FOR 
 
University of California Berkeley 
 

A LINE o' CHEER 
 
 FOR 
 
 EACH DAY o' THE YEAR 
 
A Line o' Cheer 
 
 for 
 
 Each Day o' the Year 
 
 JOHN KENDRICK BANGS 
 
 Boston 
 
 Little, Brown, and Company 
 1913 
 
Copyright, 
 BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY 
 
 All rights reserved 
 Published, September, 1913 
 
STo $& Son 
 
 FRANCIS HYDE BANGS 
 
Sidi'Day o t&year 
 
 3fanuarp I 
 
 THE BOOK OF DAYS 
 
 Another Book of Days has come to me. 
 What story shall its pages fair reveal 
 When this New Year hath ceased at last 
 
 to be, 
 And Time hath turned again his whirring 
 
 wheel? 
 
 May every day tell of some goodly deed 
 Of kindness for my fellowmen fulfilled, 
 Of thoughtfulness for them that stand in 
 
 need, 
 With faith and ready charity instilled. 
 
 May ne'er a blot its virgin whiteness mar, 
 No faithless thought appear in any line, 
 And steadfast as some everlasting star 
 May love eternal through its pages shine. 
 
o? iy. o' Qutr 
 
 January 2 
 
 THE PRICE 
 
 That " all men have their price," a Cynic 
 
 saith, 
 
 And it is true, but not a price in gold. 
 Some sell themselves for LOVE, and some for 
 
 FAITH, 
 And some tor HELPFULNESS themselves have 
 
 sold. 
 
 Who sells himself for dross 
 Wins but a meed of loss, 
 But he who barters all his HEART and MIND, 
 To ease a Sorrow, or some deed in kind, 
 Hath got a worthy price in man's GOOD-WILL 
 That serves him best in days of his own ill. 
 
Sxti'Day d 
 
 January 3 
 
 DELIVERANCE 
 
 I never knew a night so black 
 Light failed to follow on its track. 
 I never knew a storm so gray 
 It failed to have its clearing-day. 
 I never knew such bleak despair 
 That there was not a rift, somewhere, 
 I never knew an hour so drear 
 Love could not fill it full of Cheer! 
 
AS TO FAITH 
 
 Who waits to prove his Faith before believ- 
 
 ing 
 But loses stores of wheat he might be sheav- 
 
 ing, 
 
 And in the end a loser poor comes out 
 Since all his Faith is builded up on Doubt! 
 
u 
 
 Sicfi^Dmi d f&ymr 
 
 Sanuarp 5 
 
 LOVE'S BLINDNESS 
 
 They say Love 's blind, and cannot clearly 
 
 see 
 
 What he is at, or where he '11 shortly be ; 
 Yet where a Heart lies open, and awake, 
 And waiting patiently for Love's own sake, 
 Blind though he is, he goes unerringly, 
 Nor needs a guide by night or day 
 To point the way! 
 
CLOUDS 
 
 Clouds may be dark, 
 
 Clouds may be gray, 
 But listen hark 
 
 I Ve learned to-day 
 No Cloud yet seen 
 
 In all the list 
 But it hath been 
 
 Just made of MIST ! 
 
|<Sub/ 6 
 
 ROUTED 
 
 When Trouble comes upon the scene 
 Just greet him with a smiling mien, 
 And make him feel that he 's the style 
 Of friend you Ve wished for all the while. 
 If thus you do he will not stay, 
 But soon departing on his way 
 Will flee your hearth at maddest pace, 
 For Trouble hates a smiling face! 
 
MS 
 
 cJL Qnt o' Qfitt 
 
 3Tanuarj 8 
 
 r 
 
 THE GAINER 
 
 A Beggar gray told me to-day 
 
 A story most appealing, 
 And then and there what I could spare 
 
 I gave him for his healing. 
 
 They later told me I was sold, 
 
 And I was much derided, 
 But what if he did "bunco" me? 
 
 He lost far more than I did! 
 
 I thought I had the pleasure glad 
 Of giving where 'twas needed; 
 
 And if he lied, why me deride? 
 I gained much more than he did. 
 
SuH'Day dtfieyear 
 
 1 
 
 Hfanuarp 9 
 
 A WINTER THOUGHT 
 
 Straight through the chill of winter days 
 
 As clear as anything, 
 Through all the murk, and misty ways, 
 
 I see the coming spring. 
 
 And clear above the noisy swell 
 
 Of winter's arctic blast, 
 I hear the bird-notes sweet that tell 
 
 Of June days come at last. 
 
 Old Winter's ways speak not of rue 
 To me, things drab and gray 
 
 They point the path that leads us to 
 The flowers of the May I 
 
4ft 
 
 o? (jnt o Qutr 
 
 3Fanuarp 10 
 
 THE ALTERNATIVE 
 
 The future holds two possibilities 
 More living in some realm of mysteries 
 
 Wherein as here to prove 
 How we may rise to loftiest heights, with 
 Love 
 
 The test; 
 Or just a sweet and everlasting rest, 
 
 With ne'er 
 A hint of sordid things, of pain, nor any care ! 
 
SFanuarp U 
 
 CONSOLING 
 
 THOUGHT 
 
 If you have faults, grieve not! 
 
 Let this thought keep you warm: 
 Who hath no faults hath got 
 
 No hope for a Reform! 
 
tint o' Qmr 
 
 SFanuarp 14 
 
 TWO WORLDS 
 
 The world without 
 
 Is fine, no doubt, 
 With treasures fair to win; 
 
 But as for me 
 
 I look with glee 
 Upon the world within. 
 
 The treasures there 
 
 Beyond compare 
 A Fortune vast combine 
 
 Faith, Hope, and Health, 
 
 And Love's own wealth, 
 And every bit is MINE ! 
 
y^&ayotfttywr 
 
 \Jjjffi 3Tanuatp *5 fiJjjJj 
 
 ACHIEVEMENT 
 
 The climb is hard, the way is steep. 
 The path is rough and hard to keep. 
 The goal is far, and foes deride 
 The Traveler on every side. 
 Yet, day by day, and night by night, 
 We nearer draw unto the height, 
 Until at last the dawning sun 
 Shines on the prizes nobly won; 
 And all the strife, and vain regret, 
 By which the journey was beset 
 Forgotten lie amid the haze 
 Of fast receding Yesterdays. 
 
{jnt o' Qwtr 
 
 SFanuarp 16 
 
 A SAFE RETREAT 
 
 Keep a chamber in your heart 
 Given o'er to Cupid's art, 
 And whatever comes your way 
 Spend some time there every day. 
 'T is a method I am sure 
 That will hold your Youth secure, 
 

 17 
 
 DETERMINATION 
 
 What I WILL must surely be ; 
 What I WISH FOR I shall see ; 
 What I 'D HAVE must come to me 
 If I WILL and WISH aright, 
 And keep at it day and night 
 Till at last it heaves in sight, 
 And, according to my habit, 
 
 I 'VE THE NERVE TO GO AND GRAB IT ! 
 
fine, d Qw 
 
 SFanuarp 18 
 
 WRINKLED 
 
 A wrinkled cheek I '11 not despise, 
 
 But rather prize! 
 'T is but the Chart of Sorrow sore 
 Some troubled Soul has traveled o'er, 
 
 And calls to me 
 Not for Contempt, but Sympathy. 
 
EacF&ay 6 'tHi^eaf 
 
 January 19 
 
 IN THE MIDST OF NIGHT 
 
 I joy in brilliant days, 
 
 Yet, in some ways, 
 I take most rare delights 
 
 In starless nights, 
 Wherein in happy dreams 
 I travel spectral streams, 
 
 And see strange sights; 
 
 And now and then 
 
 Encounter men 
 Of Fame of other times, 
 
 And other climes. 
 
 But, best of all, 
 I hold high festival 
 With Friends for whom my tears 
 Were shed in Yesteryears ! 
 
o 
 
 January 20 
 
 COMFORTING 
 
 THOUGHT 
 
 When on some wintry day I 'm caught 
 'Twixt arctic blasts and chill exhausting, 
 
 I take much comfort from the thought 
 That cake is sweeter for the frosting. 
 
Sxli'Day o t&year 
 
 1 3fanuarp 21 
 
 THE FALLEN SNOW 
 
 The snow hath fallen, and the world 
 
 Lies in an icy mantle furled, 
 
 The which to some speaks but of ill 
 
 And wintry chill. 
 
 To me, 
 
 Its perfect whiteness, and the glint 
 Of spotless beauty are a hint 
 That in a world of flaws, and flecks, 
 
 And sorry specks, 
 There still are stores of Purity, 
 Unsullied by the stress and strife 
 Of Life. 
 
3L (jflit <f Qitt 
 
 3fanuarp 22 
 
 r 
 
 THE CALL 
 
 I shall not sit, and mope, and sigh, 
 
 Because of winter and the storm, 
 But forth upon the way I '11 hie 
 With eager heart to see if I 
 Can't make Somebody warm! 
 
 The sleet, and chill, and bitter air, 
 
 The blasts that bluster on the lea, 
 And all the notes of wild despair 
 Are but the call of Woe and Care 
 Sent forth to summon me. 
 
 So blow, ye winds from yonder north ! 
 Upon my way I '11 sally forth, 
 All heedless of your noisy rout, 
 To do what Service lies without! 
 
\fwti (y d tfayeaf 
 
 HFanuarp 23 
 
 (* 
 
 IN WORKING DRESS 
 
 This cheerless garb, so drab and drear, 
 In which old Winter doth appear 
 Is Nature's working-garment gray 
 In which she labors day by day 
 Preparing for the Gifts of May, 
 When Spring the blest 
 All gaily dressed, 
 And full of mirth, 
 Shall make her debut on the earth. 
 Who hath the eye and ear 
 E'en now can see and hear 
 Her happy Elfin throng 
 Rehearsing all day long 
 The paeans they will sing 
 In honor of the new-born Spring ! 
 
PROFITABLE 
 
 CARELESSNESS 
 
 Careless what the weather be; 
 Careless be it dark or fair, 
 Long as down inside o' me 
 It is always sunny there 
 That 's the Carelessness to free 
 Careless people of their Care. 
 
tacli'Day d tfayear' 
 
 January 25 
 
 THE WINTER PINE 
 
 Out there in the sleet and hail 
 
 Through this window-pane of mine 
 
 Heedless of the roaring gale 
 I can see a noble pine. 
 
 Tempests rage, and torrents beat; 
 
 Icy chill besieges, now, 
 And a weight of frozen sleet 
 
 Bends each overarching bough. 
 
 Yet amid the storm and strife 
 Quiet, strengthful and serene, 
 
 Still it holds its place in life 
 Unconcerned, and ever green. 
 
 There 1 s a hint for me, I guess, 
 In the midst of storm and stress ! 
 
ffL nt o' Qm 
 
 ^ 3Fanuarj>26 
 
 r 
 
 WHEN DOUBT APPEARS 
 
 When Doubt comes over you and Faith 
 
 grows dim, 
 
 And Miracles are needed to retrieve 
 Your Spirit from misgivings dark and grim, 
 And give new strength to that which you 
 believe, 
 
 Gaze anywhere North, South, or East or 
 West 
 
 On leafy trees, or on some lofty height; 
 On solitudes where all things speak of rest, 
 
 Or on the noisy marts by day or night. 
 
 Look on the Rose, or on the winter skies ; 
 On harvests sprung from the minutest 
 
 seed; 
 
 Look deep into some loving mortal's eyes 
 And Miracles you '11 find to serve your 
 need. 
 
SFanuarp 27 
 
 BROTHERHOOD 
 
 I m not my Brother's Keeper, 
 That fact can't be gainsaid, 
 
 Yet may old Time the Reaper 
 Find me my Brother's Aide 
 
3Fanuarp 28 
 
 BARGAIN 
 
 Who hath a Trouble, let him sell to me. 
 I '11 gladly take it on and set him free. 
 My profit? Well, to bear another's stress 
 Relieves my own, and makes for Happiness. 
 
3Fanuarp 29 
 
 THE CONQUEROR 
 
 To meet Death fearlessly 
 
 That may not be ! 
 But when the time comes on 
 
 In days anon, 
 And Death draws grimly near, 
 
 Though filled with Fear 
 In spite of all may I 
 
 Right bravely die, 
 And pass those terrors o'er 
 
 A Conqueror. 
 
SWEETS 
 
 Revenge indeed is sweet; 
 
 Yet I would here repeat a 
 Small proverb rather neat 
 
 FORGIVENESS is MUCH SWEETER 
 
Szcti'Dayo 
 
 Sanitary 31 
 
 THE BLINDMAN 
 
 The blindest man I Ve ever seen 
 Had eye so bright and vision keen 
 That he could see a thing of ill 
 A league beyond a distant hill, 
 Yet never glimpsed the beauties rare 
 That lushly bloomed beside his chair. 
 
 
 
o? 
 
 
 
 r 
 
 ] Jfebtuarpl 
 
 FEBRUARY GIFTS 
 
 Now February's days appear 
 In somber mien, devoid of cheer - 
 All cold of eye, and full of cloud, 
 Beneath the yoke of winter bowed, 
 
 Yet spite of all 
 
 Her icy pall, 
 
 She now and then 
 
 Spreads forth for men 
 
 Reluctant gifts 
 
 Of sunny rifts, 
 And smiling skies above 
 
 Much as true love 
 
 And tenderness 
 Have potency to ease distress. 
 
Jf ebruarp 2 
 
 A PRAYER 
 
 Whate'er we be, or Man, or Woman, 
 Let 's pray the Lord to keep us human, 
 And hold us in our mortal pride 
 A little short of satisfied. 
 
o Qut 
 
 Jfebruarp 3 
 
 r 
 
 FREE COINAGE 
 
 What joy if sunshine were the gold 
 
 We stored in massy piles, 
 And hearts were but the banks that hold 
 
 Our currency of smiles! 
 
 What bliss indeed to pay our debts, 
 And put chill Want to flight 
 
 By easing Poverty's regrets 
 With coin of minted light ! 
 
Szcti'DayotKeywr 
 
 Jf ebruarp 4 
 
 IN THE VALE 
 
 Fortune sings beneath my window, and her 
 words are full of lure, 
 
 But dear Love is here beside me and his 
 riches are secure. 
 
 Chance doth beckon from the hilltop, and his 
 promises are rare; 
 
 Service holds me in the valley, and I find con- 
 tentment there. 
 
(int o (tor 
 
 jfebruarp 5 
 
 ALL ABOARD! 
 
 Somewhere the sun 's not shining, 
 And clouds are dark and drear, 
 
 With ne'er a silver lining 
 To mitigate their fear. 
 
 Let 's cease our own repining 
 And hasten there with cheer. 
 
u 
 
 Sicli'DqydtKeyMr' 
 
 jf ebruarp 6 
 
 THE UNIVERSAL TONGUE 
 
 Talk not to me of Latin, Greek, 
 Of Russian, French, or Portuguese. 
 
 Love's language is the tongue I 'd speak 
 All thrilled with hope, and joy, and peace. 
 
 A language lacking tricks of phrase, 
 And words portentous, seeming wise, 
 
 That hath been used since those far days 
 When hearts first spoke through mortal 
 eyes. 
 
{Int o' (heer 
 
 S ebruarp 7 
 
 FOUNDATION 
 
 Amid lire's tribulations, 
 Amid life's little woes, 
 I find my consolations 
 That on great irritations 
 The strongest nations rose 
 
chcli(w d they ear 
 
 Jf ebruarp 8 
 
 SHARING AND BEARING 
 
 If so it be you have a joy, 
 
 Just go outside and share it, 
 But if some trouble doth annoy, 
 Why, sit within 
 And try to grin 
 And bear it! 
 
int o* (Jieerl 
 
 jfebruatp 9 
 
 SMILES 
 
 Smiles are sovereign remedies 
 For all sorts of miseries 
 
 That are all our own, 
 But when others bear a cross, 
 Suffering some grievous loss, 
 
 They will not atone 
 Not unless they chance to be 
 Smiles of tender sympathy. 
 
Jfebruarp 10 
 
 AVERAGE 
 
 I have noticed as I Ve run 
 
 Through this life of joy and striving 
 Of ten troubles looked for, one 
 
 Has a habit of arriving. 
 
o' Qieer 
 
 Jfefcruarp II 
 
 THE FEBRUARY SUN 
 
 Look on the sun, and if you can, 
 Bewail the chillsome lot of Man 
 
 When in the sky 
 
 You chance to spy 
 According to kind nature's plan 
 That universal warming-pan ! 
 
Jfebruarp 12 
 
 ALLEVIATION 
 
 It should not, maybe, yet it does 
 
 Sometimes in trouble take the curse off, 
 
 To think that Some One is, or was, 
 
 Or some day, somehow, will be worse off 
 
Jfebruarp 13 
 
 When critics hurt me with their sneer 
 I find this couplet full of cheer: 
 
 Who 's never hit 
 
 Is never " IT " 
 
*4 
 
 fafflty o 9 tfayear 
 
 ^ Jfebruarp 14 
 
 GOOD WORDS 
 
 To have a good word for my neighbor, 
 To have a good word for my friend, 
 
 Involves but a wee bit of labor, 
 And nothing to boast in the end. 
 
 But words that are good for my foeman 
 And credit for virtues possest 
 
 Now that is a task, sir, that no man 
 Can find little short of a test 
 Of his best! 
 
(into Qw 
 
 jfebruatp 15 
 
 r 
 
 THE GREETING 
 
 Who 's lavish with his smiles, 
 
 And niggardly in tears, 
 Will travel many miles 
 
 Along the Road of Years; 
 And when the journey 's o'er, 
 
 The smiles of joy elate 
 He 's spent in days of yore 
 
 Will greet him at the Gate ! 
 
Sxli'Dqy 6 
 
 jfebtuarp 16 
 
 When some one tells a tale of woe 
 About my neighbor, I '11 receive it; 
 But even though 
 I know it 's so, 
 I '11 merely smile and not believe it 
 
>' Qwr 
 
 Jfebtuarp 17 
 
 A RESOLVE 
 
 I 'm going to make To-day so fair 
 That when it 's gone the usual way 
 
 On some To-morrow full of care 
 'T will make a pleasant Yesterday. 
 
 And when the future doth appear 
 
 A dreary prospect, bleak and black, 
 I '11 ease a very present fear 
 By looking back! 
 

 Jfebruarp 18 
 
 "ALL'S WELL" 
 
 You may bind my body fast 
 
 To some Post of Misery, 
 But you '11 find me to the last 
 Wheresoe'er my lot is cast 
 
 In my Spirit free ! 
 
 Dreams are mine, and hopes likewise. 
 
 Mine 's the light to ease my ill. 
 Mine are all the far-flung skies; 
 Wheresoever beauty lies 
 
 Spirit roams at will. 
 
 Bind me, chain me, prison me 
 In some dark and loathsome cell, 
 
 Still my Soul forever free 
 
 Rises up exultantly 
 
 Crying: "All Is Well! " 
 
int o' (feer 
 
 jfebruarp 19 
 
 THE OPTIMISTIC 
 
 PESSIMIST 
 
 The pessimist who gloats on ill 
 That is, or is to be to-morrow, 
 
 Hath optimistic spirit still, 
 
 He takes such joy in things of sorrow 
 
THE SEED 
 
 Down in the darkness of the earth, 
 In regions void of joy and mirth, 
 
 A seed will rest, 
 
 By seeming hopelessness of light, 
 By seeming blackness of the night, 
 Possessed. 
 
 And then from out the wintry grip 
 All on a sudden it will slip 
 
 In Springtime hours 
 To make on some glad day in May 
 The prospect beautifully gay 
 With flowers. 
 
 So in my wintry cares! I know, 
 Despite the chill of present woe 
 
 That holds me fast, 
 I 'm but an earth-bound seed, and I 
 Shall find the dawn of victory 
 At last ! 
 
fine o' (jfer 
 
 Jfe&ruarp 21 
 
 ON DUTY 
 
 Now what of the sleet? 
 And what of the hail? 
 And what of the fleet 
 Tempestuous gale? 
 
 O what of the chill, 
 The ice and the snow, 
 And all of this ill 
 And bluster and blow? 
 
 That 's what Winter 's for, 
 It must be confest 
 That though he 's a bore, 
 He 's doing his best! 
 
Jf ebruarp 22 
 
 A DEMONSTRATION 
 
 Cold is nothing! Demonstrate it? 
 
 Like two twos when put together 
 When 't is coldest wise folks rate it 
 As a bit of zero weather, 
 And a zero, don't you see, 
 Equals nothing Q. E. D. 
 When the bitter blasts are storming, 
 May you find this notion warming! 
 
{Ine o' (Jtttr 
 
 Jf ebrwarp 23 
 
jf ebruarp 24 
 
 SATISFACTION 
 
 Aim high! E'en though the target is not hit, 
 Your arrow, speeding to and from the 
 height, 
 
 In rise and fall, there 's no denying it, 
 Can't help but have a satisfying flight. 
 
o? int o' Qmr 
 
 Jf ebruarp 25 
 
 SWIMMERS ALL 
 
 Life 's a sea, and we 're all swimmin', 
 Boys and girls, and men and women. 
 Tempests rage, and skies are clouded, 
 In a black mist oft enshrouded; 
 Water 's deep, and waves are towerin', 
 Current 's sometimes overpowerin' ; 
 Hard to fight 'em single-handed, 
 And sometimes perhaps we're stranded; 
 But somewhere, the voyage ended, 
 Waits a harbor fair and splendid, 
 Holding peace and rest to free 
 All the swimmers of the sea. 
 
Jf ebruarp 26 
 
 
 
 A GOODLY QUEST 
 
 Never had a rumpus yet 
 
 Did n't find some good behind it 
 If I took the care to get 
 
 In the mood where I could find it. 
 Anyhow, whatever the score, 
 Good is well worth lookin' for! 
 
o Qietr 
 
 $ ebrwarp 27 
 
 FULFILLMENT 
 
 I can't be what Shakespeare was! 
 I can't do what great folks does! 
 But, by Ginger, I can be 
 
 Me! 
 
 And among the folks that love me 
 Nothin' more 's expected of me ! 
 

 Jf ebruarp 28 
 
 THE NEARER STEP 
 
 To-day was bleak as it could be, 
 And yet my heart doth sing, 
 
 Because you see 
 
 It marked to me 
 Another step toward Spring. 
 
 Another step toward roses fair, 
 And smiling skies above, 
 
 And bird-notes rare, 
 
 And in the air 
 The sense of new-born love. 
 
 tt, 
 
o? [int o Qittr 
 
 jUlarcfj I 
 
 M 
 
 GOOD OLD MARCH 
 
 Cometh March all brag and bluster, 
 Pull of frills, and fuss, and fluster, 
 But for all his blatant bragging 
 And his cold and windy nagging, 
 I can see he 's only fooling, 
 And his threatenings are drooling. 
 For beneath his noisy keening 
 Coming Springtime is a-greening, 
 And I know despite his ruffing, 
 Good old March is merely bluffing. 
 He is only rudely trying 
 Thus to comfort Winter, dying. 
 
StuftDay 6 'tkyear 
 
 fWawf) 2 
 
 THE BETTER WAY 
 
 When fellers wantin' things comes by 
 I don't get mad and hit 'em, 
 
 But sort o' grin and see if I 
 Can't up and help 'em git 'em. 
 
nt o' Qietr 
 
 jlWartl) 3 
 
 AS TO HEAVEN 
 
 Heaven is a place so fair 
 That no grief can enter there. 
 Well, for me I '11 choose a place 
 Where, when Sorrow shows his face, 
 There 's enough of Love about 
 Handily to drive him out. 
 
 Give me this, and 'spite the ill, 
 I shall have my Heaven still! 
 
A PHILOSOPHE 
 
 I hain't ez smart ez some folks is, 
 That fact is plain to see, 
 
 But then there 's other folks in bi 
 That hain't ez smart ez me ! 
 
 And so, without no ondue pride, 
 I 'm feelin' sorter satisfied. 
 
[mt o' Qwtr 
 
 jUlarcfj 5 
 
 THE SHUT-IN 
 
 I 'm anchored fast no trips for me 
 To distant lands across the sea, 
 
 And yet I find a certain sort 
 
 Of comfort lying safe in port! 
 
SicH^Mj o t&ymr 
 
 iflavtlj 6 
 
 PRIDE OF BIRTH 
 
 Now pride of birth is very fine I 
 *T is nice to come of noble line, 
 And boast a lofty family tree 
 Decked with a famous ancestry ! 
 
 I J m mighty glad to think I Ve had 'em 
 Straight back as far as Father Adam. 
 Though here and there, I rather fear 
 The links are not exactly clear, 
 The fact remains that I am here. 
 And that is proof enough for me 
 That I belong upon the tree. 
 
{int o' Qittr 
 
 MY FACE 
 
 When fust I started on life's race, 
 I war n't allowed to choose my face. 
 But as I ran along my way, 
 I found, by smilin' every day, 
 I sort o' gave this phiz o' mine 
 A kind of different design 
 Than 't would ha' had if I had went 
 A-yowlin' full o' discontent. 
 
 I m wuss than plain, but I can keep 
 My ugliness from strikin' deep ! 
 

 8 
 
 THE SONG-CURE 
 
 If, when things are going wrong, 
 You will hum some little song, 
 Just a soft and tender bit 
 With some melody in it, 
 Things may not go right again, 
 But 't will sort of ease the pain, 
 And you '11 find in your reverse 
 Naught 's so bad it can't be worse, 
 
 
ffL fint o y 
 
 jMartf) 9 
 
 r 
 
 MEMORIES 
 
 When with tears your eyelids glisten 
 Just a moment pause, and listen; 
 Call to mind some childhood day 
 When your tears were kissed away, 
 And within your heart you '11 hear 
 Once again the voice of cheer 
 Bidding you forget your fear! 
 
 Blessed is the memory 
 Of the voice of sympathy! 
 
jWarch 10 
 
 COMFORTING 
 
 I kain't do much success to win, 
 But one thing 's sure, through thick and thin 
 I kin do what I kin! 
 
o? fjnt o' (feer 
 
 ;$larrf) II 
 
 u 
 
 CHEER UP! 
 
 Are you moaning o'er your lot 
 'Cause of things you haven't got? 
 Well, look here I 've made a list 
 Of the things perhaps you 've missed: 
 Motor car stuck in the mud 
 With a dull and sickening thud ; 
 Three months note come due to-day; 
 Tax-bill overdue to pay; 
 Patent leather shoes so tight 
 You can't tell the left from right; 
 Measles, mumps, and oh, the gout! 
 Stomach slowly giving out ; 
 Vermiform appendix all 
 Ready for the Doctor's call ; 
 And a thousand other knocks 
 Straight from old Pandora's box! 
 Think of these a little while, 
 And it may be you will smile 
 As you contemplate your lot, 
 And the things you have n't got ! 
 
IN THE HOUR OF TEMPTATION 
 
 To beat temptation when you meet it, 
 Turn on your beat and simply beat it ! 
 
o? fine o' Qm 
 
 iHardj 13 
 
 r 
 
 WINGS AND WINGS 
 
 I envy not the lark, for, though he flies 
 Upon the morning air up through the skies, 
 Shut out is he forever from the dells 
 Wherein the poets weave their magic spells 
 That send the Soul of Man, as if on wings, 
 On flights of Spirit, far from earthly things. 
 'T were well to soar the heavens, but for me 
 The Spirit Realm on Wings of Poesie! 
 
jfttard) 14 
 
 THE WITTY MAN 
 
 " Brevity's the soul of wit! " 
 
 So the Sages do report, 
 Which is why I smiling sit 
 
 When my purse is running " short." 
 He that laughs at poverty 
 Hath a wit that pleaseth me. 
 'T is the sort beyond a doubt 
 That some day will help him out! 
 
Qnt o Qietr 
 
 15 
 
 THE BLUSTERER 
 
 March all bluster threatens much 
 With his loud and windy touch, 
 But when one looks underneath 
 All this showing of his teeth, 
 All his howl and braggart jeer, 
 There 's not really much to fear. 
 'Neath his growling all the while 
 There 's a sort of springy smile! 
 
o 
 
 jfWarcf) 16 
 
 A NEW THOUGHT 
 
 I rather think to get somewhere 
 
 I '11 so direct my labors 
 That I can meet those standards rare 
 
 I set up for my neighbors. 
 I wonder, as I think it o'er, 
 I never thought of that before ! 
 
<? nt o' Qiwr 
 
 17 
 
 A ST. PATRICK'S DAY RESOLVE 
 
 Just as St. Patrick drove the snakes 
 
 Away from good old Erin, 
 I think I '11 drive out all the fakes 
 That with my soul play ducks and drakes: 
 Intolerance of friends' mistakes, 
 
 A habit harsh of jeerin'; 
 
 Unkindly thoughts ; a tendency 
 
 To sham and empty blarney; 
 A lack of ready sympathy 
 For those in need of charity; 
 Until my spirit freed will be 
 
 As green as fair Killarney! 
 
18 
 
 THE LURE AND THE LAUREL 
 
 Opportunity, they say, 
 
 Knocks upon the outer door; 
 
 Beckons us to come away 
 Unto Fortune's golden shore. 
 
 Many rise, and many go, 
 
 Where his beckoning shall lead, 
 
 Finding at the last but woe 
 Waiting on the daring deed. 
 
 Others, heedless of his call, 
 Heedless of his golden snare, 
 
 Stay within, and after all 
 
 Find the richest laurels there. 
 
[int o* Qmr 
 
 19 
 
 WISHING AND HOPING 
 
 We can't get our every wish 
 
 By the act of wishing, 
 But e'en though there are no fish 
 
 There 's some fun in fishing. 
 
 So when things are far from bright, 
 And I 'm merely groping 
 
 Through the darkness of the night, 
 There is joy in hoping. 
 
Writin' music ain't for me. 
 I ain't strong on poetry. 
 But as on my way I go 
 Through a world of joy and woe 
 Amblin' steadily along, 
 I can make my life a song. 
 
o? fjgt o' Qut 
 
 r 
 
 21 
 
 THE PLAY 
 
 I like to think of Shakespeare's line 
 That " all the world 's a stage," 
 
 And we 're but actors in a fine 
 Old Drama of our Age. 
 
 It makes me feel that when the plot 
 
 Too complicated seems, 
 My troubles on the whole are not 
 
 Much more than passing dreams. 
 
THE SPEEDER 
 
 Croesus honks along the way 
 In his motor bright and gay, 
 Speeding at a fearful pace 
 Strained the look upon his face! 
 
 Wonder if he races on 
 Hoping that perchance anon 
 Somewhere, somehow, he will find 
 He has left his cares behind? 
 
 Better plodding on the road 
 Than a car with such a load! 
 
o' Qwr 
 
 Jttocfj 23 
 
 OUT OF THE STORM 
 
 Your tears flow fast because of woe 
 That in your heart you 're fearing? 
 It matters not ! Just let them flow, 
 The rain falls hardest, don't you know, 
 A moment ere the clearing? 
 
i^Dtydtl^eam 
 
 jWartl) 24 
 
 WORK A-PLENTY 
 
 Time hangs heavy on your hands? 
 
 Not a thing to do ? 
 Boredom at your doorway stands 
 
 Glowering at you? 
 
 Seek the highway with your heart 
 
 Filled with tenderness 
 For the vagrom souls that smart 
 
 'Neath some bitter stress. 
 
 You will find a task indeed 
 
 Waiting for you there, 
 Where by acts of loving heed 
 
 You can conquer care. 
 
DISARMED 
 
 Met my enemy to-day 
 Wustest one I ever had. 
 
 Shook his hand in genial way; 
 
 Smiled upon him bright and gay; 
 
 Nary bit did I betray 
 
 I was on to him, and say 
 Gee ! But he was mad ! 
 

 26 
 
 A USELESS CURE 
 
 The Sages say there 's cure for love 
 To make a man forsake it. 
 
 By all the stars that shine above 
 I vow I '11 never take it ! 
 
 Love 's not a plaint, pray rest assured, 
 
 Of which a wise man would be cured ! 
 
REFORMERS 
 
 In trying to reform mankind 
 And cure him of his sinning 
 
 First tackle Self perhaps you'll fin 
 It makes a tough beginning! 
 
o 
 
 28 
 
 WELL ENOUGH! 
 
 You pine for a day that is longer 
 Some forty-eight hours, you say? 
 
 You think you 'd be better and stronger, 
 If that were the length of your day? 
 
 Not so ! Why, dear friend, you 'd be fifty 
 Years old when you 'd reached twenty-five. 
 
 Your legs would be shaky and shifty; 
 Your heart would be scarcely alive. 
 
 It may be I 'm not very sage, sir, 
 But this is the solemnest truth: 
 
 I 'd rather be young in my age, sir, 
 Than old in the prime of my youth ! 
 
M 
 
 c? fint o y Qmr 
 
 ifWarcf) 29 
 
 IN RAINY WEATHER 
 
 When rains drench the hillside and darken 
 
 the vale, 
 And all your good spirits grow weary and 
 
 fail, 
 When every bright prospect seems drowning 
 
 in woe 
 Pretend you 're a plant, and it 's making you 
 
 grow! 
 
*M 
 
 ^li^Dm) o 9 tKeyear 
 
 iWarcfj 30 
 
 AN IMPRESSION 
 
 Thought I saw a snowflake falling 
 
 Through the air to-day 
 It was but a white moth calling: 
 
 " Spring is on the way! " 
 More of winter I was fearing 
 
 As it passed along. 
 But my heart was shortly cheering 
 
 With its happy song 
 Sometimes troubles seem to call 
 That are n't troublesome at all ! 
 
SI {jnt o (fee 
 
 ! 
 
 jilattl) 31 
 
 EPITAPH TO MARCH 
 
 Here lies old March, 
 
 As stiff as starch. 
 
 He snowed a lot. 
 
 He blowed a lot. 
 
 He smiled a bit. 
 
 He riled a bit 
 
 But in the end 
 
 He- was my friend, 
 Because of his bequest to me 
 In days, all of them blest to me 
 For service and for helpfulness 
 To self and fellows in distress. 
 
ALL FOOL'S DAY 
 
 When April comes with smiles or tears, 
 Whiche'er they be, I have no fears. 
 I know that when she smiles 't is best 
 To go for rainy weather dressed; 
 And when she weeps her tears foretell 
 A very pleasant sunny spell 
 'T is not for naught in wisdom's schooling 
 Her birthday 's set aside for fooling ! 
 
o? {Ini o' (fietr 
 
 april 2 
 
 OMENS 
 
 Can't ye see the ice-chains lettin' go the river? 
 Can't ye feel the touch o' Springtime in the 
 
 shiver? 
 Can't ye see the sunbeams climbin' in your 
 
 room 
 
 In the early mornin', killin' off the gloom? 
 That 's the way with trouble, that 's the way 
 
 with care. 
 
 Like a wintry tempest with its icy snare 
 All will disappear in spite their threatenin' 
 If your heart you '11 ope an' let the sunlight 
 
 in! 
 
THE INIMICAL TRUTH 
 
 When some old foe of mine doth rise to say 
 Some disagreeable thing to raise a row, 
 
 I do not grieve and give my anger play; 
 I know full well he means it anyhow. 
 
 An ounce of truth spoke by an enemy 
 
 Is worth a ton of friendly flattery ! 
 
: 
 
 o? {jnt o (Tmr 
 
 aprtl 4 
 
 THE JOCUND MILESTONE 
 
 When I am walking on the Road 
 
 Of Trouble or of Worry, 
 And feel the pressure and the goad 
 
 Of an incessant hurry, 
 
 I think of an old milestone gray 
 One time I found when lost on 
 
 An old New England country way, 
 Which read: " six SMILES TO BOSTON." 
 
 Ah, that 's indeed a pleasant thought 
 
 For those of us who travel : 
 Along the Road of Pain there 's naught 
 
 That " Six Smiles " won't unravel! 
 
GROWLING 
 
 Feel like growlin' ? GROWL ! That 's right ! 
 
 Take your woes and list 'em. 
 Keep on growlin' day and night 
 Till you Ve driven all the spite 
 
 Wholly from your system. 
 
o? fjM o' Qietr 
 
 il 6 
 
 EASTER 
 
 When the Easter bells are ringing, 
 And the early birds are singing, 
 
 Who can think of care? 
 When the budding flowers are springing, 
 And their fragrances are flinging 
 
 On the silky air, 
 Ope your heart and sing away! 
 All your worries fling away! 
 Let the glad chimes ring away 
 
 Sorrow and despair! 
 
u 
 
 Su&Dmjddity 
 
 apr7 
 
 REACTIONS 
 
 There are lots of satisfactions 
 In the poet's rhymed reactions. 
 When he wants a rhyme for " tearful " 
 Nothing goes so well as " cheerful." 
 When he writes a verse on " trouble " 
 Nothing helps him more than " bubble " 
 And the phrase " a night of sorrow " 
 Plainly hints " a bright to-morrow." 
 So with us, when trials vex us 
 Let us think of " solar plexus," 
 And with naught of hesitation 
 Hand it to the visitation. 
 
o Qutr 
 
 il 8 
 
 THE GAME 
 
 Yes, the earth is but a sphere, 
 
 Round as it can be, 
 Flying on year after year 
 
 Through eternity. 
 As for me, I Ve got to take 
 
 What comes, woe and all; 
 If I thrive, or if I break, 
 
 Keep on playing ball ! 
 Pleasure, pain, or bliss, or care 
 May my game be on the square. 
 
GALA DAYS 
 
 Now here 's a hint for us this morn : 
 Each day, somewhere, somebody 's born, 
 And so of course we can't gainsay 
 Somebody's birthday comes to-day. 
 
 Wherefore, 't would be a pleasant plan 
 
 To make it joyous as we can, 
 
 And celebrate it just as hearty 
 
 As though we really knew the party ! 
 
{Inc. o (&r 
 
 AS MIGHT HAVE BEEN 
 
 When things are at Sixes and Sevens 
 It cheers me to think, in my bother, 
 
 They might be at Tens and Elevens, 
 And that is some worse than the other 
 
cacti'Day d twjear 
 
 I find my skies 
 In Love's dear eyes, 
 And when they dim 
 With sorrows grim 
 'T is joy at least to sympathize 
 
lint o (Jiet 
 
 r 
 
 12 
 
 THE IMMORTAL THING 
 
 The ships of Troy, her gloried van 
 
 That sped the main with pennons high, 
 
 Have passed beyond the ken of man 
 And in some grave forgotten lie. 
 
 The songs of Homer, one-time sung 
 By minstrels of an ancient art, 
 
 Still live, and living rank among 
 The treasures of the human heart. 
 
 He buildeth best who builds a song 
 To fill the soul of man with joy. 
 
 Let song be ours, and ships belong 
 To those who seek the bays of Troy ! 
 
u 
 
 &u$Day d tfayear 
 
 Sprit 13 
 
 THE BLUES 
 
 Are you blue? Well, now, see here, 
 That 's no reason you should mope. 
 
 Skies are blue, and it is clear 
 
 Their deep azure speaks of hope; 
 
 Then the bluebird with his song 
 
 Pours out cheer the whole day long! 
 
 When the blues come on, you '11 find, 
 If you '11 try with half a mind, 
 There are several kinds of blues 
 Lying round for you to choose; 
 And your day will be a bright one 
 If you but select the right one! 
 
o? int o (jfer 
 
 "1J april 14 
 
 HOIST! 
 
 Mr. Trouble called to-day. 
 Met him in a genial way. 
 Bade him take an easy-chair, 
 Told him all I knew of Care. 
 
 Told him how one time a chap 
 Dandled long on Fortune's lap 
 Came a cropper mighty sad 
 Losing everything he had. 
 
 Told him what the very poor 
 Very often must endure 
 From the wolves that so beset 
 Poverty, with pain and debt. 
 
 Talked away about distress 
 For two hours, more or less, 
 When poor Trouble with a roar 
 Plunged headfirst out through the door. 
 
WEALTH 
 
 I do not care in wealth to shine 
 I want enough for me and mine, 
 With something over in my store 
 For the poor stranger at my door. 
 
o'(fe 
 
 r 
 
 16 
 
 WHAT USE? 
 
 Now what 's the use, my friend, of hating, 
 And some pet enemy berating? 
 Life 's all too short for life's best laurels, 
 Much less to waste on empty quarrels. 
 I find it leaves more time for living 
 If I begin each day forgiving. 
 
\&icli ( Day d t&year 
 
 i3pnl 17 
 
 UNDISMAYED 
 
 He bent beneath care's heavy weight 
 Yet still he walked with shoulders straight ! 
 In soul appalled by debts piled high 
 Hope still flashed brightly in his eye! 
 Purse low, and prospects drear and dull 
 Within his heart beat strong and full, 
 And though his path was hedged with rue 
 He held his Courage firm and true! 
 
ffL fint o 1 (jfer 
 
 18 
 
 AS TO PEDIGREE 
 
 'T is fine to come of famous pedigree, 
 And boast a most distinguished family tree, 
 Provided that the tree is adding height, 
 And not a shell to feed a parasite. 
 
 'T is sad to see a relic of its fruit, 
 A stunted sapling on a noble root. 
 Sometimes I think when such come into view 
 I 'd rather be the seed from which it grew. 
 
Spnl 19 
 
 THE WORLD 
 
 Sometimes the world 's a dreary place, 
 
 And we 're inclined to doubt it, 
 And then the question we must face: 
 
 What would we do without it? 
 Upon the whole, despite its drear, 
 We should be happy to be here, 
 And maybe when it seems most sad, 
 It 's up to us to make it glad. 
 
fint o* Qiee 
 
 r 
 
 20 
 
 HOPE ON, HOPE EVER 
 
 What bodes your lack of beauty? 
 
 Don't let that vex your mind. 
 When True Love comes on duty 
 
 He 's almost always blind; 
 And many and many a woman 
 
 Whose eyes were full of light, 
 Has doted on a human 
 
 Whose visage was a sight! 
 
THE FAILURE 
 
 Now failures are, as I conceive, 
 No things to weep o'er or to grieve, 
 But beacon lights to warn us when 
 We sail too near the rocks again; 
 Or, better, spurs to urge us on 
 To surer enterprise anon. 
 
 He is a sage who scales the heights 
 On failures made by other wights, 
 Provided in his quest for pelf 
 He 's not already failed himself; 
 And he who has n't well, I guess 
 He '11 never know how sweet success 
 Can be to him who from a crash 
 Emerges stronger for his smash. 
 
THE FOUR ESSENTIALS 
 
 There is no treasure-trove 
 
 Without true Love. 
 There is no solid wealth 
 
 That 's minus Health. 
 There 's no prosperity 
 
 Sans Sympathy, 
 And Life itself 's a wraith 
 
 If lacking Faith. 
 
ANSWER 
 
 What's the good word? 
 Now that 's a phrase I truly love to hear, 
 
 And when 't is heard, 
 I always smile and promptly answer 
 
 "CHEER!" 
 
 It holds more warmth and genial glow 
 Than any other word I know. 
 
us 
 
 o? nt o' Qutr 
 
 april 24 
 
 AS TO SELF-MADE MEN 
 
 I Ve met, O many a self-made man 
 
 I guess about six hundred odd; 
 But none of them were better than 
 
 The old-time species made by God. 
 Indeed, if I were asked I 'd say, 
 
 Though most were first-class imitations, 
 The old-time pattern still holds sway 
 
 In spite of modern innovations. 
 
TRANSFORMATION 
 
 I Ve never found by kickin' yet 
 That I could make a dry day wet; 
 But I can make a wet day fair 
 By puttin' on a smilin' air. 
 
Ml 
 
 o? fine o' C&t 
 
 r 
 
 apnl 26 
 
 WORK FOR ALL 
 
 What 's that sigh upon the wind? 
 
 Some one with a troubled mind. 
 What's that groan upon the street? 
 
 Some poor wight with weary feet. 
 What's that bent form on the mart? 
 
 Wanderer with a broken heart. 
 Who 's that weeping on my stair? 
 
 Some one with a load of care. 
 Who 's that knocking at my door? 
 
 Only these, and nothing more. 
 
 And I sit the whole day through 
 Wishing I had work to do! 
 
&icfi ( Day d tfayear 
 
 i3jpril 27 
 
 HELD FAST 
 
 There is a chap whose high regard 
 
 I 'm always going to keep. 
 I do not care a jot how hard 
 
 Or rough the path, or steep, 
 As long as he believes I 'm right 
 
 I '11 keep straight on the way 
 Despite the critics who delight 
 
 To harry and to flay. 
 
 For if I lose that chap's respect 
 
 No matter what I do, 
 My life will be completely wrecked, 
 
 And covered o'er with rue. 
 No praise of others could atone 
 
 The loss of his acclaim, 
 And e'en the honors of a throne 
 
 Would hide a tinsel name. 
 
 Who is he ? Well, 'twixt you and me 
 He is the chap I daily see 
 O' mornings when it comes to pass 
 I glance into my looking-glass. 
 
IN THE MATTER OF GOSSIP 
 
 To gossip I 'd be more inclined 
 
 If so be it were always kind. 
 
 What could be sweeter than the labor 
 
 Of spreading good news of your neighbor? 
 
THE SILVER LINING 
 
 When I see my locks of gray 
 
 Getting grayer every day, 
 And I feel inclined to sigh 
 For my youth and days gone by, 
 
 Suddenly there comes a call : 
 
 SOME FOLKS HAVE NO HAIR AT ALL ! 
 
THE SURE ROAD 
 
 The surest rud to Happiness 
 Thet I Ve diskivered yit 
 
 Is wantin' nuthin' more ner less 
 Than what I 'm sure to git ! 
 
tixf&ayo fayta? 
 
 ^ Jaj I 
 
 MAYTIME 
 
 Dawns the May with sunny hours, 
 Blossoms white, and fragrant flowers. 
 Morning air is sweet with song; 
 Nature smiles the whole day long; 
 And the stars that shine by night 
 With their soft and friendly light 
 Shedding radiance through the sky 
 Bid us turn our thoughts on high. 
 
 Who can dwell on sorrows gray 
 In this glad time of the May? 
 
o? fine, o' Qwtr 
 
 | JlWaj>2 
 
 THE LIGHT 
 
 All day, all day, I follow the light, 
 O'er city, and hill, and dale; 
 
 From rosy dawn to the jeweled night 
 I joy in the golden trail. 
 
 And when at the dusk the light runs on 
 
 And passes beyond my ken, 
 In Dreamland's valley I rest anon 
 
 And find the bright sun again ; 
 
 Or if it be that I cannot win 
 The sleep that banisheth care, 
 
 I turn my vigilant eyes within, 
 And lo, the glad light is there ! 
 
X 
 
 ^fi^ca^ 6 tkyear 
 
 fRapS 
 
 THE GARDEN 
 
 My heart and mind 
 
 I daily find 
 A sort of fertile garden fair, 
 
 Where I can play 
 
 And work each day 
 In hope of prizes rich and rare. 
 
 I have no doubt 
 
 If I weed out 
 The thorns of malice and untruth, 
 
 And plant the seeds 
 
 Of helpful deeds, 
 I '11 reap the Rose of Lasting Youth 
 
1A 
 
 o? int o' Qw, 
 
 4Wap4 
 
 r 
 
 WHAT EACH MONTH BRINGS 
 
 What each month brings I '11 keep within my 
 
 heart 
 
 And bid it in my nature do its part; 
 And as December brings the joys of Yule, 
 And tells of Man's good- will, and Love's 
 
 own rule, 
 So shall the May, with bird-song and with 
 
 flower, 
 
 Transform the world into a vernal bower 
 That rests at peace beneath a fragrant spell, 
 And whispers to my soul that all is well. 
 
AA 
 
 NEVER TOO LATE 
 
 Let 's not be weeping in the sight of wrong, 
 Nor careless either, greeting it with song, 
 But if we can, the minute that we sight it, 
 
 Hie forth and right it! 
 
 Or if perchance we have no power to end it 
 'T will do no harm to see if we can't mend it. 
 
SCRATCH 'EM! 
 
 Don't brood on fancied wrongs just take 
 
 and scratch 'em. 
 By too much brooding you may chance to 
 
 hatch 'e 
 
Sncfffiay dtkyear 
 
 ffla?7 
 
 PROFIT AND LOSS 
 
 His health was lost; 
 
 His wealth was lost; 
 
 And yet he gained. 
 
 For Love remained 
 
 And proved itself 
 
 The best of pelf 
 
 By standing by 
 
 When Care drew nigh. 
 Life holds no loss, or galling chains, 
 Despair gets little for its pains 
 
 If Love remains! 
 
o? (jnt o' (Jiet 
 
 r 
 
 FINANCIAL NOTE 
 
 It seems too bad thet I can't borrer 
 
 Enough to tide me o'er to-day, 
 But when I think o' thet to-morrer 
 
 That 's sure to dawn three months away, 
 It .sort o' soothes my present sorrer 
 
 To think I shall not have to pay 
 The sums I 'd owe if I could borrer 
 
 Enough to tide me o'er to-day. 
 
u 
 
 acFi ( Day ofay ear 
 
 Jap9 
 
 BETTER THAN WINGS 
 
 'T were nice to fly 
 
 Up through the sky, 
 And get away from rushing crowds; 
 
 And mid the roar 
 
 Of storm to soar 
 Far up above the dripping clouds. 
 
 But all the same, 
 
 I love the game 
 Down on the level of the street, 
 
 And 'stead o' wings, 
 
 My spirit sings 
 For sturdy legs and steady feet. 
 
MONEY 
 
 Money comes, and money goes. 
 Where it goes to, goodness knows; 
 Feeds us, clothes us, pays the rent; 
 Sometimes borrowed, often lent; 
 Makes a pleasant, jingly sound; 
 Rather nice to have around. 
 But it never kept a friend! 
 Broken hearts 't will never mend. 
 As a substitute for Right 
 Frequently it heaves in sight; 
 But it is a substitute 
 That holds mighty bitter fruit. 
 Misers hoard it; tyrants rule 
 When they use it for a tool ; 
 And for want of it the roar 
 Of the Wolf comes to the door. 
 
 I will take all I can get 
 Since it holds me free of debt. 
 I '11 respect it for its power 
 To relieve some pressing hour, 
 But for worship well, for me 
 God forbid that that should be ! 
 
18x111)01) d tfay ear 
 
 1 
 
 jUlap II 
 
 A CHOICE 
 
 If so be you're inclined to jeer 
 And greet all things with cynic sneer, 
 Remember, pray, the Owl, whose hoots 
 For merry song he substitutes; 
 
 Who hates the light, 
 
 And lives by night; 
 And loses all the hours of fun 
 He might be having in the sun. 
 
 If you desire to be an Owl, 
 
 Why, go ahead and hoot and scowl, 
 
 But don't complain if through the night 
 
 You miss the pleasures of the light. 
 
r 
 
 12 
 
 THE TOWN-CRIER 
 
 Now that 's a chap I 'd like to see 
 
 In every last community. 
 
 A sort of Care-and-Trouble-Keeper, 
 
 A salaried, official Weeper, 
 
 Who 'd come around when things were trying 
 
 And for a small fee do our crying ! 
 
Sxti'Dayottieyear 
 
 iflap 13 
 
 THE BETTER PLAN 
 
 Some men make memoranda of their foes, 
 The names of folks they 'd like to give the 
 
 hook; 
 
 But as for me, along with other woes 
 I hold their names, and let my grouches doze, 
 Hid in a small " Forgetterandum Book." 
 
 The world 's been blest no doubt by mem- 
 ories, 
 
 But when the things remembered fail to 
 please, 
 
 Than Memory o'er strong, 't were truly 
 better 
 
 Were we to cultivate a good Forgetter ! 
 
OVER YONDER 
 
 Over yonder, over yonder, 
 
 See the toiling millions wander 
 
 Seeking prizes rare! 
 See them in the depths of worry, 
 In the hurry and the flurry 
 
 Overcome by care ! 
 
 Over yonder, over yonder 
 Is it all worth while, I ponder, 
 
 As I 'm sitting here 
 In the midst of fruitful labors, 
 With the love of all my neighbors 
 
 Filling me with cheer? 
 
 Over yonder, over yonder 
 Is it best to go? I wonder! 
 
 Golden is its lure, 
 But with all its dangers lurking 
 Would I not be rather working 
 
 Where Love is secure? 
 
5?r/i < Dai/o^feyear > 
 
 ittaplS 
 
 NOW 
 
 I 'm not botherin' my head 
 On the troubles that have sped 
 
 Or may come. 
 On the joys of Yesterday, 
 Or upon To-morrow's way, 
 
 I am dumb. 
 
 Yesterdays or days to be 
 They are all the same to me, 
 
 Anyhow. 
 
 I shall hold my vision true 
 On the things that I can do 
 
 JUST 
 
 RIGHT 
 
 NOW! 
 
(jQut 
 
 r 
 
 16 
 
 ON A RAINY DAY 
 
 What though the rain doth keep me in 
 And spoils to-day past any doubt? 
 
 A harvest rich it helps to win 
 
 And brings the laughing roses out. 
 
 So let it fall. The passing showers 
 May serve to make a present care, 
 
 But in its train the thirsting flowers 
 Will sweeter make the morning air. 
 
COURSE 
 
 No word of wrath shall come from me 
 When things go wrong upon my beat. 
 
 I '11 hold my tongue from growling free 
 And do my kicking with my feet ! 
 
o? Ijnt o' ffeer 
 
 ddlap 18 
 
 THE WISE BIRD 
 
 " Chirrup! Chirrup! " The small bird sang 
 
 his song 
 
 The while I brooded on some fancied wrong, 
 And straightway from the depths I turned 
 
 and steered up, 
 And as his lyric bade me do, I cheered up. 
 
 The Sage is wise, and yet I never heard 
 More wisdom than I got from that small 
 bird! 
 
SicK.} o tfayMf 
 
 4Wap 10 
 
 GARDENING 
 
 Have you got a garden where you gather 
 
 wealth 
 Of the kind that comes from an abundant 
 
 health? 
 
 There are other gardens full of human plants 
 Waiting for the worker looking for a chance ! 
 
 Do you weed your garden, freeing it of woe 
 That the tender blossoms may more freely 
 
 grow? 
 There are human blossoms choking mid the 
 
 weeds 
 Of the stress of sorrow, and their daily 
 
 needs ! 
 
 In the human garden that 's the place to 
 
 work! 
 That 's the place where dangers to the 
 
 flowers lurk! 
 
 In the city byways, in the slums of dole, 
 Where there might be sprouting roses of the 
 
 soul ! 
 
o'Qut 
 
 r 
 
 GREETING 
 
 What you are or where you be 
 Does n't matter much to me. 
 If your heart is heavy o'er 
 Some distress you can't ignore, 
 Here 's my hand, and all my heart, 
 Ready now to do their part 
 In fraternal sympathy 
 Does n't matter what you be ! 
 
 

 EVER FRIENDLY 
 
 When comes some dull and dreary morn 
 When you Ve deserted and forlorn, 
 By strangers all begirt, alone, 
 With not a friend to call your own, 
 Seek out some breezy garden-close 
 Where bloom the lily and the rose. 
 Their friendly nod, so frank and free, 
 Will ease your lack of company. 
 
 " : : : 
 
o 
 
 OUT OF BONDAGE 
 
 He rises most who rises from his bond. 
 He bravest is who knoweth not despond. 
 To break the shackles of a pressing care 
 Calls for a strength and for a courage rare, 
 And life the sweeter is for all its pains 
 To him who 's nobly risen from his chains. 
 
&cfi ( Daydtlieyear 
 
 Jap23 
 
 THE SOLAR SYSTEM 
 
 'T was well arranged that on spring days 
 
 The sun should very early rise 
 On all the Maytime sweets to gaze, 
 
 And on her glories feast his eyes; 
 The while when things are bleak with snows, 
 
 As in the winter is their fate, 
 He stays in bed and warms his toes 
 
 Until an hour somewhat late. 
 
 I guess I '11 make his system mine, 
 And sort of doze in face of Care, 
 
 But when there 's Joy upon the line 
 I '11 early rise and take my share. 
 
COMPARATIVE DIET 
 
 If Robin Redbreast knows such bliss 
 On such a diet as is his, 
 How much more blissful is our lot 
 Upon the bill-of-f are we Ve got ! 
 If he can sing his tooral-ay 
 Upon the worms that come his way, 
 I sort of think one strawberry 
 Should get an anthem out of me. 
 
TEARS 
 
 Now what are tears but showers sent 
 To ease the heart by sorrows pent? 
 And what are showers but the play 
 That leads us to the greener day? 
 To know them not, would be, I fear, 
 To dull the sweetness of our cheer, 
 And hold us all unknowing of 
 The deeper, hidden joys of Love. 
 
o? fjM 0* (& 
 
 Jflda{>26 
 
 r 
 
 THE SONG OF THE BROOK 
 
 t 
 
 Ah, the little brooklet! Merrily it sings 
 
 As its way it windeth on to mightier things; 
 
 Over crag and bowlder; through the dark- 
 ened flume; 
 
 Never stops to murmur thoughts of care and 
 gloom. 
 
 I will heed the lesson as my path I ply, 
 Past the Crags of Sorrow, 'neath a darkened 
 
 sky, 
 And with song eternal hold the Faith it 
 
 brings 
 That I too am moving on to mightier things ! 
 
Sttli'Day o tfayear 
 
 THE HEART OF A BOY 
 
 I give you my word I am fifty to-day, 
 
 And many 's the trouble that 's lurked on my 
 
 way. 
 Misfortune and failure have each done their 
 
 part, 
 And bitter the tears that have welled in my 
 
 heart. 
 
 But faith in my God, and the love of my kind, 
 And smiles, whether wistful or not, in my 
 
 mind, 
 
 Have held me at fifty as full of true joy 
 As ever you '11 find in the Heart of a Boy! 
 
 \ i 
 
o? ^g 0' (%er 
 
 4Waj>28 
 
 
 RENEWAL 
 
 When overburdened with the cares 
 
 That all your peace of mind destroy, 
 Give up your shop and all its wares 
 
 And play that you 're once more a boy. 
 Go out into some grassy track, 
 
 Forget the barter and the dollar, 
 And lying flat upon your back 
 
 Just whistle, sing, or yell, or holler. 
 
 There 's nothing helps us more in ruth 
 Than such renewals of our youth. 
 
COMPENSATION 
 
 When folks pass by and kind o* sniff and 
 sneer 
 
 Becuz I hain't got inter high Society, 
 It sort o' fills my sperrits up with cheer, 
 When noticin' the starchy duds they weer, 
 An' all their other hifalutin' gear, 
 
 To think Society hain't yit got inter me ! 
 
o? nt o' Qwr\ 
 
 jWa? 30 ^^^ 
 
 MEMORIAL DAY 
 
 Is there war within your heart 
 With its lashing sting and smart, 
 
 Leaving you undone? 
 Think of them that bore their part 
 
 Back in Sixty-one ! 
 Do your drooping shoulders bear 
 Crosses of such black despair? 
 Does your Spirit bend below 
 Such a weight of weary woe 
 As befell that mighty host 
 In the din of battle lost? 
 
 For the Blue, and for the Gray, 
 Wreathe your laurels on this day, 
 Thanking God your present cares 
 Hold no sorrows such as theirs ! 
 
WHY NOT? 
 
 Considerin' the loveliness that round about 
 
 us lies, 
 Why not dwell on the roses 'stead o' cussin' 
 
 out the flies? 
 
o? ^m o' (jfer 
 
 June I 
 
 RICHES 
 
 Now Croesus, he hath bonds and stocks 
 Securely locked up in his box; 
 And Dives hath no end of lands 
 On which his marble palace stands; 
 And Midas hath a magic touch 
 That turns to gold all he can clutch. 
 
 But when it comes to sun and moon, 
 And all the joys of dawning June; 
 The songs of birds in yonder tree, 
 The merry sparkle of the sea; 
 And true love always standing by 
 Who calls them wealthier than I? 
 
\acli ( Day o tfayear 
 
 fune2 
 
 THE PROOF 
 
 Do you doubt that you shall be 
 Blest with Immortality? 
 
 Glance about you at the bowers 
 Filled afresh with reborn flowers ! 
 
 Heed the leaves that reappear 
 From the death of yesteryear! 
 
 Watch the grasses in the mirth 
 Of a glorious rebirth ! 
 
 Think you that in God's great plan 
 New birth is denied to Man? 
 
 Man alone is he to be 
 Shorn of Immortality? 
 
 'Mid these tokens full of cheer 
 Does n't seem much room for fear! 
 
(ine o' Qwr 
 
 luneS 
 
 JUST A HINT 
 
 When Trouble comes a-howlm , and a-knock- 
 
 in' on your door, 
 Just worry all ye need ter, not a single atom 
 
 more! 
 
Sune 4 
 
 CONSERVATION 
 
 I never give others a piece o' my mind, 
 Because as I live on I not only find 
 
 That scolding don't pay, 
 
 But day after day, 
 
 Amid all the chaff and the wheat I have sown, 
 I need all my mind to fight faults of my own. 
 
IN SORRY PLIGHT 
 
 To owe nobody anything? Well, that is not 
 
 for me ! 
 'T would take away, I rather fear, quite 
 
 half the joy of life. 
 I like to think of all the debts in loving 
 
 sympathy 
 
 I owe to those whose tenderness has eased 
 me of my strife. 
 
 It brings a glow into my heart to think of all 
 
 I owe 
 To sturdy friends, who, when amid the 
 
 cares of life I grope, 
 Refresh me with their precious stores of love 
 
 to kill my woe, 
 
 And for the sting of sorrow substitute the 
 sweets of hope. 
 
 He is indeed in friendless plight who hath no 
 
 creditor 
 And does not know the joyous task of paying 
 
 off the score ! 
 
\&xli ( Day d tfayear 
 
 3Tune 6 
 
 1 
 
 THE VACANT CHAIR 
 
 Have you a vacant chair 
 
 Somewhere ? 
 Let it be filled by Memory 
 
 With visions fair 
 Of scenes that used to be. 
 Within its soft embrace 
 
 Once more retrace 
 The well-beloved form of one 
 To other realms passed on. 
 Live o'er again the happy hours 
 That strew your yesterdays like flowers 
 
 Along a sunlit way 
 That neither wither nor decay, 
 
 And bless that vacant chair 
 For standing there ! 
 
int o Qittr 
 
 3fune 7 
 
 THE PEACE LOVER 
 
 When there be seeds o' trouble 'round, 
 
 And all the soil is fertile, 
 I never make the slightest sound, 
 
 But shut up like a turtle. 
 
 I never cared for craps o' weeds, 
 Ner fancied much the thistle, 
 
 And when it comes to warlike deeds 
 I think I 'd ruther whistle. 
 
Sfune 8 
 
 THE JOY OF DISCOVERY 
 
 I 'm glad that I don't know it all, 
 
 Whichever way I turn. 
 I greatly fear that life would pall 
 
 With nothing more to learn. 
 
 It brightens much the dreary way 
 
 To wonder what will be 
 The brand new thing each brand new day 
 
 In passing teaches me. 
 
(int o* Qwt 
 
 Suite 9 
 
 SOME COMFORT 
 
 Folks complain I hain't done nothin', and 
 perhaps they 're right, by Gum! 
 
 But I Ve never done nobody, and I guess 
 that 's goin' some ! 
 
AN OBSERVATION BY THE WAY 
 
 I Ve noticed as I Ve passed along 
 Amid life's rush and flurry, 
 
 That anger never righted wrong, 
 And care grows fat on worry. 
 
d 
 
 o? nt o Qmr 
 
 fune 1 1 
 
 THREE WISHES 
 
 If some good fairy came to me 
 And said she 'd grant me wishes three, 
 I 'd make the first " a heart a-thrill 
 With pity for my neighbor's ill "; 
 The second, " strength to do my part 
 To bring peace to his troubled heart " ; 
 And third that " I should have the mind 
 To be of service to my kind." 
 
 I would not ask for love or gold, 
 Or laurels woven for the bold, 
 For in that sort of human pelf 
 I 'd rather win them for myself. 
 
Atf 
 
 fatiftqy d tfayeaf 
 
 STune 12 
 
 a 
 
 DOWN BRAKES! 
 
 Now don't go pushing Time too fast! 
 
 Why should you wish your days to hum? 
 You '11 find youth all too soon has passed, 
 
 And hoary-headed age hath come. 
 
 Let days run slow as e'er they please, 
 And thank your stars they linger on. 
 
 Who lives too quickly seldom sees 
 
 Their sweetness till, alas, they 're gone ! 
 
JL Qw. o (jfer 
 
 3Tune 13 
 
 FISHING 
 
 All the world 's a fishin' pool, 
 And within its waters cool 
 
 Lie all sorts of fishes. 
 We can catch most any kind 
 That is suited to our mind 
 
 'Cordin' to our wishes. 
 
 We can land a mess o' woe 
 Any time we wish to go 
 
 After trouble anglin'. 
 We can land no end of care 
 In the waters everywhere 
 
 On the hooks of wranglin'. 
 
 We can fill our basket up 
 
 Like an overflowin' cup * 
 
 With a mess beguiling 
 If we bait our fishin'-hooks 
 With good cheer, and pleasant looks, 
 
 Sympathy and smilin'. 
 

 
 S^cli^m) d tK^year 
 
 3Fune 14 
 
 WRINKLES AND WRINKLES 
 
 There 's wrinkles, and wrinkles, and still 
 
 other wrinkles, 
 Some coming from frowns and some coming 
 
 from twinkles ; 
 Let mine be the kind when old age cometh 
 
 by 
 That show a warm heart through the depths 
 
 of the eye ! 
 
Qnt o' (jfer 
 
 fune 15 
 
 COMING 
 
 I Ve never seed a mornin' yit 
 When I expected nothin* 
 
 Thet if I 'd jest git up an' git 
 Has failed to bring me suthin'. 
 
 Does n't really matter who yer 
 
 Are, there 's suthin' comin' to yer! 
 
acti ( DaydtKeyMr 
 
 SFune 16 
 
 THE JOY OF GIVING 
 
 Who 's never known the joy of giving 
 Has never known the bliss of living. 
 It matters not the style of gift; 
 A bit of gold to ease some shift, 
 Or just a smile, a sunny rift 
 Of sympathy, some care to lift 
 
 From shoulders worn and bending; 
 Some little act befriending; 
 
 A gentle whack 
 f Upon the back 
 To hearten up some troubled wight 
 Whose steps have wandered from the light 
 These all are gifts well worth the giving 
 For those who seek the joy of living. 
 Just go some day 
 Upon the quiet 
 Out on the way 
 
 My friend, and try it ! 
 
us 
 
 o? [mt o (peer 
 
 3Fune 17 
 
 A SOVEREIGN REMEDY 
 
 When, tossing on my couch at night, 
 Old Worry comes my rest to ruin, 
 
 I stare at him with all my might 
 
 And tell him that " There 's nothin' doin'." 
 
 " I 'm very busy now," I say. 
 
 " To put you off fills me with sorrow; 
 But you must come some other day 
 
 Say ten o'clock, perhaps, to-morrow? " 
 
 I find that by this style of chaffing 
 It is n't long before I 'm laughing, 
 And when he sees my smiling lips 
 Why then, of course, old Worry skips. 
 
&icfi ( Day o tfayear 
 
 "S une 18 
 
 A PHILOSOPHIC VIEW 
 
 I have n't a horse or a motor-car, 
 
 Nor even an old-time bike, 
 But I Ve got two legs that carry me far 
 
 Whenever I wish to hike; 
 And I Ve noticed this, as my way I peg 
 
 On over my destined course: 
 There 's never a man who would swap one leg 
 
 For motor, or bike, or horse ! 
 
THINKING 
 
 GLADNESS 
 
 Who thinks December all the day 
 Will find life's road a cheerless way; 
 But he whose mind is pinned to June 
 Will traverse meadows lit by noon. 
 
 If so you doubt this little rhyme, 
 Try thinking roses for a time ! 
 
\8ufi m/o 
 
 3fune 20 
 
 A THREAT 
 
 I J m going to seek my foe to-day, 
 And when I meet him on the way, 
 No matter who is with him there, 
 With head held high up in the air, 
 I '11 take the glove from off my fist 
 To give free play unto my wrist, 
 And then, as face to face we stand, 
 I '11 offer him my outstretched hand 
 
ine 0' Qut 
 
 3Tune 21 
 
 TEMPER 
 
 To lose their temper now and then 
 Can do small hurt to angry men, 
 Provided 't is not found again. 
 Lost temper 's worth quite all it cost 
 If it will stay forever lost. 
 
SILENCE 
 
 I met an enemy fierce to-day, 
 And he cussed me out till my hair turned 
 gray; 
 
 But my heart is light 
 
 As I think to-night 
 Of the things I thought and did n't say ! 
 
o? 4^ ' 0^ r 
 
 STune 23 
 
 AN OBSERVATION 
 
 I Ve noticed in getting along on the track, 
 In seeking life's laurels and premiums high, 
 
 A man can do more with a slap on the back 
 Than ever he does with a punch on the eye. 
 
 It makes little matter the style of the cribs 
 You set out to crack in the face of your 
 
 foes; 
 
 More prizes will come from a dig in the ribs 
 Than ever were won by a whack on the 
 nose. 
 
 In public, in private, whatever your field, 
 Wherever you labor, in hamlets or towns, 
 
 A far richer profit life's harvests will yield 
 To mortals whose smilings outnumber 
 their frowns. 
 
NEVER MIND! 
 
 When troubles blare 
 I always find 
 
 It pays to care, 
 And not to mind. 
 
/Jne-o'O&e 
 
 r 
 
 25 
 
 A TREASURY 
 
 'There is a spot within my heart 
 That I have set with care apart, 
 Wherein each day it pleases me 
 To store some pleasant memory. 
 
 And hence it is, when days are gray, 
 I go as lightly on my way 
 As though I had a private sun 
 To draw upon ! 
 
Sxli'Day d t&year 
 
 3Tune 26 
 
 WORKING IT OUT 
 
 Got a grouch on somebody? 
 
 Go out in the wood. 
 Pick out some old sturdy tree, 
 
 Give it to him good. 
 
 Speechify the things you 'd say 
 
 If the chap was there. 
 Pile it on in fiery way 
 
 Fit to scorch his hair. 
 
 Roar and ramp, and tear around; 
 
 Go it good and hot. 
 Fill the air with wrath and sound, 
 
 Sending him to pot. 
 
 Then when later he comes by 
 Meet him with a twinkling eye, 
 And with cheery greeting say, 
 "Howdy do, to-day?" 
 
Ifi 
 
 fali(y o tfayear 
 
 3fune 28 
 
 FELLOWSHIP 
 
 I have n't much money to help out your 
 
 care 
 I need all I Ve got, and there 's little to 
 
 spare; 
 But if 't will help out when your troubles 
 
 look black 
 Just count upon me for a slap on the back ! 
 
&5 
 
 ffL [int o Qutr 
 
 fune 29 
 
 THE ACCOUNTING 
 
 May I be like a sturdy tree 
 
 That steadfast stands, whate'er may be; 
 
 Aspiring to the starry heights, 
 
 With ne'er a thought of days or nights, 
 
 Save as they bring me growth and mind 
 
 To be of service to my kind. 
 
 And at the last, if so I fall, 
 And reach the hour that comes to all, 
 When the accounting must be made 
 Of all my deeds, may it be said 
 None ever needed to be hid, 
 And what I could do, that I did! 
 
some one - 
 matter for whom 
 
 t 's over, 
 bumblebee feels 
 clover ! 
 
If there 's trouble comin' to yer, 
 Let me wish yer Happy New Ye'r 
 There 's no reason really why 
 You can't start one in July. 
 As for me, I go my way 
 Startin' new years every day. 
 
KINDLY 
 
 Rhyme bids us in our troubles 
 To think of them as " bubbles " 
 And when we meet despair 
 To pause right there and " share 
 And that 's why I 'm 
 In love with rhyme ! 
 
o 
 
 r 
 
 i 
 
 NO TIME 
 
 I have n't the time for the deeds of love 
 
 I really would like to do. 
 I have n't the days for the treasure-trove 
 
 Of ambitions high and true. 
 
 I have n't the years for the service great 
 I dreamed in the days of youth; 
 
 And so I have n't the time to hate 
 When the goal I seek is truth. 
 
facli'DqydtKjtyear' 
 
 3Tulp4 
 
 A DECLARATION 
 
 To-day they say 
 
 Is Independence Day, 
 And I for one am going to celebrate 
 With declarations of my free estate 
 
 From tyrannies I hate : 
 I 'm going to throw off evil passion's yoke, 
 And join the ranks of those untrammeled folk 
 Who Ve freed themselves from fear and use- 
 less care, 
 
 From slavish selfishness ; and loosed the snare 
 Of captiousness, suspicion, cynic sneers; 
 Of pessimistic jibes and scornful jeers. 
 
 A Freeman henceforth I, 
 
 Beneath a smiling sky 
 
 That sings of love, and hope, and confidence 
 In all men's good intent and God's benefi- 
 cence ! 
 
o? fine o' Qutr 
 
 3tal?5 
 
 TOO GOOD TO LEAVE 
 
 When you Ve grown weary of this life, 
 And would escape its dreary strife, 
 Just pause and think of how you 'd run 
 If some one chased you with a gun ! 
 
 At worst you '11 find it still so good 
 You would not leave it if you could. 
 

 ea 
 
 THIS FUNNY WORLD 
 
 " It J s funny," said I, as I growled away, 
 " How all seems possessed to go wrong to- 
 day." 
 
 " If that is the case," said my Better Half, 
 " And it 's really funny, why don't you 
 laugh?" 
 
 And I I laughed at her little conceit, 
 And a lemony world straightway turned 
 sweet. 
 
SL [mt o* Qwr 
 
 WHAT'S THE USE? 
 
 Now what 's the use o' worryin' becuz ye can- 
 not see 
 
 Your way to bein' suthin' thet ye was n't 
 meant to be? 
 
 The clam can't be a billionaire, a saddle- 
 horse, or ram; 
 
 He cannot be a marmalade, an omelette, or 
 a ham; 
 
 He cannot be a candidate, a rose, or pillow- 
 sham, 
 
 But don't ye see thet he can be a derned fine 
 clam? 
 
IDLENESS AND LEISURE 
 
 A goodly part of man's distress 
 Arises from sheer idleness; 
 While victory, in fairish measure, 
 Comes from a proper use of leisure. 
 
 'T would helpful be if all men knew 
 The difference between the two. 
 
o? [int o* Qut 
 
 ful?9 
 
 r 
 
 A CONTRAST 
 
 When you feel you 're out, and you fear 
 
 you 're down, 
 
 And your outlook 's dark, and your friends 
 all frown, 
 
 Just turn your gaze 
 On the child who plays 
 On a sun-baked fire-escape in town! 
 
 I miss my guess when you see that tot 
 If your woes don't seem but a trifling lot! 
 
SMffflcy 6 tlvtyear 
 
 3fulf 10 
 
 FORBEARANCE 
 
 His voice was sharp, his notes were flat, 
 But just the. same, for all of that, 
 He 'd song within, and there 's no doubt 
 That though 't was harshly gotten out, 
 And most unpleasant to the ear, 
 His main intent was simple cheer. 
 Hence I decided to forgive 
 And let the poor old fellow live. 
 No use to judge a mortal's heart 
 By his unhappy lack of art! 
 
[jnt o' Qut 
 
 ful? 11 
 
 r 
 
 THE EVER-NEW 
 
 It may be there 's nothing new under the sun. 
 It may be the great deeds are all of them 
 
 done. 
 
 But nevertheless there is plenty to do 
 In making the old things all over anew 
 To bring a new strength to the arm of the 
 
 weak; 
 To bring a new warmth to the heart that is 
 
 bleak; 
 
 To bring a new outlook to those in despair; 
 To bring a new joy to the spirit in care; 
 To bring a new dawn to those shrouded in 
 
 night; 
 To bring a new faith to souls lost to the 
 
 light 
 Were deeds quite as great as the deeds that 
 
 were done 
 When something lay new in the path of the 
 
 sun, 
 
 And, old tho' they be, are as fair to achieve 
 As ever the love Adam offered to Eve ! 
 
5ir/iCb/ o ^yeaf 
 
 STulp 12 
 
 LEND A HAND 
 
 If you cannot lend a dollar to some chap who 
 cannot pay, 
 
 If you cannot place a quarter or a dime at his 
 command, 
 
 You can help him meet his troubles in a very 
 simple way: 
 
 Lend a hand! Lend a hand! 
 
 If he 's trembling on the verges of some 
 moral precipice, 
 
 Or is facing some temptation you are sure he 
 can't withstand, 
 
 There 's a loan perhaps will save him from 
 his ruin, and it 's this: 
 
 Lend a hand! Lend a hand! 
 
 Or perhaps he 's gone the limit, and is hope- 
 less in his dole 
 
 Down and out, a moral wreck amid the drift- 
 wood of the strand 
 
 It is then his need is greatest for the com- 
 fort of his soul, 
 
 Lend a hand! Lend a hand! 
 
A LITTLE CHAT 
 
 Said I to Myself: " I can't believe 
 The thing I can't understand! " 
 Hold on," said Myself, " and by your 
 
 leave 
 
 Let 's take this matter in hand: 
 Do you understand how the sun became 
 A daily torch full of luminous flame 
 To lead the old world from the depths of 
 
 night 
 
 Out into a glorious realm of light? 
 Do you understand whence the stars were 
 
 borne? 
 
 From out of what void the world was torn, 
 Or whither it goes on its whirling race 
 Through the uttermost lengths of an endless 
 
 space? 
 
 Do you comprehend in the smallest part 
 The fathomless depths of 
 
 woman s 
 
 heart 
 
 Hold on! " cried I to Myself. " Hold 
 
 on 
 
 My faith 's returned, and my doubt is 
 
 gone 
 
&rftDai/0' 
 
 14 
 
 THE CERTAINTY 
 
 Sometimes I cannot see 
 
 How ills are good for me, 
 
 And 't is my groaning plaint 
 
 Most often that they ain't. 
 
 But, all the same, no chill, 
 
 No bit of Fortune's ill, 
 
 In all this world of flurryin' 
 
 Was ever cured by worryin' ; 
 
 And when thro' dark we 're gropin' 
 
 More light will come from hopin' 
 
 Than ever came from mopin' 1 
 
T 
 
 15 
 
 JUST FOR TO-DAY 
 
 I 'm going to give up sneerin* ; 
 I' m going to give up jeerin'; 
 I 'm going to give up sniffing 
 And let all " Ifs " go whiffin', 
 
 Just for to-day. 
 
 I 'm going to give up " tutting, 
 Let all my " Buts " go butting, 
 And try a course o' smilin' 
 To see what things beguilin' 
 
 Come o'er my way. 
 
OUT OF THE DARK 
 
 I Ve seen a field by sunshine so oppressed 
 That all therein seemed withered and dis- 
 tressed, 
 
 And then a big black storm-cloud coming by 
 Obscuring all the beauty of the sky 
 Has left in passing on that selfsame scene 
 A vision freshly lovely and serene! 
 
 No morals come from Nature so they 
 
 say 
 But as for me, I find them every day! 
 
{int o' (fiee 
 
 r 
 
 17 
 
 LONELINESS 
 
 Alone? Well, even solitude is good 
 
 If it be rightly used and understood. 
 
 A man I know had never known himself 
 
 Until at last he lay upon the shelf, 
 
 And from that moment turned his talents 
 
 loose, 
 And saw his way to make himself of use. 
 
Sxfi'Day d thyear 
 
 f ulp 18 
 
 THE TREE 
 
 I rather like a tree 
 
 For company. 
 
 It gives me all it has to give : 
 The comfort of its shade, and helps me live 
 Contented with my lot 
 
 In just that spot 
 Where circumstance decrees that I remain; 
 
 And makes it plain 
 That growth does not depend on change of 
 
 scene, 
 
 But on a temper, sturdy and serene, 
 To make the best of things that lie 
 
 Nearby; 
 
 My goal not fixed, but ever upward to 
 The glorious and everlasting blue. 
 
ifi 
 
 ffL ine o' Qutr 
 
 STutp 19 
 
 THE LITTLE SONG 
 
 When trouble came and skies were drear, 
 Although his soul was filled with fear, 
 His heart within would softly croon 
 A sort of cheerful little tune: 
 
 Tara-diddle, tara-diddle, tara-diddle-deee. 
 
 No matter what the trouble there 
 It helped him over his despair 
 That little song within his heart, 
 Devoid though it might be of art: 
 
 Tara-diddle, tara-diddle, tara-diddle-deee. 
 
 " No man," quoth he, " can really mope 
 
 And find himself bereft of hope, 
 
 If only as he walks along 
 
 He'll hum that simple little song: 
 
 Tara-diddle, tara-diddle, tara-diddle-deee.'* 
 
 So all together! Let it ring! 
 Join in the chorus, all, and sing. 
 Start with a will each new-born day 
 With this, his care-dispelling lay: 
 
 Tara-diddle, tara-diddle, tara-diddle-deee. 
 
8ncf$)ay o $$&& 
 
 3TuI? 20 
 
 SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE 
 
 Sometime when you 're thinkin' that nobody 
 
 loves yer, 
 And life 's kind o' chilly, and every one 
 
 shoves yer, 
 Jest take for your comfort this hint I send 
 
 to yer: 
 There 's Somebody somewhere as would if 
 
 they knew yer! 
 
o? {irt o Qietr 
 
 fulp 21 
 
 WEALTH 
 
 I dreamed last night that I had stores of 
 
 gold untold, 
 And toward my fellow-men turned mien so 
 
 cold 
 
 They fled away, and left me to myself 
 In a forlorn enjoyment of my pelf; 
 And 'stead of joy amid that golden dower 
 I found the prospect drab, and chill, and 
 
 sour. 
 
 I came to hate the dross, and when the dawn 
 Awoke me, I rejoiced to find it gone, 
 And in its place the truest kind of wealth: 
 The love of all my neighbors and good 
 
 health. 
 
22 
 
 THE HURDY-GURDY MAN 
 
 The Hurdy-Gurdy Man some folks despise, 
 But as for me, when darkened are my skies 
 Much more than once some tuneful little air 
 From out his barrel-organ 's eased my care; 
 And I Ve rejoiced that he hath come along 
 To soothe a grinding woe with grinding song. 
 
PROBLEMS 
 
 Which came the first, the chicken or the egg? 
 That is a question I shall always beg. 
 I never vex my mind with points like that, 
 But like a man of appetite stand pat. 
 Come as they may, Egad, I 'm nothing loth 
 To sit me straightway down and eat 'em 
 both. 
 
 We 'd all, I think, be happier than kings 
 Were we to worry not o'er unimportant 
 things ! 
 
Sxcli'Day d tkywr 
 
 fulp 24 
 
 EACH TO ITS OWN 
 
 Because I cannot fly 
 No angry grouch have I ; 
 
 To birds I '11 leave the air; 
 And joy that on the street 
 Two fairly nimble feet 
 
 Will take me anywhere. 
 
 You '11 never see me weep 
 Because I cannot sweep 
 
 The depths as fishes free. 
 To them I '11 leave the seas 
 And all that in them is; 
 
 The water 's not for me ! 
 
 But here upon the land, 
 With sweets on every hand, 
 
 Contented with my lot, 
 I '11 take what comes my way 
 And thank God every day 
 
 For troubles I have not. 
 
o? (int o' Qittr 
 
 f ulp 25 
 
 AS TO OWNING THE EARTH 
 
 Sometimes I 'd like to own the earth, 
 
 And then the notion strikes my bonnet 
 'T would cost far more than it were worth 
 
 To have to pay the taxes on it. 
 And on the whole I deem it best 
 
 Instead of toiling hard to win it, 
 To play I 'm just a welcome guest 
 
 Enjoying all the good that's in it. 
 
TIME-KILLERS 
 
o? (me. o' (Jwr 
 
 3Fulp 27 
 
 THE GOLDEN MOMENTS 
 
 The dawn flings down a store of gold 
 As wealth for him to have and hold 
 Who makes each moment on its way 
 Serve some need of the passing day. 
 A day 's not long, but when it 's reckoned 
 Not by the hour, but by the second, 
 It makes a mighty goodly store 
 For getting things worth working for. 
 In thousands, eighty-six are there, 
 With just four hundred more to spare ! 
 
STulp 28 
 
 NO EXCEPTION 
 
 The flowers fade and pass away 
 And then return another day, 
 And fade, and pass, and as before 
 Come back to life and joy once more; 
 In all of which I seem to see 
 The proof of Immortality. 
 It cannot be in Nature's school 
 Man 's an exception to the rule. 
 
ffL 
 
 o'Qiee 
 
 29 
 
 r 
 
 FAITH AND THE FUTURE 
 
 The thing that always puzzles me 
 Is how this old world came to be, 
 And yet it helps me hold a good 
 Full faith in things not understood. 
 
 As for the future, there 's no knowing, 
 But all the same I 'm glad I 'm going; 
 And when the waves to come I 'm breasting 
 I 'm sure I '11 find it interesting. 
 
Hain't got half the time we need, 
 Friend o' mine, fer bein' glad, 
 
 So I sort o' guess that we 'd 
 Better quit a-gettin' mad, 
 And bein' sad. 
 
 Don't ye think we better had? 
 
{jnt o' (Jutr 
 
 VACATION 
 
 THOUGHT 
 
 Of all the hard tasks I Ve ever done 
 The hardest I ever knew 
 
 Is lookin' around to find the fun 
 In nothin' at all to do. 
 
Sicii'Day d tfaywr 
 
 august I 
 
 AUGUST 
 
 Now comes a span of rare delights 
 In gracious, star-eyed, summer nights, 
 And tropic days that lure us far 
 From where the busy markets are, 
 And bid us joy in earth and sky, 
 With all the gifts of Nature nigh: 
 The woodlands peaceful, leafy lanes, 
 The meadows lush with ripening grains; 
 The music of the laughing rills, 
 The noble beauty of the hills; 
 The heavens blue, the silky air, 
 And rest apart from scenes of care. 
 
c? int o' Qittr 
 
 <3usust 2 
 
 A CURE 
 
 Can't smile, my friend, because you 're blue? 
 Well, here 's a little hint for you : 
 Look on the heavens for awhile; 
 The bluer they, the more they smile! 
 When trouble overtakes you, why 
 Pretend you 're just a bit of sky, 
 
 And do 
 
 As it does when it's blue; 
 Look down on trouble and despair 
 As calm as though they were not there ! 
 
|<Mm/0'&year 
 
 MY SERVITORS 
 
 When so the sun shines on my way 
 And warms my path through all the day, 
 Or when some tree with grateful shade 
 Its service at my feet hath laid; 
 Or when some river bears me on 
 Into some harbor, and anon 
 The moon and stars come forth at night 
 To furnish me with needed light, 
 And as in dreams at rest I lie 
 Some zephyr sings its lullaby 
 What just complaint can mine e'er be 
 With such attendants serving me? 
 
(ine o (jfe 
 
 r 
 
 CONTRASTS 
 
 Beside my rose a thistle grew. 
 
 Into my joys there entered rue. 
 
 The rose seemed sweeter, and more fair, 
 
 Contrasted with the thistle there, 
 
 And strange to say, my joys likewise 
 
 Seemed deeper, seen through tearful eyes. 
 
PRIDE IN HUMILITY 
 
 I 'm but a cog in life's vast wheel 
 That daily makes the same old trip 
 
 Yet what a joy it is to feel 
 
 That but for me the wheel might slip 
 
 'T is something after all to jog 
 Along and be a first-class cog 
 
o? QM o (fer 
 
 August 6 
 
 SINGING SWEET 
 
 The birds are singing in the wood 
 Because they feel that life is good, 
 And not a hint of care or wrong 
 Disturbs the sweetness of their song, 
 Though cares and wrongs they doubtless find, 
 Each one according to his kind. 
 
 For me, as on my way I plod 
 Through wooded paths that must be trod 
 With distant prizes to be won 
 Beyond the glow of setting sun,' 
 Despite the vast perplexities 
 That everywhere one looks one sees, 
 'Spite heavy heart, and leaden feet, 
 May I too keep my singing sweet! 
 
<&f/iCb/ o &ymr 
 
 augustf 7 
 
 THE FRIEND UNCHANGEABLE 
 
 Long years ago when I was but a lad, 
 Once hurt and suffering, in spirit sad, 
 I chose for friend a star up in the blue 
 And in its kindly smile forgot my rue. 
 The years have passed and friends have come 
 and gone. 
 
 I Ve tasted joy, and passed through seasons 
 
 wan. 
 Things counted on have failed me, and in 
 
 tears 
 I Ve tried to drown my sorrows and my 
 
 fears. 
 
 But all the while, in happiness or pain; 
 In moments of success, or efforts vain, 
 That kindly star, unchangeable as truth, 
 Has stood my friend, as in the days of youth. 
 
o? fine. ' Qw r 
 
 August 8 
 
 LILIES 
 
 A lily in a window stood 
 
 And looked out on the multitude. 
 
 A child upon the pavement raised 
 Upon the lily's beauty gazed. 
 
 I looked upon them both and thought 
 Of pure souls in such currents caught, 
 
 And straightway set about to save 
 The twain from perils of the pave. 
 
 And now I find a store of cheer 
 From out that deed of yesteryear: 
 
 The child, a sturdy human he ! 
 The flower a precious memory! 
 
august 9 
 
 ON A WARM DAY 
 
 Yes, it 's pretty hot to-day, 
 And my strength is waning. 
 
 I don't like it, I must say, 
 But I 'm not complaining. 
 
 For you see a wish I made 
 When the snows were flying 
 
 Now, though overlong delayed, 
 Nature 's gratifying. 
 
 Wished warm weather 'd come along 
 
 Back in February. 
 Now I Ve got it, good and strong 
 
 How our wishes vary ! 
 
o? (mt o Qittr 
 
 Sfugust 10 
 
 I 
 
 THE GREATEST JOYS 
 
 Amid our sunny hours 
 In quiet, fragrant bowers, 
 
 Where roses bloom, 
 And happy birds are singing 
 Their measures sweetly ringing, 
 
 Dispelling gloom, 
 
 Let 's not forget those others 
 The Children of our Brothers 
 
 In cities gray, 
 
 Where trouble, toil, and sorrow, 
 Are found to-day, to-morrow, 
 
 As yesterday. 
 
 The greatest joys of living 
 Are found in freely giving, 
 
 And paying heed 
 Out of our present treasure 
 In full and lavish measure 
 
 To them in need. 
 
\M<Daydth>yt 
 
 august n 
 
 SAVORLESS 
 
 My diet 's largely bread and cheese, 
 And water is the wine I quaff; 
 
 My notion of a life of ease 
 
 Is now and then to sit and laugh. 
 
 Yet have I seen men highly crowned, 
 Men feted, courted, sought by kings, 
 
 Who, 'spite of laurels so renowned, 
 Could not enjoy these simple things. 
 
 Fame 's very sweet, and all of that, 
 And with it doubtless comes delight; 
 
 But after all life 's rather flat, 
 If one has lost one's appetite! 
 
o? [int o' Qietr 
 
 august 12 
 
 REJUVENATION 
 
 To rise at dawn with no one else about; 
 To tip-toe slyly off, all bare of shoes; 
 To make the wood re-echo with my shout; 
 To wade the meadows lush with dripping 
 
 dews; 
 
 To plunge head first into some limpid pool ; 
 To lie upon some bank and scan the skies, 
 Rejoicing in the early breezes cool, 
 Forgetting all but what around me lies 
 In short, to leave behind the stress and care 
 Of worldly complications with their pain, 
 And spurred to song by drafts of morning air 
 Just for a time become a boy again! 
 
 Ah, what a plan in seasons of distress 
 To ease the soul of all its weariness, 
 And send it back into the busy mart 
 Renewed in living strength to do its part. 
 
 
MOgdlStyi 
 
 gUJJUtft 13 
 
 THE CHOICE 
 
 I have seen a palace wall 
 
 Hung with objects rich and rare, 
 Beauty lavished over all; 
 Yet about it lay a pall 
 
 Just because love was not there. 
 
 I have seen a sordid pile 
 
 Made of ugly bricks that still, 
 As I gazed on it the while, 
 Seemed to be a living smile; 
 Love sat by the window-sill. 
 
 Proud estates in vast array, 
 
 These indeed none would refuse, 
 
 But when Fortune comes my way 
 
 Offering her treasures gay, 
 
 Love 's the first that I shall choose 
 
AUGUST HEAT 
 
 The heat of old August some mortals despise, 
 And look on it coldly with hate in their eyes; 
 But not so with me, 't is a thing I defend 
 As like the warm glow in the heart of 
 friend. 
 
IN RESERVE 
 
 Take the overfervidness of the summer day, 
 Store it up within your breast, neatly packed 
 
 away. 
 Maybe in some coming hour, now all unfore- 
 
 seen, 
 It will serve to turn a gray, wintry prospect 
 
 green, 
 
 Or if not, just let it rest, of yourself a part 
 man ever et hath had too much warmth 
 
o? (int o Qiitr 
 
 august 16 
 
 MY FRIEND 
 
 When from the ' skies the rain torrential 
 
 drops, 
 My friend remarks : " Fine weather for the 
 
 crops ! " 
 
 When from the East a chill wind loudly 
 roars, 
 
 He smiles and says: " Fine day to stay in- 
 doors ! " 
 
 When from the sun the heat streams fer- 
 vently, 
 Says he: " Just right to sit beneath a tree! " 
 
 And when skies hesitate 'twixt rain and shine 
 He sits, and smiles, and softly murmurs : 
 "Fine!" 
 
 In short, whate'er the weather's style or 
 
 whim 
 Each day that comes is somehow " Fine " to 
 
 him, 
 
 With the result no matter what may hap 
 By day or night he is a sunny chap ! 
 
QAl 
 
 17 
 
 AS TO BIRTH 
 
 One pleasant thing I find upon this earth; 
 We common folk may lack a noble birth, 
 As lofty Ghibelline, or royal Guelph, 
 But man's real berth depends upon himself, 
 And once 't is won, more permanent 't will be 
 Than windfalls dropped from some ancestral 
 tree. 
 
int o' Qietr 
 
 18 
 
 IN STORMY WEATHER 
 
 There 's wind ahead, and rocks about, 
 
 And rough 's the sailing on the sea, 
 But all the same amid the rout 
 
 'T is joy to test the heart of me. 
 There 's something in the tempest's blast, 
 
 And in the current's knavish guile, 
 Beneath the skies all overcast, 
 
 That makes the sailing worth the while ! 
 
&Kfi ( Day o tfayear 
 
 august 19 
 
 NOTHINGNESS 
 
 A world without a future life? I can't con- 
 ceive the thought! 
 
 Each human soul the merest clod of clayish 
 substance wrought, 
 
 With nothing to aspire to, with nothing here 
 to gain, 
 
 With nothing rising higher than our pleasure 
 and our pain? 
 
 Just coming out of Nowhere for a little while 
 and then 
 
 To turn and go to Nowhere and sheer Noth- 
 ingness again? 
 
 There 's nothing in the notion, and your argu- 
 ment, my friend, 
 
 Refutes itself by leading unto nothing in the 
 end! 
 
CHEERFUL 
 
 I know a mighty cheerful wight 
 Who, though he stands in his own light, 
 By o'er-hot days is ne'er dismayed 
 Because he sits in his own shade! 
 
Zacli'Day d tfayear 
 
 august 21 
 
 LOVE'S MINTAGE 
 
 Who pays his debts in love and gratitude 
 Will find when he has settled every score, 
 Some Genius of affection hath renewed 
 The treasure he hath paid from out his 
 
 store. 
 Indeed, he finds who strives love's gold to 
 
 win, 
 The more he pays it out the more comes in. 
 
o? (int o' (fiet 
 
 r 
 
 august 22 
 
 u 
 
 IN PARTNERSHIP 
 
 Out in the fresh, green wood 
 
 'T is good to lie, 
 Far from the multitude, 
 
 And scan the sky, 
 And think of all the things 
 
 These skies have seen 
 Since Time unfurled his wings, 
 
 And life hath been. 
 
 For, in despite your place 
 
 Is lowly, still 
 In life's achieving race 
 
 Your place you fill. 
 It somehow thrills the heart 
 
 To rest and dream, 
 And feel yourself a part 
 
 Of God's great scheme ! 
 
o 
 
 August 23 
 
 PERENNIAL 
 
 " There 's nothing new beneath the sun 
 To soothe your jaded appetite? " 
 
 Get out and get some good deed done, 
 You poor, deluded, weary wight. 
 
 No good deed yet hath failed to fill 
 
 The doer's spirit with a thrill 
 
 That 's just as fresh and full of joy, 
 As when Methuselah was a boy. 
 
o? tint 0' (fee 
 
 auBUKt 24 
 
 "OLD NEVER-MIND" 
 
 " I-Don't-Care " is not my kind. 
 I prefer old " Never-Mind." 
 He 's the chap all full of song 
 That in trouble helps along. 
 
 " I-Don't-Care " 's a reckless chap 
 Leading on to sure mishap, 
 But dear " Never-Mind," the gay, 
 Takes us smiling on our way; 
 
 And when Trouble ventures in, 
 Greets him with a sort of grin 
 Of the kind that makes him guess 
 He has got the wrong address. 
 

 ear 
 
 25 
 
 RELEASE 
 
 By day I 'm held by chains 
 That fasten me to toil. 
 
 I have to work for gains, 
 To win my share of spoil. 
 
 But when the night hath come, 
 And daily tasks are done, 
 
 The chains so burdensome 
 Are lifted, one by one. 
 
 And over hill and dale 
 On dreamy jaunts I fly; 
 
 Right gallantly I sail 
 
 Beneath the moonlit sky. 
 
 And while my body worn 
 Rests here in slavery, 
 
 My soul, in dreams reborn, 
 Rejoices to be free! 
 
o? QM o 1 Qiwr 
 
 Sinyast 26 
 
 MY WILL 
 
 My fortune? Well, it comes to nil, 
 But none the less I make my will : 
 The earth, the air, the sea, the sky, 
 And all the things that in them lie ; 
 With love, and faith, and constancy, 
 And hope, and human sympathy, 
 And courtesy and kindliness, 
 And all the qualities that bless, 
 Wherever found, no matter where, 
 Upon said earth, or in said air, 
 Being of sound, disposing mind 
 I herewith leave to all mankind, 
 And hope they '11 use them just as free 
 As though they 'd all belonged to me. 
 
27 
 
 NEVER FAILING 
 
 At times when on life's sea 
 
 Far from my course I Ve run, 
 With clouds of misery 
 
 To hide away the sun, 
 A never-failing chart 
 
 To lead me safely through 
 I Ve found within my heart, 
 
 With love the compass true. 
 
THE ECONOMIST 
 
 Must admit that living 's high, 
 Clothes are costly, so is rent. 
 
 Prices soaring to the sky, 
 
 Gold likewise inclined to fly, 
 
 But nobody can deny, 
 
 Laughter doesn't cost a cent! 
 
 Wherefore when expenses rse 
 Laugh, and so economize. 
 
&cfi ( D(tt) o tfayear 
 
 August 29 
 
 RESIGNATION 
 
 Clouds were piling in the west'; 
 Storm was come to be my guest; 
 Vexed my spirit not the least, 
 For I turned unto the east. 
 
 Clouds were filling all the east; 
 Thunderbolts their flash released, 
 Yet my spirit was at rest, 
 For I gazed into the west. 
 
 East or west, whate'er the storm 
 With its terrors multiform, 
 Undisturbed I shall remain 
 Till clear weather comes again. 
 
int o> Qutr 
 
 august 30 
 
 GOOD MORNING 
 
 Whatever weather be a-borning 
 'Tis etiquette to say " Good morning! " 
 And truly every morning 's bright 
 Compared, at least, unto the night; 
 So even though the day be wet, 
 Let 's smile and cling to etiquette 
 " Good morning! " 
 
TEACHERS 
 
 I Ve placed my troubles all apart, 
 
 And studied them through tears of pain 
 And now I find each one a chart 
 That tells me how with sturdy heart 
 To meet them when they come again. 
 
ffL(mo'Cfa 
 
 >rptcmbcv I 
 
 r 
 
 SEPTEMBER HUES 
 
 Now comes September over all 
 The tints of Summer and the Fall 
 In gay and gladsome patchwork fuse 
 To make a quilt of gorgeous hues, 
 The which before the eye is spread 
 To tell of joyous days ahead, 
 And bring all glowing to the mind 
 The lovely hours left behind. 
 The gold, the green, upon the trees 
 Reflect our hopes and memories: 
 The golden hopes of days to be 
 Mixed with the greens of memory! 
 
AN APPOINTMENT 
 
 Worry comes and says to me: 
 
 " Guess I '11 stay and visit ye ! " 
 
 And I turn and answer then: 
 
 " Guess ye '11 have to guess again, 
 
 Ain't no room for Worry here; 
 
 Come around some other year." 
 
 " When ? " says he. Says I : " Wa-al, how 
 
 'Bout a hundred years from now? " 
 
September 3 
 
 IRRIGATION 
 
 Hain't complainin' of the wet, 
 
 Rain, or trouble no, by Jings ! 
 For ye see I can't forget 
 
 Rain is good for growin' things; 
 And when trouble 's round me flowin 
 I can feel my soul a-growin', 
 Growin' like the ripenin' grain, 
 All the better for the rain! 
 
Sicti'Day o tkyear 
 
 I September 4 
 
 UNWORRIED 
 
 Like everybody else I would n't care 
 If somehow I became a billionaire. 
 A billion I am sure would e'er be found 
 A tidy little sum to have around. 
 And yet, I 'm satisfied without it, for 
 'T would really be a sum to worry o'er, 
 And while of course I never could refuse it, 
 Without it I 'm not bothered lest I lose it. 
 
FORTUNE 
 
 Don't suppose I '11 e'er be great 
 Like the folks of vast estate. 
 Don't suppose I '11 e'er be rich 
 Like old Reddymun and sich. 
 But one thing is sure as day 
 As I walk along my way : 
 I can pile up stacks of cheer 
 Mined straight from the atmosphere 
 That will make their stores immense 
 Look like thirty-seven cents ! 
 
<Sif/ib/ 6- 
 
 September 6 
 
 THE WELCOME GUEST 
 
 I 'm going to lead this life 
 
 As though I were a guest 
 Upon this ball of strife, 
 
 And do my level best 
 To order so each day 
 
 That when my grip I pack 
 My fellow guests will say 
 
 They hope I '11 soon be back! 
 
lA , ,. y 
 
 
 
 September 7 
 
 NAME VS. FAME 
 
 Do not really care at all 
 For a lofty pedestal. 
 Would n't give a cent for fame; 
 But I 'd like to win a name 
 As a chap you 'd always find 
 With an open, four-square mind, 
 Who, whate'er the rout or revel, 
 Always stood " upon the level 1 " 
 
o 
 
 September 8 
 
 THE ASHES OF SUCCESS 
 
 He travels fastest who travels alone! 
 
 Kipling. 
 
 Maybe 't is true that who travels alone 
 Travels the fastest, but what of the goal? 
 
 Who cares for speed when the end is a stone 
 Void of the deepest of joys of the soul? 
 
 Give me a comrade, a friend that will share 
 All of the sorrows and joys of the chase! 
 
 Give me a spirit to ease me in care 
 Little care I how retarded the pace ! 
 
 Prizes in solitude won, they are naught ! 
 
 Loneliness holds all the letters of loss. 
 Give me sheer failure in comradeship 
 wrought 
 
 Rather than isolate fame that is dross I 
 
^ln o' Qmr 
 
 S>tptcmbcr 9 
 
 THE FRESH DEAL 
 
 Now here 's a pack of twenty-four new hours ; 
 Each one a card with undeveloped powers 
 
 Placed freely in our reach. 
 Let 's play them all face upward on the table 
 And play the game, and see if we are able 
 
 To take a trick with each ! 
 
September 10 
 
 Yes, Duty is a friend of mine 
 
 On that it 's safe to bet! 
 But all the same, in rain or shine, 
 I 'm going to " do him " good and fine 
 
 At every chance I get! 
 
o? (jnt o (jfe 
 
 September U 
 
 P 
 
 r 
 
 THE CARESSING HAND 
 
 Glint of sun on shimmering tree, 
 Glow of stars on land and sea; 
 Light of day and glimmer of night 
 What are these but proof in sight 
 Of the soft caress of a God of Love 
 Sent from the Father's hand above 
 Bringing to all His children here 
 Hints of joy, and hope, and cheer, 
 Of the final home that waits for all 
 Beyond the gates celestial? 
 
September 12 
 
 THE REAL THING 
 
 It may be I am not the style 
 
 Of feller fellers think worth while, 
 
 But I 'm the feller that I be, 
 
 And that 's the style o' styles for me ; 
 
 And what I am, that kind o' man 
 
 I 'm goin' to be the best I can, 
 
 And when I Ve finished up the job 
 
 No one can say that I 'm a snob 
 
 For makin' out myself a saint 
 
 When everybody knows I ain't! 
 
 Whate'er I be in joy or rue, 
 
 I 'm goin' to be it through and through. 
 
if 
 
 o 
 
 September 13 
 
 THE HOUSE IN ORDER 
 
 I admit I am not comely! 
 Fact is I am more than homely, 
 But behind my phiz so fey 
 Well, it 's not for me to say 
 What you '11 find inside o' that 
 Lurkin' here beneath my hat, 
 But I 've tried to make the place 
 Somewhat better than my face: 
 Orderly, and clean, and neat, 
 Sunny, cheerful, fresh, and sweet. 
 Beauty 's sure worth having, but 
 Joy can dwell inside a hut, 
 And I Ve found true happiness 
 Hid within the plainest dress. 
 
\SnKDyd 
 
 September 14 
 
 AS TO CHAINS 
 
 Our chains are what we make 'em ! That 's 
 
 a truth 
 
 I Ve learned in passing on to age from youth : 
 A burden full of woe and misery 
 If wrought of service done reluctantly; 
 A golden gift of richest treasure-trove 
 If every link is forged in fires of love! 
 
o' (heer 
 
 September 15 
 
 THE FIXTURE 
 
 Anchored fast! Can't get away! 
 Same old prospect every day. 
 Same old vistas, same old sights; 
 Same old days and same old nights. 
 Awful fate 1 Well, I don't know. 
 Some days maybe it seems so. 
 Other days I seem to be 
 Like a sort of green old tree, 
 Full of sap, and growing high, 
 Ever upward to the sky; 
 Joying in both sun and rain; 
 Taking pleasure, bearing pain, 
 As they come, days dark or glad 
 Really, that is not so bad! 
 
u 
 
 Sxii'Day o 
 
 September 16 
 
 THE PEACEFUL SOUL 
 
 I won't fight with any one, 
 Does n't matter what he 's done. 
 Quarreling I never find 
 Suited to my style of mind. 
 
 Either I am wrong or right. 
 If I 'm wrong, why should I fight? 
 If I 'm right, pray tell me how 
 I 'd be more so for a row? 
 
(jQitt 
 
 r 
 
 September 17 
 
 THE OLD-TIME JOKE 
 
 When my plans go wrong, and my schemes 
 
 go broke, 
 
 I try to remember some old-time joke 
 That made me laugh in the days gone by 
 Ere ever I knew what it was to sigh; 
 And I laugh, and laugh, . 
 At the ancient chaff, 
 And deep of the cup of the past I quaff, 
 And ere I know from those youthful dreams 
 I gather new plans, and more hopeful 
 
 schemes 1 
 
AN EVEN BREAK 
 
 I never heard of Socrates, 
 Or old man Alcibiades, 
 
 Or other learned Greeks. 
 There 's really nothing that I know 
 Of Epictetus, Cicero, 
 
 Or similar antiques. 
 
 But really I don't care a hang 
 Because I never knew that gang 
 
 Of chaps that used to be, 
 For when it comes right down to that 
 I '11 wager any man a hat, 
 
 They never heard of me ! 
 
o'(jfe 
 
 September 19 
 
 r 
 
 AS TO FOLLY 
 
 Are you feeling melancholy 
 O'er some little act of folly? 
 
 Don't you mind a bit. 
 All the wisdom of the Sages 
 In the long chain of the ages 
 
 Has been based on it. 
 
 Folly 's but the finger-post 
 When upon our way we 're lost, 
 
 Groping all around, 
 Pointing with a jocund air 
 To the paths that lead us where 
 
 Wisdom 's to be found ! 
 
?<&$<% d thy ear 
 
 ^ September 20 
 
 AN EASY LOAN 
 
 We all know just how mighty fine 't would be 
 
 If we had one more hand to help us on 
 
 The work we have to do, and how we 'd see 
 
 Our pathway clear unto the glorious dawn 
 
 Could we command 
 
 That selfsame hand. 
 
 Wherefore, my friend, whene'er your eye 
 
 espies 
 
 A toiler pressed for what his toil procures 
 In need of that third hand to win the prize, 
 Just pause upon your way and lend him 
 yours ! 
 
15 
 
 <? [JM o' (jfe 
 
 I September 21 
 
 r 
 
 THE NEW LOVE AND THE OLD 
 
 A certain Sage I know takes satisfaction 
 In calling life a " chemical reaction/' 
 And love with all its joyous efflorescence 
 An " evanescent bit of effervescence." 
 If he 's sincere when he shall wed he 'd 
 
 oughter 
 
 Choose for his bride a glass of soda water, 
 And be content for pleasures and for 
 
 troubles 
 
 With simple drafts of frothy, sudsy bub- 
 bles; 
 
 And when he dies into a Heaven pass 
 That 's just a tank of supernatural gas ! 
 
 But as for you and me, my friend, let us be 
 
 ever found 
 Believers in the old-time love that makes the 
 
 world go round ! 
 
6 tlvtyear 
 
 September 22 
 
 THE GOOD WORD 
 
 A good word spoken in the morning 
 
 Is one the wise are never scorning. 
 
 However bright or drear the day 
 
 It cheers us ever on the way, 
 
 And if by chance we do not seek it, 
 
 Let it be ours at least to speak it. 
 
 Who knows but that 't will prove the seed 
 
 To ease some brother in his need, 
 
 And swerve him from some pathway, where 
 
 The end is ruin and despair? 
 
:r 
 
 23 
 
 THE CARGO 
 
 The cargo of my ship, my friend, 
 Is love and tenderness 
 For all men in distress. 
 Give me your order, and I '11 send 
 Your share by wireless. 
 
 As for the bill, 
 Just pay it in good-will, 
 
 Terms, C. O. D. 
 That 's good enough for me. 
 
u 
 
 <Mm/ o'ffeyear 
 
 1 September 24 
 
 THE LEGIONS OF YOUTH 
 
 Let the young men come 
 
 With clatter and hum, 
 And hands for the job that 's to do ! 
 
 Let 's never feel sad, 
 
 But rather be glad 
 For spirits so youthful and true. 
 
 New tasks for the world 
 
 Are daily unfurled 
 In seeking the ultimate truth. 
 
 New tasks to be done, 
 
 New goals to be won, 
 Demanding the powers of Youth. 
 
 So let us be glad 
 
 For the lass and the lad 
 
 Now passing us fast in the race, 
 And welcome with glee 
 The strengthful trustee 
 
 God sends to step into our place ! 
 
ffL (int o (fietr 
 
 September 25 
 
 TO THE TOILER 
 
 When tasks are hard upon the upward slope 
 That is the time that calls for cheer and hope. 
 'T is when the summit 's reached and all 
 
 seems clear 
 'T were well to ope the heart to thoughts of 
 
 fear. 
 
 So courage take, as on the rocky road 
 You upward toil, nor bend beneath your load. 
 Fear not the dangers imminent and grim 
 He 's far worse off who 's naught ahead of 
 him! 
 
September 26 
 
 THE OPEN DOOR 
 
 I have no slightest fear that I shall find 
 My Heaven shut when I shall reach the 
 goal, 
 
 For Heaven were no Heaven to my mind 
 If it were closed to any human soul. 
 
 'T is in its all-embracing openness 
 
 Its glory lies, with welcome glad within 
 
 Relieving with God's mercy the distress 
 Of them who bend beneath the weight of 
 sin. 
 
ffL [int o Qutr 
 
 September 27 
 
 A FUTILE CREED 
 
 Look here, my friend, with all your song and 
 
 dance, 
 
 And all your u scientific " circumstance, 
 In which you try to prove the Universe, 
 And life within it merely luck, or worse, 
 The whole beginning and its ending pent 
 Within the hazard of some " accident," 
 Just take the sun, the moon, the stars we see, 
 With all their clock-like regularity 
 Can you believe that all this consonance 
 And certainty so real are based on chance? 
 I don't 
 And won't ! 
 I could n't if I would, 
 And what is more, I would n't if I could ! 
 
Sxfi'Dayo 
 
 28 
 
 SUCCESS 
 
 Met a man to-day 
 Who, most people say, 
 Is a great success, 
 Nothing more nor less; 
 
 But 
 Ne'er a smile upon his face, pallid was his 
 
 cheek, 
 And his wan lips quivered when he tried to 
 
 speak; 
 Could n't laugh and could n't sing as he 
 
 walked along; 
 Children made him nervous with their merry 
 
 song; 
 
 Looked with dark suspicion on his fellow- 
 men 
 
 Thought they 'd come to rob him of his gold 
 and then 
 
 I says, says I, 
 As he passed by, 
 
 " If that 's success, why when I dine 
 Just mix some failure in with mine ! " 
 
September 29 
 
 THE RETORT COURTEOUS 
 
 If some one says that you 're not any good, 
 
 Or some such pleasant thing or other, 
 Just smile as though you had n't understood, 
 
 And call him " Brother!" 
 That 's quite the same as calling him " an- 
 other " 
 
 And saves a row, 
 And what 's the use of rowing, anyhow? 
 
September 30 
 
 AS TO TALK 
 
 When things within the kittle 
 Git bilin' pretty hot, 
 
 Talk slow, and mighty little, 
 But make it say a lot. 
 
 You bet your bottom dollar 
 The meanest grub in reach 
 
 Is when ye come to swaller 
 Unnecessary speech! 
 
ffL {int 
 
 ctofaer I 
 
 r 
 
 CHILL OCTOBER 
 
 They do you ill who call you chill 
 
 October. 
 
 To me you thrill with sheer good-will, 
 Your raiment, far from sober, 
 Is bright and gay, 
 And cheers each day 
 With prospects full of gladness 
 
 That turn the mind 
 To thoughts of joyous kind, 
 And drive away all sadness, 
 For everywhere we look, we find 
 The harvests rich of labors done 
 Beneath the Summer's warming sun. 
 
" Be good and you '11 be happy." 
 
 Yes, that 's well understood. 
 But don't forget, old Chappy, 
 That other proverb snappy: 
 Be happy and you '11 be good! 
 
r 
 
 October 3 
 
 THE DIFFERENCE 
 
 The Pessimist is he who sees 
 In clouds naught but distress, 
 
 And in their opaque mysteries 
 Discerns mere inkiness. 
 
 The Optimist admits the cloud, 
 And yet his glance pursues 
 
 The misty rifts that are endowed 
 With iridescent hues. 
 
facli'Day o' tkyear 
 
 <Dctobcr 4 
 
 MOVING ON 
 
 The body 's but a tenement 
 In which we dwell awhile, 
 
 On daily labors mostly bent, 
 Mixed with the tear and smile. 
 
 And when we move away we go 
 Some say to Nothingness, 
 
 But as for me, while I don't know 
 Precisely the address, 
 
 I 'm confident that I shall win, 
 If so my labor 's good, 
 
 A dwelling place secure within 
 Some finer neighborhood. 
 
o? (int o' (Teerl 
 
 ttobet 5 
 
 IN THE SERE AND YELLOW 
 
 Now here 's a withered leaf from off an 
 
 oaken tree, 
 Escaped from out the sheaf of summer's 
 
 greenery. 
 'T is old, and all the green hath faded from 
 
 its gown, 
 And in the autumn keen its garb is sombre 
 
 brown. 
 
 Yet when some sportive breeze inviteth it to 
 dance, 
 
 How eager 'tis to seize the gay and joyous 
 chance ! 
 
 How merrily it twirls and gaily pirouettes, 
 
 And ever onward whirls, forgetful of re- 
 grets ! 
 
 Here 's hoping that in age, e'en as the sere 
 leaves do, 
 
 Our feet may trip the stage in dancing meas- 
 ure too ! 
 
Sxcfi'DaydtKeyMr 
 
 October 6 
 
 EPHEMERAL WOE! 
 
 What has become of the worries of Noah? 
 
 What has become of the woes of Job? 
 What has become of the trials sore 
 
 Hid underneath King Solomon's robe? 
 
 Where are the cares of Charles the First? 
 
 Where the tears that Niobe shed? 
 Where are the troubles of parching thirst 
 
 Tantalus bore in the ages dead? 
 
 Where are the griefs of the long dead 
 years 
 
 Priam's, Ulysses', and Jonah's and all? 
 Lost in the streams of forgotten tears, 
 
 Dead, gone, and buried beyond recall ! 
 
 Gone, O ye Sufferer! Gone for aye, 
 Just as your troubles will fade away! 
 Peace is eternal, but trial and fear 
 Pass to the vales of the yesteryear! 
 
ifi 
 
 o? fine o' Qutr 
 
 ctober 7 
 
 A PLEASANT SIGHT 
 
 I Ve seen full many a pleasant sight 
 That filled my spirit with delight: 
 Green hills, the broad sweep of the sea, 
 The flame of some autumnal tree 
 Like some great torch athwart the sky, 
 The love-light in a lover's eye- 
 But none more glad I ever knew 
 Than that which flashed across my view 
 When, sitting on the floor to-day 
 I saw two merry wights at play, 
 A grand-dad full of gleeful joy 
 A-playing marbles with his boy! 
 
Sxti'Day d tfa 
 
 >ctot)cr 8 
 
 THE BEST OF BREWS 
 
 If you would quaff a brew of joy, 
 A mixture fine without alloy, 
 Pour milk of human sympathy 
 Into a cup of chari-tea, 
 And share it with that needy wight 
 Who happensjifirst to heave in sight, 
 I miss my guess if it is not 
 The finest brew you ever got! 
 
o? nt o (jfer 
 
 October 9 
 
 FRIENDS AND BROTHERS 
 
 Why folks complain of loneliness 
 
 Is strange to me, I must confess. 
 
 Why, every brook, and every tree, 
 
 And every twinkling star I see, 
 
 Hath something good to say to me ! 
 
 If you would find a comradeship 
 
 That through the years will never slip, 
 
 Be friends with all the stars of night, 
 
 Greet all God's creatures with delight 
 
 The breeze that blows, the bird that sings; 
 
 The seas with mystic murmurings. 
 
 The stranger on the highway too 
 
 Is brother unto me and you, 
 
 In that great family a part 
 
 Whose home lies in the human heart! 
 
(October 10 
 
 STRANGE LOGIC 
 
 Hev ter laff when fellers say: 
 " Ain't no Heaven, anyway." 
 Makes life seem a foolish joke 
 Endin' in a whiff o' smoke 
 Like a-sailin' on the sea 
 'Thout a port ahead o' ye. 
 Hain't no logic in a claim 
 Heaven 's jest an empty name, 
 And fer all yer earthly stewin' 
 Nature's answer 's " Nothin' doinM " 
 
[int o Qutr 
 
 (October II 
 
 THE PEACEMAKER 
 
 For quarreling I can't deny 
 
 My liking 's rather slim, 
 And if somebody passing by 
 To pick a fight with me shall try, 
 I '11 simply thump him on the eye 
 Before I '11 fight with him 
 And ere my blows shall cease 
 I '11 win him back to peace. 
 
\&icfi ( Day o tfayear 
 
 ctobet 12 
 
 THE GREAT TO BE 
 
 Every drop in yonder river 
 
 Flows into the mighty sea 
 With a message to deliver 
 
 From the Hand of Mystery. 
 Think you that these drops of water, 
 
 Thus become a mighty whole, 
 Hold a mission great, while naught a 
 
 Hope remaineth for the soul? 
 
 I believe, and I affirm it 
 
 As each drop is to the sea, 
 So the soul, whate'er you term it, 
 
 Is unto the Great To Be! 
 To a mighty Whole Eternal 
 
 Flows the human tide alway, 
 Ready for the tasks supernal 
 
 In the bright celestial day. 
 
(\nt o Qittr 
 
 October 13 
 
 DOUBTS 
 
 Rather like a good hard fight 
 
 On a point of doubt; 
 It is really such delight 
 
 Just to knock it out. 
 Doubts are helpful, seems to me, 
 
 When the truth you seek, 
 Pointing out with clarity 
 
 Where your faith is weak. 
 

 
 October 14 
 
 ear 
 
 MY CHOICE 
 
 Yes, I 'd like brains, and wisdom truly great, 
 And vision keen to choose my path aright. 
 
 I 'd wish to be in questions of the State 
 A man to lead my fellows to the light. 
 
 In short, I 'd serve, and hope sagaciously 
 To meet each day's demands as they arise; 
 
 But better far than these pray grant to me 
 The heart to ease the woe that round me 
 lies. 
 
{he o' Qutr 
 
 (October 15 
 
 Wind 's a-blowin' awful out 
 Sort of hurricane, I guess 
 Nothin' to feel bad about 
 Ruther good thing, more or less, 
 Seein' wind, for all its blare, 
 Ain't no more 'n good fresh air! 
 
ctobet 16 
 
 ONLY A TEST 
 
 Cheer up, old Pal ! Ain't ye doin' your best? 
 All of these troubles is only a test 
 Set for your strength for to settle for sure 
 How much or little your soul can endure. 
 
 Keep on a-smilin', and workin' away. 
 Prizes are sure for to come by some day, 
 Long as ye keep on a-doin' your best 
 Grinnin' and workin', whatever the test! 
 
<? (int 0' Qmr 
 
 >ttober 17 
 
 A PLEASANT TASK 
 
 About the nicest task I know 
 Is goin' out 'most any day 
 To find some feller full of woe 
 A-walkin' on his troubled way, 
 And if he 's full o' wrath an 1 bile 
 To make him smile. 
 
 Or if perchance tears dim his eyes, 
 Because of grief or some distress, 
 To help him from his sorrow rise 
 Unto the heights of happiness 
 In other words, if he is sad 
 To make him glad. 
 
 There 's many a way to turn the trick 
 
 For human brothers in their need. 
 Some pile the humor on too thick, 
 And failure waits upon the deed. 
 The best and surest recipe 
 Is sympathy 1 
 
ctober 18 
 
 WHEN TEMPESTS RAGE 
 
 When tempests rage upon the way, 
 And.all the winds are wet and high, 
 
 Mind well those doctors wise who say 
 'T is best to keep your tootsies dry. 
 
 But when the tempest in the soul 
 
 Doth ramp, and roar, and harshly storm, 
 He best escapes the lash of dole 
 
 Whose heart with love and cheer is warm. 
 
o? nt o Quer 
 
 n 
 
 (October 19 
 
 THE FREE AGENT 
 
 If trials hard pursue you and your heart is 
 
 steeped in woe, 
 Be thankful you 're not Jonah in the days of 
 
 long ago. 
 If by misunderstandings you are wearied and 
 
 distressed, 
 Rejoice you were not Moses by. old Pharaoh 
 
 oppressed. 
 If debt and dearth have snared you in the 
 
 warp and woof of dread, 
 Be glad you were not Charles the First, who 
 
 settled with his head. 
 And if you 're chained to some chill post of 
 
 daily slavery, 
 Look skyward, and not post-ward, where 
 
 your spirit may be free. 
 The limbs of man, his feet, his hands, may 
 
 be enmeshed in dole, 
 But steel was never fashioned yet to chain 
 
 the human soul. 
 
kfl 
 
 Sicfi'Day 6 'tfayear' 
 
 October 20 
 
 THE NEWBORN DAY 
 
 If life seems dark, and dreary, and forlorn, 
 Just rise betimes and see the new day borne 
 
 Upon the wings of morn, 
 And from the pageant of that lovely hour 
 Gain courage fresh, a sense of new-born 
 
 power 
 
 To grasp the gifts of Opportunity 
 The young day sets before you lavishly, 
 
 All free ! 
 
 Thrust woe behind you, and let yesterday 
 Its own indebtedness in trouble pay, 
 And with the smiling sun keep pace and tread 
 The path unto the goal that lies ahead. 
 
o? {int o' Qietr 
 
 October 21 
 
 THE GOODLY THING 
 
 The sands are running through the glass. 
 The hours, days, and swift years pass, 
 
 And carry us along. 
 
 They bring us joys, they bring us tears; 
 They bring us hopes, they bring us fears; 
 
 They bring us grief and song. 
 
 A meed of pleasure and of pain. 
 Our share of sunshine and of rain, 
 
 Unsparingly they give; 
 And we, despite our plaint of woe, 
 Cling close to them, because we know 
 
 It has been good to live I 
 
u 
 
 Sicli'Day d t&year 
 
 ctober 22 
 
 THE SPUR 
 
 Troubled, are you? Well, why not? 
 
 That is just your mortal lot. 
 
 If you had n't any care 
 
 You 'd have lost a goodly share 
 
 Of your portion of this life 
 
 Which is blent of peace and strife. 
 
 Peace alone would leave you soft, 
 Nerveless for the climb aloft, 
 While the wholesome flick of woe 
 Sets your pulses all aglow, 
 Makes you grit your teeth and vow 
 You will conquer anyhow! 
 
o? (int o (Jieer 
 
 ctober 23 
 
 THE DALES AND BROOKS 
 
 Waste not thine eyes alway on books, 
 But seek the Autumn dales and brooks, 
 And in their music and their glow 
 Find surcease from thy load of woe. 
 Or if perchance thy path shall lie 
 Where ne'er a brook runs gaily by, 
 Where dales are not, stand not apart, 
 But contemplate the throbbing heart 
 That pulses in the rivers free 
 Of hurrying humanity; 
 And seek the vales where suffering 
 Holds others 'neath its shadowy wing, 
 And there forget thine own despairs 
 In helping others carry theirs ! 
 
ocnevear 
 
 ttober 24 
 
 THE BETTER PORTION 
 
 Success I Ve loved, and failure I ve not 
 
 spurned. 
 From one gained wealth, and from the other 
 
 learned. 
 
 Perhaps in this hath failure won the prize; 
 Who 's rich is merely rich, who 's learned is 
 
 wise 
 
o? fine. 0' Qut 
 
 r 
 
 October 25 
 
 SOUL-FREE 
 
 Life's millstones hanging round my neck 
 May hold my body here in check, 
 But ne'er a millstone e'er shall be 
 To hold my soul in slavery! 
 Where it would soar it soars away, 
 Far back, perchance, to yesterday, 
 Or far ahead to some fair shore 
 The distant future holds in store; 
 Into the depths, unto the heights, 
 It speeds, and drinks deep of delights 
 That seem the greater for the pain 
 Of body in the throes of gain. 
 Let body moan its slavery, 
 And groan because it is not free, 
 But in my soul the songs I '11 sing 
 With which the Hills of Freedom ring. 
 
8Mf\fDay 6 tfvtywr' 
 
 ctober 26 
 
 A BAD INVESTMENT 
 
 ' You cannot borrow cash on cheer ! " 
 So saith the critic, with his jeer. 
 But say see here 
 If you should swap your cheer for cash, 
 You 'd very shortly come to smash. 
 The cash you 'd spend, and you 'd be found, 
 The day when payment-due came round, 
 The victim of an empty bubble 
 Who 'd merely swapped his cheer for trouble. 
 A bad investment, seems to me, 
 Unless you 're fond of misery. 
 
jfjnt o' (jfe 
 
 r 
 
 (October 27 
 
 CARE-PROOF 
 
 The really truly Me 
 Is not the thing you see, 
 But just an Am that hides 
 Way down in my insides; 
 And there it sits and dreams, 
 And formulates, and schemes, 
 And lets old trouble roar 
 Outside the care-proof door, 
 As mad as anythin' 
 Because he can't get in. 
 
|<Stf/ib/ otS^year 
 
 ctobEt 28 
 
 A SURE CURE 
 
 For a cure for coming wrinkles, 
 Here 's a recipe quite simple: 
 Turn your frownings into twinkles, 
 
 And each wrinkle to a dimple. 
 Try this method 'fore and after 
 Every meal, well-mixed with laughter; 
 Blithely, gaily, 
 Do it daily, 
 
 And the wrinkles you are fearing 
 Won't be long in disappearing. 
 
? [int o' (Tien 
 
 _^nJ- 
 
 r 
 
 (Octofaci- 29 
 
 AN AID TO TOIL 
 
 If there 's no music in my work 
 
 To help me on to overcome it, 
 
 I '11 get some tune myself, nor shirk 
 
 The pleasant task that 's mine to hum it. 
 
 It may not make a dull job breezier, 
 
 But I opine 't will make it easier 
 
 To hum that tune 
 
 From morn till noon, 
 
 And thence till eve 
 Shall come, my labors to relieve. 
 
October 30 
 
 ALL HALLOWE'EN 
 
 Cometh Hallowe'en to-night 
 
 With its ghosts and mystic thrills. 
 
 Some are ghosts of past delight, 
 Some are spirits of past ills. 
 
 Let us joy in bygone sweets 
 That our memories retain, 
 
 And who ghosts of evil meets 
 Let him free his heart of pain 
 They 're but spectres, gaunt and vain. 
 
o? ^m o' Qut 
 
 r 
 
 <ttobet 31 
 
 LIGHT UP! 
 
 The Jack-o'-Lantern that I sing 
 Is but a " punkin-headed " thing, 
 Yet with what joy it seems to grin 
 When it doth hold a light within ! 
 What genial thoughts it doth inspire 
 When glowing with that inward fire! 
 
 So let it be with you and me 
 
 When things go " punkin-headed " ! See 
 
 As on your way you blindly grope 
 
 How all 's transformed when lit with hope ! 
 
 And Hope, that blessing past compare, 
 
 Is just as cheap as God's free air! 
 
NOVEMBER GIFTS 
 
 November days with crispy air, 
 And nipping mornings come apace, 
 
 And smiling Nature everywhere 
 Presents a kindly sort of face. 
 
 Frost-diamonds cluster round her brows, 
 
 A scintillating coronet; 
 And from her over-brimming mows 
 
 She pays the harvester his debt. 
 
 The garnered grain she heaps up high, 
 Reward for him who 's used her well, 
 
 And Fortune's gifts right lavishly 
 She scatters over hill and dell. 
 
 Her treasury she opens wide, 
 
 And bids us share the gleaming wealth 
 That lies in view on every side 
 
 In corn, and coin, and rugged health. 
 
o? [int o' Qmr 
 
 HUGGING TROUBLE 
 
 This nursing of trouble and hugging of woe 
 Is quite the most futile of things that I know. 
 If you 'd be a nurse or a hugger, I pray 
 Go forth from your corner, and out on the 
 
 way, 
 And there find a chance for some deed to be 
 
 did 
 In hugging and nursing some motherless kid. 
 
Jlobemfcer 3 
 
 UNDAUNTED 
 
 Once out upon a lonely way 
 Upon a cold and wintry day 
 I saw a small bird tempest-tost, 
 And sore beset by chilling frost, 
 Now hither blown, now hurried there, 
 By rushing currents of the air, 
 A picture full of sad regret, 
 That worried, winged thing; and yet 
 He 'd light betimes upon some tree 
 Where his green playground used to be 
 To rest his wearied little wing, 
 And there, despite his woe, he 'd sing! 
 He 'd sing the only song he knew. 
 His note was clear, his note was true, 
 And then back to the fight he 'd fly 
 Undaunted, blithe, and bright of eye! 
 
ffL iw o (fee 
 
 r 
 
 Jlobember 4 
 
 TIME'S SAVINGS 
 
 He who gives to-day full measure 
 Finds his yesterdays a treasure 
 That no woes that overcome us 
 E'er can take completely from us 
 Wealth secure, and full of blessing, 
 That is truly worth possessing. 
 
acii ( Day d tfay 
 
 Jlobember 5 
 
 WISE FOOLISHNESS 
 
 When some rocky path ye tread 
 Do your talkin' with your head, 
 But when sympathy is due 
 Let your old heart speak for you. 
 Who knows? Maybe some distress 
 Can be cured by foolishness 
 Better than the wisest plan 
 Ever yet devised by man. 
 
ffL (int o (Jmr 
 
 Jlotoember 6 
 
 YOUTH 
 
 Youth is lovely. Youth is fair. 
 Youth hath such a bonny air, 
 And I love it when it glows 
 With the color of the rose 
 On the cheek of maid and man 
 In the heyday of life's span. 
 But youth 's in its sweetest stage 
 When within the heart of Age 
 Still it makes the sere day bright 
 With its ever-golden light. 
 
o 
 
 'ear 
 
 RAPTURE 
 
 Withered leaves are dancing, 
 With the breezes prancing. 
 Harvest mows are smiling 
 With their stores beguiling. 
 Zephyrs swift are chaffing 
 With the brooklets laughing. 
 Autumn's stars are beaming 
 Through the crisp night gleaming. 
 Birds are southward winging 
 Full of joyous singing. 
 Hill, and vale, and river, 
 In the sunlight quiver. 
 Thrilling with thanksgiving 
 O'er the joy of living. 
 
 Guess I '11 try to capture 
 Some of all this rapture. 
 Nature must prepare it 
 For Mankind to share it! 
 
 * 
 
[iw o Qittr 
 
 DISTINCTIONS 
 
 Grant me much self-respect, but no conceit, 
 
 And may I ever see 
 Myself a man with honest pride replete, 
 
 With naught of vanity. 
 
Jlofcember 9 
 
 CERTAIN 
 
 TACTICS 
 
 " Fight fire with fire." Yes, that 's effective, 
 But careful be of your objective. 
 You cannot cure a quarrel by " quar'ling," 
 Nor thread a snarl by simply snarling. 
 
1 /Hf/A L 
 
 
 
 c 
 
 a 
 
 1 i Y) (\ 
 ^^*^j 
 
 J^obember 
 
 & 
 
 10 
 
 wr 
 
 i 
 
 ^' 
 
 X 
 
 (CCP /J!5r 
 
 
 
 % 
 
 THE USED-TO-BEE 
 
 Of all the bees that hum around 
 
 The best of all to me, 
 Whose honey 's sweetest, I have found 
 
 The good old " Used-To-Bee." 
 
 The sweets we Ve stored are our reward, 
 
 Saved for a rainy day, 
 And keep us warm against the storm 
 
 Of troubles on our way. 
 
 So here 's to thee, old " Used-To-Bee," 
 
 So rich in treasure-trove ! 
 Long as I live, my thanks I '11 give 
 
 For all thy gifts of love. 
 
Jlofcember 
 
 THE FRUIT 
 
 Tears may fall I 'm not complaining. 
 In my heart it 's simply raining, 
 And mayhap from out my woe 
 Something green will later grow 
 That will add unto my power 
 In some chance, emergent hour 
 To relieve the burden gray 
 Of some comrade gone astray! 
 
(int o* Qutr 
 
 jBtotoember 12 
 
 A SUMMONS 
 
 Ho let 's out upon the wing ! 
 Somewhere some one 's suffering! 
 Sound the gong and clear the road! 
 On we come with loving load 
 Full of cheer and comradeship 
 For the soul in trouble's grip! 
 
 All the drowning 's not at sea. 
 Some on land poor swimmers be, 
 Going downward, helpless, lost, 
 In life's waters tempest-tost 
 Lost for just a timely rope 
 Cast by love, and weft of hope! 
 
PI 
 
 Sxli'Day d tfayear 
 
 Jlobember 13 
 
 THE DAYMAKER 
 
 1 care not what the Weather Bureau says 
 From this time on I 'm making my own days, 
 And if without the tempests roar and spin, 
 If so I choose I '11 have sunshine within; 
 Or if I need the rain, and skies are bright, 
 I know just how to bring dark clouds in sight. 
 Though truth to tell I plan to specialize 
 On cheery days, with brilliant, sunny skies 
 A-gleam with joy, and leave the other style 
 For solemn folks who 'd rather frown than 
 smile. 
 
o? fjM 0' Qm 
 
 jBiobember 14 
 
 r 
 
 AS TO PINING 
 
 The English tongue sometimes, I fear, 
 Would strike a man from Mars as queer. 
 For instance, when some people say, 
 " 'T is sad to see one pine away." 
 They do not know the kind of pine 
 That gladdens so this soul of mine 
 When I observe it front the ill 
 Of winter with its bitter chill, 
 Its green persistent in the face 
 Of every blast that comes apace; 
 Its head held high against the sky 
 Whatever tempest passes by; 
 And mid the blizzards as serene 
 As in the summer, soft and green. 
 It simply pines, and pines away, 
 And gathers strength day after day; 
 And stands erect whate'er may be, 
 And takes what comes unflinchingly. 
 
 How wondrous fine 't would be, I say, 
 If folks would only " pine " that way! 
 

 15 
 
 WHEN KINKS APPEAR 
 
 No matter if you think 
 
 The world is in a kink, 
 
 Just strike your proper gait 
 
 And keep your own path straight. 
 
 It won't be long before, 
 In footing up the score, 
 You '11 find past any doubt 
 The kink is straightened out. 
 
o? {lw o' Qmr 
 
 M 
 
 jBtobemfaer 16 
 
 AS TO WASTE 
 
 If all the waste were used, my dear, 
 Drear want would shortly disappear, 
 And not a soul in all the race 
 Would stand with hunger face to face, 
 If all the waste were used. 
 
 And this refers to sympathy 
 And tender, true humanity 
 For all the human brood, my dear, 
 And not alone to food, my dear, 
 If all the waste were used! 
 
 So, who '11 become a granary 
 
 For those that starve for sympathy, 
 
 And fill with food 
 
 The multitude 
 
 Whose souls grow faint for just a taste 
 Of that we 're letting run to waste, 
 
 But would be fed 
 
 And comforted, 
 If all the waste were used? 
 
Sxcli'Day o tfayear 
 
 17 
 
 WAITING SMILES 
 
 All the worry in the world 
 
 Never killed despair. 
 Trouble never yet was furled 
 
 On the rod of care. 
 
 Grit your teeth, and steadily 
 
 Plod your thorny road. 
 Some To-day will rectify 
 
 Wrongs of yesterday. 
 
 Somewhere, somehow, there '11 be smiles 
 
 Waiting on the road, 
 Easing off the weary miles, 
 
 Lightening your load. 
 
NT 
 
 o? int o' Qmr 
 
 jBtobember 18 
 
 THE TEACHER 
 
 Woe came to me one day, and quietly we 
 
 talked, 
 And when she went her way, my troubled 
 
 path I walked 
 Contentedly, for she, despite her visage 
 
 drear, 
 Had given unto me a vision bright and clear. 
 
 She pointed clearly out, unerringly and plain, 
 Just how it came about that I had suffered 
 
 pain; 
 And while she 'd made me wan with trial and 
 
 distress, 
 She helped me start upon the Road to 
 
 Happiness. 
 
 There never was a good black night 
 That did not point the way to light ! 
 
j&otoember 19 
 
 ASSETS 
 
 I may possess no drossy treasure-trove, 
 
 But I have love ! 
 It may be in some lowering clouds I grope, 
 
 But I have hope! 
 With love and hope to make my days secure, 
 
 My fortune 's sure. 
 Without them all the riches of the earth 
 
 Have little worth; 
 But with them, lacking gold, I still opine 
 
 Success is mine ! 
 
iw o'-Qiter 
 
 Jlotoember 20 
 
 UNBOUND 
 
 Sometimes when feeling close confined 
 
 And shut within a narrow sphere, 
 It 's rather pleasing to my mind 
 
 To gaze off in the heavens clear, 
 And fancy that the earth is but 
 
 A front-seat at some wondrous show 
 Where I may sit and watch the strut 
 
 Of forces marching to and fro; 
 And when the play for me is done, 
 
 I '11 find at last a dwelling-place 
 In broad fields bounded by the sun, 
 
 The moon, the stars, and endless space. 
 
Jlobember 21 
 
 PRESCRIPTION 
 
 If you would check your trouble crop 
 Just put old worry on the shelf, 
 
 And on this very instant stop 
 A-sympathizing with yourself. 
 
 Self-sympathy 's a kind of care 
 That seldom lands us anywhere. 
 
& {jMtfQitt 
 
 ~Pj jHobember 22 
 
 r 
 
 PAY AS YOU GO 
 
 Thanksgiving Day will soon be here, 
 
 But it has ever been my way, 
 And one that 's filled my soul with cheer, 
 
 To keep Thanksgiving every day. 
 It really helps a lot, you know, 
 To keep on paying as you go, 
 Not putting off till the account 
 Foots up to such a vast amount 
 That you 're not certain if your store 
 Is quite sufficient for the score. 
 

 
 Jlobember 23 
 
 WHEN THINGS ARE SPARSE 
 
 Don't grieve if haply you are thin! 
 
 Remember, 't is no fable, 
 The fattest turkey 's first to win 
 
 His place upon our table; 
 And oversleekness often brings 
 
 A consequential guerdon 
 That makes the lot of lofty kings 
 
 A mighty heavy burden. 
 
^ 
 
 o? (ine o* Qm 
 
 Jlotjemfcet 24 
 
 r 
 
 COMING WINTER 
 
 There 's frost upon the window-pane, 
 
 And bitter is the air. 
 The birds are winging south again, 
 
 And chill is everywhere. 
 But 'gainst the rime of wintry days 
 
 I Ve stored within my soul 
 Enough of summer's sunny rays 
 
 To ease my meed of dole. 
 And when it comes to chilly nights 
 
 With tempests fierce a-wing 
 I sleep, and dream of harbor lights 
 
 About the Ports of Spring. 
 
Jlofcember 25 
 
 A PREFERENCE 
 
 In distant skies the gorgeous hues 
 
 Of scintillating beauty glow, 
 And with their glories vast suffuse 
 
 The drifting clouds that float below. 
 About me on the city streets 
 
 A drab and sordid prospect lies, 
 And everywhere grim sorrow greets 
 
 And fills with woe my watching eyes. 
 
 Yet would I dwell below with these 
 
 Whose portion is but grim despair, 
 Not 'mongst those cloudland mysteries 
 
 For all their glowing beauty rare. 
 For they 're but cloud-lands, after all, 
 
 Adrift all aimlessly above; 
 While here below whene'er I call 
 
 I find realities of love. 
 
o? (me. o' Qwt 
 
 jflobembcr 26 
 
 r 
 
 HEART-ZONES 
 
 I Ve charted off my heart to-day 
 
 In quite a geographic way. 
 
 When some unhappy comrade falls 
 
 And for a speedy judgment calls 
 
 The Zone called Temperate I '11 use 
 
 In reckoning his final dues. 
 
 When anger comes to vex my path 
 
 And vengeful thoughts lead on to wrath, 
 
 The Arctic Zone will cool me off 
 
 And at my mad impulses scoff; 
 
 And when there 's need for sympathy, 
 
 The Torrid Zone will do for me. 
 
 Thus will my heart in thought and deed, 
 
 And kindly impulse serve my need. 
 
Sxfi'Day o 
 
 Jlobemfaer 27 
 
 RELIEF IN RHYME 
 
 When matters go askew sometimes 
 
 I find much help in making rhymes. 
 
 For instance, when I darkly grope 
 
 It helps a lot to think of " hope." 
 
 And when the night is black as " ink " 
 
 It helps to think that dawn is " pink." 
 
 When scenes are steeped in misery 
 
 I like to dwell on " charity." 
 
 " Glad " rhymes with " sad," and " light " 
 
 with " night," 
 
 While " plight " and " spite " suggest " de- 
 light," 
 
 And as for " jeer," and " sneer," and " fear," 
 My rhyming scheme leads on to " cheer." 
 
 Just try it when your days are " blue." 
 Your rhyme may show that " skies are, too." 
 
[int o> Qutr 
 
 Jlobember 28 
 
 THE PARADOX 
 
 If you have a thought of glee, 
 Just some little note of cheer, 
 
 Wander forth right speedily, 
 Pour it in some comrade's ear. 
 
 If you have a thought of dread, 
 Of some evil you must read, 
 
 Keep it close within your head, 
 In your spirit buried deep. 
 
 Of your joys spend lavishly. 
 
 Be a miser with your fear. 
 What you spend will multiply; 
 
 What you hoard will disappear! 
 
J^ofcember 29 
 
 ALWAYS READY 
 
 When all about me rush like mad, 
 And push and shove in wild abandon, 
 
 Amid the turmoil I am glad 
 
 That I Ve two sturdy legs to stand on. 
 
 And if caught in that onward smash 
 They overturn me as they fly on, 
 
 It comforts me as down I crash 
 
 To think that I Ve my back to lie on. 
 
[int o Qittr 
 
 J^tofcember 30 
 
 MY KINGDOM 
 
 Who 'd be a king when he can be 
 
 A man that's free? 
 Who 'd bend beneath his pompous load 
 
 And lose the road? 
 Who 'd cherish stores of yellow dross 
 
 Involving loss 
 Of love, and freedom, and the greens 
 
 Of peaceful scenes? 
 Not I ! The only king I'd be 
 
 Is king of Me, 
 Lord of Myself, and Master of my Soul 
 
 That is my goal! 
 
LMZV*y< 
 
 
 December I 
 
 THE LAST CHAPTER 
 
 Now comes the final chapter of the year. 
 The last days of its span are flying fast. 
 We balance up our books in woe and cheer. 
 The totals of our loss and profit cast. 
 
 For me, in looking back, I choose to dwell 
 On sunny days that stand in bold relief, 
 And of their many happinesses tell, 
 With eyes tight-closed to every hour of grief. 
 
 Thus grows the retrospect in joy, and I 
 Approach another turning of life's page 
 Unvexed to think that I am passing by 
 A further milestone on the path to age. 
 
o? ^m o' (Jut 
 
 r 
 
 December 2 
 
 HOLY DAYS 
 
 Yes, December 's cold and gray, 
 And the birds have flown away, 
 
 Leaving us to wintry stress, 
 But ourselves can change the scene 
 With the tints of summer green 
 
 With the brush of kindliness. 
 
 Soon the holidays we '11 see, 
 Full of mad hilarity, 
 
 Full of joys delirious 
 By some act of kindness done 
 We can make them every one 
 
 Truly Holy Days for us ! 
 
December 3 
 
 TOGETHER 
 
 No matter what the kind of weather, 
 The fairest path I know 's " Together/' 
 When through some bright or cloudy strand 
 Two lovers walk it, hand in hand. 
 
 E'en though we cannot join them there 
 The sight of them is passing fair, 
 Just as we joy in sunset hues 
 Which we may gaze on, but not use. 
 
o? jjnt o' Qwr 
 
 I 
 
 December 4 
 
 THE FIRES OF FRIENDSHIP 
 
 Blow on, ye wintry blasts ! Ye vex me not. 
 I 'm poor in coin, maybe, but rich in friends, 
 And every bitter ill that thou hast got 
 In Friendship's face incontinently ends. 
 
 The fires of comradeship are constant, true. 
 They burn for aye, despite thy wintry rue, 
 And ne'er an ice-woe from the arctic day 
 Can stand before the glow of such as they. 
 
December 5 
 
 THE LAGGARD 
 
 Time often drags, but why complain, for- 
 sooth? 
 
 What though his onward step 's not faster, 
 stronger? 
 
 The slower he to pass, we hold our youth 
 The longer! 
 
cTM 
 
 o? nt o Qwr 
 
 December 6 
 
 THE SECRET 
 
 If we could only understand the language of 
 
 the breeze, 
 And grasp the inner meaning of the whisp'- 
 
 rings of the trees, 
 I 'm sure the message they 'd impart would 
 
 drive away all fear, 
 And bid us be right strong of heart, and hold 
 
 it full of cheer. 
 
 I 'm sure they 'd bid us note how quick the 
 
 storm clouds drift away, 
 And how no mist can e'er persist before the 
 
 smile of day, 
 And when Life's secret stands revealed in all 
 
 its blessed truth 
 We 'd find it in the blissful fact of Love's 
 
 eternal youth. 
 
faf\fDcyoti\$tar* 
 
 | SJecember 7 
 
 PA 
 
 FRIENDLY NATURE 
 
 When in my troubles sunny days come by 
 I look on them as gifts from up on high 
 To cheer me in the hour of my rue, 
 And bid me hold my soul steadfast and true. 
 And if perchance the skies are full of rain, 
 And moaning winds fly over hill and plain, 
 They are not added woe, but proof to me 
 That in my stress I Ve Nature's sympathy 
 
 As tears, and sighs, 
 Of kindly friends show that they sympathize. 
 
fine 0' (jfer 
 
 JDctrmbcr 8 
 
 FOR TO-DAY 
 
 Let this morning's motto be 
 Kindliness and Courtesy, 
 Smiles for all upon the way. 
 Then however bleak the day 
 I shall feel when it is over 
 Like a bee amid the clover, 
 Gathering honey all day long, 
 Humming out my life in song. 
 
\Sa(M)ca) 6 Ai^ear' 
 
 December 9 
 
 THE DEMONSTRATION 
 
 To make your faith 
 No spectral wraith, 
 Just found your creed 
 Not on the word but on the deed. 
 
 The more 't is used 
 In deeds suffused 
 And put into 
 The little things you daily do, 
 
 The more 't will grow ; 
 And ere you know 
 'T will gather strength, 
 And finally 't will turn at length, 
 
 The more you act, 
 Into a fact 
 So plain that you 
 Will never have to prove it true. 
 
0' Qutr 
 
 December 10 
 
 PROFITABLE LOSS 
 
 Ofttimes in bargains involving dross 
 I Ve found the profit was wholly loss, 
 And other times in my bitter pain 
 I Ve found my loss in the end was gain. 
 
 Wherefore it seems that the thing to do 
 When lowering troubles loom into view 
 Is to see what use we can put 'em to, 
 And turn the losses that there impend 
 Into some kind of a dividend! 
 
cccmbcr II 
 
 THE HARVEST 
 
 Without, I grant, I show my age, 
 
 But deep within I 'm young as ever. 
 Let hoary Time turn page on page 
 
 And rush along in mad endeavor 
 To prove me old ! I '11 merely laugh, 
 
 His scythe and hour-glass defying. 
 Love's wheat is mine his share 's the chaff 
 
 Of arbitrary days a-flying! 
 
OL nt o> (Jut 
 
 r 
 
 December 12 
 
 NOT WHITHER BUT WHERE 
 
 Where we 're to be some day 't were quite 
 
 as well 
 
 To leave unto the verdict of our star. 
 'T were wiser much for us to rest a spell 
 And take a daily reckoning to tell 
 Us where we are. 
 
 Foresight is fine, yet thinking on to-morrow, 
 Neglectful of the chances here to-day, 
 
 Is like to living on the sweets we borrow 
 Unmindful of the fruit along the way. 
 
Zacli'Day d t&year 
 
 T Jictcmlier 13 
 
 UPSTREAM 
 
 Never mind the rocky bed, 
 
 Or the rapids round you spread, 
 
 Grip your oars and pull ahead! 
 
 Never mind the rushing tide, 
 Nor the whirling pools that hide 
 'Neath the stream on every side. 
 
 Heed ye not the currents strong 
 Setting toward the ports of wrong, 
 Grip your oars and pull along. 
 
 Let your sweep be broad and true 
 On the course that sets into 
 Harbors fair that wait for you. 
 
 Head-winds blow, and false lights gleam 
 Hard is rowing 'gainst the stream, 
 But the prizes are supreme ! 
 
 Where head-waters bubble free 
 There the fountain-sources be 
 Of the powers of the sea ! 
 
io? jjne. o' Qwr 
 
 M 
 
 Jieccmber 14 
 
 NEVER FAILING 
 
 No matter how the winds are humming 
 It 's always true that summer 's coming. 
 It 's coming any time of year, 
 In spring the fair, in winter drear; 
 
 When bees are humming, 
 
 Or blasts are strumming 
 
 With sleet or rain 
 
 Upon your pane, 
 
 It 's always coming, coming, coming, 
 And some day 'twill be here 
 With all its warmth and cheer 
 To share its treasures joyously 
 
 With you and me ! 
 
? 
 
 December 15 
 
 THE UPWARD WAY 
 
 Whose soul shall rise above the cloud 
 
 That blights the path that must be run 
 Will reach the realms with bliss endowed 
 
 Where shines the everlasting sun. 
 Put rein and bridle on the mist, 
 
 And ride oblivious to care, 
 And on the upward way persist 
 
 The light is surely waiting there. 
 
UL iw o' (J^ r 
 
 Jiecember 16 
 
 IN THE DEPTHS 
 
 Deeper than reason, deeper than mind, 
 Down in the depths of my spirit I find 
 Senses of vast and ungraspable things 
 Stirring the soul like a flutter of wings, 
 Filling my heart with a faith in a day 
 Far in the future, yet here in a way, 
 Blest with the light of a Fatherly face, 
 Loving of eye, and a-glowing with grace, 
 Bidding me enter of sorrows all free 
 Into the home that is waiting for me. 
 That is the faith in my spirit I find, 
 Deeper than reason, deeper than mind, 
 Senses of love, and ineffable things, 
 Stirring my soul like a flutter of wings! 
 
ScuMDoy 6 'tfayear 
 
 Ucccmbcv 17 
 
 AS TO RESENTMENT 
 
 Resentment? Nay, my friend it's not 
 
 worth while. 
 A thousand frowns are n't worth a single 
 
 smile, 
 
 And as for me I have no time to spare 
 For going round with a resentful air, 
 When everywhere I look I see some chance 
 To greet a fellow man with loving glance 
 To help him on, and make the road I run 
 
 A brighter one, 
 And give the highways dark that lie ahead 
 
 That I must tread 
 Some of the radiant sweetness of the sun. 
 
S/L [int o y Qmr 
 
 Bccemfaer 18 
 
 THE SURPLUS 
 
 If so your cup 
 
 With joy fills up 
 That it is over-brimming, 
 
 Pray keep in sight 
 
 The hapless wight 
 In difficulties swimming. 
 
 Just take the waste 
 
 You cannot taste 
 To some poor soul in sorrow. 
 
 I 'm quite inclined 
 
 To think you '11 find 
 Your stock increased to-morrow 
 
Sxti'Day o thyMcr 
 
 JBecember 19 
 
 HEAD AND HEART 
 
 When Heart says " Do," and Head says 
 
 " Don't," 
 
 And Will 's inclined to say " I won't! " 
 It may be wrong to follow Heart 
 And from the paths of Head depart, 
 But all the same I 've heard much song 
 On roads wise Head hath branded wrong, 
 And sooner found the light that 's true* 
 On byways Heart hath brought to view! 
 
{Ini o Qwtr 
 
 JBecemiet 20 
 
 THE DIVIDEND 
 
 To-day my banner is unfurled, 
 
 And forth I go 
 
 To scenes of woe, 
 To add unto the glory of the world 
 
 By some good deed 
 
 For those in need: 
 To dry the tears in some one's eyes; 
 To drive the clouds from some one's skies; 
 And on my sturdy shoulders bear 
 The* burden of some other's care; 
 And when at e'en the sunset falls 
 On distant hills, on city walls, 
 In all its splendor, rich, divine, 
 Some of its radiance will be mine ! 
 
\acfi ( D(Uj o tfay&ir 
 
 December 21 
 
 A YEAR AGO 
 
 Now where was I a year ago? 
 Enmeshed in just what net of woe? 
 
 Blest if I know! 
 
 Hence naught of tribute shall I pay 
 To any trouble here to-day. 
 A year will shortly pass away, 
 
 And every fear 
 
 At present here, 
 Just as that woe of yesteryear, 
 Will lie forgot, unless I choose 
 To cherish it, which I refuse! 
 
(int o' Qfittr 
 
 ^December 22 
 
 THE HOLLY WREATH 
 
 The holly wreath 's a joyous sight 
 
 To cure us of despond, 
 And it is made exactly right 
 
 To let us look beyond 
 Beyond the scenes of gladsome mirth 
 
 That all about us be, 
 Into those other scenes of earth 
 
 And opportunity. 
 
 The berry's glow amid the green 
 
 Speaks of that jewelled day 
 When love whose like was never seen 
 
 Dawned on our mortal way; 
 And through the spaces garlanded 
 
 We look upon God's poor, 
 And find the path before us spread 
 
 To make His love secure ! 
 
December 23 
 
 If you have the gift of song, 
 Use it, use it, all day long ! 
 
 If you have the gift of mirth, 
 Let it gladden all the earth ! 
 
 If you have the gift of cheer, 
 Let it echo loud and clear! 
 
 If you have stores of content, 
 Be its joys on others spent; 
 
 And your Christmas dividend 
 Will be good will without end 
 
Hi 
 
 u 
 
 <5? 
 
 C- > /^T 
 
 ^m o ^ 
 
 JSecember 24 
 
 eer 
 
 
 
 
 
 AS TO SANTA CLAUS 
 
 'T is quite the fad these days of doubt 
 
 To put old Santa on the shelf; 
 
 But you can put such doubt to rout 
 
 By being Santa Claus yourself! 
 
 So sling your pack 
 
 Upon your back, 
 
 And seek the hovels poor and mean 
 Where Santa Claus is seldom seen, 
 And take the souls that there abide 
 Their portion of the Christmastide. 
 
\acli ( DaydtKeyMr 
 
 Jiecember 25 
 
 HIGH FESTIVAL 
 
 Now let the chimes that sweetly ring 
 
 Upon the frosty morning air 
 Surcease from every trouble bring 
 
 To grateful spirits everywhere, 
 And as the coming of the Lord 
 
 Brought hope of grace to sinners all, 
 Let every heart, with one accord, 
 
 Rejoice in His High Festival, 
 And spread good will 
 O'er dale and hill; 
 
 And where in darkness some may grope 
 Illume their paths with rays of hope, 
 Until e'en regions of distress 
 Beam with the light of happiness! 
 
51 [int o> Qwtr 
 
 j -Becember 26 
 
 A CHRISTMAS PRAYER 
 
 Give me the eyes to see my brother's woe ; 
 Grant me the vision that perceives his care, 
 That I, amid my Christmas joys, may go 
 And take some touch of mitigation there. 
 
 God point the way that I may quickly find 
 His acre waiting for the glad relief, 
 And ope my eyes that I may not be blind 
 To tasks of love that ease the sting of grief. 
 
December 27 
 
 THE EVER YOUNG 
 
 Let the short days run, 
 And the years fly by, 
 And the blazing sun 
 
 Speed across the sky. 
 What need you care for his path of ruth 
 If your heart holds fast to the joys of youth? 
 
 Let your locks grow white, 
 And your brow be lined, 
 In the swift sped flight 
 Of the years behind. 
 Why vex your soul as they run along 
 If your heart still rings with a youthful song? 
 
 Let the minutes race, 
 
 And the old clock tell 
 Of their madcap pace 
 
 With its mellowed bell. 
 Age cannot touch, nor its sorrows sear 
 The spirit that holds to its youthful cheer. 
 
o Qmr 
 
 December 28 
 
 LEGAL TENDER 
 
 Give me gold to pay my debts 
 Gold or silver, I don't care. 
 
 When they 're gone I 've no regrets 
 That no longer they are there. 
 
 But when I would seek content, 
 
 Peace and life's felicity, 
 Dross hath little blandishment. 
 
 Love the mintage is for me ! 
 
o 
 
 December 29 
 
 YESTERDAY, TO-DAY, AND 
 TO-MORROW 
 
 How very fair to-morrow looks, and O how 
 
 very dear 
 The memories of yesterday to most of us 
 
 appear! 
 Ah, well, my friend, remember as you run 
 
 along your way, 
 To-day was once to-morrow, and will soon 
 
 be yesterday. 
 Let 's keep it fair as we have dreamed, and 
 
 as we pass along, 
 'Twill make another yesterday all bright 
 
 and full of song. 
 
o? (ine. o' Qitt 
 
 r 
 
 JBecemfaer 30 
 
 WINTER 
 
 When Winter in her frosty pride 
 Puts on a lot of pompous side, 
 
 And loudly blows, 
 It really makes me want to laugh 
 As I reflect on how much chaff 
 
 Lies in her pose. 
 
 The fact is and a rose I knew 
 Last summer told me, and it 's too 
 
 Too good to keep 
 She 's not a queen of lofty birth, 
 But just a nurse to watch the earth 
 
 While it 's asleep ! 
 
 A mighty good one though is she, 
 And does her duty faithfully, 
 
 Despite her way. 
 
 Were earth to lose her snowy drifts 
 We 'd sadly miss the floral gifts 
 
 Of smiling May! 
 
L&fftOoi/o 
 
 JBecember 31 
 
 THE PASSING YEAR 
 
 Another year hath gone and added to your 
 
 age? 
 Nay, 't is not so, my friend you Ve turned 
 
 another page 
 In Life's great story book, and now before 
 
 your eyes 
 
 Another chapter lies, 
 
 To tell us all alike, the patriarch and youth, 
 How run the blessed paths that lead us on to 
 
 truth !