LIBRARY j 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF 
 CAUFORWA I 
 
 SAN BIBQO . j
 
 IBS UNIIHWSR? 
 
 (W1VERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. SAN DIEGO 
 LA iniifl HA> 
 
 
 
 
 *<n(7jt. 
 
 ^fL^ /
 
 THE 
 
 COMPRISING MORE THAN 
 
 THREE HUNDRED CHOICE SELECTIONS OF 
 POETRY AND PROSE, 
 
 HOE WETTING IN AT7TOGBAPH ALBUMS, VALEN- 
 TINES, BIETHDAY, OHEISTilAS AND NEW TEAE CAEDS. 
 
 ORIGINAL AND SELECTED. 
 
 Onr lives are albums, written through 
 With good or ill, with false or true, 
 And as the blessed angels turn the pages of our years, 
 God grant that they may read the good with smiles, 
 AuU blot the ill with tears. 
 
 COMPILED BY J. 8. fGILVIE. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 J. S. OGILVIE AND COMPANY, 
 
 25 Rose Street.
 
 1881. 
 
 . s.oan.70.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 WHO among the readers of this preface has not been 
 invited to write a few words of sentiment in the Album of 
 a friend ? As an aid to the many thousands who have 
 received this invitation, and have not known what to 
 write, we offer this collection of choice verse and prose, 
 as an aid to them and all others, with the hope that our 
 labor shall not have been spent in vain, nor be altogether 
 unappreciated. Great care has been taken to procure as 
 many original pieces as possible. Many choice verses 
 suitable for Birthday, Christmas and New-Tear celebra- 
 tions, have been added; which, with the collection of 
 articles embracing sentiment, affection, humor, and 
 miscellany, is offered to a generous public by
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 DEDICATION VEBSCS, -.-... 5 
 SEITCTMENT AND AFFECTION, .... - 9 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS, ....... 27 
 
 ESTEEM AND CONFIDENCE, ..... 45 
 
 HUMOROUS, --......53 
 
 BIBTHDAY VEESES, ------- 49 
 
 CHEISTMAS AND NEW YEAE, ..... 67
 
 SUITABLE FOR INSCRIPTION ON TITLE PAGES OF 
 ALBUMS. 
 
 Go forth, thou little volume, 
 Like Noah's faithful dove, 
 
 And bring to darling 
 
 An olive leaf of love. 
 
 MY Album's open I Corne and see ! 
 What ! Won't you waste a line on me ? 
 Write but a thought, a word or two, 
 That Memory may revert to you. 
 
 To MY FEJEJHJS : 
 
 MY Album is a garden spot 
 
 Where all my friends may SOW, 
 Where thorns and thistles flourish not, 
 
 But flowers alone may grow. 
 With smiles for sunshine, tears for showers, 
 I'll water, watch and guard these flowers.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 Go forth, thou little volume, 
 I leave thee to thy fate ; 
 
 To love and friendship truly 
 Thy leaves I dedicate. 
 
 Go, Album ! range the gay parterre ; 
 
 From gem to gem, from flower to flower, 
 Pelect with taste and cull with care, 
 And bring your offering, fresh and rare, 
 
 To this sweet maiden's bower 1 
 
 WHEN years elapse, 
 
 It may, perhaps, 
 
 Delight us to review these scraps, 
 And live again 'mid scenes so gay, 
 That Time's rough hand has swept away; 
 For when the eye, bedimmed with age, 
 Shall rest upon each treasured page, 
 
 Those pleasant hours 
 
 That once were ours 
 Shall come again, like Autumn flowery 
 To bloom and smile upon us here 
 When all things else seem sad and drear; 
 'Twill tune our hearts and make them sing, 
 And turn our Autumn into Spring I 
 
 Go, little book, thy destined course pursue, 
 Collect memorials of the just and true, 
 And beg of every friend so near 
 Some token of remembrance dear.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 As life flows on from day to day, 
 And this, your book, soon fills, 
 
 How many may be far away 
 From treasured vales and hills? 
 
 But there is joy in future time 
 
 To turn the pages o'er, 
 And see within a name or rhyme 
 
 From one you'll see no more. 
 
 LIFE is a volume, 
 
 From youth to old age, 
 Each year forms a chapter, 
 
 Each day is a page. 
 May none be more charming, 
 
 More womanly (manly) true, 
 Than that, pure and noble, 
 
 Sketched yearly by you. 
 
 l*NT kind wishes will be written here, 
 And none more sincere than mine. 
 
 But 
 
 Words are lighter than the cloud-foam 
 
 Of the restless ocean's spray ; 
 Vainer than the trembling shadow 
 
 That the next hour steals away; 
 By the fall of summer raindrops 
 
 Is the air as deeply stirred, 
 And the roseleaf that we tread on 
 
 Will outlive a word.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 
 
 WE may write our names in Albums -, 
 We may trace them in the sand ; 
 We may chisel them in marble, 
 With a firm and skillful hand : 
 But the pages soon are sullied, 
 Soon each name will fade away ; 
 Every monument will crumble, 
 Like all earthy hopes, decay. 
 But, dear friend, there is an Album, 
 Full of leaves of snowy white, 
 Where no name is ever tarnished, 
 But forever pure and bright. 
 In that Book of Life, God's Album, 
 May your name be penned with car* ^ 
 And may all who here may write, 
 Have their names forever there.
 
 ti 
 
 PEACE be around thee, wherever thou rovest ; 
 
 May life be for thee one summer's day ; 
 And all that thou wish, and all that thou lovest, 
 
 Come smiling around thy summer way. 
 If sorrow e'er this calm should break, 
 
 May even thy tears pass off so lightly, 
 Like spring showers, they will only make 
 
 The smiles that follow shine more brightly. 
 
 MA.Y the chain of friendship formed by the links which 
 are dropped here, serve to unite you more closely in spirit 
 with the friends who have worked it. 
 
 May each link be brought to a white heat in the fires of 
 Love ; and, forged on the anvils of Truth, may they be 
 strong as iron, yet light as air : keeping you bravely to 
 the duties of Life. And when the chain of human bond- 
 age shall be broken, may they become flowers of eternal 
 brightness in the gardens from whence corneth exceeding 
 peace. 
 
 OUR lives are albums, written through 
 With good or ill with false or true 
 And, as the blessed angels turn 
 The pages of our years, 
 God grant they read the good with smiles, 
 And blot the bad with tears. 
 9
 
 10 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 THE gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man 
 perfected without adversity. 
 
 TIME advances like the slowest tide, but retreats likft 
 the swiftest current. 
 
 WHAT'S the use of always fretting 
 At the trials we shall find 
 
 Ever strewn along our pathway 
 Travel on, and never mind. 
 
 LIFE giveth unto each his space, 
 A span of earth, an arch of sky, 
 
 And unto each a several grace 
 To each a separate destiny. 
 
 And some were born to win and spend, 
 
 And some to love unto the end. 
 
 THEEE \s another album 
 Filled with leaves of spotless white, 
 
 Where no name is ever tarnished, 
 But forever pure and bright. 
 
 In the Book of Life God's album 
 May your name be penned with care, 
 
 And may all who here have written, 
 Write their names forever there. 
 
 DAILY we write our autographs on the minds and 
 hearts of those around us.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 11 
 
 "Poos is the friendless master of a world. A world 
 in purchase for a friend, is gain." 
 
 So slight a favor 'tis you crave, 
 That I can scarce refuse compliance ; 
 
 Nor shall I use the page you gave, 
 To set your champions at defiance. 
 
 Dear lady, vainly awed, I praise 
 That dimpled hand I pressed at parting] 
 
 Or those dark eyes, beneath whose gaze 
 A cupid lurks equipped for darting. 
 
 Nor can I hope to lightly touch 
 On charms so oft the theme of lovers ; 
 
 To add another, while so much 
 That beautiful about thee hovers. 
 
 I can but add one little pearl 
 
 To all the gems about thee scattered ; 
 And say again, sweet, artless girl, 
 
 That all thy poets have not flattered. 
 
 I HAVE tried for a week, and vainly I seek 
 
 Words of wisdom to write to you here ; 
 So, wishing you life free from sorrow and strife, 
 
 Nor wanting in friends and good cheer, 
 With health perhaps wealth 
 Love better than self, 
 And Truth, far the best, to the end ; 
 Since content it maintains 
 While existence remains, 
 I subscribe myself, Truly, your friend.
 
 12 THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 
 
 STRENGTH for to-day, in house and home, 
 To practice forbearance sweetly ; 
 
 To scatter kind words and loving deeds, 
 Still trusting in God completely. 
 
 A YOLTTME of this kind, it is supposable, will be more 
 or less frequently referred to, in future years, to revive 
 fading recollections and recall pleasant associations ; and, 
 therefore, though it is so easy to moralize, it seems emi- 
 nently fitting that helpful suggestious should accompany 
 familiar autographs. 
 
 Let me say, then, that while in your youth a favorable 
 combination of circumstances permits so much of happi- 
 ness, the conditions of its enjoyment cannot always 
 remain as now. 
 
 As the responsibilities, at present borne for you, shall 
 come to rest on your own shoulders, and the darker 
 shades of life's history are unfolded, you will find the 
 peace, which floweth like a river, only in the degree in 
 which you resolutely perform every known duty ; and, 
 forgetting your own wants whether fancied or real 
 devote your thoughts, as well as your energies, to making 
 the society in which you move, happier for your being. 
 
 That you may indulge in no selfish ease ; but bestow, 
 as well as enjoy, a full share of the pleasures of time, and 
 afterward receive a crown of glory, is the earnest wish otf 
 your friend 
 
 I WOTTLD that I could express my mind 
 To you, dear friend, in scribbling some rhyme ; 
 But you know my failing as well as I, 
 And you'd better get another to try.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 13 
 
 THAT one who can work right on, quietly waiting for 
 recognition, if it come : if not, yet right on, is the tru 
 nobleman. 
 
 DOST thou know, love, that thy smile 
 Makes the whole world bright for me ? 
 
 Just as sunrise pours a sudden 
 Purple glory on the sea. 
 
 Ah ! had I that power, ever 
 Should the world look bright to thee. 
 
 I K^OW not what to write about, 
 So many themes are pressing ; 
 
 All good enough in very truth, 
 But quite unprepossessing : 
 
 Each moment of thy future life, 
 
 Live holy, whether maid or wife. 
 
 And let it be thy constant care, 
 Midst earthly joy and sorrow, 
 
 By watchfulness and fervent prayer, 
 Each this day and to-morrow, 
 
 To be prepared when Christ shall cora^ 
 
 His heaven to make thy final home. 
 
 OH, those eyes ! so calm, serene 
 Sweetest eyes were ever seen. 
 Will the woes of coming years 
 Ever shadow them with tears ? 
 Shall my life the sunshine own, 
 That last night upon me shone, 
 When, beneath the summer skies, 
 Beamed on me those brown, brown eyes?
 
 THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 
 
 THESE little souvenirs possess not their greatest value 
 when first written ; but as time, with scythe in hand, 
 passes along, and we are left standing, we are not the 
 same, but these lines remain. Some, to cheer the sad- 
 dened by awakening slumbering memories of better 
 things ; and others serving as guide-boards op thf 
 to eternity. 
 
 AND then, too, whosoe'er thou art, 
 That readest this brief psalm, 
 
 As one by one thy hopes depart, 
 Be resolute and calm. 
 
 O fear not in a world like this, 
 And thou shalt know e're long -- 
 
 Know how sublime a thing It is 
 To suffer and be strong 
 
 PBESS on i our life is nofc a <3reas& 
 Though often such its mazes seeic 
 We were not bom to live afc ease 
 Ourselves alone to aid and please 
 To eack a daily task is given j 
 A labor that shall fit for heaven , 
 When duty calls, let love grow warm, 
 Amid the sunshine or the storm ; 
 With faith, life's trials boldly breast 
 Then come a conquerer to tixy res' 
 
 As you travel through, iifs, scatter kind words anc 
 gentle deeds; in so doing, you will enrich your ioul 
 "Withhold them, and it tends to poverty.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 15 
 
 1 MAT your life be like the day more beautiful in the 
 evening; like the summer aglow with promise; and, 
 like the autumn, rich with the golden sheaves, where 
 good works and deeds have ripened on the field. 
 
 LET the road be rough and dreary, 
 And its end far out of sight ; 
 
 Foot it bravely strong or weary ; 
 Trust in God, and do the right. 
 
 LIFE is but a day, at best, 
 Sprung from night, in darkness lost ; 
 
 Hope not sunshine every hour ; 
 Fear not clouds will always lower. 
 
 ALL the paths of faith, tho severed wide, 
 O'er which the feet of prayerful reverence pass 
 Meet at the gate of Paradise at last. 
 
 IF I wake, or if I sleep, 
 
 Still the memory I keep 
 
 Of the tender light that lies 
 
 In the depths of those brown eyea. 
 
 BE blessings scattered o'er thy way, 
 
 My gladsome, joyous, laughing sprite ; 
 Be thy whole life one summer's day 
 Without the night.
 
 16 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 ON this leaf, in memory prest, 
 May my name forever rest. 
 
 ON this page I'll write, simply tc 'adiW 
 My name as your friend. 
 
 MAY thy life happy be, 
 Is my dear wish for thee. 
 
 IT never pays to fret and growl 
 When fortune seems our foe, 
 The better bred will push ahead 
 And strike the braver blow ; 
 For luck is work, 
 And those who shirk 
 Should not lament their doom, 
 But yield the play, 
 And clear the way, 
 That better men have room. 
 
 DESIKE not to live long, but well ; 
 
 How long we live, not years, but actions, tell 
 
 MEANNESS shun, and all its train ; 
 Goodness seek, and lif e is gain. 
 
 A BEAUIUTL life ends not in death.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 17 
 
 ROUND went the autograph ; hither it came, 
 For me to write in ; so here's my name. 
 
 PASSING through life's field of action, 
 Lest we part before its end, 
 
 Take within your modest volume, 
 This memento from a friend. 
 
 WB meet and part the world is wide; 
 We journey onward side by side 
 A little while, and then again 
 Our paths diverge. A little pain 
 A silent yearning of the heart 
 For what has grown of life a part ; 
 A shadow passing o'er the sun, 
 Then gone, and light again has come. 
 We meet and part, and then forget ; 
 And life holds blessings for us yet. 
 
 WHEN things don't go to suit you, 
 And the world seems upside down, 
 
 Don't waste your time in fretting, 
 But drive away the frown. 
 
 OLD friends and true friends ! 
 Don't talk to me of new friends ; 
 
 The old are the best, 
 
 Who stand the test, 
 Who book their name as tfirough friendt.
 
 18 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 MAT your coffee and slanders against you be ever the 
 same without grounds. 
 
 The world is full of fools. 
 
 And he who would none view, 
 Must shut himself in a cave, 
 
 And break his mirror, too. 
 
 METHTNKS long years have flown, 
 
 And, sitting in her old arm-chair, 
 has older grown. 
 
 With silver sprinkled in her hair, 
 Her album thus she holds, 
 
 And turns its many pages o'er, 
 And wonders if it still contains 
 
 The memories of yore. 
 As o'er these pages thus she runs, 
 
 With many a sigh and kiss, 
 Then suddenly she stops and says, 
 
 " Who could have written this ?" 
 
 IT never pays to wreck the health 
 
 In drudging after gain ; 
 And he is sold who thinks that gold 
 The cheapest bought with pain. 
 
 An humble lot, 
 
 A cosey cot, 
 Have tempted even kings ; 
 
 For station high, 
 
 That wealth will buy, 
 Not oft contentment brings.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. Id 
 
 REMEMBER me, is ai 
 
 if remembrance be a task, 
 Forget me. 
 
 - , life is all before you, 
 Stretched out in its misty sheen 
 
 And the future, though now Mddes. 
 Holds much joy ior thee, I ween 
 
 Why, then, seek to know what's 
 fe is forming day by day 
 
 But your heart, ia Mind cui>reacrung, 
 fo-monrow of to-day. 
 
 'life 2s real iife is earnest -, ' 
 
 And the heroine in the strife 
 Is the one who leaves the future- 
 
 Living but the present Me .; . 
 Lives it iruly, nobly, granaly 
 
 Thus prepares for coming iafce , 
 Strives to make aier nving perfect ; 
 
 Learns ic Labor and to wait 
 
 'lOE violet is for faithfulness, 
 Which in me shall abide ; 
 
 Hoping, likewise, from your heart 
 You will not let it slide. 
 
 THIS is thine album. May it be 
 A source of happiness to thce. 
 And may each page that's written o'e^ 
 Be better than the oaa before.
 
 20 THE ALBUM W SITES' S FRIEND. 
 
 'Tis a terrible fate, my dear miss, 
 To be asked to write in a book like this ; 
 For, scratch my head as hard as I may- 
 I've such a skull 
 
 And if I try to moralize, 
 
 Or vent my thoughts in sentiment, 
 Or attempt to laud you to the skies, 
 
 Or spread myself on compliment, 
 I'm so awful dull, 
 
 That my efforts would prove futility ; [mind, 
 For the sex of your kind, are of that turn ol 
 
 That morals, verse and flattery, 
 Have to you been so oft defined, 
 You are full. 
 
 If rhyming I try, adorable Miss, 
 The first I think of, is dear little Kiss, 
 
 Or some such nonsense as connubial bliss, 
 Or changing your title "Mrs." from "Miss ; M 
 But that's prosaical. 
 
 To give you advice, I'd never presume ; 
 Incompetence may be the reason for that ; 
 
 To wish you long life and a blest happy home 
 Is aged and stale, exhausted and flat, 
 And excruciatingly formal. 
 
 Jf OTV, what to do I do not know, 
 
 Or how to make my paragraph ; 
 So I'll doff my hat, and make my bow 
 
 And send this as my autograph. 
 
 M>T Here be just clouds enough o'er your life to cause 
 jstorious sunset.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND.' 21 
 
 THAT every kindly wish and thought, 
 By friends expressed within these pages, 
 
 Be yours, and trials common to us all 
 May cross your path by " easy stages.** 
 
 REMEMBER me when far away, 
 
 And only half awake ; 
 Remember me on your wedding-day, 
 
 And send a slice of cake. 
 
 WHEN worth and beauty prompt the line, 
 Perhaps a pen as poor as mine 
 
 May be forgiven 
 To try and write of things divine, 
 
 And think of heaven I 
 But pause, rash verse I and don't abuse 
 A bashful maiden's ear with news 
 
 Of her own beauty 1 
 And yet no other theme I'll choose, 
 
 Or think a duty 1 
 So, then, for fear I might offend, 
 I'll say, God bless Tier ! and thus end. 
 
 THE earth can boast no purer tie, 
 No brighter, richer gem, 
 
 No jewel of a lovelier dye, 
 Than Friendship's diadem. 
 
 Then may this ray of light divine 
 Ne'er from our bosoms fade ; 
 
 But may it on our pathway shine, 
 Till death our hearts invade.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 Single is your station? 
 H^ppy be the little maa 
 Ifaafc makes the alteration. 
 
 Qfc " love is such a strange affair ; 
 So strange to all. 
 
 It cometh from above 
 And lighteth like a dove 
 
 On some. 
 
 But some it never hits 
 Unless it gives them fits. 
 
 Oh, hum. 
 
 THY cheerful, gentle ways, I do admire : 
 Thy future, to be happy, I greatly desire ; 
 Thy trusting confidence, may I require ; 
 Thy firm friend to be, will I aspire. 
 
 As a slight token of esteem, 
 
 Accept these lines from me ; 
 So plaia ana simple, they do seem 
 
 Unworthy such as thee. 
 But soon these traced lines will fade 
 
 And disappear 'tis their doom. 
 May you, unlike them, be arrayed 
 
 In a perpetual bloom. 
 
 In memory's wreath may one bud be entwined for me.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 23 
 
 WE are all placed here to do something. It is for its, 
 and not for others, to find out what that something is , 
 and then, with all the energy of which we are capable, 
 honestly and prayerfully to be about our business. 
 
 On ! think of me some day 
 When I am far away ; 
 Til pray thy days be long 
 And joyous as the song 
 Of sweet birds singing near, 
 Thy heart with love to cheer. 
 
 MAT joy thy spirit fill, 
 All care and sorrow cease ; 
 
 Remember 'tis His will 
 Who hath spoken, ' ' Peace ! " 
 
 IN fair and sunny beauty, or gray 'neath evening skies, 
 The purple hills from misty vales, upward to heaven rise : 
 Their rugged side we scarce can see o'er-decked with 
 
 fern and heather, 
 That rings its scented violet bells through fair and 
 
 stormy weather; 
 So may thy life be clothed with flowers, and breathe a 
 
 purer air, 
 Fresh from the " everlasting hills," knowing no grief or 
 
 care, 
 
 And if the sunny sky must pale, as pales^the setting sun, 
 May it only show the stars are near, peeping out, one by 
 
 one!
 
 24 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 THESE f&w lines to you are tendered, 
 By a friend sincere and true ; 
 
 Hoping but to be remembered 
 When I'm far away from you. 
 
 WOEK, while yet the daylight shine% 
 With a loving heart and true, 
 
 For golden years are fleeting by. 
 And we are passing, too. 
 
 "Wait not for to-morrow's sun 
 
 To beam upon thy way, 
 Tor all that thou can'st call thine own, 
 
 Is in this one to-day. 
 
 Then learn to make the most of life 
 Make glad each passing day 
 
 For time will never bring thee back 
 The chances swept away. 
 
 Leave no tender word unsaid 
 Do good while life shall last ; 
 
 You know the mill can never grind 
 With the water that is past. 
 
 Let not the hours we've spent together, 
 
 Go past as nothing, by ; 
 Forget me not, e'en though you must 
 
 Remember with a sigh. 
 
 THANKSGIYING-DAY again is here, 
 And turkey is the leading question ; 
 
 I wish, with heartiness sincere, 
 That you may have a good digestion.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 25 
 
 THOUGH many flowers have faded from my life, 
 And clouds obscure the brightness of its sky*, 
 
 This have I learned : we can do much to make 
 Our lives a blessing and our words a power, 
 
 If what we find to do, for Christ's dear sake, 
 We do with faithfulness, from hour to hotjf^ 
 
 IT may occur in after life 
 That you, I trust, a happy wife, 
 Will former happy hours retrace, 
 Recall each well-remembered face. 
 At such a moment I but ask 
 I hope 'twill be a pleasant task 
 That you'll remember as a friend 
 One who'll prove true e'en to the end. 
 
 I SAW two clouds at morning, 
 
 Tinged by the morning sun, 
 And in the dawn they floated on 
 
 And mingled into one; 
 I thought that morning cloud was blest, 
 It moved so sweetly to the west. 
 Such be your gentle motion, 
 Till life's last pulse shall beat, 
 And you float on in joy to meet 
 A calmer sea, where storms shall cease 
 A purer sky, where all is peace. 
 
 WHEN on this page you chance to look, 
 Just think of me and close the book.
 
 26 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 BE a good girl, and you will be a true woman. 
 
 MAY thy darkest hours in life be well lighted witk the 
 sunshine of contentment. 
 
 YOURS sincerely although merely 
 
 WHEN the golden sun is setting, 
 And your heart from care is free, 
 
 When o'er a thousand things you're thinking, 
 Will you sometimes think of me ? 
 
 How long-we live, not years, but actions tell ; 
 That man lives twice who lives the first life well. 
 Make then, while yet ye may, your God your friend, 
 Whom Christians worship, yet not comprehend. 
 The trust that's given, guard ; and to yourself be just; 
 For, live we how we can, yet die we must. 
 
 LIVE well ; how long or short, permit to Heaven ; 
 They who forgive most, shall be most forgiven. 
 
 SOAR not too high to fall, but stoop to rise ; 
 We masters grow of all that we despise. 
 
 YOUE fate is but the common fate of all 
 Unmingled joys here to no man befalL
 
 WAY e'en thy failings lean to virtue's side, 
 
 HOTTES are golden links God's token- 
 Reaching heaven, but one by one ; 
 Take them, lest the chain be broken 
 Ere thy pilgrimage be done. 
 
 HorsE beautiful your book, from end to end. 
 And every page a room to lodge a friend ; 
 Fain would I enter with a seemly grace, 
 Attired and mannered as befits the place ; 
 But best endeavor falls below the aim 
 And rests at last, content to leave a name. 
 
 THE brave man is not he who feels no fear, 
 For that were stupid and irrational ; 
 But, he whose noble soul its fear subdues, 
 And bravely dares the danger nature shrinks from. 
 
 27
 
 28 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 FLING wide the portals of your heart 1 
 Make it a temple set apart 
 From earthly use, for Heaven's employ- 
 Adorned with prayer and love and joy j 
 So shall your Sovereign enter in 
 And new and noble life begin. 
 
 WE could count time by heart-throbs ; he most live* 
 who thinks most, speaks the noblest, acts the best. 
 
 WE ourselves shape the joys and fears 
 Of which the life to come is made, 
 
 And fill our future atmosphere 
 With sunshine or with shade. 
 
 WHEN the name that I write here is dim on the page, 
 And the leaves of your album are yellow with age, 
 Still think of me kindly, and do not forget 
 That, wherever I am, I remember you yet. 
 
 THE massive gates of circumstance 
 Are turned upon the slightest hinge, 
 
 And thus some seeming pettiest chance, 
 Oft gives to life its after tinge. 
 
 OH, for a home in Zululand, or Arctic regions cold, 
 A peasant's cot or hermit's hut, midst solitude untold, 
 With Kaffirs or with Hottentots, in Egypt or Leone 
 Twere bliss to live in any spot where albums are unknown.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 29 
 
 IN times of prosperity our friends are many, 
 But the time of adversity tries and proves thetn 
 
 GEMS of price are deeply hidden, 
 'Neath the rugged rocks concealed ; 
 
 What would ne'er come forth unbidden, 
 To thy search may be revealed. 
 
 WHILE the fading flowers of pleasure, 
 Spring spontaneous from the soil, 
 
 Thou wilt find the harvest's treasure 
 Yields alone to patient toil. 
 
 IF recollections of friends brighten moments or sadness, 
 What a fund of delight is here treasured for tnee ! 
 
 If advice and kind wishes bring goodness ana gladness, 
 How perfect and happy thy future must be. 
 
 THE tissues of the Life to be 
 We weave with colors all oar own, 
 
 And in the field of Destiny, 
 We reap as we have sown. 
 
 THERE is seldom a line of glory written upon earth's 
 face, but a line of suffering runs parallel with it; and 
 they that read the lustrous syllables of the one, and 
 stoop not to decipher the spotted and worn inscription of 
 the other, get the least half of the lesson that earth has to 
 give
 
 80 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 LEAF green on ground of white, 
 My name, I fain would write 
 That you remember still 
 In June or in December chill, 
 We two are friends. 
 
 OH, wayward mortal who these books invented, 
 Why was't thou not by some kin J hand prevented ? 
 And thereby kept from many a luckless swain, 
 The direful knowledge that he lacked a brain 
 Lacked it, at least, where poetry was needed, 
 Like the poor wight who here has not succeeded. 
 
 THEOTTGH days of doubt and darkness, 
 In fear and trembling breath, 
 
 Through mists of sin and sorrow, 
 In tears and grief and death ; 
 
 Through days of light and gladness, 
 Through days of love and life, 
 
 Through smiles and joy and sunshine, 
 Through days with beauty rife ; 
 
 The Lord of life and glory, 
 The King of earth and sea, 
 
 The Lord who guarded Israel ; 
 Keep watch, sweet friend, o'er thee. 
 
 TEUTS Freedom Virtue these have power i 
 If rightly cherished, to uphold, sustain, 
 And bless thy spirit, in its darkest hou r .
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 31 
 
 THY own trim, modest form, 
 
 Is always neatly clad, 
 Thou surely will make the tidiest wif 
 
 That ever husband had. 
 
 AMONG the many friends who claim 
 A kind remembrance in thy heart, 
 I too, would add my simple name, 
 Among the rest. 
 
 MAY God's mercy ever guide thee, 
 
 Safe o'er all thy thorny road ; 
 And His grace what'er betide thee, 
 Lead thee home to His abode. 
 
 THE large are not the sweetest flowers ; 
 The long are not the happiest hours ; 
 Much talk doth not much friendship tell } 
 Few words are best I wish you well. 
 
 LET your life be like a snowflake, which leaves a 
 mark, but not a stain. 
 
 BEGIRT with roses of the royal June, 
 A resurrected day swings highest morn 
 In every year ; and so through life I pray 
 Nay never failing changes, bring their day, 
 And flames of love in swinging censers rise 
 While all thy thoughts leads on toward the skies.
 
 83 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 SMALL service is true service while it last ; 
 
 Of friends, however humble, scorn not one : 
 The daisy, by the shadow that it cast, 
 
 Protects the lingering dew-drop from the sun. 
 
 good use of time, if thou lovest eternity ; yes- 
 terday cannot be recalled to-morrow cannot be secured 
 to-day only is thine, which, if once lost, is lost forever. 
 
 IN time we transact business for eternity; whatever, 
 therefore, we do now, should be done well. 
 
 MAT each thought be pure, and sincere, 
 Addressed upon these spotless pages ; 
 
 Reflections fond, they'll always prove, 
 Youthful friend, through many ages. 
 
 THEY who have light in themselves, will not revolve 
 
 satellites. 
 
 THROUGH time we'll change, and then, 
 This little book will somewhat bind us 
 
 You'll take it up, and think of me 
 And all the joys we've left behind us. 
 
 As the shadow of the sun is largest when his beams are 
 lowest, so we are always least when we make ourselves 
 the greatest.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 Acnoss the page of spotless white 
 Friends trail the pen, and in our sight 
 Grow precious all the lines they write. 
 
 As for some white-sailed ship at sea, 
 So, little book, my watch for thee ; 
 Return with freight of love to me. 
 
 EVERT hour comes to us charged with duty, and the 
 moment it is past, returns to Heaven to register itself 
 how spent. 
 
 THBBE'P a Divinity that shapes our ends. 
 Rough-hew them how we will. 
 
 OTO eyej see all around in gloom or glow, 
 
 Hues of then* own, fresh borrowed from the heart. 
 
 WSITU your name by kindness, love and mercy upon 
 the \iearts of those you come in contact with, and you 
 will never be forgotten. 
 
 LET Fate do her worst ; there are relics of joy, 
 Bright dreams of the past, she cannot destroy j 
 They come in the night-time of sorrow and care, 
 And bring back the features that joy used to wear. 
 Like the vase, in which roses have once been distilled, 
 You may break you may shatter the vase, if you will; 
 But the scent of the roses wii, hang round it, still.
 
 34 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 IF you wish success in life, make perseverance your 
 bosom friend, experience your wise counsel, caution your 
 elder brother, and hope your guardian genius. 
 
 COUNT that day lost whose low descending SUB 
 Views from thy hand no worthy action done. 
 
 Tis bnt a trifle that you ask, 
 
 But this you will admit, 
 That trifles, more than greater tasks> 
 
 Will sometimes strain our wit. 
 I wish thee health, and wealth, and joy, 
 
 As others have before : 
 And were I in poetic mood, 
 
 I'd surely wish thee more.- 
 
 OtrE greatest glory consists not in never f ailing, but ID 
 rising every time we fall. 
 
 HERE'S a sigh for those who love me, 
 And a smile for those who hate, 
 
 And whatever sky's above me. 
 Here's a heart for every fate. 
 
 IN all thy humors, whether grave or mellow, 
 Thou art such a touchy, testy, pleasant fellow ; 
 Hast so much wit, and mirth, and spleen, about tbee> 
 There is no living with thee, nor without thee.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 80 
 
 MAT you live in bliss, from sorrow away, 
 
 Having plenty laid up for a rainy day ; 
 
 And when you are ready to settle in life, 
 
 May you find a good husband and make a good wife. 
 
 I WBITE here a name which I hope shall be known 
 To all of the ages which follow my own. 
 ' How conceited ! ' you say ; but my lines shall remain; 
 Tis my hope, you'll discover, not I, that is vain. 
 
 OUR lives are albums ; each new day's a page 
 As spotless as the leaf on which I write. 
 
 Whene'er those books of ours shall be read, 
 May few unwise inscriptions meet the sight. 
 
 ON the broad highway of action 
 Friends of worth are far and few ; 
 But when one has proved her friendship, 
 Cling to her who clings to you. 
 
 WERE mine the power I'd twine for thee 
 
 A crown of jewels rare ; 
 Each gem should be a kingdom, 
 
 Each pearl an humble prayer. 
 
 THEKE are few friends in this wide world 
 That love is fond and true ; 
 
 But when you count them o'er 
 
 Place me among the few.
 
 86 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 THERE is a small and simple flower 
 That twines around the humblest cot, 
 
 And in the sad and lonely hours 
 It whispers low : "Forget me not. H 
 
 WHEN asked in an album to write, 
 
 I feel quite inclined to refuse ; 
 For what should I dare to indite 
 
 That would a young lady amuse ? 
 Not wit, for I have none of that, 
 
 Nor romance my fancy is tame ; 
 And compliments sound so flat, 
 
 I'm forced to write merely my name. 
 
 MAT you always be happy, 
 And live at your ease ; 
 
 Get a kind husband, 
 And do as you please. 
 
 TEUE friends, like ivy and the wall, 
 Both stand together or together fall. 
 
 is but a vain, a fleeting good, 
 A shining gloss that fadeth suddenly, 
 A flower that dies when almost in the bud, 
 \ A bright glass that breaketh suddenly ; 
 A fleeting good, a glass, a gloss, a flower, 
 Lost, faded, broken, dead within the hour.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND, 87 
 
 MAT happiness ever be thy lot, 
 
 Wherever thou shall be ; 
 And joy and pleasure light the spot 
 
 That may be home to thee. 
 
 How sweet to have a faithful friend, 
 In whom we can confide : 
 
 To bless us if we act aright, 
 And if we err to chide. 
 
 HOPE the best, get ready for the worst, and take what 
 God sends. 
 
 BK content with the lot God has marked out for you. 
 Love, honor and obey Him in all things, and your last 
 days will be peaceful and happy. 
 
 MAT the TOT of thy life be bright and joyous, the 
 noontide peaceful and happy, and the sunset gloriously 
 hopeful, is the wish of your friend. 
 
 Lira, Death and Immortality these three the first, 
 the Road the second, the Gate. May you walk safely 
 the first, pass triumphantly the second, and rest forever 
 in the third 
 
 MAT the Arurels twine for thee 
 A wreath oi immortality.
 
 88 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 YES, , I will write my name 
 
 In here, as you request ; 
 And, if to you its all the same, 
 I'll add a line though rather tame 
 
 For Critics eyes, as my bequest. 
 
 My wishes and my hopes for you, 
 
 Find glad expression here ; 
 Although, indeed, its very true, 
 There is no room for all that's due 
 
 To one we hold so dear. 
 
 Good health first wish of all 
 
 Of ah 1 God's gifts the best ; 
 A happy heart, that loves to call 
 On Him who notes the sparrow's fall 
 And promises sweet rest. 
 
 Although beset by wordly care, 
 
 Fix all your hopes on Heaven, 
 And view by faith the glories fair, 
 Which, in that world beyond the air, 
 To faithful ones are given. 
 
 ALTHOUGH I am advised not to write fast, 
 I hope the thought I would express may last. 
 
 You ask for your Album a rhyme ; 
 
 With pleasure I hear and obey ; 
 Refusal were folly or crime 
 
 For who could to say " nay ? *
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 39 
 
 MAT Heaven on you its choicest blessings shower- 
 Is the sincere wish of your friend. 
 
 BE kind to all ; be intimate with few ; 
 And may the few be well chosen. 
 
 EVILS in the journey of life are like the hills which 
 alarm travelers upon their road ; they both appear great 
 in the distance, but when we approach them, we find 
 them far less insurmountable than we had conceived. 
 
 Miss ! O Miss ! 
 
 What can I write that's new 
 Among so very many 
 Pretty compliments to you ? 
 In poetry, I fear I'd fail 
 I'm very sure I'd stammer 
 You cannot drive the ponderous nail 
 With a small ten-cent tack hammer. 
 Since, then, so high I cannot soar, 
 Nor chirp notes like the lark, 
 Please cancel what I've said before, 
 I'll simply make my mark. 
 
 IT has been beautifully said: The water that flows 
 from a spring does not congeal in winter ; and those sen- 
 timents which flow from the heart cannot be chilled by 
 adversity.
 
 40 THE ALBUM WRITERS W 
 
 ROSES, without thorns, for th&c* 
 
 I'LL just write a few words here ; so that wnen 
 You turn these and life's pages o'er again, 
 Tour memory back to the time will go, 
 When you and I were " 0" and " Jo."* 
 
 How we worked together in '79, 
 Wafting lightning over the W. TJ. Line 
 To W. M. called "our quod," you know 
 When you and I were " O " and Jo, 
 
 How Lu talked by the hour to us, 
 (And we stood it like martyr's making no fuss), 
 How we used to get "snatched" we hated that so 
 When you and I signed " O " and "Jo." 
 
 I'LL not wish you all sunshine ; for life is made 
 Up of installments of sunlight and shade. 
 May you never be worse off through life, as you go, 
 Than when on W. M. wire we signed " O" and "Jo." 
 
 MAY the hinges of our Friendship never rust. 
 
 MAT your days in joy be passed 
 With friends to bless and cheer, 
 
 And each year exceed the last 
 la all that earth holds dear. 
 
 Initials used by telegraph operators.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 41 
 
 THERE'S many a trouble 
 "Would break like a bubble, 
 And into the waters of Lethe depart, 
 
 Did not we rehearse it 
 
 And tenderly nurse it, 
 And give it a permanent place in the heart. 
 
 Resolve to be merry, 
 
 All worry to ferry, 
 Across the famed waters that bid us forget. 
 
 And no longer fearful, 
 
 But happy and cheerful, 
 We feel life has much that's worth living for 
 
 MAT we always remain as good friends as we art 
 neighbors. 
 
 The night has a thousand eyes ; 
 
 The day but one ; 
 Yet the light of the whole world dies 
 
 With the setting sun. 
 
 The mind has a thousand eyes 
 
 The day but one ; 
 Fet the light of the whole world dies 
 
 When love is done. 
 
 ON this spotless page my pen essays to trace a record 
 of affection ; and, as I write, a wish is in my heart that, 
 for thee, every life-leaf will be written with the golden 
 pen of love.
 
 42 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 THOUGH many friends have signed their names, 
 
 And some have left their mark, 
 I see a place for me remains 
 
 To add my small remark. 
 My wish for thee is : joy through life ; 
 
 And bliss supreme, when some one's wife. 
 
 I PEAT the prayer of Plato old : 
 God make thee beautiful within ; 
 
 And let thine eye the good behold 
 In everything, save sin. 
 
 A FEW true friends to aid us and love us, 
 And cordial hands to warmly clasp our own ; 
 
 O ! surely Goi hath never made us 
 To live distrustingly, selfish, and alone. 
 
 A TERSE you ask this fine day : 
 Of course I'll write you one. 
 
 The task of writing finds its pay 
 In joy that it is done. 
 
 WHY ask a name ; 
 
 Small is the good it bringg ; 
 Kames are but breath 
 
 Deeds deeds alone are things.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 43 
 
 WHEN years and months have glided by, 
 And on this page you cast your eye, 
 
 Remember 'twas a friend sincere 
 That left this kind remembrance here. 
 With, best wishes for your future cheer. 
 
 DEAR , may your life be bleat 
 
 With friendship, love and happiness ; 
 
 May all your friends prove true, 
 
 And cheer you all the journey through. 
 
 MAT Future, with her kindest smile, 
 Wreath laurels for thy brow ; 
 
 May loving angels guard and keep thee 
 Ever pure as tliou art now. 
 
 IF writing in Albums remembrance insures, 
 With the greatest of pleasure I'll scribble in yoora, 
 
 IN after years when you recall 
 
 The days of pleasures past, 
 And think of joyous hours and afl 
 
 Have flown away so fast, 
 When some forgotten air you hear 
 
 Bring back past scenes to thee, 
 And gently claims your listening ear 
 
 Keep one kind thought for me.
 
 <4 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 THE truest happiness is found in making others happy. 
 
 ACCEPT my friend these lines from me, 
 They show that I remember thee, 
 And hope some thought they will retain 
 Till you and I shall meet again. 
 
 FOE thee, my fair and gentle friend, 
 I ask not wealth or fame, 
 I only ask thy path may be 
 Free from lifes toil and care. 
 
 AMONG the many friends that claim 
 A kind remembrance in thy breast, 
 
 I too would add my simple name. 
 Among the rest. 
 
 NEVER grow weary doing good. 
 
 I WANT a warm and faithful friend, 
 
 To cheer the adverse hour ; 
 Who ne'er to flatter will descend, 
 Nor bend the knee to power ; 
 A friend to chide me when I'm wrong ; 
 
 My inmost soul to see ; 
 And that my friendship prove as strong 
 For him as his for me.
 
 *4EgEKJI 
 
 SOME little token of regard, 
 You wish from me to claim ; 
 
 But as time is pressing hard, 
 I will but write my name. 
 
 EVEBY joy that heaven can send ; 
 
 Wealth, and every kind of treasure ;- 
 Health and love to thee, my friend, 
 
 And happiness without measure. 
 
 Is future years, should trusted friends 
 
 Depart like summer birds ; 
 And all the comfort memory lends, 
 
 Is false and honeyed words, 
 Turn then to me who fain would prove, 
 
 However thy lot be cast, 
 That naught his heart can ever move 
 
 From friendship of the past. 
 
 46
 
 46 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 MAY your path be strewn with roses, 
 Fair and flowery to the end ; 
 
 And when your body hi death reposes^ 
 May your Maker be your friend. 
 
 WEIL, , I surely would like to please ; 
 
 But can't think what to say. 
 All your friends have wishes bright, 
 
 To cheer your life so gay. 
 
 I will add : May all their words 
 
 Be symbols of love and truth ; 
 That when you grow weary, and seek for rest, 
 
 You will rejoice ia the friends of your youth. 
 
 To write in your Album, dear friend you ask } 
 Ah, well ! it is not such a difficult task. 
 All I can say is contained here in one line: 
 May the blessings of Heaven forever be thine. 
 
 LET not our friendship be like the rose, to sever j 
 But, like the evergreen, may it last forever. 
 
 HE who does good to another, does also good to him. 
 Self not only in the act, but in the conciousness of well- 
 doing is his reward. 
 
 IN the evening of life, cherish the remembrance of one 
 Tho loved thee in its morning.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 47 
 
 SPEAK of me kindly when life's dreams are o'er j 
 Speak of me gently when I am no more. 
 
 SAFELT down Life's ebbing tide, 
 May our vessels smoothly glide, 
 And anchor side by side in heaven. 
 
 THAT Hope and you, 
 Bright days will view. 
 
 GUAED well thy thoughts; our thoughts are heard is 
 heaven. 
 
 MAY He who hath pencilled the leaves with beauty, 
 given the flowers their bloom, and lent music to the lay rf 
 the timid bird, graciously remember thee in that day 
 when He shall gather His jewels. 
 
 FEOM memory's leaves, 
 I fondly squeeze 
 
 Three little words 
 Forget Me Not. 
 
 A LONG life, and a happy one; 
 A tall man, and a jolly one 
 Like well you know who I
 
 48 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND 
 
 THE hills are shadows, and they flow 
 From form to form, and nothing stands ; 
 
 They melt like mist, the solid lands, 
 Like clouds they shape themselves and go 
 
 But in my spirit will I dwell, 
 
 And dream my dream and hold it true ; 
 For though my pen doth write adieu, 
 
 I cannot say for aye farewell. 
 
 GOD'S love and peace be with thee, when 
 Soe'r this soft Autumnal air 
 Lifts the dark tresses of thy hah*. 
 
 Thou lack'st not friendship's spellword, nor 
 The half-unconcious power to draw 
 All hearts to thine by Love's sweet law. 
 
 With such a prayer, on this sweet day, 
 As thou mayest hear and I may say, 
 I greet thee, dearest, far away. 
 
 THIS Album's a mansion which offers its best, 
 
 To the friends who have written their thoughts, 
 And the banquet is spread with festal fare, 
 
 Where guests mingle enjoyment with rest ; 
 And they leave their memorials under thy roof, 
 
 Sometimes in sorrow, more oft in joy divine, 
 Nor think a single thought quite good enough, 
 
 To measure its faintest pxilse with thine.
 
 I WISH thee every blessing 
 That can attend thee here ; 
 
 And may each future birthday 
 My wish to be sincere. 
 
 YOUB Birthday will always be green in the memory of 
 your friends. 
 
 MAT these flowers, presented on your birthday. 
 emblematical of the purity of your life. 
 
 WAKB early this morning, 
 
 Nor miss the grey dawning; 
 
 Take this greeting from me 
 
 As it goes straight to thee : 
 
 May joy and gladness e'er be thine ; 
 
 And endless brightness round thee shine. 
 
 43
 
 BO THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 
 
 THIS is thy Birthday, may it be, 
 A source of happiness to thee, 
 And may each Birthday yet in store, 
 Be brighter than the one before. 
 
 DBAB friend, on this thy natal day, 
 I send to thee a little lay, 
 
 And wishes tender 
 And only ask that thou'lt repay 
 My thoughts with thine, and fondly say, 
 "I thank the sender." 
 
 May Spring its blossoms round thee strew, 
 And Summer, deck'd in mantle new, 
 
 Come forth to greet thee ; 
 May Autumn fruitage crown the year, 
 And Winter, with its jovial cheer, 
 
 Bring friends to meet thee. 
 
 And if I still must absent be, 
 Do not forget to send to me 
 
 One kind word only, 
 By home birds passing by the door, 
 Who, flying towards this distant shore, 
 
 May greet me lonely. 
 
 LIKE sunbeams to the drooping flowers. 
 
 Good-will our lives doth bless ; 
 It furthers every wish of ours, 
 
 And joys in our success. 
 Bo may its rays towards you flow, 
 
 That none but friends your heart may know.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 51 
 
 IN theee days of mirth and glee, 
 What shall my message be to thee ? 
 What can I wish for one so blest ? 
 Thou sunny bird in a sunny nest I 
 This I wish, and this I pray : 
 May the joys of life never pass away, 
 But only merge in a sigh of bliss 
 Into a life far brighter than this ! 
 
 IF words could all my wishes say, 
 Oh I how my tongue would talk away. 
 I wish this day and many more 
 
 Might on dear blessings pour. 
 
 May health, wealth, love, and peace 
 With each succeeding year increase ; 
 And oh ! the last, come when it may, 
 Be unto thee a happy day. 
 
 ON this Birthday morn arise 
 
 From thy placid slumber I 
 Soon to meet love's longing eyes 
 
 And greetings without number. 
 Heavens dearest gifts be thine 
 
 To crown all earthly treasure, 
 For gifts that God gives unto thee 
 
 Know neither stint or measure. 
 
 As beauteous flowers in garlands intertwine, 
 May Peace and Lore to cheer thy heart combing 
 To give you a very happy Birthday.
 
 62 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 LOVE in every bosom live, 
 And the truest pleasure give : 
 And happy smiles each lip adorn. 
 On this happy birthday morn. 
 
 \J 
 
 LITTLE trouble and still less care, 
 With ever a faithful heart to share ; 
 Birthdays many, and happy too, 
 This is the life I wish for you. 
 
 DBAB, happy birthdays, how fair ye seem, 
 
 Along the path of time : 
 Foot-prints whereon sweet-heart flowers blow, 
 
 By worldly storms unriven, 
 That we may mark them as they go, 
 
 And find our way to heaven. 
 BEIQHT as a flower may thy Birthday be. 
 
 TRTTB love shall live thro' sorrow's wintry storm, 
 And bloom afresh on this glad Birthday morn. 
 
 LoviNGly take this birthday souvenir, 
 And for my sake esteem it dear ! 
 
 MAT the morning of thy birth break in gladness, and 
 the day teem with light-hearted mirth that shall last 
 always I
 
 I DIP my pen into the ink, 
 And grasp your album tight ; 
 
 But for my life I cannot think 
 One single word to write. 
 
 IN the storms of life, 
 
 When you need an umbrella, 
 May you have to uphold it 
 
 A handsome young fellow. 
 
 MAT beauty and truth, 
 Keep you in youth ; 
 
 Green tea and sage, 
 Preserve your old age. 
 
 SOME people can be very funny ; 
 
 I never could be so. 
 80 I'll just inscribe my name ; 
 
 It's the funniest thing I know. 
 
 63
 
 54 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 FEE SIMPLE and simple fee, 
 
 And all the fees entail 
 Are nothing when compared to thee 
 
 Thou best of f ees f e-male. 
 
 WHAT ! write in your album, for critics to spy, 
 For the learned to laugh at ? No, not I ! 
 
 ACCEPT my valued friendship, 
 And roll it up in cotton, 
 
 And think it not illusion, 
 Because so easily gotten. 
 
 WITHSOEVEB is this for why? 
 Wherefore. Ain't it ? 
 
 WHEN I, poor elf, shall have vanished in vapor, 
 May still my memory live on paper. 
 
 ROTOD went the book, and here i 
 In it for me to write my name ; 
 I would write better, if I could, 
 But nature said I never should. 
 
 IF you wish to laugh; 
 61aMC at my autograph.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 61 
 
 WHEN on this page you chance to look, 
 Think of me and close the book. 
 
 SAILING down the stream of life, 
 In your little bark canoe, 
 
 May you have a pleasant trip, 
 With just room enough for two. 
 
 DEAR FKIEND : 
 
 Do not doubt me ; 
 
 You know more about me 
 
 Than many whose names 
 
 Here appear. 
 
 But to tell them Til never 
 What ! never ? Hardly ever 
 What I'd like to write to you 
 
 Here. 
 
 'Tis nonsense I've written ; 
 You'll think I am smitten 
 With charms that I hold 
 
 Very dear. 
 
 Please excuse me from writing, 
 More lines so inviting, 
 Your time to be spent 
 
 Idly here. 
 
 I care not much for gold or land, 
 Give me a mortgage here and there, 
 
 Some good bank stock some note of hand, 
 Or trifling railroad share, 
 
 I only ask that Fortune send 
 A little more than I can spend.
 
 36 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 MAN'S love is like Scotch snuff 
 You take a pinch and that's enough. 
 Profit by this sage advice, 
 When you fall in love, think twice. 
 
 LONG may you live, 
 Happy may you be, 
 
 When you get married 
 Come and see me. 
 
 MAY you be happy, 
 Each day of your life, 
 
 Get a good husband 
 And make a good wife. 
 
 As sure as comes your wedding day, 
 A broom to you I'll send ; 
 
 In sunshine, use the brushy part, 
 In storm, the other end. 
 
 I WBITE in your Album ? 
 
 How very absurd ! 
 My mind is at random 
 
 MAT your cheeks retain their dimples, 
 May your heart be just as gay, 
 
 Until some manly voice shall whisper, 
 " Dearest, will you name the day ? **
 
 VERSES. 
 
 JOT and plenty in the cottage, 
 Peace and feasting in the hall ; 
 
 And the voices of the children 
 Ring out clear above it all : 
 A merry Christmas! 
 
 As Christmas offerings meet your eyes, 
 Still closer be sweet friendship's ties. 
 
 RING out, ye bells, o'er all the earth, 
 To tell with brazen voice, 
 
 The tidings of the Saviour's birth 
 And bid mankind rejoice. 
 
 TEUK love shall live thro' sorrows wintry Btorm, 
 And bloom afresh on this glad Christmas morn. 
 
 67
 
 58 THE ALBUM WRITER'S FRIEND. 
 
 OH joyous be your Christmas-tide, 
 And bright your New Year, too ; 
 
 To you may love ne'er be denied ; 
 May all your friends be true. 
 
 OTJE Saviour Christ was born 
 That we might have the Rose without the thorn. 
 All through His desert life 
 He felt the thorns of human sin and strife. 
 His blessed feet were bare 
 To every hurting brier. He did not spare 
 One bleeding footstep on the way 
 He came to trace for us, until the day 
 The cruel crown was pressed upon the Brow 
 That smiles upon us from His glory now. 
 
 And so He won for us 
 
 Sweet, thornless, everlasting flowers thus. 
 
 He bids our desert way 
 
 Rejoice and blossom as the Rose to-day. 
 There is no hidden thorn 
 In His good gifts of grace. He would adorn 
 
 The lives that now are His alone, 
 
 With brightness and beauty all his own. 
 Then praise the Lord who came on Christmas day 
 To give the Rose and take the thorns away. 
 
 AGAIN the festive season's here, 
 With all that can delight and cheer ; 
 Oh ! may you nothing lack each day, 
 But find fresh blessings strew your way.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 59 
 
 RIXG In, ring in the revelries, 
 
 And let the feast be one 
 Where not a single guest there is 
 
 But Innocence and Fun 1 
 Let Christmas warmth keep winter out, 
 
 And joy unbroken reign 
 From floor to roof -tree send the shout 
 
 Till Christmas comes again > 
 
 A LITTLE bird comes singing, 
 
 Singing a song to you ; 
 He sings of sun tipped flowers, 
 
 Bathed in a diamond dew. 
 "The days are coming," he warbles, 
 
 " When the frost has flown away, 
 When the earth will be sweet with flowers 
 
 And the breath of new-mown hay." 
 
 Oh bird so softly singing 
 
 Tour song of pleasant days, 
 Go sing to her I fondly love, 
 
 Through the wintry cold and bare. 
 When the heart is light, the days are bright. 
 
 And the sun seems ever near ; 
 So sing her your lay this Christmas Day, 
 
 And through all the bright New Year. 
 
 OH ! may thy Christmas happy be, 
 And naught but joy appear, 
 
 Is now the wish I send to thee, 
 And all I love most dear.
 
 80 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 Now Christmas comes with hearty cheer 
 May kindly thoughts go round, 
 
 And bring to you a glad New Year, 
 With peace and plenty crowned. 
 
 CHEISTMAS is coming, and what will it bring ? 
 Many a pleasant and gladdening thing ! 
 Meetings and greetings, and innocent mirth : 
 All that is brightest and best on the earth. 
 
 CHEISTMAS comes, let every heart 
 In Christmas customs bear its part : 
 The "old" be "young," the sad be gay, 
 And smiles chase every care away. 
 
 SUEE, Christmas is a happy time 
 
 In spite of wintry weather, 
 For laugh, and song, and jest go round 
 
 When dear friends meet together: 
 And hearts are warm, and eyes beam bright. 
 In the ruddy glow of Christmas night 1 
 
 FOE friends we strive to pierce 
 
 The future, dense and dark, 
 But not a ray of light 
 
 We see, nor faintest spark ; 
 But yet while we have faith to cheer, 
 We trusting wish " A bright New Tear."
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 61 
 
 II ARK, the pearly air is trembling, 
 Liquid music floats along ; 
 
 Angels, in sweet joy assembling, 
 
 Thrill the skies with heavenly song. 
 " Peace on Earth," is their refrain, 
 Oh. be it yours this peace to gain. 
 
 MAT piety with wishes placed above, 
 And steady loyalty and faithful love, 
 fie thy blessings this Christmas-tide. 
 
 O LIFE is but a river 
 And in our childhood we, 
 
 But a fair and running streamlet 
 Adorned with flowers, see. 
 
 But as we grow more earnest, 
 The river grows more deep, 
 
 And where we laughed in childhood, 
 "We, older, pause to weep. 
 
 Each Christmas as it passes, 
 Some change to us doth bring, 
 
 i r et to our friends the closer, 
 As time creeps on, we cling. 
 
 MA.T health and joy, and peace be thine 
 
 Upon this Christmas day, 
 And happy faces round thee shine 
 
 As plenteous as the flowers ha May.
 
 62 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 O BRIGHT be the day 
 
 Sweet echoes resounding, 
 Love lighting the way 
 
 And warm hearts surrounding. 
 May the breath of His peace 
 
 In thy spirit remain, 
 Till Christmas revisits 
 
 The round world again I 
 
 LET the New Tear be to you 
 As a childish playmate new, 
 Stealing suddenly among 
 Apple-boughs that overhung. 
 
 Greet him half in confidence, 
 Half as ready for defence 1 
 Is he come to tease or play? 
 Will he give or take away ? 
 
 Let him come as friend or foe I 
 No New Year can overthrow 
 This our friendship that has grown 
 From the years that now are flown. 
 
 O CHILDHOOD is a golden time, 
 
 When all the world is bright, 
 When sunshine comes with every mom. 
 
 Sweet dreams with every night. 
 Were I a fairy, I would give 
 
 To thee a magic kiss, 
 That should ensure for the New Tear, 
 
 As fair a time as this.
 
 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. S3 
 
 TAKE, my friend, this heartfelt greeting, 
 Happy be thy Christmas day, 
 
 Faith, and hope, and love here meeting, 
 Speed thee on thy New Year's way I 
 
 I CANNOT tell what thou wilt bring to me, 
 
 strange New Year, 
 
 But tho' thick darkness slirouds thy days and 
 
 1 will not fear. 
 
 Why should I fret my heart to know before 
 
 What may befall ? 
 With this one thought content I ask no more 
 
 God knows it all. 
 
 HEALTH and prosperity 
 
 Your life to cheer, 
 With every blessing 
 
 For the brignt New Year. 
 
 ON this New Year's morning 
 My wishes take their flight, 
 
 And wing to thee a greeting 
 That would make all things bright. 
 
 GLADLY now it is my pleasure, 
 Joys to wish you, without measure, 
 Happiness and peace attending, 
 With pure heavenly blessings blending.
 
 64 THE ALBUM WRITERS FRIEND. 
 
 MAY the blessings of the old year follow ha the new. 
 
 WE cannot look into the future, 
 We cannot tell if the New Year, 
 
 Will bring us fresh sorrows to mourn o'er, 
 Or bring us new blessings to cheer. 
 
 But an all-seeing God is above us, 
 Who knows what for each one is best, 
 
 Who in this world will care for and love ua, 
 And bring us at last to our rest. 
 
 A BAD BOY'S DIARY. 
 
 This is the most humorous book ever issued from the Press. Th* 
 One Hurjireatk Thousand has just been issued, and the demand for 
 it is still increasing. One editor says of it : ' It made us laugh till 
 our sides ached and the tears came." Another says: "It will 
 drive the blues out of a bag of indigo. It is worth a dollar, but 
 costs only ten cents.'' One reader says of it: "I received the 
 Bad Boy's Diary you sent me, and as most of my family are killed 
 by laughing over it, you may send another copy, so I can dispose 
 of the rest of thorn in the same happy manner. 
 
 It contains 48 pages and is handsomely illustrated. Sent by mail 
 on receipt of Ten Cents. 
 
 DIARY OF A MINISTER'S WIFE. 
 
 " It excels Mark Twain for genuine humor." 
 This is one of the most humourous books of the present day, 
 Bhowing in a manner pleasing to all readers the trials, tribulations, 
 expectations, and actual experiences of a "minister's wife " in a 
 country parish. The characters represented are true to life, and 
 will doubtless bring to the mind of the reader remembrances of 
 events and individuals within their own knowledge. It contains 64 
 pages, with handsome engraved cover. Price Ten Cents. 
 
 "A BUSHEL OF FUN," 
 
 gathered from the writings of authors of "A Bad Bo.y's Diary." 
 Josh Ballings, Mark Twain, Detroit Free Press Man, Burlington 
 Hawkeye Man, Max Adeler, and other funny men and women. 
 
 This is, indeed, a whole bushel of funny things, well shaken 
 down, and running over with fun and good humor. It contains 64 
 pages, and is handsomely illustrated. Price Ten Cents. 
 
 t&~ The above books are for sale by Newsdealers and Book- 
 sellers. Either of them will be mailed on receipt of price by the 
 Publishers. 
 
 Address, J. S. OGIliVIlS & CO., Publishers, 
 
 25 Rose Street, New York.
 
 University of California 
 
 SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 305 De Neve Drive - Parking Lot 17 Box 951388 
 
 LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90095-1388 
 
 Return this material to the library from which it was borrowed.
 
 A 000 759 227 2