling hours of youth ; So your words are surely vain, 'Tis a fancy of your brain." When lo ! I gazed on him. And wonder rooted me to earth ; for on the cold, stark ground, Nigh where he stood, a stealthy, boding shadow crept around, — His world was dark and dim. I said, " Behold the shadow of your thought which hovers near I Through this, all things are shadowed in your monrnful atmosphere ; So, I've proved your words are vain, 'Tis a fancy of your brain." Look up, desponding one 1 And muse not of life's evils, nor of heart-consuming care, Tl'or these will bring a shadow that will haunt thee every- whcro J BHADOW. Bat deem all things are done For everlasting good on earth, through God's far-reaching sight, That darkness only dwells with him, who shuns His truth and light, And then — from off thy heart The shadow will depart. 31 \ 1 ) ■ SUNLIGHT. A sunbeam, once, in jovial mood, Half loitered on its way, And roamed among earth's pleasant nooks, But knew not where to stay ; It kissed the blushing, grateful flowers, And lit my dear love's face With sweetest smiles, then sped along. And danced from place to place. It stole within a lowly cot And shone upon Despair, Where'er a shadow blurred the way It seemed to linger there ; It blessed the face of Poverty, And sanctified its blight ; And on the wall, some urchins strove To grasp it with delight I 82 BUNLianr. It nerved despondent Age to step Again, in jouthful pride ; Where'er the hopeful spirit dwelt, It seemed to flit and glide. It made the mountain path less steep, And smoothed the rocks hard by j It stilled a mother's phrenzied grief, And hushed a lover's sigh. When lo I I overtook the gleam, This child of Hope and Youth, The heaven-born angel sent to guard The starry gates of Truth. But as I strove to fix my grasp Upon its presence there, The transient ray, impalpable, Had melted into airt And yet the pure and aerial beam Flitting, like time, away. Doth live upon this solid globe, To be man's guide and stay ; So let us strive to firmly grasp, And keep it near our heart, So that if we are reft of all. The sunbeam won't depart 88 I '\' I i f I ESTHER I RpMwg„tliroiigli the tide of agea, Through dark, shadowy waves of .yeare, Linked with names of prophet^agea, Rings a name through history's pages, Sweet as miisic to our ears. ' Clad in radiance, like her spirit, Loveliest, 'mid a lovely host. Pure as heaven she hoped to merit. Came this maiden to inherit * Queenly power, that Vashti lost. Loyal and true, he;? npble natuf%, Kept the secret of her race ; While her faith in Go^d did,|«ach,|i«ir, That His endless love would reach her Evermore, in every place. 3^ And ^cif ttodf^ir cldiiafs d!d'l6i»^ij O'er the landi of Perfee and Me%, So that Haman*s difeftil pb^er, lif a datfc'rfevengeful hour, Swblre ddstruCtibri to h'dr'cbfeij/ And when desolate cries Were ringing Tliroiigh the cities far and wide, Bdfifier's love and fuith were bringing ' tii)pes, that to her spirit clinging, ^ Made her turn' to Giod, her guided And her pleasures from her castings' With her maids she knelt in prayer. And for three long days, they, fasting, Called on God the Everlasting To protect her people there. Trembling then, and lowly-hearted, Favors from the king she sought, And her kindred's wrongs imparted, Till her supplications thwarted All the evils Haman brought. Therefore, is her sweet name dearer, As the dim years hurry by. To our hearts and homes brought nearw, As our future brightens clearer. And old troubles fade and die I fif \ i i 1 - I E8TBEB. i I Through the ages dim and hoary, Through long suffering, dreary years, Sweeter than a poet's story, Crowned with more than martyr's glory Esther's name, a star* appears. And our trust in God shall arm us With a strength, like Lers of yore, Then no Amalek's son shall harm us, While her name still lives to charm us Ih its beauty evermore I ♦ The name of "Esther" ia Hebrew signifies a "star* 86 ONLY A PLANK. Only a plank between us — Between the steamer and land ; And a farewell word is spoken In the grasp of each outstretched hand. A din of trade around us, And the noise of the dusty street, And a buzz of numerous voices, And the rush of numerous feet. And the river flows beneath us, And the whistle moans aloud, And the vaporous steam that rolls along. Seems a passing mist or cloud. And the plank that was between us Is silently moved away, And the restless river bears them on, While, lingering near, we stay. SI ■i (It ; ONLY A PLANK. I • Our parting; looks arc blessings That God may guard them well j But when and where we shall meet again, None but God can tell. The fervid glow of the sunset Has softly faded away, And shadows seem to cling and fall Upon our earthly way. Uncertain glimmerings on the heart— And a sense of mystery, That every path is vague and dim Upon life's treacherous sea j That doubts and fears assail us, And darkness and dismay : And the plank between the now and ever, May soon be moved away. Only a plank that severs Our dearest hopes and fears ; And the present passing from us, And the unknown future years. And still wo linger beside it, And dear friends come and go ; And the restless river of life flows on, To a land, no mortal may know. ! MY DARLINGS. 'jj Gathelr rontiA me, liappy children; Let me share your sports awhile. While the festive Summer gluddfeAl / !1 your radiance with her smile ; Haste my darlings, let the sunligM Of your natures warm my heart*, And the sad thoughts, crowding r<i"' Will on noiseless wing depart. Live within the narrow circles Of my visions, wan and dini — And your looks will give a meanibf To this fervent, artless hymn : Hasten— for the sombre shado\(rS Even now have sped away ; For the prattle of my darling^ Mdkes my life a holiday. What deep meaning in your lispingh I Wisdom in your arch replies I E'en the flow'rets smile in wondof; Pleasure in their gentle eyes ; While the nir around you, darlingB, Over-loaded with your love, Wafts a tenderer glow to nature I Purer tints of heaven above I 89 me. I It I ir Si' 'I 1! ! ! a MY DARLINGS. God haa placed you all, my darlings, On this sin-pressed earth to-day, That your pure and sweet out-pourings, Might be music on our way • For ye are the links that bind us To the Heaven we cannot see. Till we find it mirrored, darlings, In your soul's sweet purity ! • Blight may come upon the harvest. Taint may steal amid the air, But a light of angel brightness ' Gleameth where my darlings are I Love me-and the world is better. Brighter, purer than it seems, Glowing, as the Land of Promise, Haunting Israel's fitful dreams'l May God's blessings on my darlings Fall where'er their footsteps press, Till the summer air rejoiceth With their glee and gladsomeness ! Till the waning skies of even, And morn's tenderer loveliness, Shall bo hallowed with revealings ' Of my dariings' happiness I 40 f TWILIGHT. I asked the hallowed twilight, What made its rays so sweet ; " The pulses of the day," it said, " No longer wildly beat. And the beauty of my smile has grown From noonday's glare and heat." if 'la I asked a grey — pale iuortal, What sanctified his life ; " It's passionate dawn," he answered, " With tumult has been rife, Aad so its twilight calm is born From glare and feverish strife." 41 ^r FALSEI She stands bj her lonely window, And the maze of b - e^olden hair Is streaming, like gldam. , he darkiifesft That closely encircles hei ihere— And ihe stars seem npbtaiding her saclly, As they gaze on th6 snowy breasi, T^t heaves witli an inward strug^le^ With a vague and a wild unrest. She plighted her troth : she has broke it j Her deep vows are sundered for o'et • The darkness shall harbor her Pecret, Her love that is shattered in air : She has bowed to the golden idol j A puppet is hers to adore, A simpering creature of fashion, Tc cherish and love evermore. The breeze with a rippling murmur, Sends music to sweeten the uight. The flowers are charmed in their slumbers, And dream of the morn's golden light I la FALSB. While she hears but a jingling clamor Of waltzes and polkas,— a din That echoes the strife in her bosom, And wakes the regretting within. Again she seems whirled in the ball-room, 'Mid its gaudy glitter and light, And her life looks us false as its tinsel, And dark as the fathomless night ; And cold are the dread stars above h«r, As they gaze on that bosom of snow ! And colder the night winds around hw, Made chill with dark hints of hor woe. Oh, enter thy lonely future, With a heart that is callous and cold, And pass through a show of existence, Surrounded with glare and with gold ; The poet may gather the sunshine, And fold to his heart fairest flowers, But the falseness of life makes the shadows That bring man his oare-laden hovr». 48 p—nr: TT I SUNDOWN IN THE CITY. '» I Murmurous echoes flood the air And dreamily hold their sway, And a dim, pale radiance marks the trail The ebb of receding day. * The lull of human clamor, Surcease of toil and care, Soften to mellow music The din in the frosty air. The wreaths of smoke uneasily curl Amid the hills around. White, as the cloudy track of snow Upon the wintry ground. And earth-bound shadows floating, Sink and cross our way, Like gloomy memories scattered From the slowly-fading day. But far in the wide horizon, A light of amber and gold, A banner of heavenly splendor, To the vision is unrolled. 44 SUNDOWN IN THE CITY. Until the ethereal radiance, Drifting along the sky, Is dimly blent with gauzy cloud| Or faintly pales to die. A chastened, waning light above I A shadowy calm below ! "While the weary throng with silent tramp, Like shadows, come and go. For sun may gild and cloud may dim Our human range of sky, And yet in twilight hues they merge. In twilight calm they die ! Until the star-robed night descends, And, with soft and mute caress. Winds her arms o'er the sorrowing earth With a mother's tenderness I Making the evening hush complete, And the drowsy murmurs cease. So that we thank our God for gloom, That brings us rest and peace I . I 45 mmmm i^ ij ,1 ;i r } WHO CARES? We plod and dream and grieve and sing^. And sow and reap and gather tares, We hoard what seems a priceless thing: It turns out dross—and no one cares. The busy, restless world moves on, Each centered on his own affairs ; Men seem to have a heart of stone For those who fail— for no one cares. We love— the iddl soon grows cold The dearly prized, Time never spares; The skies are streaked with faded gold, * But no one heeds,— and no one cares. Our purest di^eams have something bas6 ; Men's secret motives, no one bares- With shams they seek preferment's platfe, But no one heeds,— for no one cares. ' The sunlight drifts upon our way. We fear the noonday's fervid glares • The scowling Night pursues the day. And leaves us dark— and no one careB. 4» WHO CARES? And every joy, regret doth pale ; Our strong hopes change to wild despairs; Unheard, each pipes his favourite wail, But no one heeds — and no one cares. Our griefs we hide, our gladness feign ; The face of Joy, palo Sorrow wears, And, like a miser, hoards her pain, For no one heeds— and no one cares. BeantMig ^nd fraok, Dishonor stalks And blights pure flowers unawares ; l^ifHtrCringe before him in their walks^^ AiX^ none condemns, — for no one cares. Men crouch and beg and curse and scoff, And onqe a week scan various prayers/r— The serious dream, the vaeant laugh; Bat no one heeds, — and no one cares. And Time relentless hurries forth^ And ruthless Death unheeding bears AD4(}ii<^^ ^^^ memories in the earth t Tha.w^rld waga onn-and< no one owMki ?U U mmFiW ii iiW i I I i UNDER THE MAPLE TREE. Under the maple tree, "With tuneful voice of glee, The choristers near, without tremulous fear, May echo our heart-stirring song, That syllables praise, through the long summer days; - When thy leaf-crested branches, strong Are waving aloft. To the music soft. That we sing to the maplo tree, To the beautiful maple tree. Under the maple tree, That veils thy eyes from me, — would that their lustre might fall and alight- On the heart now beating for thee I — The shadowy gloom, may betoken my doom. And the rustling sound, mocking glee ; A jest or a scoff, A coquettish laugh, That I hear 'neath the maple tree, 'Neath the beautiful maple treo. 48 P UNDER THE MAPLE TREE. Under the maple tree, That spreads its arms for me, I sit in the shade of a calm mossy glade ; And longing for rest, lay me down, Or wondering muse, in the cool evening dewSj Of the buzz of the babbling town — The strife and the din, That steals not within The folds of this dear maple tree, Of this beautiful maple tree. Under the maple tree, With joyful hearts and free, We'll boast in our pride, of our land, far and wide, In glorious, thanksgiving song ; For our hearts are as true as the heavenly blue. As our hopes and our arms are strong. So let old and young, With prayer on each tongue, Praise their God for the maple tree, For the beautiful maple tree. I' I 'li !l 49 ;'J i .. THE TRAVELLER AND THE TREE. (From the Talmud.) I f I : A lonely man once dwelt on earth, Who never seemed to know The daily purpose of his life On this fair earth below ; His cravings had no clear intent, He never owned a friend. And all his veering, dreamy thoughts Had neither aim nor end. In changeful mood, as was his wont, One day he roamed afa», Without a guide to point his steps, Without a beacon star : When lo I at noonday's hour he spied A tall and stately tree With leaf-fringed boughs, that towered high To heaven in majesty ! 50 k ' * THE TEAVELLER AND THE TREE. The perfumed breeze that fanned and lulled Its myriad leaves asleep, Breathed sweetly o'er his moody soul A slumber calm and deep. Upon the dainty grass beneath He closed his weary eyes, And the pure air did waft him dreams Of summer sweets and skies. He woke refreshed and recognized The music of his dream. In nature's jubilant melody That issued from a stream ; He slaked his thirst and blessed the place, Nor felt he then forlorn. For his lone heart rebounded high With gratitude new-born. Then calling on the tree, he said — What blessings more can Heaven Lavish upon a regal tree, To whom all joys are given. Thy blissful life, from grief and care And doubt, is surely free ; The dower of leave^ which decks thy form Is God's fair tracery ! 61 II THE TRAVELLER AND THE T&EE. " For thee a gushing, mturmurons rill Is singing low and sweet, And birds are nestlfng in thy boughs^ And warbling at thy feet : Thou shelter'st many a nest of young Among thy twigs of green, While heaven 'mid thy clustering leaves Pours down a glorious sheen I " Beneath thy shade the weary sit, To rest upon their way, While the soft chorus of thy leaves Wafts fretful care away : The summer hoards its joys for thoe, No winter makes thee cold ; Thy sturdy nature brooks the storm. Defiant, brave and bold I Ji " And every joy that God can bring, Is strewn on thee from Heaven, And all to glad thy peaceful lot. His bounteous hand hath given. One bliss can only yet be thine, richly dowered tree I Upon thy offshoots may He oast The blessings showered on thee." 63 SONG. O darling sister ! pray for me : Thy whispered prayers I need, Thy thoughts of angel p\iri«,y On angel tracks shall speed ; And God thy childish voice may hear, And from His Heavenly throne May scatter hope-like song to cheer^ — Sweet lispings like thine own. darling sister ! pray for me : Thy prayerful love ascends, And, like a seraph's harmony, With earth's rude music blends ; The gatliering host of grovelling cares. By thy pure prayers to-day, Have taken passage unawares And fled in dreams away 1 O darling sister ! pray for me : God hearkens to each word, And angel wings shall waft to thee A melody unheard — A whisper of the Almighty's care, A sweet response from Heaven, An answering tone to every prayer, Sincerely, purely given. S8 w i IH %< |j iln <v iM flKS ^ 11 i y T 111 OLD LETTERg. Don't burn them— they preach love and wisdom. Of life's purest joys they are part j I read loving mem'ries within them, Deeply traced on the scroll of the heart. Don't burn them— the past fades too swiftly, I let these dim treasures remain ; Faint records of life's fleeting moments That the heart yearns to scan o'er a^ain. I gaze at a heart's fond confession, And tears blind my eyes as I read ; It breathes love ! well, well, it don't matter, Some hearts, 'tis ordained, are to bleed. Such letters I'll fold uncomplaining, And lock them away from the sight, The bitterness folded forever, Regrets looked in stillness and night. 64 y ^1;i OLD LETTERS. These lines, touched with Time's shrivell'd fingers, Are yellow and dim, like dead leaves ; Yet the light of remembrance glows o'er them, Like rays that make golden the sheaves. The letters, though blurred, arc not faded, But speak like an old tender strain, That flashes at once, when its music We strive to recall, but in vain ! Don't burn them — they speak mystic wisdom That sermons or lore cannot teach, And from the vague twilight of memory, Deep lessons of comfort they preach : They cling to hard rocks of existence, Like mosses deep rooted for e'er, Made green with the years that pass o'er them, Though sorrow or ruin be there ! If These letters are links that bind closer The heart to the dead, buried years ; * Why scatter in dust and in ashes The relics that memory endears ? Our hopes may not ripen like blossoms, Regrets prove that past joys are vain ; But there's truth in these dumb, agcNd treasures That the heart loves to scan o'er again. M STARLIGHT. ■ \' I ! myriad hosts of stars ! — innumerable As heavenly mercies on a sin-stained earth ; Unchanging as the God who gave ye birth ; Your flashing splendors indescribable As the minutest wonder of His might, Or snow-flakes circling in the stormy air ; Vast as the Infinite One who set ye where Your rndiance is illimitable, — Ye are the jewels of eternity ! Our vision cannot penetrate your rays, For all your dazzling glories dim our sight ; In child-like wondnr we can only gaze, — In reverence cast our narrow glance on ye. And feel our littleness, and God's immensity ! clustered glories in the depths of Heaven, Eternal beacons in a measureless way. The glittering gems upon the brow of even, Crowning the Night with peace and sanctity ! Your everlasting light is but a ray That emanates from God, who sent ye forth Upon your fixed, illimitable path. The mystery of your far-off" ceaseless light, Perchance, has been revealed to angels' sight, Who praise ye in a loud exultant strain. Your great effulgence man doth dimly see ; And yet, ye do not shine on him in vain. If in your endless glow he spells eternity, And reads his being's immortality t 66 1 PYGMALION. :'. I < What fine chisel Oould ever yet cnt breath? ' Winter's Tale. \:i Haunted with one idea, he had no peace. At first a cloudy speck that paced his mind, Until it slowly grew to great dimensions. It close beset him in his wakefulness, It entered in the visions of the night ; Until he reeled and staggered with its weight. At first, a misty shape, as undefinable As racks of storm-cloud in a distant sky ; Then taking form and outline, in his mind It stood revealed, a beautiful conception. Taking a marble block to carve his dream, The sculptor hot with eagerness, — intent To chisel loveliness from callous stone, Frigid as glaciers on the Alpine Hills — His dark eyes flashing forth an inner light Reflected from the vision in his soul. Began the self-imposed and wondrous task. The hot noon glared upon him as he struck The shapeless block, and made deformity, Bough and uncouth, more hideous eeem 67 1 1 ' J I' \ PYGMALION. !i In contrast with the splendor of his thought. The dusty splinters, like a shower of hail, Flew madly round, until the ambient air Trembled with reverberating shocks of sound, Like pine wood crackling 'neath an angry flame. The keen-edged chisel never swerved : ainon The worker paused and stared upon his work — Upon the clefts and fissures of the stone — Like one aroused from blissful dream, who shakes The slumber from his eyes, nor yet perceives The cold reality of wakefulness. i But soon the reaolute purpose nerved his arm, — The arm that never flagged, except it dropped In weariness ; — and when Night trod the earth, And with her dusky splendor folded all, Her sanctity and beauty sent a hush Within the sculptor's soul, imbued his sleep "With lovely shapes, that bore a perfect semblance To what he sought tc carve from shapeless stone. . The busy days, made earnest with his task. And sunned with light of joyful effort. Glided, like dimpled waves upon a sea. And soon there slowly issued from the block A rolling mass of locks, that curled and coiled, Like to a maze of wild and hardy vines — In folds of rich luxuriance ; these the sun Glimmered upon, and made them golden-tinted. Then, wrapt in dream, the sculptor lovingly 58 PYGMALION. Toucht a burnished tress, and in his joy The hue and gloss was real ! — until the chill, Piercing his heart disturbed the fantasy ; Like one, who in the gay and flaunting world With death and awful woe stands face to face, Transfixed aghast in sad and solemn awe, So stood the worker stern and motionless. The real did smite his sweet ideal to dust ; Or else, a thought was thrust upon him then. That human effort, earnest and severe. May prove a bittei failure, or else lack The recompense which vigorous toil should yield. He did not moan complaint, nor fold his hands ' In idleness, desponding listlessly, But fixed his inward gaze upon the end. Upon the full completion of hip aim ; And so his large desire stifled doubt And vivified his almost halting purpose. And when along the east crept the pale Dawn, Dim with a wealth of glory unrevealed, A perfect brow, unsullied, without fleck — Spotless as virgin lilies, when they bloom Alone, upon the margin of a lake. Where soilure cannot mar their purity — Rose from the stone : the calm and majesty Of intellect dwelt in its loftiness. As if it locked within its silent depths Intelligence divine, or wondrous thought Of that fine quality and subtle texture Dowered to woman ; while the waves of hair 59 ■■■■I PTQMALION. ! Clung to the head in graceful fold and curl, \a And wrapt, and nearly hid the clear cat ear Impearled and undulating as a shell. A delicate arch of forehead stamped a grace Upon the chiselled front, that might have heen Fit dwelling-place for aspirations high, — A pure, unconscious seat of lovely hopes, - ' To soar, and chasten all they touch upon. Like one surprised at sudden joyful news, The sculptor gazed, entranced, upon his work ; And blissful consciousness of sure success, The certain progress of a high endeavor. Beautified and warmed with seeming life, The cold resemblance of his marvellous dream. And secret joy, quivering in his heart. And throbbing in his veins, flashed in his eyes ; And all the thrilling tumult bursting forth, With rush impetuous, found a sudden vent In a wild kiss upon the marble brow 1 The short-lived ecstasy in flame expired ; And calmer as he brooded o^er the end. He clutched the chisel with a sense of power ; And soon, the eyes, blank, fixed, yet beautiful, Folded in sleep, as if the perfect hush Of even-tide in summer — when the flowers Drowse in blissful languor — lay upon them, Shadowed his dream : again an aching sense Of tortuous incompleteness in his work, Like a dim gathering portent which disturbSi 60 PTGlIAIJOir» Imbued his mind with vague uneasiness* > The icy blankness of the eyes, like death, Bulled the sweet marvel of their perfect shape^ And cast a baleful shade upon his thought. His doubt soon broadened to a dark distrust ; And so, he fled his task and sought the Nights No fretful scowl disturbed her brow serene. . c, Her darkness veiled the light of countless worlds Boiling in space, in paths illimitable; Her awful gloom revealed sublimity. As if Qod*B ^lory shadowed all the earth ! r>. And so, the solemn dark, invoked a calm Within his soul, and the vague, riotous doubts, Like fading mists that upward roll to Heaven, Were lost in reverential awe and prayer. And soon, a delicate curve of nostril, arched, Defined with subtle sensitiveness to breathe The faintest exhalation of the flowers, And yet, superbly moulded, curved in pride, As if it bore patrician's lofty stamp. Dwelt on the stone. Then slowly rose the mouth, Whose closed lips were richly rounded o£f, And full of pouting, dimpled loveliness. They seemed as if a touch of love might warm Their chilly aspect with the sweets and glow Of rose-buds waking to the breath of June I Or if the gushing trill of summer birds Piercing the fervid air with notes of bliss, Might stir their rigidness in sympathy, ei PTGMAIION. I To pour aloud a maiden's sparkling song. And as, 'tis said, the truest harmony, The elixir of all music — is a sound That issues from the growing forest trees, The mellowed loveliness upon the face, Advancing into absolute perfection, And ripening in the curves upon the chin,. Sent to the sculptor's eager, charmed ear Faint chords of dreamful music -, so he rose And, wonder-stricken, wrapt in ecstasy. Met the dim Twilight braided with a woof Of shadowy splendor, blending with her smile, The passionate blaze of sundown in the sky To a calm haze — which made the stillness sweet. The gaunt and misty sha(fows of the woods. The soft, pale outlines of the slumberous trees, Took new and sweeter aspects from the dream Imaged upon the stone ; and tremulous sounds Of lisping waterfalls were toned with joy ; And the pale Evening bared her gentle heart. And mutely sympathized with human thought, Enfolding deeper calm around his soul. And when the jocund Morning veiled the night. And sat enthroned upon the dome of heaven. To scatter dewy pearls and viewless sweets Upon the awaiting earth : the rounded lines Of blue-capped mountains in etherial skies, Reflecting gracefulness upon his mind. Inspired his dream to mould upon the stone 62 . PYGMALION. The wavy beauty of the regal neck, Superbly and yet delicately arched; The rounded fulness of the ripening breast, Half-hidden 'mid a flow of drapery ; The rich voluptuous outlines of the arms, Which rose and fell in perfect curvatures, Until they tapered to the dainty hands. So finely shaped and exquisitively small That 'twixt their grasp they might have fitly held The unseen odor winging from a flower Before its myriad molecules fill the air ! And as the worker neared his final aim, The dizzy rapture of accomplishment Fired his arm to unremitting toil ; And, like a miser clutching at his hoard. He wrapt his gaze upon the marbled dream, Folding the sweet assurance to his soul Of its reality ; then plodded on With woman's patience of minute detail. And sacred Love, which clothes unslemly shapes With loveliness divine, infused a charm Unutterable upon the limbs unfolding, And glorified and freed the chiselled dream From the thick trammels of the sculptor's thought, Enveloping with angel sanctity. And draping with a fine harmonious grace The image which stood forth achieved, complete, In perfect loveliness of womanhood ! ts -J, FTallALIOH. I ! i! ;, i ' And, as in olden times, unlettered men,— With vague and mystic faith, nndimmed By mazy doubts of creeds, — ^paid reverence To the great source of light, the sculptor knelt With silent awe before the imaged dream, And BO he worshipped, till beneath his gaze It seemed to grow more pure and lovelier. And soon his homage merged to passionate love, Which took a deeper root within his soul, Asserting dominant sway, and making all Subservient to its strange subduing power. And thus, his vision's cold embodiment Sent flames of ardor thrilling to his heart. But when the burden of his mighty love Made him as speechless as the pulseless stone, And drove him to it, in a phrenzied fume. To lock the frigid hands within his own — To seal his lips upon the cold chaste brow ; The icy marble, like a serpent's fangs. Pierced his lone heart with sense of crushing pain ; And when die pallid Dawn encompassed earth. It goaded to despair his racking thought. For the dumb senseless block of loveliness, Which never could impart return of love, Seemed in its aspect to his desolate soul Gold as a murderous thought, or white as Hate Awaking to revenge, and blank as Scorn, If Scorn's unlovely stare could ever last. But when lone Midnight's hush was audible, And beat responsive to the sculptor's heart, 64 PTQMALIOir. A low voice murmured to his troubled soul, Like gentle winds upon a turbid sea : '' The golden sunbeams warmed with heaven's glow, Can never give what Qod can only give ; No passionate look can make the marble breathe ; No human ardor kindles stone to life ; The summer rains and fervid heats, in vain Beat on a desert, sterile waste of sand, Which cannot yield a blade of living green — Man fashions stone, — ^but God bestows the soul. Art coldly smiles, the sprit warmly speaks, And imperfection's taint which clings to man. The mildew on his narrow heart and mind. Mingles with all his deeds and mars their worth, The soul alone imparts their bveliness." And as the murmur blended with his dream The sculptor hungered for the heavenly soul, To make the cold perfection breathe and live. To fill the senseless block with light divine, So that dumb loveliness might speak, and wake To rapturous life ; in vain he breathed his prayer. No blushing warmth of life stole o'er the face, Sweet as the tint U|^)on an apple bloom, Or touched the pouting lips with ruby glow. No lustrous eyes revealed p. tenderness. Or flashed responsive radiance to his love, The marble image stood, a monument Of dead perfection, lovely lovelessness, Devoid of all which gives a human thought An infinite beauty and a charm divine I ! it 06 iHa a» i I" I FALL. III ' 1! ■! I ! :/ I I 1 1' I ' i 6 ' I' 1 11 I hear the sobbing rain, As if the Heavens weep at Autumn's breath ; I see the leaves of SummeT fall again, Their beauty changed in death. The idle wind is still, A spectral vapour haunts the barren earth ; Upon our teeming joys there oomes a chill — The chill of Winter's dearth. What if the tinted woods With outward loveliness are gay and fabr, As if around them blushing Summer broods, Yearning to linger there t What if their beauteousness At death's cold touch is strangely glorified ? Th&ir leaves will crumble soon to nothingness, Or else be swept aside. ) I FALL. Their change is iype of all, The hectic loveliness forbodes decay, Steeped with a dying glow befoxe they fall To mingle with the day. All that we love and prize, Ghangeth like leaves npon our toilsome way ; Man's hoarded wealth, but dust before his eyes. Passing, like life, away. leaves and blossoms, fall I An after-life shall rise fit>m out the gloom ; The Autumn mists are but the outward pall, That hides perennial bloom. children of decay 1 Swept by the blast and trodden by the rain, Thy scattered dust shall eloquently say. That naught will fall in vain. I, ill I m ^i t\ m m ■*%»«- ill ! 1 THANKSGIVING. 0) lei us, while the Almighty showen His full rich store of gifts on earth, While plenteous blessings all are ours, A choral hymn of praise pour forth— J^ wide diffusing harmony, The music of our heartfelt prayers, That softly may ascend to Thee, God of our joys, and griefs, and cares t We glean the harvest we have sown, A golden and abundant store ; Hopes long since planted Thou didst oxowR With joy ; we never sought for more. Gratefal, we each may lowly bow. While all the sweetness of the year Seems mellowing in the sunlight glow, That softly gushes far and near. 68 THANKSGIVING. We have not delved nor toiled in vain, For labor's golden fruits are ours ; And God has blest the summer rain, And sanctified the summer hours. For every ray that kissed the earth, Divinely passed amid the corn, And every bird that carolled forth. Sang of the joys that would be born. Glad sounds shall mingle with the air Of autumn ; while the ohangefril hours Shall waft abroad each fervent prayer, Pure as the breath of summer flowers ! And all the hopeful-hearted throng, And weary-laden hearts who grieve, As if inspired with heavenly song, A joy^l hymn of thanks shall weave. m 69 5I „ r KATIE. They say tliat war is raging In a far distant land, But can I think of combats, When Katie takes my hand ? do not speak of bloodshed, Or fields of victory, How can I muse of battles won, When £[atie conquers me. tell me not of triumphs, Nor any glorious deed ; For if sweet .Katie knew the cost, Her tender heart would bleed. The autumn winds blow sad and chill, The earth is cold and drear ; But Katie's guileless soul is warm And joyous all the year. VO EAUE. The world may frown upon me, And care may make me sad ; But should I heed cold glances, When Katie's looks are glad. The withered, palsied leaflets, Tossed by the wind and sleet, Might warm to life again, whene'er They fall at Katie's feet I The trembling, winsome flowers. Are withered by the chill. But Katie smiles upon them, And they are lovely still ! For Katie's laugh is music. And Katie's eyes are light ; And Katie's looks pursue me, To sanctify my night. i n i k UNDER THE TREES. Hither, jaded mortal, Restless and ill at ease. Come where the voice of nature Whispers love and peace ! Where streaks of golden sunlight Illumtne a shade of leaves. Like flashes of hope in the eyes Of one who pines and grieves. Hasto in the wealth of shadow, Made by the drooping trees ; And your parched heart shall drink a joy In the sweets of each passing breeze. Look, how the flecks of white-winged cloud Flit and float and part, Pure as a changing dream In a young child's sinless heart I 72 tJNDER THE TREES. The insects whir in their innocent sport ! The birds exult on the wing I It seems a world of joy and love For every sentient thing I I hear a flutter in the air, — A throb of bliss around In every stir the leaflets make, — In every buzzing sound. And like an answering echo, A low voice creeps along, A cadence and a symphony^ In the jovial brooklet's song. Haste, wild-bird on the wing, And chaunt a hymn to God ! To charm the idle dreams of man Upon the summer sod ! And the shade of the dusky woodland Shall sweeten our toil-worn days. While grateful nature whispers Eloquent love and praise 1 73 LIGHT FOR CANADA'S SAGES I [Written after the Toronto judges had decided to return Anderson the slave, who sought the protection of Canada.] I Light for Canada's sages, Truth for the hoary wise, Wisdom for doubting judges. Who read with jaundiced eyes An eternal law before them,— A statute that never can change That holds men free on this ample earth. Where'er they may chance to range I ' Come from your dusty chambers, Ye who interpret the laws, Unloose the bonds that fetter the heart To slavery's blood-stained cause ; For a people's voice, like a tempest, Shall drown your feeble speech : The fiat uttered for freedom's sake. No judge can ever impeach. 74 LIGHT FOR CANADA'S SAaSS! The olank of tlie negro's fetters, The snap of the brutal thong, Shall waken the heart to justice, For slavery's curse and wrong. A freeman claimed your protection ; Will you send him back a slave ? That a hellish crew may gloat o'er ills corse Consigned to a felon's grave ! Are we part of the pack of bloodhounds To track with rifle and knife ? To read in statutes a meaning To yield up a brother's life? Our life and freedom united Are given by God to defend At every cost and hazard, — To guard and preserve to the end. There are laws in every bosom. That can never change or die. As wide as the dome of heaven. As fixed as the stars on high ; A sense of eternal justice, A law of eternal right. That shall send forth free the man that is wronged By the dust, in the sages' sight. 75 i,^J!i»iji!B^)yiii 1 SONG. we're a jolly, faithful band Of comrades true and tried, Who've cruised by many a rocky strard, And stemmed the storm and tide. Our hearts are staunch, our spirits bold, We've toiled with main and might. And never bartered Faith for Gold, ' But clung to Truth and Right. nm O'er many a sea we swept along, Within the self-same boat, And in the face of tempests strong We ever made it float; For one fixed purpose swayed our oars, And so we cleaved our way, Until we reached the welcome shores Of proud Success to-day. 7^ i SONG. Deceit has never bowed the head, In search of honors vain ; We never fawned to earn our bread, Nor cringed our souls for gain : 111 luck has never chilled our blood. Nor quenched Hope's ruddy light, But we have toiled for future good. With all our manhood's might. And this is why we laugh at care And live a blissful life, For naught can e'er our strength impair, Nor in our hearts sow strife. Then, comrades, let us pledge once more, Uniting heart and hand, So that our fame may live in lore. May echo through the land. n aaK=: ADA. When the purple skies of evening Oast their shadows on the ground, And the solemn air of twilight Pr^nant seems with mystic sound, Childlike Ada, sad and thoughtful, With her dusky eyes bent down, By the window-ledge sits dreaming Sunny visions, all her own. Shadows flit across her chamber. Hover lightly on the wall, Till they tremble at her presence. And then vanish one and all ; While around her rose lips playing, Lightly wander with her dreams, Placid smiles of soul-lit sweetness. Softer than the twilight gleams I U ' ADA. Myriads pass her where she sitteth, Murm'rings fill the dreamy air, Bat she heeds no sound nor footfall, For her thoughts are otherwhere; And the prelude of far music, Wafted from the angels' home, . Mingles with her twilight visions, Speedeth where her fancies roam. But when twilight sinks and dieth, And stars throh in heaven's deep, And the shroud of night in falling Wraps the earth in death-like sleep, Ada's dreamings are unfolded. And, with God's own seraph throng, Angel Ada lives the visions That on earth she dreamt so long. And whene'er the twilight hastens. Lulling weariness to calm, Stealing through my earth-bom musings. Like a mandragora balm, Ohild-like Ada, thoughtful, dreamy. With her dusky eyes bent down. From her home amid the seraphs Tints each vision with her own. 70 mi. Im I Mi & * THE FISHERMAN'S WATCH. i! ' The wild sea frets and fumes, and foams Along the dreary shore, Beating the callous granite ledge Witli restless, ^tful roar ; The air is filled with the scudding spray, And the ocean's mourafui song ; And a fisherman sings a careless tune, As he slowly steps along. J i r. His hair is white as the crested foam, His eyes, like tue waves, are blue r, His face is f-eamed with the stornxf of life, But his heart is blithe and true. He worships God in Lis honest wa;-, A.nd loves the boisterous sea, And his two bold aoim, whose sturdy heHrts, Like the tides, are bold and free. III V ! 80 THE fisherman's WATCH. In their lightsome skiflf they brave the storm, Beneath the wrathful skies, Or ride the blue deceitful calm, Before the storm-clouds rise ; Or gaily skim the dimpled tide Of the treacherous, smiling sea, Till the flapping waves seem to laugh aloud And echo the young men's glee. Those sturdy sons are the fisher's pride. Their love, his stafi" in life, Rich with a sailor's wondrous lore Of sea-born danger and strife ; And often around the cheery hearth He spins in the hush of night The tale, recounted a thousand times. With a new and quaint delight. And when the sunset fuses the sea "With magic tinted rays, And the waves grow sad in the evening lif^ht That melts in shadowy haze, The old man tiitn on the beetled crac And watches the solemn sea, For the dim approach of his sons' return To hail their boat with glee. H ■■■■■■■ mt THE fisherman's WATCH. [ And ofb he marked the changeful waves, Remorseless, roll and roll, Till they seemed an awful mystery, That troubled his weary soul ; But once he watched— till the darkness shot The sea, like a terrible doom, And his anxious eyes peered forth in vain Thro' the drenching mist and gloom : 1; Till the star-light mocked his pitiful gaze, And the morn broke sad and gray, And the ominous sea bore no joyful boat On her welcome, homeward way f And with direful fear in his heart he crept To his post on the cliff again. But the wild'ring waves did not solve his doubts, As he waited and watched in vain. ill And when the awful truth was known That the skiff had foundered at sea. With a vacant laugh the fisherman said, " They are coming back to me." And still when the sundown dimmed the earth, He'd look from the callous steep For his sons' return from the shadowy main, From the calm, deceitful deep. , u THE fisherman's WATCH. And thro' long days and weeks and years That marked their course for him, The old man sought the desolate crag And watched till his eyes were dim ; And the saddened waves sang their mournful song To his heedless ears in vain, That the merry boat with his stalwart sons Would never return again. Till once — when the sea was lit with smiles And in tranquil spirit lay, And the waves rejoiced in the summer calm, In the peaceful summer day — A placid smile shone over his lips, As with rapturous voice he cried, "I see them now — they have come at last!" Then seeming to hail them — died. And still the wild sea foams and frets, And beats the rock-ribbed shore. And sends to Heaven despairing cries, Or moans with sullen roar ; And when the dead mists clasp the earth;, 'Tis said, in the gloom and chill, A vapory figure peers from the cliff, | Who waits for his two sons still. •8 MERCHANDIZE. She moves with a swan-like tread, elate, A woman of beautiful mien, And low at her feet, where she rules in state, A host of lovers is seen, Where they sue and kneel and patiently wait . For a smile from this peerless queen. Her braided hair forms a diadem, Yellow as sheaves of corn, Woven with many a glimmering gem, Whose light is cold as her scorn. When her lovers would kiss her garment's hem And she sends them away forlorn. There are smiles and frowns in her beautiful eyes, Changeful, as April days ; Her words arc meaningless melodies, Whose sweetness never stays ; And there's soft deceit in licr low replies To her lovers' vacuous praise. 84 MERCHANDIZE. The glittering spars of the frozen North, Which no sun can ever warm, Appear in her looks, when she wanders forth To dazzle and lure— and charm, Or when she assumes a glance of wrath, In her pitiless smile, so calm. Her father owns ships and cargoes and gold. And he lives for iha world and gain, His firm, his wine, and his heart are old, And he's king in his narrow domain. Where Fashion and Pride, burnished and cold. In formal magnificence reign. But the richest treasure he owns of all, As proud as an eastern queen. Is the glistening jewel the dealers call, A woman of beautiful mien, When low at her feet, her lovers fall Enslaved by her smile serene. /'id numerous lovers throng in the ninrt. Where the sale <.f this beauty takes piaeo, The first is poor, with a passionate heart, Another of noble rjiee, A third is a fop who (Ivchwr witii art, WilU a vapid, vacuous i'aco. 85 MERCHANDIZE. But the generous one, whose bid is high, A monstrous sum to repeat, Is a padded shape with a fishy eye, Bedecked from his head to his feet. Whose whiskers are curled with exquisite dye, "^hose lisp is foreign and sweet. I If; His wrinkled face, and his crabbed heart, And his slow, unsteady gait He tries to hide with wonderful art, When he simpers and smiles elate On the queen he buys in the marriage mart, Where she rules his soul, in state. There's a blaze of light in the festal halls, A glitter of dazzling charms, A flowing of lace, and a flutter of shawls, • O'er a thousand dimpled arms, And a whirl of mazy music that falls O'er the flowers' exotic balms. And hosts of numerous satin-clad feet To the sensuous music glide, And voices low are whispering sweet The name of the beautiful bride, Which the hollow night-winds seem to repeat In a mocking tone outside I 86 MBRCHANl)IZB. The pallid morn breaks cold and gray, And the stars wane one by one ; The gaud and glitter have passed away, And the hollow revel 's done ; ^is the close of the sale of yesterday, When a woman by gold was won. Ensnared by a smile, by a yellow tress. You can buy that loveless smile ; Bewitched by a glance from loveliness. You can buy that glance of guile, And a show of love and tenderness To last a very brief while. Who prates of slaves being bought and sold,- Of evils we cannot stay ? When a sordid lust for the tempter Gold Rules a father's heart to-day, And Love, grown a shadow pale and cold, From his world has passed away I , 87 ■in SPIRITUS SANCTUS. 1 Hi Though wc tread o'er different pathways in our pilgrimage on earth, 'Tis the same sun lights us onward in our drear and toil- some path, But I know the road is brighter, And I feel the air is lighter, Since the rays of thy dear presence beamed a little while on me. Though a cruel, relentless fortune builds a wall to part us twain, I shall scale it in my fancy just to win a smile again. And bless the gentle giver For the joy that haunts me ever : 'Tis the light of thy dear presence that has beamed awhile on me. All the fleeting hopes and fancies that take root within my breast. May perchance spring forth to flowers of the brightest and , the best, For their sweetness is o'erladen With the memories of a maiden, 'Tis the light of thy dear presence that has beamed awhile on me. 88 BPIRITUS SANCTUS. ! I have raised a fairy structure deep within my lonely heart, And its glory and its beauty, and its marvel and its art, Is the charm that o'er it reigneth, And the light that never waneth : 'Tis the sun of thy dear presence that has beamed awhile on me. Let the years flow on in silence, and the summers heedl6ss, fly, They are hallowed with remembrance that can never fade or die, Let them glide however fleetly, They shall whisper ever sweetly. Of the light of thy dear presence that has beamed awhile on me. All the stars that throb in heaven, shall not glow in vain on mo, If their dark mysterious beauty but reveal a thought of thee ; Let them glow and glitter nightly They can never shine so brightly As the light of thy dear presence that has beamed awhile on me. In the prayer I lowly utter in the quietude of night. There shall come an ardent Avish, that all my words may wing their flight. With nought on earth to cloud them, When a sanctity does shroud them. In the I" ;ht of thy pure presence that does beam awhile on me. 89 'Ui M POOR. 4 Her childish face, tanned by the summer^s sun, With waves of chestnut hair, In circlets wreathed around her brow — An artless, timid one, Her eyelids drooping low, Came softly to me, unaware 1 Her eyes were liquid orbs of light, Brimming with love-rays chastely bright f They seemed to me As if enchanting melody. Wafted thro' realms of space, Had found a home apart From* callous air — where rudely tost, The harmony would surely have been lost — And in their depths had found a resting-place, For every look she gave was music tc my heart I To her the flowers might have bequeathed Their garb of beauty in the morn. When with the dew-drops wreathed. And felt the happier for their boon ! The roaming breeze that stirs the clouds above In sultry noon, 0, surely, might have sighed disconsolate for her love. •0 POOR. An air of povert}?' Clung round this artless child ; Her vestments, homely spun, were coarse and plain ; She seemed to me A mountain flow'ret wild. Whom nature had made beautiful, a debt she owed To the dense forests round the child's domain — A cot of maple wood. Glide past me, sweet one, with thy airy tread I A calm, etherial sense of happiness Has fallen where thy steps have sped ; The air is resonant with a sweet sound, That, welling from thy guileless heart, Reveals its tenderness ; And earnest thoughts of good abound Within my breast. That of thy being are a p ' That breathe upon my tu I spirit rest. lil dt IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) :a ^^ o 1.0 I.I 1.25 1.4 2.5 2.0 1.6 Hiotographic ^Sciences Corporation 33 Wr . MAIN STRUT Wirdll.N.Y. MS80 '/16) •7tl.4S03 y4i^ && ^ \ «■ <^ I LOVE YOU. I love you, and my yearning heart Is burdened with this love of mine, A burning sense that lives apart, Which sacred verse can ne'er define. Not coral lips, nor azure eyes That droop like blue bells soft and low, Nor cheeks whose bloom is like the skies That woo the evening with their glow. Nor the dark streamings of each tress Toucht with a tender, golden light, Nor all thy drooping loveliness, Like pendant lilies in the night. But the pure soul that underlies. Thy outward garb of matchless grace, A beauty like the silvered skies. Reflected in my heart's blank place. Like brooks that cleave the mountain ways, And purl a melody their own. My love along a leafy maze Of wildoring thought, has wildly flown. I falter in my rapturous song, That lightly wanders forth to roam. Until from out the idle throng It socks thy heart, — it's destined home. 02 i A TRIBUTE. J On Monday a Qneen's messenger brought from Osborne to Winda&r three little wreaths and a bouquet. The wreaths were simple chaplets of s\088 and violets, wreathed by the three elder rrincesses— the bouquet of Tiolots, with a white camelia in the centre, was sent by the widowed Queen. Between the heraldic insignia those last tributes from his widoTr and orphan daughters were laid upon the coffin — mcnicutot of domestic love and worth above all heraldry that ever was emblazoned.— Xondon Tivie$, Shine, Heaven-eyed flowers I To light the darksome gloom, From her — the fondest token To deck a husband's tomb — Pure and bright as Heaven, Frail and sad as earth, A sacred, loving tribute To nobleness of Worth. Shine, pale, meek-eyed flowers I In hues like azure skies. And glad the blazoned cofiin, While England mourns and sighs— A Queen the wreaths has woven. In tears, in woe, in gloom. And lasting Love has twined them, To sanctify his tomb. Shine, Heaven-eyed flowers I Above the pomp and show, That mock with garish splendor, Trappings of dc !i and woe. Emblem of bloom eternal, Ye lie upon the sod. From mortal woe and sorrow To raise our souls to God I 93 DRINK; ^ I There's a sound of woe in the cheerless street, And a shriek in the midnight air, For a drunken sot is reeling along, In the gathering darkness there ; And I hear the meaningless words that come From the depths of his heart's despair ; 'Tlj a moan for drink, — For he'll drink and drink. Till the earth seems to reel and swim — Till his hope in God and his trust in man Are lost in his pitiless cries — Till he loathes his life, and so loathing, dies, And all fbr the sake of drink I He cries not for aid from a merciful God, He craves not a pittance of hread^ But shrieks for drink to the hollow winds. That echo his totlering tread ; And his fleshless bones clasp the ,ooId, dumb stones, That serve for his pillow and bed, — For he'll drink and drink Till his eyes are dim — Till his senses ache with pain, — For his trust in God and his faith in man He'll never on earth regain, While he hates the sight of both day and night For the sake of the demon drink I H 1 DRINK. , Has he sipped the cup of a direful doom 7 Has care made him grovel low ? Has penury cankered his youthful hopes, Or darkened their rainbow glow ? Has Heaven deserted this homeless man Whose words s^'em the gasping of woe ? Tis the poison urink That maddens the brain — That has made his bosom a hell, While a drunkard's gloom, like a fearful doom In his heart and home does dwell, Where fell disease and famine have sped, — And all for the sake of drink ! Raise him from where he crouches and creeps On the slime and mud at his feet,— Bear him where blessings shall scatter in night, The curses his lips would repeat ; Baise him, — but banish the maddening cup— The curse of the home and street, — And wage a war with the demon drink, The tempter to crime below. That makes a hell of the purest dell, Where flowers might bloom and grow, — That surely gives birth on this beautiful earth To the direst sin and woe. U LOST. II I r A bird warbled forth in the summer air, And its accents floated everywhere, Till a poet caught a wandering strain, And sung it in verse to the world in vain. A maiden carolled a human song. And the summer zephyrs bore it along To her lover's heart, where it died away, For he would not heed the beautiful lay. t !i A rose had scattered its breath around — A summer sweet without voice or sound 1 But a child once plucked it in all its pride, And the fainting flower wilted and died. For who can repeat the song of the bird ? And hearts may be dead to the tuneful word j And the sweetest charm of a summer's day, From our yearning love may be reft away. 96 TO THE MEMORY OP LADY MOlfTEFlOfiE. o>^n O'Nijjj onn>Da o^tjiix " The pious in their death are called living." Dear as a mother's earliest words of love Blessing the chequered lapse of shaded years, So lives thy memory in Israel's heart. The sacredness of grief doth hush our plaint, A mist of tears doth check love's utterance-l The reverential love of all thy creed. Thou can'st not die, thy goodness lives on earth As thy immortal spirit dwells in Heaven : ' For as God blessed thee, so thy life brought blessings. cherished mother of an outcast race, Yet favoured children of the Almighty's love- Fond helpmate of a true-born, loyal knight Loyal to Otod and holy works of love And to the purest, noblest charity. For thou wert one with him, his deeds were tUno • The peril and the glory thou didst share. Truest of friends and wisest counsellor, Dearest of friends and sweetest comforter, Cheering the knightly pilgrim, as he trod The dusty pathway to Moriah's Mount, And Siloah's brook and Zion's sacred hill Where mouldering monuments can't hide in dust J 9T ^^^^ HH TO THE MEMORY OF LAPT MONTEHORB. The mighty hopes of Judah's destinies — Not to erect a toppling dynasty, Nor empire in dread, reeking ways of blood, Instead, to give the outcast Jew a home. And scatter bounty, as God scatters winds In spring, to swell the quickened buds with life. If aught can crown his days with greater joy, Than highest effort blessed with rich fruition, Or thick, warm memories of grateful hearts, Or yfide-world homage of a thankful race. Or the pure pearl of knighthood, England's dower, 'Tis the glad thought, that a twin kindred soul, Given by God to sanctify his life. With woman's gentleness and purity. Wast still His fairest, sweetest gift on earth. So now, when God with truest, infinite love. Has gently taken thee from earthly eyes, And made thy life below complete on high, The memory of thy days, so rich in good. Thy deeds not blazoned forth in golden words. But traced in brightness by the Almighty's hand, Shall calm the anguish of his widowed heart. And free our human grief from dross of tears, And elevate with spiritual thought, our minds, And touch us with a tenderness and love. Imbuing all our hearts to live like thee ; So that the lesser compass of our lives, And narrower scope of all our dreams and aimSj May borrow a faint loveliness from thine I ft8 AN AUTUMN IDYL. Like hosts of faded joys, the withered leaves Are whirled aloft by the remorseless winds • And, like the fruitless plans of youth, they 'lie Trampled beneath the iron heel of Time • And yet a brightness tints their palsied forms That vivifies the cold pale face of death. And the wild rain that beats upon the earth,. Has lost its wonted music ; for the breath Of coming winter stealing thro' its tones, Has rent asunder all its harmony. When lol the sights and sounds of autumn die And like the silver breaking in a storm, ' There springs a light within my inner soul,— A gentle presence flitting tbro' its chambers j Her eyes— like deepest wells revealing stars-1 Are darkly eloquent with lustrous .thought, That springs from the deep fountains of her soul • I gaze upon them, and the troublous clouds ' That bridge the horizon, seem to fade away! And the drear winds, enamored of her voice H AN AUTUMN IDYL. Are lulled to silence ! And the morn's pale light, — Cold as the heartless smile of frigid Scorn — Is still a summer sunlight when she comes ! Her looks have meanings holier than the stars,— Upon the arid heart alight her words. Soft as a vernal air in dreary March. In vain the clamorous winds pursue their course, And chase the crumpled leaflets everywhere, As purposeless as youth pursues its dreams : In vain the rugged trees uplift their sxms — Bare, as the stricken heart bereft of hope — And seem to look to heaven for light and strength, To brave the snows and blasts and chills of winter; In vain mists steal tbroad, and shadows lurk Upon the barren hills and naked fields. I look upon this type of womanhood. This human soul shrined in a gentle guise, And nature's changes seem a passing dream. And death a spectral phantom of the brain. And all the sadness of the autumn days The feeling of a morbid fantasy. 100 FLOWERS, When the Almighty's hand would bring Bright hues of Heaven nigh to earth, He spoke, and lo ! the Dawn beheld The miracle of the flowers' birth ! And so His myriad-tinted rays Decked their frail forms with varied dress, Until this world, like sunset skies, Glowed with their light of loveliness ! Grateful, they seemed to gaze above, While every passing breath of air Stirred them, until from out their hearts Came fragrant incense, like a prayer I And when at night th' inconstant moon. Made every petal dimly bright. The dew-drops glistening on their leaves, Seemed like pure tearlets of delight And so, I've watched their opening buds Expanding sacred tints, like heaven. Or bathed with sunsets virgin gold, Their dainty lids have closed at even, Until I never knew a flower That did not seem with pretty wile, Striving to keep me in its power. As if to charm me with its rmile I 101 A SEARCH FOR SPRING. In the dewy breath of the passionate breeze, In the twitter of early melodies, In the bounding pulses of fern and tree, Quickened to new-born ecstasy I In the soft, young grass upon the sod, In the flower that oped its eyes to God I I sought the joy of Spring. As the warm, sweet winds rushed over the earth, And bloom and beauty and song had birth, And leaves struggled forth in the light of mom, Like a child's glad hopes in their primal dawn, And the hearts of the buds throbbed with waking bliss At the touch of the sunlight's burning kiss I I felt the joy of Spring. But the odorous gales changed to sultry air, And the balm was lost in the summer glare. O'er nature's expanse crept a laziness, And a leaden calm grew from throbbing bliss ; And Autumn scattered decay and blight, . And in the chill of the winter's night, Host the joy of Spring. 102 A SEARCH FOR SPRDfa. But far from the smiles of nature ; apart In the secret depths of the human heart, Were bloom and beauty that have no death, And change not with Time's corroding breath ; In blossoms of Truth— pure buds of Heaven^ Tho* marred with error and weeds and leaven, I see the joy of Spring, In the grandeur of soul that makes man divine, The light of Spring seems ever to shine ; In the beauty of goodness exalting our life, In the perfect faith that is born of strife, In hopes that are brighter than vernal flowers, Whose sweetness gladdens life's common hours, I know the joy of Spring. 103 ■■ rv \- THE CHILD OF THE LAKE. (A Legend of St. Hilaire, C. E. ) The rich and fragrant summer Lingering as it passed away, Flooded with myriad dyes, A glory o'er the skies. And from its death, the sunset rose, That beautified the earth's repose. And wrapt with tender grace Dii. b Nature's speaking face. The shaggy hills their summits bent, And soemed to touch the firmament ; Solemn and dark they stood, As o'er man's fate to brood. And rosy clouds in seeming sleep, Floated af-^" in heaven's deep. The day's last, sweetest bloom. Fading away in gloom. And from the breathless hush around, There issued forth a tremulous sound, "Which, quivering thro' the air. Made dulcet music there. 104 THE CHILD OP THE LAKE. Lapping the pebbles o'er and o'er, A lake's sofb wavelets kissed the shore, Or in the twilight's ray, In dimples sped away. A beauty dwelt upon its face, A dreamy hush, an angel grace ; And like a child's pure prayer, Its lispings filled tlie air. And o'er its sparkling, limpid tide, The spirit of love did seem to glide, The sinless love that lies In Childhood's guileless eyes. And mountains proud with hoariness Girdled its placid loveliness, And seemed to guard its calm From every earthly harm. For once — so ran the curious tale — There dwelt and roved within its pale, A being of love and light, A gentle water sprite, Whose gossamer wings would sweep the spray, y And meet t'le sunbeams in their play, Until her path did seem A track of golden gleam. 106 • tm THE CHILD OP THE LAKE. Or else the incense of the morn, Tossed on her yellcw looks, was bom To mingle o'er her path, With wanton yfinds of earth. And oft when shadows dimly crept, Couched in a lily's loaves she slept, Hiding in many a fold Her gossamer wings of gold. And with their music weirdly soft, The ripples wooed her oft' and oft'. Till faint with song, one day She wandered from their play ; And rambled to a moss-clad bower, Then poising on a wilding flower. In slumber near its side, The water sprite espied A fair and sinless human child, By light and fragrance there beguiled. Lulled by the wind's warm kiss, Tj a sweet dreamful bliss. And as her pure breath came and went, Upon the sleeping innocent, The sprite in strange surprise. Fixed its astounded eyes. 106 THE CHILD OF THE LAKE. And marvelled, at the brow so white, Like purest lilies seen at night, And at the dimpled face, Imbued with winsome grace,— Till wonder changed to love and awe ; For never in those haunts before, Had fay been so beguiled By any human child. For every tinted, marvellous flower. Seemed to have centred its sweet power, The marvel of its dress, Upon her beauteousness. The peaceful clouds that lightly skim In quiet joy, the heaven's rim, Seemed to have touched her face With all their calm and ^raoe. And as she slept, a blissful dream, Befieoting sweetness in a gleam, Cast a pure sunny smile Upon her lips awhile. Until the beauty of the sprite Blent with the vision of delight, And woke the child, who gazed In bashful awe, amazed. 107 igpHHii ■■ THE CHILD OF THE LAKE. And then a brightness wrapt her face, Dowered with childhood's chastened grace, As from the awakened child, The soul dawned forth and smiled, As only children's sonls can smile, Free from all sin and taiut and guile. The smile which angels love To glance at from above 1 But the wild naiad ever gay, Saddened at what she could not say. With mingled joy and pain, Glanced at the child again. Like shadows o'er the summer grass, She knew that all that blooms must pass And fade and change in death, Fleeter than summer's breath : That heaven-bom suns and earth-bom flowers, Have all their appointed times and hours, That in wide nature's range Is never-ending change. But nought in nature ever smiled Like the pure visage of the child, For tints of sky and flower Seemed to have been her dower. 108 THE CHILD OF THE LAKE. And when the naiad sped the glade, The pure child's lisping carol made, A sweeter harmony Than the lake's melody. And oft the fay in dreamy mood, Wandering from the lake and wood, In a deep, slumberous dell Felt the sweet mortal's spell. The joyless flowers felt and knew Wherefore and whence her footsteps flew, And in a drowse of pain Her absence mourned in vain. For all her care and love were spent Upon the winsome innocent, ' A silent love, not shown, And to the child unknown. Like the warm influence of the spring. Which thrills to life each sentient thing. So beamed the love and light Of the glad water sprite. Until one peaceful summer's eve. When listless winds faint carols yrwn Along the lakelet's side, Kuffling its placid tide. 109 THE CHILD OF THE LAKE. ; I i A sudden void imbued the air, And wilding flowers scattered there, As if with pain or woe, Their stricken heads bent low. And the gay sprite felt ill at ease, As winds rushed vaguely thro' the trees, As if they searched the place To kiss a childish face 1 And when the dull, despairing hours Left their blank impress on the flowers, And o'er the gloaming light ' Trod the dark, lowering Night ; A dim foreboding, flxed, intense, A lurid void, an aching sense, Transfixed a baneful blight Upon the water sprite. Until the fearftil truth was known. That pitiless, ruthless Change had flown, That Death had hovered forth To snatch the child from earth. And then the naiad softly grieved And lowly in her sorrow weaved, A ceaseless, doleful song, Where'er she sped along. no , THE CHILD OP THE LAKE. Knowing that life from death doth spring In nature — that each sentient thing Breathing its little day, Doth blossom from decay ; That nought on earth doth die in vain, That flowers fade to bloom again, That nature's joys appear With each returning year. The naiad mourned the darling child, Whose beauty had her hours beguiled, Whose happy life did seem A lovely, transient dream. The sobbing lakelet lashed the shore, And said the child will come no more And the wild streamlet's roar Echoed forevermore. And sadder shadows through the dell Upon the naiad softly fell, Until a mazy sleep Upon her eyes did creep. And as she dozed, a dreamy lull, Chajitened, and soft and beautiful In the pure twilight's smile, Hovered around awhile. I I 111 THE CHILD OF THE LAKE. And o'er the eilenoe of the place, A lovelier aspect she could trace. And the pure lakelet's Ude, Seemed strangely glorified I Lit with a new and wondrous charm, With solemn, peaceful, infinite calm. Nor guessed the sleeping sprite Whence rose the Heavenly sight. And o'er the quiet sanctity, Clad in spiritual purity, An angel form of light Dazzled tic sleeping sprite. And lo ! the soul on earth concealed In God's pure angel stood revealed. And the bright seraph child Again looked forth and smiled I Freed from the fetters of decay. Her presence glimmered, as a ray Of immortality. And Heaven's purity I And then vision passed away, And calmer shone the summer's day Serener and more clear Upon the lakelet near. • i I • • 112 THE CHILI> OF 'i3E LAKE, And still upon the wavelet's face, There seems to dwell an angel graoe, And like a child'is pure prayer, Its lispings marmnr there I And o'er the beauty of its tide The spirit of Love still seems to glide, The Heavenly love that lies In childhood's angel guise. 113 I UNSPOKEN. r ^ ,1 i ! Unresting as the sea, When wrathful storms are raging o'er its breast, Dark, troublous waves of thought that find no rest, Are sweeping over me. In the soul's inner shrine, Within the outward vesture of my frame. There burn consuming fires which yield no flame Which no one may divine. An agony intense, Which finds no utterance in human speech, Pervades my being, far beyond the reach Or range of human sense. And broken strains of woe. Over my spirit chords strike and rebound. And break in a strange dissonance of sound. Which none may hear below. Love's rapturous agony ^ Which cannot find response, God, is mine. But none can ever perfectly divine Its strength and piirity. 114 t ' UNSPOKEN. / --^ The secrets of the brain Th' Almighty reads, unerring from above ; But thou on earth can'st pierce the mighty love Cast forth on thee in vain. O pity me from where Thou may'st not love but only sympathize, Look on my woe, with thy sweet starry eyes, In thought, in dream, in prayer. Thy answering voice may reach, And cast a calm upon my misery. Like gentle words which sooth th' unresting sea, And still its turbulent speech* 118 r t A SUMMEE'S DAY. It rose upon the shadoTry earth, Imbued with light and melody ; In gorgeous pride it hovered forth To touch the soul with ecstasy ! Its fervid strength, its marvellous grace, The rich, full sweetness of its love, The lowly heart could dimly trace Shadowed below, mirrored above. As in the deepening gulfs of blue, Or in the knolls of grassy sod. Beyond, beneath, he felt and knew The wonders of eternal God 1 The .ceaseless whir of jubilant life, The wind that rustled through the grain, Seemed lispings in a happy strife To worship where His love doth reign 1 The fretted sunbeams smile and sleep And touch bare clefts of rock with light, Nigh where dun shadows crouch and creep, Moveless and dark, as stilly night. 116 A summer's DAT. And, olad in wild, Inzoriant charms, In dark and solemn majesty, The mountain peaka nplift their arms, Unshaken as the eternal sky I And a wild, vagrant fo^aning stream, Pours its thick murmurs far and wide. Like far-off voices, when they seem . ,So vaguely 3weet at eventide. Nigh to a lake, whose calm and grace, And hush and darksome peacefulness, Is like a tearful happy face, Sad, with excess of speechless bliss. And as the Summer day doth shake Its light and hloom and sweets abroad, Its glory Nature seems to take Among the summer hills of God 1 And as it wanes in dazzling dress, And.on the earth dim splendors throws. The shadow of its beauteousness Both sanctify its radiant close. i ■ 111 li \ A HERO. (Captain Stoddturti who lost his life in saving Ilres on tho wreck of the Anglo-Saxon.) I II i , I The sea seems Bungering for its prey, The sky is stark and cold, But duty shirks not danger's way. And death can't fright the bold : The shivering planks are breaking fast. The pitiless waves run high^ And Fate his earthly doom has cast, But heroes cannot die ! The helpless, tenderly he takes ; And yields his strength to save, And every heart with tremor quakes, But he alone is brave ; The ocean's moan — the dread waves' strife- Called him to duty then ; He on'y lived to shelter life, A hero among onen. And woman's eyes with tears are dim. And children sob and weep, Whenever memory speaks of him, The martyr of the deep ; God scatters little natures o'er The wide, bleak face of earth, And now and then, for evermore, He sends a hero forth. 118 "NOCTE TACENTIA LATE." VlEGIL. As when upon the face of one, A dying, hectic flush doth bide, The fervid radiance of the sun Mantles the heaven far and wide. It crowns th' expanse with fading glows, Dissolving into streaks of grey. It tints the ambient air with rose, And lights the landmarks of our way. But as the dusky shadows fall. To blur the sunset's rosy bloom, Shading the splendor over all With gathering dark and deepening gloom ; The shimmering lustre silently Falling rnd fiiding into space. With solemn meaning, tenderly Lighteth a wan and serious face Of one who sittcth in the shade. Watching the rays and shadows die, Until the black-browed night hath made Its impress on the ashen sky. 119 TTf I ; I I i i NOOTB TACENTIA LATE. Her life doth seem a little span, Of transient glooms and broken gleams, For change has made its bftauty wan, And time hath shadowed all her dreams. The joys and sorrows of her days, Like passing clouds, have taken flight, The fretful cares that dimmed her ways, Have melted into shades of night. And yet she feels within the air. The flutter of some angel wings. Touching her brooding thoughts of care, With pure and sweet imaginings. And as the darklier shadows come. To blot earth's transient loveliness, And the dim boundary of her home Flitteth in gloom and nothingoess ; She feels the narrowing, present time Is merging to Eternity ! And so her night is made sublime With hope of immortality I 120 ON AN AMBROTYPE; Spell-bound, I gaze upon a pictured face, Whose soft-toned loveliness and thoughtful grace like trills of melody, my fancies move. The pure devotion and the certain power Of woman's fixed and ever-during love, Which throws its shoots beyond the passing hour, And links itself with all of pure below. And all that man doth dream of Heaven above, In every lineament may surely dwell. 1 have no common wishes to bestow Upon this sweet, transfigured loveliness ; I yield but feeble homage to its spell, In praying that, as changeful years do flow, The Abnighty's hovering love her placid days may bless. c 121 CHILDHOOD. We love it and we know not why, This image mirrored in the heart; The gleesome smile— the love-lit eye- The songful tones of infancy, And all that eyes can never see And words can ne'er impart. We clasp within our arms a form Fashioned as perfect as a flower ; Deeming that the Almighty's arm Shields its young life from every harm, Praying that truth may be its charm, And love its only dower. We gaze within the azure eyes, And deem the soul dwells slumbering there ; We hear the prattling words that rise, Pure as the balm of early spring, Wondering if mid her blosssoming There grows a bud so fair I 122 CHILDHOOD. Tender and true it sports awhile, Chasing the butterflies in their flight, Basking in nature's loving smile, Gamboling where'er the brooklets go, Until it warms their limpid flow, Like noonday's glowing light I For life, though drenched with sorrowing tears,. Still brightens at our darling's call ; Hopes and visions and clouds and fears Mellow, like sunset in the even. When childhood, pure as any heaven. Softens the shadows all ! We need not mourn the long lost days. When childhood lisps upon our knee ; Its winsome love time's loss repays, And twining the dimpled arms with ours, Our life's a joy of golden hours Attuned with childhood's glee I (■ 123 i ! 11 I i*fr i I A WELCOME. (Dedicated to her Mi^esty's 16th Begiment, on their arriral at Montreal, when war with America seemed imminent.) Resound, land ! with gladness. And oast off care and sadness, As we welcome every brave with joyful voice ; And shout huzzah 1 and meet them. With three-times-three, and greet them, Till the frosty air with echoes shall rejoice I They come to take their station, Without a preparation. To protect us, and to guard the laud we love, To face the chills around us. Or foes who may surround us, And with hand and heart their fealty to prove. Beady for march when wanted, To meet their death undaunted. And to shield us, or to head us in the fight ; To bear the flag of glory. Renowned in song and story. That shall ever triumph in the cause of Right. U4 eal, A WELCOME. f^. Thank God the shadow round us, Did warn, but not confound us, Till it vanished like a thunder-cloud in heaven ; But should the azure darken, We're ready then to hearken, And ohey our country's call whene'er 'tis given. Tho' peace and war be near us. The soldier's tramp shall cheer us, And with strength in trial, every heart diall buoy ; 1 bless them as we greet them, And with true welcomes meet them. Till the air of winter echoes with our joy ! I las I r ,1 1 :. i f' i i' REGENEKATION. ( Vide The Proclamatioii of the President of the United States, in the Autumn of 1862.) . i'. - , ' ' ' ' ' " Scatter, as ivom an unextinguished hearth, Ashes and sparks, my words among mankind I Be through my lips to unawakened earth r The trumpet of a prophecy ! Wind, If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind ? " Shellbt. Again the Autumn smites the earth, And dims the summer's light, And drives the dying leaflets forth, Wasted with damp and blight. They fly like cursed things of ill, Stricken and tempest tost. And in the ominous gloom and ehill, Are trodden down and lost Like dim forebodings in the soul, A vague mist steals abroad. And, like a muttered anguish, roll The mournful winds of God 1 . 126 REGENERATION. The sunset skies, so wan and pale, Seem touched with winter's dearth. That creeps within the shuddering gale, Roaming the callous earth. But sadder than drear autumn's song, A people's groans and cries Sweep their dull echoings along, Far reaching to the skies I They mourn in darkest douht and night. Great heroes in the dust, And Loyalty stricken in the fight. True to its flag and trust. And whirling doubts, that flit like leaves, In mazes thro' the brain, Ask, if the land whose strong heart grieves, Pours blood and tears in vain. • * The direful blast, the deadly roar, The battle's stormy din, Come from the Nation's inward core. Warring with slavery's sin. God works in dread, mysterious ways The people's lasting good. And Freedom's light breaks through the haze Above the fields of blood I 127 ^r^ . . _j.iifj.ue ■j-jcTK KEGENEBATION.. And o'er tlie battle's sulpliTirous cloud, Exulting hopes go forth, The germs that peep above the shroud Of the cold blood-stained earth.. The free man's heart beats high and swells With pulses of the spring, When Freedon* in the New Year's bells, In jubilant tones shall ring. Baye, icy winds, ye cannot drown A nation's joyful strain,. When God shall hurl Oppression down, ^ And sunder Slavery's Chain* The nation quails not ; for the strife Shall stir her nobler blood ; From death there springs forth happier life, From partial evil, good. Whene'er she tramples slavery's ill As slime b«ineath her feet. True Liberty shall nerve her will, To make the state complete. 128 THE LOVER STAR, OR, THE ORIGIN OF THE MARSH METEOR. (An Indian Legend.) Once on a time, among the infinite stars, Divine Intelligences massed in heaven. There grew a fearful contest, like our wars, ^ Until a conquered world to earth was driven. And then pursuing an erratic flight. Glimmered above the red men's homes at night. But to their eyes, it seemed a spectral gleam. And pierced each savage heart with wild affright, The children ran in horror from the beam. Deeming its lustre was a baneful light, And so, this star, hurled from its sphere above. Could meet no answering ray of human love Until it wandered o'er the head of one, A dusky maiden of the Chippewas, A wild flower blooming in the wilds alone, Whose glance was purer than etherial stars. Who, like the flowers, in a world of strife, From the pure air of heaven inhaled her life. 129 I ' I r ' : : j 1 > THB LOVER STAR. The swarthy warriors felt her looks of love, Which quelled the ruder passions of each hreast, Where'er her lithesome presence came to rove, With purer aims each red man was possessed; Until the very air was sanctified, When in their midst her airy steps would glide. And so the star-world, jealous of the power Of one who seemed a spirit of the air, Circled the beauty of the Indian flower. With its perfected glory everywhere ; Where'er she dwelled, or tripped, the star-beam shone, And crowned her presence, like a splendid zone. t:./ )V And when the worlds of Night reflected far The solemn glory of the infinite. The soft refulgence of this wondrous star. Paler and purer than another light. Would gird the maiden's temples, when in prayer, She called on Manitou to guard her th;u'3. And when in tongues of flame the camp fires leapt, And all the lurid air was dim and still, And the dear winsome maid unconscious slept, Its lovely light would fill her slumbers, till It cast a radiant smile upon her face. Or, with refulgence, glorified the place ! 130 TaSB LOVER STAR. ./ " And every warrior heard, that when her sire Hunted the deer amid the breathless woods, He oast his barbed arrows truer, higher, Than others, tracking the dim solitudes; And so, they deemed the star had proved the ohai» To fire his strength and nerve his stalwart arm. It happened, on a feverish summer's day. For blackberries in the wood the maiden roved And in the tangled thicket lost her way; > She wept, and shrieked for aid to him she loved, But only made the booming bittern wake An answering echo in the lonely brake. Soon, in her eyes, a silent horror cr^t Within the dreary thicket, o'er the ground. And in her ears the wind's strange murmur swept Unearthly, hollow cadences around. Until the murky midnight, like a pall, With noisome vapours, settled over all. In vain she called upon the star she loved. And bent a pitiful look towards the sky. Among the poisonous slime and weeds she roved, With none to pity her, or see her die j And the wild rain made hissing melody, j And dashed with tears each fern and shrub and Iwe. 131 _ t I till Ji l! i I THE LOVER STAR. The horrid darkness hid the longing star, That vainly sought to guide her devious way^ And when the Morning tipped the heavens afar, It seemed the pallid spirit of the day, For the sweet maiden's loveliness would ne'er Endow it with her charm, to make it fair. And still the troublous star pursues its flight, Its beams less radiant, dimmer than before, Seeking in vain, responsive human light. The Indian Maiden whom it loved of yore, And lingers near the world, until it seems An earth-born memory of ethereal gleams. And often to the wanderer it will show A wavy and deceptive glimmering spark. Forever deeming that its heavenly glow, Will find an answer in this void of dark, And so it roams, until it guides astray Travellers who would seek its Ircacherous ray. For when it nears the vapo'-ous, stagnant earth, Its heaven-born glory fades uway in space, And all the worldly mists that throng its path. Infect its journeyings from place to place. And thus, its fitful and enfeebled light Is just the mockery of a star of night ! " (£S ^trcbc lion ciicf; jcber urn bic Bdk, 5Dic ^rnft bed etcin§ iit dcincm Sting an 3:09, 3ii IcQcn ! fomme bicker 5?ra[t mit Sanftmutf;, mt rjcralirfjcc 9Scrtrn(j[irfjfcit, mit 9Bor;(tf;um, Mit iimiastcc Cfrgebenrjeit in @ott Bn ^iilfe ! " Lkssing. E THE THREE RINGS. In days of old, once lived a mighty king, Whose power rested in pure deeds of love, Whose goodness yielded him a wealth of fame, And reverence which spread throughout the earth. He owned a ring, who?o gems emitted light As lovely as his own unsullied life ; And which contained two virtues in itself. Passing and resting in the one who wore it ; To win the love of Heaven to man the first, To ^Mn the love of human kind the other. I;n iu' tre made all earthly glory dim, All I )mp of grandeur fade in nothingness I And like an angel's gift bestowed on man, He prized it for its sacred, marvellous worth. And when the ancient king Ir.id by his crown, And passed from men, he gave the gem to him The most deserving of the sacred gift, The son beloved best for truth and virtue ; And thro' unnumbered ages, every kine; 135 r ; THE THREE RIJfGS, Bequeathed it to the pure of heart, the prince Whose lovely life, unstained, relumed the gift, And made it in the sight of God and man, A jewel, perfect, as an infant's smile ! ; i , I' I It happened once, a blameless monarch lived And loved three sons, who » nied to him alike Girded in righteousness and \ . ■ ; Their sturdy manhood tempered >vith the grace Of gentle manners and benevolent speech. And all the high adornments of the mind, Which give to fallen man a majesty, Superbcr than magnificence of courts : Their quiet virtues wound themselves around The rugged heart of him, who wore the crown, Like soft-hued climbing flowers when they fold Their loveliness around a knarltid tree. But when the solemn years advanced ap ice, And touched the righteous king with calms of age, There crept upon him wildering hesitance. Clear sighted and deliberate in all That tried his judgment or inspired his mind, A mighty problem blurred his lucid vision ; He knew not who deserved the wondrous gift, Since every child to him was all deserving. A storni of troubled thought perplexed his days. And bowed his gait and made his manhood droop, Until the natural wisdom of liis years, Unloosed the tangled woof of wildering doubt. Since his g;eat love could never dwindle dowa 136 t ' l-ti THE THREE RINGS. To narrowing scope of partiality, He made resolve to leave each son the gift ; And to an artificer sent the ring, To fashion cunningly two counterparts, Alike in dazzling gems and outward form. And they were wrought so true, that none discerned The subtle jewel from the counterfeits. And soon, the monarch's lingering years rolled on, And died in music of remembered deeds, Whose reverberations swept throughout the land, Infusing breath of pure harmonious love. But when the princes found themselves possessed Each of the marvellous ring, there rose a cry Of wonder, then a baleful shadow crossed And dulled their happy days, as when a cloud Loaded with thunder, blots the summer sky ; And wrangling jealousies pierced every heart. For each aflBrmed his ring contained the charm. And so ignoble rivalry brought forth Its bitter fruitage, till love's placid stream Was darkened with the scum of discontent : Their clamor jarred the peaceful atmosphere And echoed o'er the land, until the strife. Fell, as a blight, upon its happiness. In this fair kingdom dwelt a hoary sage, Kenowned for wisdom and for mighty lore : Time's shadowy knowledge was to him a book, Clear, open as the sun betwixt the clouds ] 18T ii I I THB THREB RINGS. For he had sifted from the cobwebbed past The essence of all wisdom, which is truth. And when the people wrangled, and their cause Engendered spleen and rancour, he adjudged Their stormy rights to vindicate the truth In such calm flowing might of eloquence, That he could change their petty hates to love : And thus his name was reverenced through the land, As highest counsellor and judge suj)reme. So, maddened with the turmoil of dispute, The princes sought the chamber of the seer. To ask his counsel and implore the truth. Then in his presence, thus, the elder spoke : " My father owned a ring, whose occult charm, Could win the grace of God and love of man : And when that strange transition state, which links The narrow present to the boundless future, Dropt, like a blessed calm, upon his soul, He gave the jewel to me ; but afterwards, When Heaven contained his spirit-earth his dust— With foul pretense, my brothers claimed the prize. And mocked me with their counterfeits : sage I With thy true vision, show the perfect ring. So may thy wisdom prove their vanity." Then having ceased, with sudden impulse swayed. He placed it near the presence of the sage. And then, the prince, the next in years, thus spoke : " seer i a baseless dream has spanned My brothers' vision, so that spurious gems 138 THE THREE RIN69. Upon them flash with subtle loveliness ; For I can swear the mystic gift was mine. But thy clear mind which penetrates all truth, Can well detect the genuine ring." He closed, Then spoke the youngest prince : And near the other jewel, laid his own. *' A noxious aiir, — A pestilential vapor of the marsh — Has filled and blurred my brothers' sense With bodiless imaginings — to me, My father gave his affluence of love, The mighty largess of his boundless love, Which died not with his death, but was infused Into the sacred relic-— left to me, — A talisman to bless and glad my life With virtues like his own ; — thy sure decree. Will prove the certain truth, of my assertion." And as the echo of his words died out, He cast the ring beside its counterparts. And then the frosted sage, all-wise, supreme, Calm with the majesty of inward strength — Proud in the consciousness of earnest truth — Upon the gems fixed a deep-searching gaze, As penetrating as the looks of those Who sought to read man's petty destinies, In the far infinite depths of solemn stars, — And thus gave vent to speech: " marvellous ringl ia9 THE THREE RINGS. ■i Ti Imbued with strange, magnetic influence, To win the grace of God and love of man, Speak and disclose thyself to human ken, Divulge the mighty secret of thy being, And shame thy base, ignoble counterfeits ! So that thy voice may reach thy true possessor.' The people gathering round, in strange suspense Heard the appeal, for lo I a sudden calm Infused their hotly beating hearts ; intent, They gazed upon the rings, like famished men, Whose eager eyes are strained upon far landj Which seems to loom upon the dreary sea. That moment seemed of infinite duration ! And yet, no voice appeased their anxiousness ; The mystic ring, dumb as unlettered stone Upon an unknown grave, betrayed no utterance. Then spoke the truth-inspired sage once more : " brothers ! dear to him, whom all revered. Whose large affection, boundless as the skies, Infolded ye with strength of piety, — With virtues emanating from his love. Reflected from the light that shone on ye, — Cast forth the fretful rancours in your hearts. Like Sampson, blind and bound and powerless, Bereft of all which gave him wondrous might, In helplessness ye grovel on the earth : Shorn of the strength of ever-during love. Your narrow range of vision cannot grasp 140 THE THREE RIN"aS. The natural wonder of the sacred gift. Your wrangles shame your birth, your knawing hates,- Like loathsome worms, which pierce within the earth The roots of flowers,— blight the heart of truth. The secret of the rings belongs to God : In scons yet to be, — when rusts of faith Are blown abroad, and tarnish nevermore With shifting doubts and error, human lives, And wisdom makes the intellect supreme. To clear the soul from taint of prejudice ; And deeper insight in the core of things Ino-rafts the seeds of truth within the mind. When man's true nature is enlarged and free. Fit to receive and know God's perfect truth, — The mystery of the rings shall he revealed. Till that far-blissful era, yet to be, princes ! take your rings as heretofore, And wear the sacred relics sacredly, To purge the evil tempers from your hearts ; Guard well your thought ; let never breath of wrong Tarnish the beauty of your daily deeds, Temper your actions with a sweet accord Of gentlest courtesy, inspiring love. Be true to all ; despise not any man, For none may know the great or small, since God Has given to each a place and quality. Open the inner chambers of your souls. So that fair-winged hopes may enter fast. And there infuse an everlasting hope 3 \ 141 •riiitTnaaw THE THBBE RINOS. In manhood's goodness and the Almighty's love^ And in the transient now, and endless future, And keep your rings as emblems of your faith. Then surely each will prove an angel's gift I Your lives imbuing them with subtle charm, Illuming them with radiance divine, — The strange, magnetic and yet natural power, To win the grace of God and love of man, I ^ \ ^ Ih U2 1. < C4iii$$ qI %\t %tum%. " Our minds shall drink at every pore The spirit of the season." WOBDSWOBTH. 1«S li li I NEW YEAB. I hear in the depths of fancy The close of a dying sound, Like the faintest moan of a passing breeze That sweeps the wintry ground* I see in the depths of fancy A glimmer of waning light, Like the pallid ray of twilight That fades on the brow of Night, I feel in the depths of being That the" voice and light are gone, And only a fitful memory From the shadowy year is bom* For all its glory and meaning. And beautiful rainbow glow, Are cold as the far-off starlight, And pale as the passionless snow* 145 NEW YEAR. Like foam that wastes on the sea-beach. Like surf that breaks on the shore, The changeful days of the faded year Have vanished for evermore i Consumed are their beauty and sadness, And all their sweetness and grace; They have passed away in the void of the past. Like shooting-stars in space. Sut the transient year, as it dieth, A new-born glory gives ; We touch the hem of its shadowy skirt^ And feel that its beauty lives, — In the lovelier hope of a brighter dawn, Upspringing from death and night, The dazzling glow of another year That btes^s upon our sight. golden promise that lights the dust Of harsh discordant days, The aching void within our heart Is gilded with your rays. light that vivifies and warms. Yield us a will and power To wrest the utmost good we can Jj'rom every new-born hour. i46 NEW TEAR. Search the waste places of our souls, And scatter to the past The cobwebbed doubts, that made the days So drear and overcast. Pierce the lone chambers of the heart! If truth and faith are there, Their rays shall round oui lives with jOy, And sanctify the air ! [Ui ""^iitit BY THE FIRELIGHT. Cradled within the arms of night, Th' unquiet day is lulled asleep ; The weary hours have taken flight; Leaving their shadows long and deep, That spread upon the earth helow. Soft as the falling of the snow^ Betwixt the glimmer and the gloom, The twilight heameth tenderly In dim rays o'er the dusky room, Like hope of immortality, That o'er the earth-bound spirit falls, And shineth through life's prison walls. Our converse is of earthly things : Our little world of joys is pure, And silvery laughter peals and rings, Like flute-sounds in an overture. Swelling with sudden rise aloft. Or toning to a cadence soft. 148 I ST THE FIRELIGHT. The firelight dances on the walls, In wavering streams of ruby light ; A human ray that gladly falls, Cheering the mellow hours of night, While even hurrying Time does seem* To linger by the lambent gleam I No shadow in our dear retreat, Nor heart-glooms, like the night-mists rise ; Love speaketh from the laughter sweet. Love danceth in the sparkling eyes I While in the radiance on the wall, Ood's love, divine, seems over all ! The wrathful storm tramps wildly by The desert waste of snows abroad ; The keen winds rush with sullen nry, Like shrieks of horror on the i ud : Within, the lustre of a light, Like Israel's pillar-flame at night ! No mystic seer looks upward now In stars to read his destiny : We watch the flame's pure vestal glow Shine like a beacon, steadfastly, And read our fireside cheering lore Imaged in light upon the floor. 149 msm I SNOW. Fall, like poaoe, gossamer snow ! While the searching winds are roaming abroad ; Fall, in your wealth, on the world below. Like a blessed balm from God ! Fall like kisses upon the earth, That is cold and cheerless, and full of woe, And fill its heart with a sense of mirth, Silent and loving snow ! Fall in your wonderful purity, Fair as a bride's unsullied dress ; Fall from the heaven's immensity. On our autumn dreariness. Fall like a lover's phantasy. That the heart of a maiden might yearn to know j Fail like a loving memory On a soul o'crladcn with woe. 160 SNOW. Fall like the light of an infant's smile, That sweetly beams for a mother alone ; Fall like hope, when it dawns awhile On a doubting heart of stone. Fall like tears that leave us resigned When the soul submits to a hapless doom ; Fall like light that falls on the blind, On a life o'er-steeped in gloom. Fall like the bounties God has given. While the mournful winds are piping abroad j Fall like the hints we have of Heaven, Like a blessed balm from God ! 161 «e!MMiiM0IHi SHORT DAYS. H i Over the pale cnist of the ermine snow The wind is roaming, chilled with winter's breath, And the dim waning days seem touched with woe For Autumn's lingering death. They gather varied hours in their train, And lay them in the stillness of the past, And o'er the fitful visions of the brain Their broken shadows cast. I ;i The evenings lengthen as the days subside, Deepening and broadening to the peaceful night, Like tender shadows, tempering as they hide The noonday's garish light. And dull with scowling clouds and fretful skies. The little days pass onward to their bourne — Life's shadowy landmarks, to our saddened eyes, But vanished haze of morn ! IM SHORT DAYS. The hours shrivel as we vainly try To grasp their fruits within our feeble hold ; Their -glow and bloom and beauty seem to die In winter's piercing cold. lessening days that silently depart ! Leave us the broader faith and larger hope, So that the scarred and patient human heart May love with fuller scope. Yield us the deeper trust in human truth, Show us the purer sky above the haze, So that the nobler visions of our youth May light our devious ways. Banish the frost of doubt that numbs the heart, Broaden the narrowing limits of life's road, So may your fleeting presence still impart A lasting love for God. Hi » -I H THE ELIXIR OF SPRING. Not in the bloom and music That haunt the south wind's breath, For the bloom may fade at midnight, And the music be stilled in death ; Not in the bursting fragrance Of leaf, or bud, or flower, For their beauty may be nipped and chilled By the frost of a single hour : But in my darling's heart, Nestled in sunlight there, Spring's spirit dwells apart From Heaven and earth and air ! Purer than vernal fragrance, Brighter than vernal skies, — In my darling's truth and beauty There's spring that never dies I 154 MAY-TIME. On the earth was a mist and torpor, In our hearts the winter's chill, And nature expectant for May-time, With wearisome watching was still ; When odorous south winds came freighted With messages sweet from warm skies, And the beauty and flush of the May-time Startled all with a joyous surprise I A lute-sounding voice in the woodland, A whisper that swells to a trill, As the wandering birds pipe their joyance In the land that is dear to them still ! On the boughs are the dead leaves of autumn, Like regrets in the May-time of man ; New tendrils may sprout, birds may carol, But there's always a leaf sere and wan. 1C6 MAY-TIME. The musical shower of rain-drops Is laden with warmth strangely sweet, That wakens the buds from their torpor, And quickens dead grass at our feet. beauty unfolding from darkness ! life bursting forth from decay I Earth's type of the Godly Immortal, Soaring free from the dross and the clay. The river has broken its cerements Its corpse-like beauty has fled ; With throes like the starts of a maniac. It lashes the ice from its bed ; Its breast seems upheaving its vengeance For shackles the winter laid on, As it fearlessly breaks every barrier With the force of a Phlegethon. prodigal sunshine of May-time I Eejoicing, we bask in thy noon, And our hearts like the wandering robins Shall warble a rapturous tune : The sadness of autumn has faded. The dearth of the winter has gone And our souls, like the young birds, are thrilling With hopes and with joys newly born ! 156 MAY-TIME. Let the ice round the heart melt and vanish^ Dispel the crabbed wisdom of years, And cherish the yearnings that come from Our May-time of smiles and of tears ; And flowers shall bloom neath the snow-drifts, And toil-stricken man hope again ; So the songs and the joys of the May-time Need not speed to this sad world in vaini 16T \ SUMMER CALM. I mt. I The calm that follows when the air With gushing melody is rent, Seems to surround me everywhere, And makes the silence eloquent I The dying cadence of a tune In echoes seems to float alone. _ ^ 07 Imparting to the summer noon The lulling sweetness of a song. Above, the deepening azure bends,— A firmament of endless space ; On earth the summer glory blends Its calmdd loveliness and grace. A twitter in the silent air Of some wild bird that finds no rest, Like a drear thought that comes to stir And rack with pain the peaceful breast. 158 StJMMER CALM. The festooned arms of shrub and tree Droop in their beauty on the sod, And waving elms in majesty Flash in the sunshine of their God ! The firs and pines, a brotherhood, Green with the summers that have flown, Lend to the perfect quietude A hallowed beauty of their own; A lazy river glides along, Like a pure calm that threads the life Of one who cannot dream of wrong, Nor heeds the world's surrounding strife, A beauty sleeps within the dells ; Along the undulating shore, A drifting calm of summer dwells, That seems to lull the river's roar. The incense of the fields goes forth Lightly and fleetly ; like a bliss That noiseless wends upon our path, And leaves no trace of weariness. And so the over-joyous hours, Linked with sweet calms throughont the day, Proop like the fainting summer flowers, And float in twilight cahu away. 149 Ill SUMMER CALM. *Tis but a glimpse of summer skies^ A passing dream of summer days, Glimmering o'er our mortal eyes In twilight glooms and broken rays ;— Until the perfect summer-breaks Upon the pure soul's happiness, When the dream shifts, and man awakes To ever-during calm and bliss. I 'j 160 INDIAN SUMMER. With dying splendor on her face, Her robes of beauty laid aside, The heotio Summer sighs to glide From the flushed earth, to yield a place To the dry foliage sere and gold. And trees whose rugged arms are bare, And the shrill moanings of the air, And the dim glories of the wold. Unnatural silence, like a pall, Inwraps the ^orld, and the sun streami, In mellow waves oi' glinting gleams, A saintly splf ador ever all. Hushfc is the wind, — disconsolate That summer glories all should die, While the calm azure of the sky Looks down in vhrondd, regal state ! lei INDIAN SUMMER. And grand old maples upward gaze, Like sentinels upon the road, As if they mused of nature's God, Who crowns them with a myriad rays. No summer sun shall pour his hearas Like those that flood my path to-day ; Pallid and beautiful each ray, Like shapings of our sweetest dreams. youthful prime! golden hours ! Ephemeral glories that have flown ; future yearnings mellowed down. Yet tinted with the hue of flowers 1 tempered sunlight 1 happy calms, When nature sleeps, or wakes to see The hours gliding silently, O'er-loaded with a myriad balms. Around our hearts the sunshine waves, A calmed splendor, like the morn. While summer airs anew are born. To sigh amid the flowerets' graves. golden moments touoht with balm I Temper Fate's hostile storms abroad, Instill a tranquil hope in God, And in our lives infuse your calm. 162 FALLING LEAVES. Gleam, autumn sun, "with mellow light, Blow, autumn winds, throughout the day; For everywhere are death and blight, Where'er I tread my way. gather all the falling leaves, And spare them ; for they soon must die, While solemn nature mourns, and weaves Their funeral lullaby. The stricken leaves are but a part Of ^1 the death and misery — The helpless soul — the hopeless heart — That everywhere I see. The autumn flickers ere it dies. Like a pale light that waxeth dim ; And nature, with her myriad sighs, Pours forth a plaintive hymn. 163 FALLING LEAVES. Better to die in golden dress, Bathed in the noonday's eheering l^ht, Than live in utter loneliness, And die in gloom and night. leaves I yre loved you when the song Of birds vraked music, as ye olltve And murmured minstrelsy among The branches stout and brave; Or when the twilight flung around, Like dreams of softer meaning then, A tender gleam upon the ground, A haze throughout the glen. - But now, we miss you, for ye were OtLT music on a summer's day ; No sound steals thro' this autumn air Like your sweet roundelay. Beautiful ids ye lie in de^ith, Th' Almighty's hand has mat ye Kbfth, The sport of every wanton breath, To strew the paths of earth. My idle fancies shell have floWn, Wild hH the leates along the foad, While every gu«5t of wind wafts down To uie pure thoughts of God 1 , I Ui '. ' ^ .li\ '/.•'■ , JT -„■,." i-J ' ' m :J'i' A MADRIGAL. Open the window, darling, And welcome the breath of Spring, For the spirit of Joy is abroad, And gladdens each sentient thing t My heart is drear as the wintry earth Shrouded in bleakest night, But thou canst banish its frosted cares. Spirit of Love and Light I Open the window, darling ; ,, - I hear the gush of a song, •That comes from the beautiful spring-time, Flitting, like Hope, along. My heart is sad as an autumn morn, Before the winter's blight, But thou canst scatter its sorrowful mistt, Spirit of Joy and Light 1 165 A MADRIQAL. Open the window, darling, For nature's heart is glad ; There is no space on the jubilant earth For memories drear and sad ; Our God may temper, with shades of woe. The hour's silvery flight, But thou canst cheer the drooping soul, Spirit of Hope and Light ! Open the window, darling ; The air which roams abroad. Life-giving, pure, and fragrant. Is surely a breath from God ! Love me with all thy sweetness, ; v And cast forth into the night The joyless thought within my soul, Vernal spirit of Light ! 106 ,♦ •. ;,v^;.,> iA •I L'E NVOI. Leave me, ye fancies, - - And wander where ye will, And my hopes shall make the music In the lingering echoes still ! The 71010 may hold no promise, The past is dim and vain, But every thought that haunts me Will shape itself again. In a garb more fair and comely, In colours lovelier far. When all God's truths are clearer, And my visions loftier are. When a nobler purpose guides me Along life's mazy road, When its lessons bring me nearer " To the wondrous ways of Qod I ^ l'envoi. When the pulses of my being Throb with fires pure and "true, And life takes grander meanings From the promised land in view I For we all stand on Mount Pisgah, And Hope is pointing there To a world of glorious promise, To an ideal, wondrous fair ! And tho' eyes weep with watching, And hearts are aching still. Our visions make life's music, Liet them wander where they will. 1 IH