IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // {/ V 5?^ < % w- fe I.C IIIM 1112.5 1132 a m I.I us 12.2 2.0 1.8 1.25 1.4 1.6 ^ 6" — ► v: <9 /}. >^ /a w ^ ///// M^ ■'' V (V 6^ > ■\}'\^W £p '^"^A W^ w< W- f c> CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVI/ICIVIH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions Institut canadien de microreproductions historiques 1980 Technical and Bibliographic Notes/Notes techniques et bibiiographiques The Institute has attempted to obtain the best original copy available for filming. Features of this copy which may be bibliographicaily unique, which may alter any of the images in the reproduction, or which may significantly change the usual method of filming, are checked below. L'Institut a microfilmd le meilleur exemplaire qu'il lui a 6t6 possible de se procurer. 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Entered according to Act of Parliament of Canada, in the year 1887, by Matthew Richky Knight, at the Department of Agriculture. Nova Scotia Printing Company. Halifax, N. S., 1887. FORTH, little book, into the wide world go, — Forth in her name whose fond eye watched thee grow ; Who hoped to see thee girt for voyage so. Would I might lay thee in her vanished hand For whose sweet sake thy pilgrimage was planned ! But none has heard her step in all the land. No song of thine can reach the spirit ear, No plaining note can draw the spirit tear, Nor page of thee to spirit eye appear. The soul of thee alone its way can press Through sensuous veil to her unearthiness. And know, not hear, that lips of silence bless. CONTENTS. ST. CHRISTOPHER, AND OTHER POEMS. PAOB Saint Christopher o Nintokii TeuMo 10 Between Two F'aiths jg Hozo's Heaven 19 ELE(iIAC AND OCCASIONAL POEMS. Canada to England 03 A \V'elcome «ej Richard Realf 00 On the Death of the Princess Alice 32 On the Death of the Rev. Joseph Hart 38 A Ciiristmas Gift on The Guerdon of Grief 41 Clare Everest 40 Tho/nas Carlyle Gordon Stead A Dirge of Two gg 46 48 53 LYRIC AND MISCELLANEOUS POEMS. Sub Rosa Hidden Power. Alone To L . . 61 62 63 64 viii CONTENTS. PAOR To Heaven through Palestine 66 Post Mortem 67 Wind and Waves 71 My Treasure 72 Refuge 73 The Old Year and the New 74 The Mercy of God 77 Resignation 78 Heaven 80 Two Prophets 81 Requiescat in Pace 82 Then and Now 84 Love 85 The Death of Death 85 Ambition 86 Homely and Heavenly 86 Al Ar&f 87 Judge Not 88 Two Sonnets : No Bondage in Love 89 My Wife's Picture 90 The Baby's Mission 91 Content 93 The Unseen 94 Dream and Deed 95 Rest 96 Scio 98 Light is Sown 100 Transmigration 101 Jacques Cartier 103 The Names of Christ 104 Death 105 Ode to my Alma Mater 106 The Poet's Meed 108 A Song of Failure 110 Quatrains 113 CONTENTS. ix PAOK 66 67 71 72 73 74 77 78 80 81 82 84 85 85 86 86 87 88 89 90 91 93 94 95 96 98 100 101 103 104 105 106 108 110 113 TRANSLATIONS AND PARAPHRASES. Sonreta from tlie Italian : Love's Anxiety pig Love and Wisdom j23 Morning Hymn, from the Latin 124 Evening Hymn, «* j.js Easter Hymn, •• j26 Incarnation Hymn, " I27 First Psalm J2y Twenty-Third Psahn J2g The Baby, from the French 130 Poetry, '« ' ,33 ^""g' " 134 ^'07' " 1.36 Music, from the German I317 Spring, " J3g Nothing Beautiful hut Truth, from Boileau 139 Notes 1^1 SAIN i I ( i IM I 11 ^ I 0: SAINT CHRISTOPHER. NCE lived, as ancient stories tell, One who loved war and tumult well, And in the fray did all excel ; And ever in his roving quest Of danger, he would still protest, " I serve none but the miirhtiest." So when the monarch of the world His flag invincible unfurled. And his resistless legions hurled On the barbarians, Offer then Mixed in the host of weaker men, And brought the fire and force of ten. But once in shadow of a wood, While strong men trembled as they stood, The Kaiser kissed a carven rood. [Ill I 4 Poems of Ten Years. " What now ?" said Offer. " Him I fear"— Low spake the king — " whodwelleth here. "The Christ forbid that he appear!" Loud Offer laughed : " On with my quest! I hold the strongest is the best, And serve none but the mightiest." ill! Straightway he plunged into the wood. Whistling in merry, scornful mood, Seeking the puissant Foe of good. He reached ere long an open glade Where the Evil One an altar had, And his dark crew their worship paid. The altar was of ebon dight; On it a blue flame burned bright, And cast around a ghastly light. By this weird light he saw dispread The bones and brain-pans of the dead. That in this service ill had sped. But rudely broken was his heed : A black knight on a sable steed Bore down on him with furious speed. Saifit Christopher. "My slave!" cried he in tlumder tone. " Not so ; my service is my own, And given to whom I list alone. If thou, sir kni^rht, the strongest be, Then shall my service be for thee ; If not, it shall return to me." In this grim service long he stayed, Till of a little cross afraid The Prince of Hell drew back dismayed. " How now ?" said Offer mockingl}^, — " Art thou in fear of yonder tree ?" " Nay, slave ; but Mary's Son," quoth he, " Who died upon a cross like this, In heaven's heiirht and hell's abyss, Is stronofer than the stron^jest is." " Then must I still pursue my quest : I hold the strongest is the best, And serve none but the mii^htiest." He sought the Christ in wild and mart ; None could the mystic way impart ; Few carried Jesus in the heart. . i I'! I! I! Poems of Ten Years, Till where a lowly cottage stood, Far from all human neighbourhood, With vines o'ergrown, crowned with a rood, A man of aspect mild he met; And, fore this holy anchoret His aim and all his quest he set. "My son, if thou the Christ would'st s^e, Seek Him on humble, bended knee, In fasting and sweet charity." Offer, ill-pleased, made answer, " Nay ; Small gift have I to fast and pray. Good sir, is there no other way ?" " My son, not far need men to rove In search of Him who reigns above ; He soon is found in works of love." 1 ;ii " What work ?" quoth he, " I do not shun The hardest task beneath the sun. Show it to me— it shall be done." " See yonder stream, whose rapid tide Nor boat can cross, nor bridge can bide, Nor steed through its strong current ride. f t Saint Christopher. y " Who would the Holy City gain Must pass it; many who were fain To cross put fortli their strength in vain. *' Be it thy task the weak to hear Through its strong tide from year to year, Till Mary's Son, the Christ, appear." " I will," he said, — and kept the ford ; Though the stream rose and tempest roared, He recked it not, — he sought the Lord. And with each kindly office done. He would the least reward from none — " 'Tis for the sake of Mary's Son." He wrought and waited. Time and pain Ne'er made his firm resolve to wane ; One purpose filled his heart and brain. When frosted was his head with age, One nio'ht when fierce the wind did racje, And few would fare on pilgrimage, A low voice pleaded piteously, " Strong, gentle Offer, carry me !" He crossed, but no one could he see. 8 fli Poetns of Ten Years. Again the voice,— again the quest ; He tliought it must be some wild jest, And turned himself^nce more to rest. The voice once more wailed piteously, " Strong, gentle Offer, carry me !" He could not now mh;taken ])e. He crossed again, and met his sight A lad in garb of purest white. Crowned with haloes of soft lif^ht In hand he bore a banner bine, Whereon a lamb was pictured true, And a small globe of golden hue. Smiling he raised him— bade him cli Closely, and said,—" A pretty thing This wild night to be pleasurin ing %^- But as he stepped into the flood. It tried his strength to bear the load That heavier grew in wondrous mode. His heart was filled with sudden dread. For in the shifting river-bed He surely sank o'erburJened. I Saint Chnstopher. 9 " Who art thou ?" cried he earnestly, — " Small as thou art, it seems to me An Atlas load I i)ear in thee." " Carry me," softly said the child, — " For His dear sake whose service mild Thou lovest ; for the storm is wild." So for the love he bare his Lord, Hard struggling, soon he passed the ford, And set his burden on the sward. The child no more a child was seen ; But a king crowned, with kingly mien, Yet gentle voice and brow serene ; Who spread his hands, o.nd sweetly said, — " Offer, thy sins be pardoned ; The Christ's own blessing on thy head !" " The meed of all thy quest is won : As Christopher shalt thou be known ; For thou hast carried Mary's Son." Said Offer, — " Here doth end my quest ; I seek no more the mightiest. Dear Lord, I tire, — I long for rest." The Christ was gone while yet he prayed ; On the hard sward his head he laid. And gentle death love's best obeyed. f ^ illi 10 Poems of Ten Years, I NINTOKU TENNO} N Dai Nippon's golden prime, When the gods blessed the sacred clime, Ere Western rum and Western lust Had fouled her consecrated dust, Nintoku Tenno ruled the land With wise and strong and gentle hand, Made firm the throne in innocence And trust and love and reverence,^ Servant of all, and so was king Truer than any blatant thing That reigns by bluster and by blood, Feared by the weak, scorned by the good,- Sun-born Nintoku, brave as he Who drave into the Eastern sea The savage foes of Japan's weal. Or she whose fair form did conceal The war-god's spirit, who spread her rule To Yezo and to far Seoul ; Yamato's, Jingu-Kojo's fame Blended in Tenno's single name. But more did Sujin's spirit inspire The purpose strong and wise desire To make the subjects of his reign Happy and good from main to main. Nintohu Tenno. II clime, lid. good,- rule Offc as the busy clay drew near Its dying, through the summer year, In lonely walk, or garden grot, He sought to solve the tangled knot Of public problems, and abate All woe, and further bless the state. Through needless wars of olden time, And royal pride, and public crime, The state was burdened with a debt Which his wise care could not forget. By taxing people, stinting throne, This public debt was smaller grown ; But till the latest yen was paid The honest King no comfort had. He did not know the simpler way That dignifies our modern day, When heavy burdens grind the state. To fold arms and " repudiate." Well might the state its care have borne. While laughed the fields with rice and corn ; But many moons the heavenly powers Held back the life-bestowing showers, And withered the rain-loving rice, Man's food and worship's sacrifice. As on a small hill near the gates Of Kioto Nintoku waits 12 Poems of Ten Years. To SCO the smoko of homo-firos fill The nir, and circumvent the liill, No cloud disturbs the air serene, No smoke of sacrifice is seen, No merry laugh arrests tlie ear, Sad silence reigns, and voiceless fear : The votive lamps of polished stone In vain implore the sun and moon: White leaves wave vainly in the wind And tell the heavens that men have sinned. Nintoku strikes the sacred gong ; The priests sing low their plaintive song ; Lifting his eyes to blazing sun, To mountain summits scorched and dun, Nintoku pours his soul in prayer. And only echo hears, or seems to hear. " O powers of earth and sea and air, " Ye spirits of fount and shower and stream^ " Though near ye are, afar ye seem. " If pity dwells in souls divine, " Send rain upon these fields of mine. " My people starve, your altars crave "The gifts which while we had we gave. "if we have sinned who do not know " What deeds to do, which way to go, " Shew ruth to our poor ignorance, " And so your sacred fame enhance. " If some have heard your altars cry " For sacrifice and passed them by, Nintokii Tenno. n " Count not the pious with the base, " Let not their crime our good efVaco. " Ye powers whose shapes we dimly see, "Be kind, send us prosperity. " So sliall we load your starving^ shrines, "And deck with fragrant flowers and vines; "And maidens dance with winged feet " Where earth and heaven in concord meet." Thus having prayed, he did not wait Until the gods had saved the state. He hehl, as doth our Christian creed. That faith is naught without the deed That proves it. So he took his way Homeward to plan as well as pray. And soon went forth the King's decree From Yezo to the Southern Sea: " Be it known — let all my people know, " Nintoku weeps to see their woe. " While famine blights each lowly cot, " Babes cry for food and have it not, " Shall plenty crown the royal board ? " Shall tithes increase the royal hoard ? " Tenno Mikado makes command " For three years space, through all the land, " No tax be paid, no tithe of rice, " No public work without its price. " By that clear mirror'' in whose sheen " The mysteries of fate are seen, T . I II I ^i|i til !|i!l >ll»j|| i! ill 14 Poems of Ten Years. " And by Yamato's sacred sword* "In all these pious isles adored, *•' As Tenno saith, so it shall be. *' He dies who breaks the Kind's decree." Sore is the famine in the isles, But Tenno's care its power beguiles. He helps with wise and open hand The least and poorest in the land Until his treasury is bare ; He saves his people from despair. Though ruin threats the sacred town, Its uncared walls are falling down, The royal board is scant and plain, The palace roof lets in the rain, — No plaint declares the King's regret, Nor does he his true word forget ; Lon^: as the (rods refuse to bless, He shares in all the state's distress. At length the stricken kingdom's grief Moved heaven and earth to send relief. The tardy showers reviv^ed the plain. And hill and valley smiled again. And soon Nintoku's heart was made Glad with the tributes overpaid, With rice and tea and labour wrought Beyond his largest hope and thought. Nintoku Tenno. le The new-built town outshone the ohl ; His coffers scarce their dower could hold. By Kamo's garden-fringed stream, And Biwa,' placid as a dream, A palace fit for Jimnjo's* home, In pride reared high its glittering dome ; And art's device and love's conceit In rich and rare confusion met, And, with all various grace endued, Bespoke a nation's gratitude. Such, men of Western cult and light, Their sires whose isles your lust invite. Must age to age the story tell How Shinto's simple pagan spell Wrou";ht more than the evanojelist And purest ethics of the Christ ? Rise, men who love man's brotherhood, And rend the veil that shrouds the Rood ! Oh ! shame, that doubt and lust and rum Should speak for Christ and Christendom. With zeal like theirs, those earnest men, Who fou;Tfht the savatje Saracen To save the Holy Sepulchre From touch of impious pillager. Oh ! save the real Christ, and sla}'- The false that doth our faith bewray, The lie that yawns, a monster grave, To swallow those whom we should save. BSl i6 Poems of Ten Years. WW BETWEEN TWO FAITHS. BROTHERS, braves, the end is near ! What shall I hope ? Why should I fear ? Dark is the future, fair or fell ; The Manito is dumb — 'tis well. I will not now — slow comes my breath — ■ Grow pale in the giim face of death. But something whispers deep within, — *' Thy heart is wrong, thy life was sin. " Ojjheema, where are now the slain " By thee on the red battle-plain ? " The babes and women innocent " Through whom thy ruthless war-axe went ? " The Manito at whose connnand " They lived requires them at thy hand." A heavy load is on my brow ; My warrior heart seems craven now. That dreamer of the gods who came From the sun's home, Jerusalem, Made me a coward in the liofht Of love and mercy infinite. And filled me with desire to know More of the great white Manito. Have we been blind and ignorant Touching the dearest things we want ? I Ipiii'li B etwee Ji Two Faiths. The man who knows tlie thinn-.s divin" ^ Tlie priest of your dark faith and mine, His m^-steries no comfort bring ; It rests me not to hear him sino-. a The Cross, and love, and Calvary, He died for you, He died for wc— These words are burning in my brain ; Woukl the white priest were come again! But he comes not—and what he saith Leads far as doubt, yet far from faith. His words have drawn me from tlic old ; Too little of the new he told. Sweet were the words and soft that fell, But all their drift I could not tell. My ears were dull to what he said, Slow was my heart its truth to read. As when I hunted to and fi-o The bear and mighty buffalo, Where wood and plain revealed no track, Onward I stray, and wander back, In search of truth — it may be true, But all the tracks are faint and few. Braves, brothers, children, when I