FROM THE LIBRARY OF REV. LOUIS FITZGERALD BENSON, D. D. BEQUEATHED BY HIM TO THE LIBRARY OF PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Section /t->^/ trainable a n b Interesting ill o r k 3 Foil FAMILY AND DEVOTIONAL READING, Elegantly Printed, Suitable for Presents, PUBLISHED IT U. APPLETON & COMPANY, 200 BROADWAY, EST JS W°l? G> TSL ISo THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, And oilier Poems. By the Author of " Constance," " Virginia," &c. 18mo. II. THE EARLY ENGLISH CHURCH; Or, Christian History of England, in early British, Saxon and Norman Times. By the Rev. Edward Chuiton, M. A. With a Preface by the Rt. Rev. Bishop Ives. 1 vol. 16mo. Elegantly ornamented. III. LEARN TO DIE, Dbce Mori; a Religions Discourse, moving every Christian man to enter into a serious re- membrance of his end. By Christopher Sutton, D.D., latePrebeud of Westminster. 1 vol. 16mo. Elegantly ornamented. IV. SACRA PRIVATA. The Private Mediations, Devotions and P ravers, of the Rt. Rev. T. Wilson, D.D., Lord Bishop of Soder and Man. First complete edition, royal lbmo. V. HEART'S EASE ; Or, a Remedy arainst all Troubles. With a consolatory discourse, particularly addressed to those who" hate lost their friends and dear relations. By Simon Patrick, ll.l>., sometime Lord Bishop of Ely. 1 vol. royal 16mo. Elegantly ornamented. VI. MEDITATIONS ON THE LORD'S SUPPER. Godly Meditations upon the most Holy Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. By Chrislopher Sutton, D.D., sometime Lord Bishop of Ely. 1 vol. royal 16mo. Elegantly ornamental. VII. A DISCOURSE CONCERNING PRAYER. I And the frequenting daily Public Prayers. By Simon Patrick, D.D., sometime Lord Bishop of Ely. Edited by Francis E. Paget, M.A.. Chaplain to the Lord Bishop of Ox lord. 1 vol. royal l6mo. Elegantly ornamented. VIII. THOUGHTS IN PAST YEARS. A beautiful collection of Poetry, chielly devotional. By the author of thr Cathedral. 1 vol. royal 16mo. Elegantly printed. / THE (DMMHOTMA^ 3 Salt of (jolg Sift*: AND OTHER POEMS. BY THE AUTHOR OF "CONSTANCE, 5 ' "VIRGINIA," ETC. ToV Come here thy soul to tune, Here set thy feeble chant ; Here, if at all beneath the moon, Is holy David's haunt. Keble. NEW-YORK : D. APPLETON AND COMPANY. 200 BROADWAY. MDCCCXLII. m Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1841, by D APPLETON AND CO., In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Southern District of New- York. UNIVERSITY PRESS, JOHN F. TROW, PRINTER. So THE TEACHERS AND PUPILS OF THE ASTORIA FEMALE INSTITUTE, THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED, AS A MEMENTO OF MANY HAPPY AND PROFITABLE HOURS SPENT IN THEIR SOCIETY. PREFACE The author of the following poems claims for them no higher merit than that of preserving a simple record of feelings which have cheered his own heart in many an hour of despondency, and relieved the weari- ness of many a day of toil. That they may be in like manner soothing and profitable to those in whose hands they may chance to fall, is all that he can hope for. Should such prove to be the case in any instance, he will feel himself more than repaid. To the character of a poet, in its true sense, he has never dared to aspire. He b PREFACE. believes that poetic genius is one of the rarest gifts of God, and he would not vainly affect the possession of endowments which have been denied him. A considerable portion of the contents of the volume has never appeared in print. Many of the smaller pieces have been published from time to time, in various journals and magazines ; some of which have been received with a degree of favor beyond their merits. Whether the present collection as a whole shall be hon- "" ored with the same kind reception, is a question which time must determine. The leading poem in the volume was written, for the most part, daring the season whose enjoyments and happy influences it is designed to commemorate. The Christmas hymn, introduced in the fourth part, is from a collection of religious poetry by Henry Vaughan, an English writer of the seventeenth century. The plan of PREFACE. / the poem, as now published, was suggested by the peru- sal of Washington Irving's delightful essays on the Christmas season in the Sketch Book. The author fears that in some instances he has been too little regardful of what Jean Paul calls the " polish and labor UmcB which contents reviewers." While he would not insult his readers by presuming to offer any apology for negligence, he trusts that the circumstances under which he has sometimes been compelled to write, will enlist their indulgence, for any occasional deficien- cies in harmony of versification or purity of diction. Be- yond this he asks no indulgence. Astoria Institute, Festival of St. Andrew, 1841. CONTESTS, Page Invocation . . . . . . » .11 The Christmas Bells 19 Mount Sinai 54 The Bishop at Rest 59 The Church of England 62 Hymn of Christ's Advent 67 Ode for Epiphany 70 Missionary Hymn 76 Dirge of the Flowers 78 The Spirit's Destiny 81 Twilight Contemplation 93 St. Paul at Athens 96 To the Stars ' . . .104 Sunbeams in March 107 The First Bird in Lent 108 The Old Elm-Tree Ill The Early Dead 115 Glimpses of Childhood 118 10 CONTENTS Page Augustus Foster Lyde . 122 Father of Lights 125 Morning's Light is Streaming . 127 The Shades of Night Retire 128 The Lark is Up . 129 Bright in his Course on High 130 Evening Parting Hymn .... . 133 The Heart's Sincere Devotion . 134 Evening Hymn . 136 For a Botanical Excursion 138 Lake George at Midnight .... . 141 Morning 143 Aldebaran, a Song of Time's Changes . . 146 Forward 158 M issionary Warfare . 162 Bishop White ...... 169 The Death of Bishop Hobart . 172 Dirge 176 Athanasia . 178 John Wiclif 182 Madeline: A Reminiscence of a Library . 186 Scene in the Alhambra .... 194 The Gheber's Dying Hymn .... . 213 Sonnet 220 INVOCATION. From orient climes, renowned in fame, With hearts of praise and offerings meet. Led by a star the sages came, Saviour ! to worship at thy feet. Treasures of shining gold, with skill Of cunning art divinely wrought, Myrrh which Arabia's plains distil, And fragrant frankincense they brought. No radiant gems, or golden store, No wealth of human art we bring: We may not on thine altars pour Incense nor costly offering : 12 INVOCATION Yet ours like theirs, the gift of love, Of captive minds and thankful hearts, Which seeks thy blessing from above On all the blessing it imparts. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS: A TALE OF HOLY TIDE, IN SIX PARTS. Once again the festal morning, Our salvation's pledge, is come ; Hark ! the bells, with timely warning, Brethren, call us far from home ; Far from home in thought to wander To Jud^a's holy shore, Bethlehem's storied scenes to ponder, Bethlehem's caverned grot explore. Christmas Carols. ISTRODUCTIOff •• While I lay musing upon my pillow, I heard the sound of little feet pattering outside of the door, and a whispering consultation. Presently a choir of small voices chanted forth an old Christmas carol, the burden of which was : ( Rejoice, our Saviour he was born On Christmas day in the morning.' "How delightfully the imagination, when wrought upon by these moral influences, turns every thing to melody and beauty ! The very crowing of the cock, heard sometimes in the profound repose of the country, ' telling the night watches to his feathery dames,' was _ r ht by the common people to announce the ap- proach of this sacred festival. 'Some say that ever, 'gainst that season comes i our Saviour's birth is celebrated, This bird of dawning singeth all night long.' 16 INTRODUCTION. " Amidst the general call to happiness, the bustle of the spirit and stir of the affections, which prevail at this period, what bosom can remain insensible ? It is in- deed the season of regenerated feeling — the season for kindling not merely the fire of hospitality in the hall, but the general flame of charity in the heart. " The scene of early love again rises green to memory beyond the sterile waste of years, and the idea of home fraught with the fragrance of home-dwelling joys, rean- mates the drooping spirit, as the Arabian breeze will sometimes waft the freshness of the distant fields to the weary pilgrim of the desert." The Sketch Book. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, All through the wintry heaven and chill night air, In music and in light thou davvnest on our prayer. Keble. What sudden blaze of song Spreads o'er th' expanse of heav'n? In waves of light it thrills along, The angelic signal given — " Glory to God" — from yonder central fire Flows out the echoing lay beyond the starry quire ; Like circles widening round Upon a clear blue river, Orb after orb, the wondrous sound Is echoed on for ever : " Glory to God on high, on earth be peace, And love towards men of love — salvation and release." Keble. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, ST PAP.T. HOW THE BELLS RANG AT CHRISTMAS TIDE. I. The bells — the bells — the Christmas bells. How merrily they ring ! As if they felt the joy they tell To every human thing. The silvery tones, o'er vale and hill, Are swelling soft and clear, As, wave on wave, the tide of sound Fills the bright atmosphere. 20 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, II. The bells — the merry Christmas bells, They're ringing in the morn ! They ring, when in the eastern sky The golden light is born ] They ring, as sunshine tips the hills, And gilds the village spire — When, through the sky, the sovereign sun Rolls his full orb of fire. III. The Christmas bells — the Christmas bells, How merrily they ring ! To weary hearts a pulse of joy, A kindlier life they bring. The poor man on bis couch of straw, The rich, on downy bed, Hail the glad sounds, as voices sweet Of angels overhead. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 21 IV. The bells — the silvery Christmas bells, O'er many a mile they sound! And household tones are answering" them In thousand homes around. Voices of childhood, blithe and shrill, With youth's strong accents blend, And manhood's deep and earnest tones With woman's praise ascend. The bells — the solemn Christmas bells, They're calling us to prayer ; And hark, the voice of worshippers Floats on the morning air. Anthems of noblest praise there'll be, And glorious hymns to-day, Te Deums loud — and glorias : Come, to the church — away. THE SECOND PAHT. HOW THE CHRISTMAS BELLS CHEERED THE OLD MAN'S HEART. I. An old man sat, that Christmas morn, Before his chamber fire, Watching the shadows on the wall Before the light retire. His furrowed cheek was pale and wan, And dim his sunken eye : The old man, in his loneliness, Thought it were good to die. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 23 II. No voice of children, glad and free, No blessed household tone, No hearty Christmas greetings, thrilled Within that chamber lone. The weary moments, one by one, Passed, as on leaden wing, In that deserted house, he was The only living thing. III. His soul was busy in the past, The bright, the mournful past, And strange thoughts on his memory Came crowding, thick and fast. But through them all, like autumn winds Through leafless woods that roll, There swept that deep, pervading grief, Which haunts the lonely soul. 24 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, IV. The lonely soul — and such was he, A weary, faint old man — Condemned in bitterness to count The last links of life's span $ The iron links, — ^for one by one, Had dropped the links of gold, And the great past's ingulfing sea Darkly above them rolled. Soft through the winter-morning air The matin-peal he hears ) He hears — -he lifts his wrinkled brow, And faintly smiles, through tears. There's music in those Christmas bells, Blithe music, e'en for him ; The present seems not wholly dark, The past not wholly dim. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 25 VI. Hast thou not heard, when autumn hours With stars and dews were bright, Low mumurings on the mellow air Float through the livelong night 1 — Sounds, as it seemed, of early spring, Or summer's greenest reign, Slumb'ring through lapse of autumn days, And woke, by night, again 1 VII. Such sounds were in the old man's ears, Such breathings in his heart: Founts of life's spring were all unsealed As 't were, by magic art ; And feelings, hopes, that slumbered there Through the long lapse of years, Started to vig'rous life again, And gushed in joyful tears. 26 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. VIII. 0, well is it with heart of man, When things like these have power To fling across life's shadowed track The hues of life's young hour : When music, fragrance, household tones From early hope and joy, May thus come back to nerve the man With vigor of the boy. THE THIRD PAP.T. HOW THE OLD CLOCK ANSWERED THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. I. Thex brighter gleamed the Christmas fire Within that chamber old ; The sunlight through the curtain fell In streams, like molten gold. And here and there, a single beam On the soft carpet lay, Like a bright, silent spirit, sent To watch with him that day. 28 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. II. Dim in the corner-shade there stood A clock, encas'd with oak ! For years on years 't had marked the time With harsh, unvarying stroke. Now faintly, as through dust of years, It struck the hour again ; The old man looked into its face, It smiled upon his pain. III. In childhood's sunny hours how oft Had he, in wonder, stood, And listened to its iron tongue In rapt, half-fearful mood ! How oft, at shadowy dusk, had he His trembling bosom press'd In fear and awe, as broke that sound, Close to his mother's breast ! THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 29' IV. How oft, when weary at his task At vespers, noon or prime, Had that old clock befriended him, In boyhood's frolic time ! How oft, awaked by frightful dreams, The midnight spectres grim Had fled before its honest clang As sprites from priestly hymn ! Through storm and sunshine, stanch and true That clock had told the hour, Responsive to the village-bell Within the gray church-tower ; The village-bell w r as swinging yet Within that tower gray, And the same sound replied to it As in his youthful day. ► 30 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. VI. What vision dims the old man's eye 1 — What sees he through his tears 1 — Through life's long vista he beholds The green, the sunlit years : — Mid sounds of merry bells — mid sounds From the deep organ poured, A young bride at the altar stands, He hears the plighted word ! VII. His was the bridal kiss — the love Plighted with holy words — The melody of early vows, Like vernal notes of birds — His the fond trusting glance, half-veil'd And trembling while 't was given, As evening sunlight, melting through The deepening blue of heaven. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 'M VIII. No more — no more. O love ! death ! A bridal wreath ye twine, Of cypress, bay and amaranth, Lilac and eglantine.* And through the cold gray night of time How dim the light of love ! Just seen and quenched, like that of stars When night-storms rage above. IX. Yet is the dream not all of gloom ; — How passing sweet to feel That death, for her, enshrined for aye The light it could not steal. How sweet to think of whisper'd words And signs of triumph given, Bringing around the bed of death The very light of heaven. '■nis of love, death, fond remembrance, and immortal life. 32 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, The old man weeps ; — and well he may !- Such luxury of grief Brings to the sad o'erburdened heart Composure and relief. What though he now must tread alone Life's dark, declining way, There's hope within his heart, and faith Illumes life's closing day. XL & Then ring once more, ye Christmas bells ! Old clock! reply again ; From the sweet mournful past ye bring A sad yet welcome strain. The Christmas morn is blest to him With memories like these, And sad thoughts roll away, like leaves Before th' autumnal breeze. THE FOURTH PART. HOW THE CHILDREN SANG THE CHRISTMAS HYMN. I. Then brighter shone the Christmas fire Within that chamber old ! And softer through the curtain fell The sunlight's molten gold. And purer seemed the ray that there On the soft carpet lay, Like a bright, silent spirit, sent To watch with him that day 3 34 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, II. Hark ! — voices on the wintry air Are floating blithe and clear ; — Voices of children singing hymns Familiar to his ear. They're singing to the holy morn Uprisen in the east : " Glory to God on high," they sing, " On earth good-will and peace." III. It is the very hymn he heard In childhood's hours of joy; The sweet hymn he was wont to sing, A careless, happy boy ! What blessed household memories Those hallowed words recall ! What old and dear festivities Of his paternal hall ! THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 35 IV. The loved, the dead ! — are they not here Invoked by that sweet strain ] The friends that then around him sat, Are they not here again 1 The hearts, the warm, true hearts that beat Responsive to his own, To fancy's ear they're beating yet — He is no more alone. And soft and clear on the morning breeze The hymn arose, in words like these : SOLO. Awake, glad heart ! get up and sing ! It is the birth-day of thy king ! Awake ! awake ! The sun doth shake Light from his locks, and all the way Breaking perfumes doth spice the day. 36 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. CHORUS OF CHILDREN. Rejoice, our Saviour he was born On Christmas day in the morning ! SOLO. Awake ! awake ! hark, the wood sings ; Winds whisper, and the busy springs A concert make : Awake ! awake ! Man is their high priest, and should rise To offer up their sacrifice. CHORUS. Rejoice, &c. SOLO. I would I were some bird or s*ar, Fluttering in woods, or lifted far Above this inn And road of sin ' Then either bird or star should be Shining or singing still to thee. 1 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 37 CHORUS. Rejoice, &c. SOLO. I would I had in my best part Fit rooms for thee ! or that my heart Were as clean as Thy man ere r was ! But I am all filth and obscene, Yet, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. CHORUS. Rejoice, &c. SOLO. Sweet Jesus will then ; let no more This leper soil and haunt thy door; Cure him, cure him, O release him ! And let once more, by mystic birth, The Lord of life be born on earth. CHORUS. Rejoice, our Saviour he was born On Christmas day in the morning. 38 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. The song has ceased without — within Gay youthful accents ring ; " A merry Christmas, sir, to you ! A Christmas gift I bring!" A light step on the oaken stair, A light step at the door, And then a bright young creature stands Upon the parlor floor. VI. "A merry Christmas, sir ! I've brought Green vines from out the wood, With holly boughs, and ivy leaves, And berries bright and good : Beneath the shining snow I found This graceful Christmas vine — And see — I've twined among them all That sweet wild rose of mine." THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. .S9 VII. " Bless thee, my child," the old man said — She knelt beside his chair, The sunlight on her forehead fell, And on her golden hair. 11 Bless thee, my child ! — may He who came With sinful man to dwell, As on this day, of virgin born, The Saviour, shield thee well." VIII. Then quickly o'er the chamber walls, With awed yet cheerful mind, The Christmas wreaths of living green With willing hand she twined. The ancient portraits, soiled and dim, Beneath the leaves grew bright, And through his verdant drapery The old clock smiled outright. 40 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, IX. 'Twas good to see that orphan child Smile on the lone old man, As to and fro, in busy haste, With noiseless step she ran. 'Twas good to see how gleamed her eye, How swelled her little heart, When he, her benefactor mild, Praised her untutored art. X. The generous heart, the open hand, The gift of charity, What rich returns they bring to him To soothe his misery. That orphan child remembers him, Loves him with purest love, For gratitude in that young breast Sits brooding, like a dove. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS 41 XI. Then ring once more, ye Christmas bells ! Young minstrels, sing again! From the sweet mournful past ye bring A sad yet welcome strain. The Christmas morn is blest to him With visitings like these ; And sad thoughts roll away, like leaves Before the autumn breeze. W^ifim '/"V! i^^^j bl^P^ Sp5 Sm ^l \k _^_ C ] ra ifi-nr THE FIFTH PART. HOW THE CHRISTMAS GREETING CHEERED THE OLD man's HEART. I. The bells — the solemn Christmas bells, They're calling now to prayer: And hark ! the voice of worshippers Thrills on the morning air. Anthems of highest praise there'll be, And glorious hymns to-day, Te Deums loud, and glorias : Come to the church, and pray. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 43 II. Then, strong of heart and firm of limb, The aged man arose, A moment smoothed his hoary locks White as the driven snows — A moment through the casement looked Adown the wintry road, Then went forth on his lonely way Towards the house of God. III. 'Tis service time ! from lanes and woods The rustic people throng — The "common air is musical" With greetings and with song. With deep and serious tones of age The tones of childhood blend, And Christmas carols, through the air From youthful groups ascend. 44 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. IV. The old man mingles in the throng — He's known and loved of all ; They press to meet him with kind words, On this blithe festival. The widow's heart he's oft consoled, And dried the orphan's tears ; And many a poor man's load relieved In dark, depressing years. V. " A merry Christmas, sir !" say some, Forgetful of his state ; " God bless you," others, as around In meek respect they wait. Some strive to win a passing word As o'er the lawn they hie, Some strive to catch a passing glance Of his benignant eye. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 45 VI. Cheer up, old man ! — these humble ones Have loyal hearts and true, Within each grateful bosom beats A pulse of love for you ; And holy thoughts are quick'ning it Upon this holy morn ; Thoughts, hallowed by deep gratitude Unto the Virgin-born ! VII. Then, strong of heart and firm of limb, The old man went his way 5 He went within the house of God And knelt him down to pray. He felt that God was with him there : — The everlasting arms, Were they not folded round his soul To shield from care and harms 1 46 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. VIII. Then ring again, ye Christmas bells ! And thou, deep organ, sound ! Angelic voices, soft and low, Seem floating all around. The Christmas morn is blest to him Mid solemn strains like these, And sad thoughts roll away, like leaves Before th' autumnal breeze. THE SIXTH PART. HOW THE OLD MAN FOUND SOLACE IN CHURCH. I. The bells — the solemn Christmas bells, They're calling us to prayer ! Voices of gathered worshippers Rise on the morning air. Anthems of highest praise there'll be, And glorious hymns to-day, Te Deums loud, and glorias : Come to the church, and pray. 48 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. II. Enter ! — " The woven boughs they wreath Through all the hallowed fane, And soft reviving odors breathe Of summer's gentle reign. And rich the ray of mild green light Which, like the emerald's glow, Comes struggling through the latticed height Upon the crowds below."* III. In surplice white the man of God Within the chancel stands, And there the marble altar gleams, Arrayed by holy hands. High o'er the chancel-niche, amidst Its drapery of green, The emblem of redeeming love, The holy cross, is seen. * Rev. William Croswell. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 49 IV. There is the white baptismal font Close by the chancel-rail, And o'er it broods a single dove With wings outstretched and pale. And all around the chancel-steps Are children clothed in white, With grave but cheerful looks, and eyes Bright in their young delight. V. With bended knee, and solemn prayer, They bow before the Lord \ In silence, deep and reverent, They hear the holy word. In pious, fervent litanies They supplicate His grace ; In deep thanksgivings they extol And celebrate His praise. 4 50 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. VI. Now loudly through the temple arch The old te deum rolls ; — Now faint, yet clear, a plaintive strain Breathes peace to trusting souls. The joyful jubilate swells In strong, triumphant tone, And gloria patri gives the praise To God, the three in one. VII. The prayers are said — the sermon o'er, A solemn silence reigns : How goldenly the noonday beams Stream through the pictured panes! Upon a kneeling throng, around The altar steps, they fall ; The aged man is kneeling there, His heart is grateful all. THE CHRIST MAS. BELLS. 51 VIII. The emblems of Christ's sacrifice Bless' d by the prayerful word, The body broken on the cross, The blood of his dear Lord, He eats — he drinks — his soul is strong, His conflicts, doubts are o'er 5 Trembling with hope he seeks his place, He weeps, he fears no more. IX. Swell loud and high, ye hymns of praise ! And thou, deep organ, sound ! Angelic voices, with your strains Seem mingling all around. The Christmas morn is blest to him In services like these, And sad thoughts roll away, like leaves Before the vernal breeze. 52 THE CHRISTMAS BELLS, CONCLUSION. I. The Christmas bells, the Christmas bells, How merrily they ring ; To weary hearts a pulse of joy, A kindlier life they bring. The silvery tones, o'er vale and hill . Are swelling soft and clear, As, wave on wave, the tide of sound Fills the bright atmosphere. II. The bells — the silvery Christmas bells, O'er many a mile they sound, And household tones are answering them In thousand homes around. Voices of children, blithe and shrill, With youth's strong accents blend, And manhood's deep and earnest tones With woman's praise ascend. THE CHRISTMAS BELLS. 53 III. The bells — the bells — the Christmas bells, How merrily they ring ; As if they felt the joy they tell To every human thing. The rich man, in his mansion proud, The poor man in his cot, Hear the glad sound, and welcome it ; Each thankful for his lot. MOUNT SINAI. This is the holy mountain ; and among all the stupendous works of nature, not a place could be selected more fitting for the exhibition of Almighty power. Stephens' Incidents of Travel. Still darkly glorious in thy solitude, Hoar sovereign of the desert ! thou dost stand, E'en as from time's first ages thou hast stood, Frowning in drear pomp o'er that blighted land. The storms of centuries around thy brow Have held wild revel, and the winds of heaven Wrestled in conflict : yet thou liftest now Thy giant head aloft, unwreck'd, unriven, As if, in mockery of nature's shocks, Eternity sat throned among thy hoary rocks. MOUNT SINAI. 55 How sternly desolate ! the Deity .Methinks has fixed upon that awful height His grandest signature of majesty, And chronicled his Godhead's changeless might : And as the tempest, in its lurid path, Sweeps over thee unheeded, we behold Fit emblem of that throne, which earthly wrath And change affect not, resting, as of old, Upon the strong foundations, truth sublime And wisdom infinite, and power unchanged by time. Thine is a history which links in one The past and present of the human race, With the unbounded future. Time hath won No crown from thee ; oblivion cast no trace Of his blank triumph on thy calm, dark brow. A token and a promise of God's love In man's redemption, holy mount, hast thou Shed o'er thee as a presence from above ; Preserving, e'en mid nature's silent grave, Bright footsteps of His grace who spake to bless and save. 56 MOUNT SINAI. Still art thou holy. God's appointed throne, Where mortal man held audience with Him, Here, lightning-girt, his high pavilion shone, Here his own thunder rolled its awful hymn. Here, while unutterable awe did thrill The souls of Israel's breathless multitude, As if the heart of that great host grew still In one concentred pulse ; the prophet stood Commissioned to receive the laws of heaven, For man's instruction, strength and guidance given. What solemn shadowings of the future, rest Around thee, to the eye of faith, unsealed At heaven's unclouded fount of knowledge blest, Reading the visible by the revealed ! Rising from off that wide and burning sea Of desolation, that around thee lies, It sees the time when earth itself shall be A scorched and blighted thing beneath the skies, And the wild flood of elemental fire Robe nature's mighty frame in one vast funeral pyre. MOUNT SINAI, 57 Blackness, and darkness, and the tempest's throes Affrighted thee of old ; the trumpet's sound Eang in thy defts ; the voice of words arose Too awful for the cars of those around. To us, all glorious in celestial light, A grander vision dawns athwart thy gloom j For not unto an earthly mount that might Be touch'd, or burn'd with fire, have we come, But to mount Sion, which for aye shall be, Our joyful steps are turned, great antityped of thee. # A type art tbou of that b!est mount of God, "Which shadow'd by th' excecs of heaven's full day, Fast by the eternal throne is fixed> and t^od By seraphs and archangels, in the ray Of their own love most bright ; the company Of cherubim, most beauteous in the glow Of inteLect and stainless loyalty, With the redeem'd of earth, whoGe praises flow Comming 1 ! ng with the anihem pea', that rings From myriad gold ?n harps, before the King of kings. * Hebrews 12 : 18. 23. 58 MOUNT SINAI. holy, holy, holy God most high ! When, in our blindness and our helplessness, We fail to see our home beyond the sky, And faint within this earthly wilderness ; Send down thy Spirit — touch the dead, cold heart With living fire — purge the clouded sight, Strength to the trembling pilgrim soon impart, And gild our pathway with celestial light ; So shall we tread in faith the desert here, And on the eternal mount redeemed at last appear. THE BISHOP AT HE ST. " Bishop Jolly died in his chamber, at night and alone. He was found by his attendants in the morning, with his ' decent limbs com- posed' for the sepulchre, his arms crossed upon his breast, and his 'avorite book, * Disce Mori,' open in his hands." The taper's light burns dim Within that chamber lone, And the hoarse night-wind by the casement sweeps With a dull and dirge-like moan, And duly the clock's deep tones are heard As the weary hours pass on. Upon his bed of death, That good old man doth lie ; Hi ! 'jrentle brow, all calm and clear, Turned to the midnight sky; Unchanged in all, save the glassy film Of death, on his half-closed eye. 60 THE BISHOP AT REST. He seemeth but to sleep, Awaiting day's return $ — Shall he not wake when that taper's light, At dawn, shall cease to burn 1 He sleeps indeed : — but he shall not wake Till the resurrection morn. An oft-read volume lies Unclasped upon his breast, Solace of pain through the weary days Attendant of his rest : That holy book he shall read no more, For " the dead in the Lord are blest." In the lone and silent hours His spirit left the clay — No earthly eye was here to mark When the bonds of flesh gave way 5 No eye but His, who ceaseth not To watch his saints alway. THE BISHOP AT REST. 61 Bravely, we think, he died — For a blessed sign he made ; He thought of the cross in his mortal hour, For, mark ! how his arms are laid : — If the Holy Jesus shielded him, Think ye he was afraid 1 Bravely, we think, he passed Through grim deatlvs gloomy sea, For an angel's smile is on his lip, As bright as smile can be ; And his brow seems yet lit up with hope, how triumphantly ! Old soldier, rest thee well ! The battle strife is past : Good Bishop! — precious souls of men, As thy reward, thou hast : Servant of God ! with thee, in bliss, May we all meet at last ! THE CHUUCH OF ENG-LAND. Manfully contend for her, because she is the church, a true church, a pure church, a holy church. Dr. Hook. The ancient Church of England! How gloriously she stands, Midst persecution's fierce assaults, And error's leaguered bands! A calm, undaunted front she wears, Of confidence and strength, Unmoved, though trouble's darkest hour Seems threat'ning her at length. THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. 63 The pure old Church of England ! Christ's true, unsullied spouse, Time-honored witness of the truth, Shrine of unbroken vows ! Blest with the holiest memories Of valiant men of God, And martyred ones who honored her With sufferings and blood. The brave old Church of England ! Strong champion of the Lord, For ages wielding valiantly The Spirit's two-edged sword ! Ever the foremost in the fight, And latest in the field, Contending nobly for the faith She would not lose nor yield. 64 THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. The free old Church of England ! That scorned the papal sway, And cast off Rome's supremacy In Rome's most haughty day ; That firmly stood when error rolled Its myriad waves around, Where Christ had founded her at first, On truth's unchanging ground. The good old Church of England ! Within whose cloistered halls So many gifted men have wrought In learning's sacred toils — 0, how shall Christendom repay The debt it owes, through them, Who kept the faith, and guarded well Truth's heavenly, priceless gem'? TIIE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. 65 The holy Church of England ! Holy in name and deed! High gratitude we owe to her, And honor's purest meed ; In doctrine, rule and ordinance, With holiness imbued, And with the Spirit's seven-fold gifts Of grace and strength endued. The suffering Church of England ! The wronged and deeply tried ; The fierce opposer seeks her fall, The scoffer mocks her pride ; The infidel insults her zeal, Her patience, truth, and love — Send down, O God ! thine aiding grace Upon her from above. 66 THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND, God bless the Church of England ! God help her, and defend ! And yet, from all her altars pure May joyous songs ascend ! High anthems of deliverance, Thanksgivings of meek praise, For safety from the wicked ones, And strength midst evil days. HYMN OF CHRIST'S ADVENT. He comes ! angelic messengers, Bright heralds, o'er his way have trod, Yet no glad voice of welcome stirs Within the earthly courts of God. He comes! the veil of prophecy, Long trembling in the breath of time, Is lifted up, and gloriously The light of heavenly truth sublime Upon the expectant earth is poured ; Sion ! Behold thy Saviour Lord. 68 Christ's advent. He comes ! the sacrificial fire Upon the altar dies away ,• The shadows of the law retire Before the Gospel's dawning ray. He comes ! the Baptist's warning voice Sounds in Judea's wilderness, And faithful men of God rejoice To bless the infant Prince of Peace ; The Godhead comes with man to dwell Where are thy greetings, Israeli He comes ! enthroned upon her hills, And calm in her resistless power, Old Rome her ordered task fulfils For the Messiah's promised hour : — From Britain's isle to where the sea Rolls 'neath the distant orient, Her eagles soar triumphantly, Her conquering voice, like light, is sent , The nations, tranquil 'neath her sway, Await the dawn of Gospel day. C H E I S T * S ADVENT. He comes! from age to age, through all The wrecks of earthly pomp and pride, Mid haughty empires' rise and fall — By hell opposed — by man defied — His kingdom still hath spread, his name Hath been proclaimed on every shore, And still shall spread, in holy fame, Till earth and time shall be no more ; And mighty realms, to Rome unknown, Shall all his glorious empire own. With humble brow, and bended knee, And hearts attuned to holiest praise, May we await and welcome thee, ■ Ancient of everlasting days! Redeemer ! in our souls-prepare Thy temple — rear thy gracious throne, To rule in blessed influence there, Sacred to thee, Great God, alone ; So, when thou com'st in glory, we Among thy chosen ones may be. EPIPHANY. 1 We have seen his star in the East." I. In heaven's blue depths, afar, It burns, all radiant and serene, Mid sphered moon and star, Suspended there since time hath been ; Full orbed and glorious it arose Among those congregated spheres, Ordained to mark the dawn and close Of days, and months, and circling years. EPIPHANY. 71 II. What hand divine hath placed This new and stranger star on high 1 What mighty finger traced Its kindling path along the sky 1 Those strong and ancient orbs roll on, Brilliant and silent, as of old, When their wide courses were begun, And God their myriad number told. III. Among their host this shines With a serene and golden gleam, Darting its trembling lines Athwart the moonlight's silver stream ; A deep and solemn lustre shed Upon the azure over head ; A tremulous and tender glow • I pon the sleeping earth below. 72 EPIPHANY. IV. Sages its rising hail With gladness from their distant hills, Where stars beam wan and pale O'er Araby's bleak plains and rills ; Joyful they mark the hope of day For moral night, in every ray, And truth, from heaven's eternal springs. Borne out on mercy's golden wings. V. Behold them on their way ! Girded they tread the burning sands, Braving the fervid day, And the wild desert's lawless bands ; The weary leagues all patiently In long and painful travel pass'd, The mountain scaled, and cross'd the sea, And their far bourne is gained at last. E P [PHANTi 73 VI. Adoringly they bow Before the lowly infant there ; And gifts are proffer'd now, With worship meet, and votive prayer, Gold, royally and richly wrought 'Neath Southern India's ardent sun ; And costly myrrh from Saba brought, And frankincense from Lebanon. VII. In him they hail the child Promised fro*m ancient days to man ; Shiloh ! whose glory mild Along the night of ages ran ; W hose glorious report was heard And seen in type and prophecy : When nature's fainting heart was stirred With hope of rescue from on high. 74 EPIPHANY, VIII. Deliverer and King ! Whose star and sceptre kindling rolled In vivid picturing, Before the Gentile seer of old ; His dawning light o'er earth is poured As sunshine from the glance of morn : The angel messenger adored ! The uncreated Word is born ! IX. And oh ! the star that went Before the snges' path sublime, Up the far orient, Higher and brighter yet shall climb, And nations, sitting in the dust And gloom of sin, shall lift their eyes, And fixing there their only trust, Be led in mercy to the skies. EPIPHANY. 75 X. O'er every work of sin The Saviour's kingdom shall prevail ; The Gentiles shall come in, From isle, and sea, and plain, and vale ; And Israel's sons from stranger lands Again shall throng their ancient seat, To God lift up their holy hands, And worship at Messiah's feet. XI. Oh ! may we welcome him With holy joy and praise sincere, Meek prayer, and fervent hymn, Firm faith, and love's repenting tear ! And may our hearts be gladly strovvn — Fit offerings — in his blessed path ; And may we live as " not our own," But saved, redeemed, by him from wrath. MISSIONARY HYMN. " Ye Christian heroes ! go, proclaim Salvation in Immanuel's name 5 To distant climes the tidings bear, And plant the Rose of Sharon there." Go, girded with Jehovah's might, And, cheered by faith's unclouded light, Fervent and bold, to sound abroad The glorious Jubilee of God. Go preach the Gospel, where no word Of pard'ning love hath e'er been heard : On Afric's shore, by China's sea, On plains of Ind and Araby. 3810 NAR Y II V M N . Ti Where superstition reigns in fear, Salvation's golden banner rear; In realms for ages cursed with sin, Trophies of endless glory win. Valiant with courage from above, And strong in faith — which works by love, Let meekness your protection be, Till conflict ends in victory. Patient and fearless, in the hour When wo and trial round you lower, Regard not earthly shame or loss, But clincr undaunted to the cross. Press on to glory, men of God ! l)y the same path your Saviour I Until your work, like his, be done, And life and victor-crowns are won. DIUGE OF THE FLOWERS. " All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof as the flower of the field. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: surely the people is grass." — Isaiah 40: 6. Pale, lingering flowers of the dying year, Why, drooping sad, o'er autumn's yellow bier, Do ye prolong your stay % When the rich glory o'er the meadows cast, And voices sweet of summer birds, have past Sadly away. DIRGE OF THE FLOWERS. 79 At eve, the perfumed zephyr softly sung His low, departing anthem where ye hung, Sweet tokens of the spring ! Mid wreaths of dew, like those a fairy weaves, Upon the closing petals and the leaves Bright clustering. At morning's hour, all curtained o'er with green, Ye dimly lay the whispering leaves between, Like bright eyes robed in sleep, And as ye opened to the summer air, There faintly rose a sound of gladness there, Holy and deep. But now the autumn wind sighs o'er your heads, And the cold moon, from yon blue heaven, sheds Her silver dew-drops there ; And mournfully, like music o'er the sea, Your last and dying fragrance comes to me Through the chill air. 1 80 DIRGE OF THE FLOWERS. Darkly ye fade from pleasant streams and woods ! Around your wonted haunts, in coldness, broods The spirit of decay : On the waste places of this clouded earth We're left to mourn your loveliness and mirth, Gathered away. Ye are the types of all that man deems bright, Like you his earth-born pleasures bloom in light, Like you -they quickly fly ; And leave the breaking heart to cling again, With a fond yearning, passionate as vain, To things that die. THE SPIRIT'S DESTINY* The summer moon, sweet regent of the night, Has measured half her radiant course on high : — And lo ! how beautiful in cloudless light The morning star shines from the distant sky : Night's countless orbs, successive in thy train, Mild, lovely planet ! clustering, come and go. As if to minister to thy bright reign, Mingling their feebler lustre with the glow Of richest light, which thou dost send afar Through the blue heaven: — hail to thee, sweet star! * Suggested by the sudden decease of Mr>\ Catharine Morns, wiff of A. H. Stevens, M. D., of New-York. 6 82 the spirit's destiny. I saw thee, months ago, as now, serene Amid the host of stars that round thee burn, With sad and tearful eye, for I had been Within the house of death with those that mourn. A noble spirit had been called away ; And when the sunset lay with golden spell On the soft landscape, we consigned the clay To its cold chamber, while the village knell Tolled out its last sounds, mournful, deep, and slow, Interpreting the heart's unspoken wo. And when the night to that harassing day Succeeded with its silence and sweet rest, I sadly marked thy clear, unclouded ray, As some fair gleam from regions of the blest. I saw thee, and I wept ; but those were tears Not of a sorrow without hope. A soul, Whose light more lovely in successive years Shone on our path, had reached its glorious goal ; Like thee through earth's brief night, its course had given Gleams of the pure and perfect day of heaven. the spirit's destiny. 83 Thou hast a home, sweet star ! — yon fields of blue Are thy primeval heritage ; — thy way, Circled around th' invisible throne, is true, Distinct, and bright. Alike by night and day Thou dost fulfil thy glorious destiny, And with the morning stars, and with the train Of solemn evening, it is thine to be For ever hymning, in thy choral strain, The praise of Him, who erst thy measures told Through ancient night, and lit thy flame of old. Of this material universe of God A bright inhabitant, — thou still shalt hold The same celestial path which thou hast trod For centuries unchronicled of old. Through coming years thy mystic orb shall shine With light unquench'd, till yon blue vault of heaven, By the all-powerful word and hand divine Deep moved, from its foundations shall be riven, And sun and star, lights of a perished world, From their hinrh thrones to darkness shall be hurled. 84? the spirit's destiny. Thou with thy sister orbs, first-born of time, With time sha]t cease to be. A bound is set To that unwearied course and watch sublime Which in yon firmament thou holdest yet. All this material must fade away To nothingness and gloom : — but shall there rise No lovelier creation, whose full day Shall be as God's, eternal 1 — whose young skies Shall brighten with new lights as fair as thine, Whose goings forth shall be unchanging and di- vined And this immortal part — this deathless gift Of high intelligence, — the living soul, — Unconquered e'en in death, whose thoughts are swift To soar beyond yon heaven's farthest goal — Where, mid the wide unmeasured fields of space, Shall be its habitation and its rest 1 Is there for it no glorious resting-place, No region of calm life, where all is blest 1 Rejoice, spirit ! in thy strength rejoice, Thy hopes are all confirmed by heaven's assuring voice. the spirit's destiny. 85 From the wild ruin of this earthly scene, The wreck and drear decay of things that be, A brighter, purer world shall rise serene, The noblest handiwork of Deity. Radiant and beautiful around his throne, Fair fields of light, by shining legions trod, Shall brighten still, in tint celestial zone, Whose brightness is the unclouded smile of God. There shall the spirit find its own high bourne, Dwelling in bliss, progressive still without return. Above the aspects and the destiny Of this creation, is the spirit's range ; It has a home beyond the things that be, Above all suffering and mortal change, Like those pure orbs that, all untended there, Light up on high their " old unfailing fires ;" — Above the atmosphere of sin and care It sendeth forth its boundless, bright desires : Lnlike those orbs, it shall not fail nor fade, But o'er their wrecks survive, undimmed and unde- cayed. 86 the spirit's destiny. High lessons such as these in times of eld The meek Chaldean read in heaven's bright face ; Such lessons, too, they pondered well who held On mount and silent plain their dwelling-place, O'er whose lone vigil, faint, but radiant gleams Of man's immortal destiny arose, Shedding celestial light on earthly dreams, And hope's sweet ray, thro' night of mortal woes, Quick'ning the spirit, by that converse high, With thoughts of purer life, andjoysthat cannot die. Lessons like these, in groves of Academe, He of the God-like thought and soul divine,* Learned in his midnight toil, what time his theme Dwelt on the glories of the mystic Trine, Creative Deity, by whose command The starry universe in light upsprung, And myriad orbs, all radiant from His hand, Upon their ancient courses first were flung: He felt his mind's true destiny, amazed, Yet claiming empire o'er the pomp on which he gazed. * Plato. the spirit's destiny. 87 'Neath the soft glow of the Italian skies, With tranquil Hesper watching out the night, Or at eve's dewy close, or morning's rise, Rome's gifted son, with new and strange delight Nursed such aspirings in his awe-struck soul, And clothed the burden of his eloquent thought In words that cannot die : — u When the dim goal Of this mortality is passed, the spirit, wrought Of deathless elements, shall join the throng Of spirits freed from earth, to whom no earthly taints belong."* In deepest contemplation, and the toil Of strong unfettered thought, the human mind Thus won, by reason's aid, this noblest spoil To gild the track which else were .dark and blind. But to these masters of the ancient lore No heavenly voice had spoken, no sure ray Had dawned upon their dreams — their musings bore Traces but faint of truth's full, perfect day, And man, left groping still in wo and gloom, Pursued his dark and cheerless way in sorrow to the tomb. * Delightful hour, whon I shall journey towards that divine assem- ITt from this crowd of polluted I cero 1> S 88 the spirit's destiny, Then dawned the Gospel morn. A voice was heard Proclaiming life and joy beyond the grave ; Deeply the yearning heart of nature stirred, And to that voice a joyous answer gave. Triumphant over death, and decked with spoils Won from the vanquished foe, the Saviour rose, Bright with the fruits of his redeeming toils, Unbarr'd the gates of life, no more to close ; Confirmed the hope that dawned through reason's night, And thus brought life and immortality to light. In him behold our life — our hope of all That makes the Christian's death-bed calm and sweet ; Through him he joyous hears the tyrant's call, Joyous departs, his just award to meet ; Through faith in him he looks with peaceful smile Upon the darkling vale which he must tread ; The promises his sternest pangs beguile, And o'er his darkest hour their lustre shed ; Quickened by him — the mortal conflict passed — He rises, robed with holiness, to his reward at last. the spirit's destiny, 89 'What is it then to die 1 This changing earth, With all her vaunted riches, treasures up No spiritual wealth of lasting worth, No deathless charm within her pleasure's cup. E'en were her gifts immortal as the mind That, still unsatisfied, seeks ncbler joys Than those she gives, who would consent to bind Its glorious faculties to such vain toys, Wasting for aye the spirit's wealth on dross, Neglecting heavenly gain for earthly shame and lossl What is it then to die 1 The gate of death Is made all glorious with the light of life, Immortal and serene ; and sorrow's breath, That mournful rose mid scenes of care and strife, Is lost in angel tones of happiness ; u Beauty for ashes" shall the soul receive, The oil of joy for wo, — for heaviness The shining robes of praise. The tomb shall leave ?So taint of sin, or weakness, and the flow Of heaven's unceasing joys from them no check shall know. 90 the spirit's destiny. Mourn not the dead in Christ ! The grave may close On forms that o'er our path were wont to keep Familiar guardianship, and death's repose May settle o'er bright features stern and deep ; The gentle ministries of love may cease With the departed ones, and the wrung heart Faint with the loss, and find no gift of peace, Save in the drear calm its own woes impart : And life, all veiled in sadness, may present No scene with future joy or comfort blent. Yet, in the gloom of sorrow there arise Beauteous revealings of that purer sphere In which the spirit's light, that to our eyes Is all eclipsed, shines on serene and clear, As oft, within the summer morning sky Thy silver brightness seems, most lovely star, To melt within the flood oflight on high, Which the glad sun pours through its depths afar $ Like thee, though hid from our o'erclouded sight, The soul yet brightens on in heaven's unsullied light. THE SPIRIT'S DESTINY. 91 A denizen of that blest mount of God Which, sluulowed by th' excess of His full day, Fast by the eternal throne is fixed, and trod By seraphs and archangels, in the ray Of their own love most bright, the company Of cherubim most beauteous in the glow Of intellect and stainless loyalty, With the redeemed of earth, whose praises flow Commingling with the anthem peal that rings From myriad golden harps before the King of kings. Departed friend ! we mourn, but not for thee ; Thy portion, in that radiant dwelling-place Of satisfying joys, shall ever be Bright with the fulness of the Saviour's grace. A harp and crown are thine — among the throng Of glorious ones, to mingle ceaseless tones Of grateful praise with the angelic song, To sit with Christ upon celestial thrones, To tread with the redeemed those shining fields, And quaff that living stream which endless pleasure yields. 92 THE SPIRIT'S DESTINY. We mourn, but not for thee ! for well we know, Ours is the loss, thine the eternal gain; To this cold world of suffering and wo, Of fickle pleasure and recurring pain, We would not now recall thee. May we live As thou hast lived, and die as thou didst die, Strong in the faith which none but Christ can give, Ardent with hope to reach our home on high. TWILIGHT CONTEMPLATION. Sweet, silent hour, for meditation given, And holy thought! — We mark thy silver steps Steal, tremulous, upon the verge of heaven, Where the rich glow of the descended sun Yet lingers, tinging the dispersing clouds With softest golden light. As yet, thy hues Are mingled with the sunset, scarce perceived Amid the brilliant streams that minister To her full depth of splendor ; — yet we feel Thy breath around us, and thy promised boon In balmy winds that from th' illumined west Come laden with a blessing, and soft dews That wait around thy coming, and prepare The earth for thine approach. Sweet, silent hour! We welcome thee ; and may our evening song Flow on in calm and grateful harmony With thee and thy pervading influence. 94< TWILIGHT CONTEMPLATION. Lo ! on the far verge of the firmament, Where, with majestic sweep, its depth of blue Bends o'er the northwest horizon, a star Hath just arisen. Now tremulous and pale, It seems to float, uncertain of its track, In the soft atmosphere, yet gaining strength And beauty, as the sunset glories melt Gradual, in rarest beauty from the sky, It soon shall shine, all lovely in the train Of the bright summer moon, and take its place First in the fresh radiant troop that haste to greet The joyous dawn, and brightly disappear In the fresh splendor of the sovreign sun. Through the still night that lovely star shall hold Bright watch among the sabaoth of heaven ; And when its peaceful lustre, high and clear, Burns in the zenith and descends again From the meridian, it still shall beam With an increasing light and loveliness, Till, lost within that glorious fount of light From which its own pure spring is fed, it fades In beauty from our rapt, admiring gaze. TWILIGHT C O N T E M P L A T I O X . 95 So when the Christian spirit, which receives Light, strength, and beauty, from the orb of truth That shines, unclouded, in the Gospel sphere, First dawns to its high birth, its rays are faint, Trembling, and unconfirmed; soon grace renewed Gives power to its weakness, and confirms Faith's trembling ray with clearest light of heaven, And hope's effulgence. Higher, lovelier, It rises in its heavenward course. Fresh beams Cluster around it; ever brightening on In moral light, in all that can impart Lustre to virtue, eloquence to truth ; Rich in example, motive, object, end, It holds its way through this brief night of time, Prophetic of its perfect day in heaven. ST. PAUL AT ATHENS. Morn on the blue iEgean ! — lo, afar O'er its wide waters hangs the last faint star, Gleaming through fading mists of purple, rolled Along the dim horizon, edged with gold. Bright bark, like spirits of that lovely sea, Upon its waveless breast sleep tranquilly, Peaceful and silent all ; save when the oar Of some lone fisherman along the shore, Dips in the shining waters, or the gale Of morning slow distends the heavy sail. ! T . PAUL AT ATHENS. 97 Morning on queenly Athens ! — and each height, Bathed in the splendor of the dawning light, Bursts with its glorious temples on the eye, And sculptured columns, gleaming to the sky. Like some proud conqueror, advancing on O'er realms subdued and empires brightly won, From the blue east the sun in glory rose Waking the wide world from its brief repose, And soft o'er grove, and height, and fountain, threw The greeting splendor of his matin hue ; And as the beam first fell upon the wave, The laughing tide a sound of music gave, And waving woods sent forth their whispered mirth Like tones from seraph voices, o'er the earth. Lo ! through the marble streets the varied throng Of Athens' proudest children sweeps along: The kingly senator, with measured stride, The haughty soldier, with his brow of pride, The saofe, upon whose kindling glances roll Eloquent tokens of the aspiring soul, 7 98 ST. PAUL AT ATHENS. The bard, enwrapt in visions sweet and high, Song in his heart and glory in his eye, The blushing virgin, matron stern and grave, Sophist and orator, artisan and slave ) The idle multitude, with hurrying feet, All wander forth the opening morn to greet, And offer up at an unhallowed shrine Worship to gods they vainly deem divine. Alone, unhonored, poor in wealth and fame, To the proud city the apostle came ; Nerved with unwavering trust and quenchless faith, That faltered not at danger, shame, or death, He still bore onward in his high career, Stranger to human pride and human fear. At Antioch, on shores of Macedon, In bounds of Thessaly andLycaone, In 'Syria, where fair Damascus held Her sway luxuriant, renowned from eld, In many a realm of that broad orient clime, His faithful lips had preached the word sublime. He stood in Athens, once the proud and free, City of wisdom, arts, and liberty ; ST. PAUL AT ATHENS. 99 Upon the hill of Mars, where round him shone The boasted pomp of glorious ages gone, Amid the monuments of taste and art, He stood communing with his swelling heart. Before his eye a gorgeous prospect lay, Rich with the glory of the dawning day 5 Afar, Hymettas rear'd his purple head, Gemm'd with the brightness that the dew had shed, And flowers waving to the rosy air, Diffused a sweet and grateful freshness there; And silvery streams, immortalized in song, Bounded in light, their verdant banks along, While faint, like night-winds sighing through the glade, Was heard the music that the ocean made. Brightly from plain and wood-encircled fount, From fabled dell, and cliff, and laurel Pd mount, From forests sacred to the gods of old, Where fairest flowers their starry robes unfold, The bright creations of the sculptor's hand Sprang up, like visions from a fairy land, And made the wondrous scene they shadowed forth A beauty and a marvel to the earth. 100 ST. PAUL AT ATHENS, What were his thoughts 1 Did not hisbreast inflame With eagle dreams of science and df fame t. Did not a smothered longing struggle there For things his creed forbade him now to share 1 The exalted lore, by master spirits wrought In the dim chambers of their voiceless thought — The burning fancies, breathless and intense, Which the song wakens with its eloquence — The witching smile of beauty, and the looks Of earnest love like moonlight over brooks, — All that earth numbers as its chosen things, And all to which the earthly spirit clings : Were these the objects of his spirit's strife, The guiding stars that swayed his very life ? No ! holier thoughts possess his bosom now, And trace their record on his humble brow ; He wept — and why 1 Behold yon restless throng, For ever nursing, as they pass along, Unworthy hopes, aspirings dark and vain, And thoughts held down by error's clinging chain. The voice that stirred within him was obeyed, He spake his mission, firm and undismayed ; Not all unheard, although the sinful crowd Reviled his faith with taunt and jeering loud, ST. PAUL AT ATHENS. 101 And looked on him as one whose brain did teem AVith the wild fancies of an idle dream. Not all unheard ; but few, alas ! were they Who heard the holy mandate to obey ; The man of learning stood in proud disdain, Then turned him to his cherished lore again, In the vain hope to read, with blinded eyes, The mind of God, the wisdom of the skies. The bard sat listening, till there shone a gleam Of purer light along his soul's vague dream \ Then turned he too, and idly sought to bring Light from on high upon a fettered wing, Kindling his spirit at an earthly shrine That should have burned with nought but fire divine. And thus were all — the mighty and the low — All sought, but idly sought, the truth to know ; But few were willing to endure the strife, The girded warfare of the Christian life. Ages have passed ! The ceaseless stream of time - on, with all its glory and its crime, 102 S T , PAUL AT ATHENS, But where is Athens'? Ask the Paynim slave That treads all tearless on her hallowed grave 5 Invoke the spirits of the past, and shed The voice of your strong bidding on the dead. Lo ! from a thousand crumbling tombs they rise, The great of old, the powerful, the wise 5 And a sad tale, which none but they can tell, Falls on the mournful silence like a knell. Then mark yon lonely pilgrim bend to weep Above the shrine where genius lies in sleep. And is this all 1 alas ! we turn in vain, And, turning, meet the selfsame waste again, The same drear wilderness of cold decay ; Its former pride, the phantom of a day — Like songs of summer birds within a bower — A dream of beauty traced upon a flower — A lute, whose master chord hath ceased to sound- A morning star, struck darkling to the ground. And such is Athens — such is Greece, and such The glorious land Minerva loved so much : By mount and stream, by cliff and storied wave, Nought now remains but tokens of her grave, ST. PAUL AT ATHENS. 103 Save the immortal names that cannot die, Bright as her clime, and fadeless as her sky. Yet that scorned word the Apostle preached of yore, Has dawned on every land, and gilded every shore, And still shall live, imparting hope sublime, A beacon-light along the waves of time. TO THE STARS. Whither, lovely orbs of night, Do ye hold your radiant flight 1 Sweeping through the azure sky, Beautiful, unchangingly ! Beautiful ye are, and mild, Like the fair brow of a child, — Or the light that melteth through Woman's gentle eye of blu*e ; Or a dream of youth, when care Stings the bosom with despair ; Such are ye, stars of night 1 Burning with a holy light, TOTHESTARS. 105 Ever — ever mild and calm, Like the shadow of a palm On the desert's burning sea, Bringing hope of rest to be. Glorious sabaoth of even, Keeping silent watch in heaven! When the twilight, bright and still, Gathers round the distant hill, And the sweet breath of the flowers Flings faint incense to the hours; Yc, from out yon azure dome, Like bright dreams of bliss to come, Scatter o'er this weary earth Feelings of a heavenly birth. Beacon lights of changing Time, Quenchless — glorious — sublime — When this earthly scene shall fade At the frown of Him who made ; When the giant hills that rise, Unbowed beneath the sounding skies — And the deep and wrathful sea From its ancient bounds shall flee — 106 TO THE STARS. Ye o'er all the wreck shall shine, Lit with radiance divine. Where, at last, mid realms of space, Shall ye find a resting place 1 Where but round the throne of Him In whose presence suns are dim, Maker of the things that be, Habiting Eternity ! Lord of life and light ! we bow In the dust our humbled brow ; Now in this our earthly hour, May we feel thy grace and power ! Pilgrims to a heavenly shrine, Touch our hearts with flame divine ,* Then when earth shall pass away As a dream at dawn of day, We, like stars around thy throne, Robed with glory all thine own, Shall, through never-ending years, Shine undimm'd by sin and tears, Glorious with thy saints in bliss, Beautiful in holiness. SUNBEAMS IN MARCH. No leaf is on the tree, No wild-flower in the vale, And the willow boughs swing silently, In the strong and chill March gale : But the merry beams of the vernal sun Come down from the bright blue heaven, And the green grass-blades, 0, one by one, To the light and breeze they're given. The summer sun is bright, The summer beams are strong, But I love, O I love his earliest light, The rays that to March belong : Though April hath warmer smiles than March, And May hath more brilliant sheen, I love the fresh hues of yon glorious arch, The light gray clouds between. THE FIRST BIRDS IN LENT. 0, your earliest notes are the sweetest yet, Birds of the early spring ! Before the first flower's gem is set, In the green glade's fairy ring ; Your earliest notes are the sweetest yet, Though they sound from dead, cold woods ; Ere April's verdant coronet Makes bright their solitudes. THE FIRST BIRDS IN LENT. 109 'Tis a brilliant day in the Lenten time, A Sabbath festival ! The city bells, with their varied chime, Soft in the distance swell. Mid the sound of the gathering worshippers, As they wend to the house of prayer, A silvery strain from yon maple, stirs The depths of the bright cool air. 0, hear ye it not, mid the pause and fall Of the deep organ's notes'? That silvery strain — yes, I know it all! — O'er the very aisles it floats. mingling now with the Gloria, Now with Te Deum swells, sic too blithe for a Lenten day, But of Easter-time it tells. 110 THE FIRST BIRDS IN LENT, Sweet strain ! art thou not like the tender gleams Which holy church reveals, Mid gloom of Lenten prayers and hymns, And solemn music peals 1 Tender with promise of joy to be When the Easter morn shall break, And the church, in the smile of her risen Lord, From the night of tears shall wake. Yes, your earliest notes are the sweetest yet, Birds of the early spring ! Like the light which breaks on the eye that's wet With the tears that long woes bring — Like rays from the cross and the throne in heaven, That o'er Lent vigils shine ; Glimpses of Christ midst fastings given, Transient, but all divine. THE OLD ELM-TREE. The old elm-tree is standing yet, He's grown both broad and tall, His roots in the earth are firmly set, Beside the church-yard wall. A lowly mound beneath him lies, And the grass is green thereon — 'Tis wet by the rain from the blessed skies, And warmed by the blessed sun. O, the old elm-tree, the old elm-tree, That stands by the church-yard wall, No forest-elm more strong than he, No forest-elm more tall. 112 THE OLD ELM -TREE. The old elm-tree is standing yet O'er a good man's place of rest, The tree was his, for he planted it, And he loved it aye the best ; He was wont to sit in its pleasant shade, When the summer sun was high ; And his quiet study there was made, When burned the autumn sky. 0, the old elm-tree, &c. The old elm-tree is standing yet, His boughs are now all bare, But a few bright weeks of spring will set Greenness and beauty there ; yes ; and o'er that good man's grave The leaves shall cluster then, And birds shall sing and branches wave Right merrily agen. 0, the old elm-tree, &c. THE OLD ELM -TREE. 113 The old elm-tree is standing yet, But the good old man is gone : Gramercy, sirs ! — but my eye is wet With thinking thereupon. We see him not in the warden's pew, Beside the chancel-door ; And his full response, so prompt and true, We shall hear that voice no more. 0, the old elm-tree, &c. The old elm-tree is standing yet ; Beside the church he loved 5 But he, in the Lord's own garden's set, A true branch well approved ; Like yon old elm, he withstood the storm, And flourish'd well for years, He's gone where sin hath no blast to harm, Where life hath no blight nor tears. 0, the old elm-tree, &c. 114 THE OLD ELM-TREE, The old elm-tree is standing yet Beside the church-yard wall, But the good churchman that planted it His place is vacant all. But weep not, friends ! he's gone to heaven. To heavenly praise from prayer; Te Deum Laudamus! to us be given To meet the old man there. 0, the old elm-tree, the old elm-tree, That stands by the church-yard wall, No forest elm more strong than he, No forest elm more tall. i THE EARLY DEAD. ADDRESSED TO A BROTHER IN AFFLICTION. Oro supplcx et acclinis Cor contritum quasi cinis Gere curam mei finis. There's a sound of mourning, brother, Where sweet peace was wont to reign ; One was called, and then another. Death came once, and came again; Sadly, in the dreamless slumber Of the quiet grave they fell ; Darkly, with the countless number Of the early dead they dwell. 116 THE EARLY DEAD We have sorrow'd with thee, brother ! For the loved — the lost — the dead 5 It is well, we would not smother Grief so pure, so hallowed ; It is good to weep when sadness Brings its own most precious balm ; — Grief resigned, and tearful gladness, Hope midst mourning, bright and calm. They are gone to heaven, brother ! — Christian father, dry your tears \ They were Christ's, Christian mother! Christ's alone from earliest years 5 — His, by word and sign baptismal, His by grace in baptism given ! From earth's deserts cold and dismal He has taken them to heaven. THE EARLY DEAD. 117 In the verdant spring-time, brother ! In the holy weeks of Lent, To one bright one and another Was the Saviour's summons sent. From the sunshine and the flowers From the vigil, fast and prayer, They are gone to fadeless bowers, Free, for aye, from sin and care. We shall meet them there, my brother ! Christian father, dry your tears : They were Christ's, Christian mother ! Christ's alone from earliest years. To the father-land above us He has called them — weep no more ; Think ye that our children love us Leu because their pains are o'er 1 G-LIMPSES OF CHILDHOOD. Oh, the April beams on the green hill-side How goldenly they lie ! Where the vernal grass in its virgin pride Seems laughing to the sky ; Where the dandelion, scentless yet, Its yellow petals spreads, And the modest leaves of the violet Peep out from mossy beds. A bright young child, with flaxen hair And blue eyes bathed in light, And sunny brow, is lingering there Grave in her young delight ; — A shade of awe and of wonder blent With her cherub smile of hope, Like a shadowy line of soft cloud bent O'er a clear horizon's scope. GLIMPSES OF CHILDHOOD. II' I had spoken to her of the blessed spring, Of the grass, and birds, and flowers, And of Hi^r who made each beauteous tiling, The light, and the sunny hours ; "W itli parted lips and a kindling eye, She listened to my words, Then asked — " Does he who dwells on high Listen to those dear birds 1 " And has He made these flowers, that lie All over where we tread ; Does He watch them all from that wide bright sky 1»— ceased, and bowed her head ; Then, half in wonder and half in joy, To her rosy lips she pressed The violets wreathed round her favorite toy And said — " the flowers are blest." 120 GLIMPSES OF CHILDHOOD " May I stay with these sweet flowers awhile 1- When God looks down to see If they are safe, perhaps his smile Will notice even meP And away she sprang to the green hill-side With her young heart full of love \ And I prayed that Christ, for such who died, Would shield her from above. O, childhood is like an April day, With its blue and brilliant sky, Fresh grass beneath, so green alway, Light, silvery clouds on high \ — It roveth ever mid early flowers Which summer's sun shall blight, And it smileth ever 'neath golden hours Unmindful of the night. GLIMPSES OF CHILDHOOD 121 Vet a heart of guileless love it hath, And a quick bright sense of truth, A spirit, winged for the upward path, In its beautiful, trusting youth. A nature instinct with glorious powers In folding one by one, 'Neath genial suns and kindly showers Which bless what they fall upon. AUGUSTUS FOSTEH LYDE. The morn, whose clear uprise Is rich with promise of a briliant day, Often, amid the gloom of clouded skies Fades suddenly away. Thy morning', Lyde, was blest With tokens of a day of strength and power, But thou wert called to thine eternal rest In its most brilliant hour. And many were the tears We shed for thee, dear brother ! for we wept One on whose spirit in its earliest years Manhood's high promise slept. AUGUSTUS FOSTER LYDE. L23 For thine was manly truth, And high devotion, and unwearied zeal, And wisdom which the ardent mind of youth But rarely doth reveal ; — An intellect, whose range Was in the highest, loveliest realms of thought A heart, above all fickleness and change, With its deep love unbought. Richly the spirit dwelt Within thee in its sanctifying power, Its holy energy, most deeply felt In nature's weakest hour. Thy spirit burned to tell The tidings of redeeming love, to those Whom Bin hath circled in its darkest spell Of ignorance and woes. 124 AUGUSTUS FOSTER LYDE, Thou didst devote thy life To bear the glorious name of Christ abroad, Where China's deep idolatries are rife With the contempt of God. But thou wert called away Ere thou hadst fully bound thine armor on, From the drear strife of earth to endless day, From toil to glory won. Thy parting words were fraught With mournful presage of thine early fate, As thy mind lingered in prophetic thought On hopes made desolate. We love to think of thee ; To fancy thy calm presence with us yet, As one of those sweet stars of memory Which never wane nor set. MORNING- HYMNS. I. FATHER OF LIGHTS ! ENTHRONED SUPREME. Father of lights ! enthroned supreme In changeless majesty on high, Thine is the morning's earliest gleam, Thine the full splendor of the sky. Refreshed by slumber sweet and calm Through the dark watches of the night, With morning's rise of health and balm, We rise to bless thee, God of lio-ht ! Thy sleepless eye has watch'd our rest, Thy hand protected our repose ; By thee the hours of sleep were blest From eventide till morning rose. 126 MORNING HYMNS. From morning's rise till set of sun, Be with us and protect us still, And may this day, in praise begun, Be spent in doing all thy will. Bless us, when studying thy word ; Bless us with grace, that we may find In learning's path thy wisdom, Lord ! To elevate and cheer the mind. Be with us when with thankful hearts Around the social board we meet, Protecting love and health impart, When pleasure tempts our willing feet. And when in pleasant converse dear, We meet to close the varied day, Be gladness hallowed by thy fear, And sorrow cheered by mercy's ray. M ORNING H V M N 3 . I'll II. LORD, WHEN MORNING'S LIGHT IS STREAMINl . . Lord, when morning's light is streaming From the portals of the sky, And the earth, in brightness gleaming, Lifts her voice of praise on high, Hear and bless us, hear and bless us As our feeble praise we try. When the universe rejoices In the light bestowed by thee, Touch our hearts, attune our voices To sweet strains of harmony ; Hear and bless us, hear and bless us As our praises rise to thee. Visit us with thy salvation, Day by day our hearts renew, ogth impart and consolation, Aid and bless in all we do, Till our praises, till our praises Round thy throne in heaven shall flow. 128 MORNING HYMNS. III. SWIFTLY THE SHADES OF NIGHT RETIRE. Swiftly the shades of night retire Before the morning's brilliant ray ; The eastern clouds, all tipp'd with fire, Chased by the sunlight, break away. O'er hill and dale, o'er wood and stream The gladd'ning tide of light is pour'd ; Awakened by th' inspiring beam Earth utters praises to the Lord. We wake, with morning's eastern fire, By slumbers sweet, refresh'd and blest ) Lord, touch our hearts; our souls inspire To praise thee for our tranquil rest. Shine on us, Sun of Bighteousness ! Dispel the darkness of our souls 5 With peace our daily labors bless, And all our thoughts and deeds control. MORNING HYMNS. 129 IV. THE LARK IS UP. The lark is up ; his matin song To the sweet winds of morn is given, Rejoicing, as with pinion strong He soars toward the gate of heaven. The joyous birds, in hedge and tree, Their early carols have begun, And mid the flowers the busy bee Begins her labors with the sun. Thus may our hearts at dawn of day, E'en like the lark, to heaven arise, And with the birds, in praise alway, Adore our Saviour in the skies. Contented with our lot, may we Our every duty gladly do, And daily, with the happy bee, Our life of happy toil renew. 9 EVENING HYMNS. V. BRIGHT IN HIS COURSE ON HIGH. Air — " Far, far o'er hill and dell." See Kingsley's Social Choir, Vol. I. page 149. Bright in his course on high, O'er the hills bending, Down the red western sky- Slowly descending, Lo ! the proud orb of day, Sheds his departing ray, With the clouds, far away, Brilliantly blending. B v B N 1 N G HYMNS. 131 On the calm river's breast, lines are sleeping, Imaging hearts at rest, In the Lord's keeping; — Preluding day's farewell Soft airs of evening swell ; Far over hill and dell, Like music, sweeping. As fades the light of day, Youth's joys are fading; Soon their most cloudless ray Care will be shading ; Let us then seek for light, Cloudless and ever bright, Hope's day and sorrow's night eetly pervadin 132 EVENING HYMNS Sisters ! when called to part, School ties to sever, When youth's bright days are past From us forever, May we remember then His love who died for men, Slighting his grace again, Never, never. So when life's shadows creep, Round us in sadness, Jesus our hearts shall keep Safe from sin's madness $ Help us to love and pray, Labor and watch alway, Shed round our dying day Heavenly gladness. 4 E V E N I N G H YMNS. 133 VI. EVENING PARTING HYMN. Words altered and adapted to the air in Kingsley's Social Choir, Vol. re 131. Bright be our parting, where Brightly we've met ; Voices of music are • Echoing yet ; Tones that we love to hear, Swell on the listening ear, Hark now, in accents clear Singing, good night ! God and good angels bright Watch o ? er our sleep ! Bless us with slumbers light, Peaceful and deep, Watched by His sleepless eye, While each fair star on hig-h. o Bends from the quiet sky, Looking, good night ! 134? EVENING HYMNS Brief be our parting where Gladly we'll meet 5 Morning shall call us, each Other to greet. Sweet be our rest in him Till the bright stars are dim, And the earth's matin hymn . Breaks on the night. VII. THE HEART'S SINCERE DEVOTION. The heart's sincere devotion To thee, O God, we owe ; To thee may each emotion In holy rapture flow. Before thy footstool kneeling, A youthful band are we ; May every thought and feeling Be sanctified by thee. E V E N I N G H V M N S . 135 In wisdom's richest treasures Teach us, O Lord, to find Those pure and noble pleasures Which satisfy the mind 5 With thy most gracious favor Regard and guide our youth, And aid our weak endeavor To seek and know the truth. In all our youthful duties Sustain and bless us still 5 Reveal to us the beauties Of thine own word and will. Teach us to seek thy glory, And live to thee alone, That so we may adore thee Around thy heavenly throne. 136 EVENING HYMNS. VIII. HOW SWEET WHEN DAILY TOILS ARE DONE. How sweet, w*hen daily toils are done, To meet, O God, before thy throne, To praise thee for thy ceaseless love, And ask thy blessing from above. Father ! thine eye has marked our way Through all the changes of the day ; Thy presence has been with us still, In joy or pain, in good or ill. If in the duties of this day, Our time, misspent, has passed away, Make us more earnest to repair The waste, by future zeal and care. If sinful thoughts our souls have stirred, If we in word or deed have erred, Humbly thy pardon we implore, And pray that we may sin no more, E V E N I N G II V M N 9 137 If oft our youthful hearts have strayed From thee, nor sought thy gracious aid, ;\e us, Lord, and grant that we May of thy love more mindful be. Be thou, O God, our guide and stay! Be with us on life's future way, Safe may we pass through death's cold gloom, And rise, immortal, from the tomb. For the idea and some of the language of the following little poem the author is indebted to Mr. Coxe's Christian Ballads. FOB, A BOTANICAL EXCURSION. We go — we go Where the green leaves grow, And the wild vines flourish fair ; Where the sweet perfume Of the woodland's bloom Is abroad on the summer air ! Where the violet With the dew is wet On the banks of the crystal streams, And the' lily-bell In the mossy dell Waves in the checkered beams. We go — we go Where the green leaves grow, And the wild vines flourish fair; Where the sweet perfume Of the woodland's bloom Is abroad on the summer air. FOR A BOTANICAL EXCURSION. 139 II. For a soft light smiles Through the forest aisles, And sleeps on the moss below ; And the merry tune Of the birds in June Sings welcome, as we go ; Where the walnut trees Wave in the breeze, And the broad elms cast their shade, The bell-flowers nod O'er the verdant sod, And the Cornus weaves its braid. The Rubus glows In green hedge-rows, And the brilliant laurels bloom ; And the woodbines cling Where the alders spring In the gray rock's pleasant gloom. 140 FOR A BOTANICAL EXCURSION III. We go — we go Where the wild flowers grow, To the wood — the dells — the streams ; In the early morn When the day is born Midst the dawn's reviving beams ; — In the sunset hour, When tree and flower Are bathed in loveliest hues 5 In the silver light Of the June twilight, Sweet sister of the dews. Oh then we go Where the green leaves grow, And the wild vines flourish fair ; Where the sweet perfume Of the woodland's bloom Is abroad on the summer air. LAKE GEORGE AT MIDNIGHT. How beautifully calm, how lone Beneath the summer midnight, lie Thy lovely waters, Horicon ! Imaged with hues from earth and sky. Around thee, as a guardian band, Wierd, wild and green, the mountains stand, By night's enchanting wand arrayed In softest tints of light and shade. Or, frowning o'er the rugged shore, Like ancient castles stern and hoar, Upon whose fancied tower and keep, Strong warrior forms are seen to sleep ; While dark and cold above them rise, Gray cliffs that seem to touch the skies, Relieved by fairy spots of green, And pine groves interposed between. 142 LAKE GEORGE AT MIDNIGHT. Lovely and mild, the summer moon Floats through the cloudless skies of June, Slowly, as if long watch to keep, O'er giant height and sparkling deep. Her rays, with softer, sweeter glow, Are mirror'din the lake below; And o'er the verdant isles that stud The bosom of the crystal flood, She sheds, divinely soft and clear, Midnight's serenest atmosphere. MORNING-. Faintly the young moon's silver horn Gleamed through the light gray clouds of morn, Where the crimson tints of dawn were blent With the deepening blue of the firmament, And the tremulous gloom on wave and shore ilelted away as the light came o'er. On high, the first sweet smiles of day, As half in anger and half in play, Seemed laughing the lingering clouds away : And the waning stars that all night long Had marshalled there their glittering throng, In the doubtful light grew paler yet, And faded away ere the young moon set. 144 MORNING Below, through the tops of the mountain pines, On the broad unbroken forest screen, O'er the bright-leaved sycamore's silent lines With their wealth of leaves and depth of green, The mellow light of morning fell, And slept, like a spirit, on rock and dell. Day broke at length all radiantly O'er sleeping earth and bending sky ; The heavy mists rolled fast and free From mountain gorge and summit high ) Midst purple mists and clouds of gold The morning sun rose bright and bold, And swiftly o'er the quiet hills, O'er blue lake and grim mountain side, O'er the dense woods and upland rills, Swept wave on wave, the golden tide. 310 B N 1 X G . 14-5 The forest depths are cool and green, The forest paths are quiet yet, And the soft light sheds its mystic sheen On the leaves which the dews have wet. Through the close canopy above, Falls here and there a brilliant ray> Like the gleam on the breast of the forest dove When she looks from her nest at the close of day. Through the cool and verdant aisles it steals, And glides, like a sprite, o'er the moss below ; And the snake in his coiled slumber feels Its fresh warm kiss, and loves it too. It has startled the stag in the hunting track, And the wish-ton-wish in the tamarack. The timid deer was up and away From his lair of leaves at the dawn of day, For he seeks the brook and the tender grass In the old familiar mountain pass. 10 ALDEBARAN. A SONG OF TIME'S CHANGES. 'Twas deepest night. The winter moon hung low, Floating along the distant verge of heaven, Full orbed and brilliant ; and the myriad stars, Afar in their unbroken fields of blue, Burned with a bright cold lustre. Earth and sea Lay hushed in sweet repose. The hills and plains, Robed in the glittering garments of the snow, Smiled in the silvery radiance ; and the woods Were decked with fairy tracery of ice, Casing the boughs with crystal, and the leaves With net-work, as of woven light and gems. Low hanging in the Occident with light, Ruddy, yet not less beautiful than that With which the countless orbs around him shone, Was Aldebaran, brave old sentinel, — Hoar watcher on the battlements of heaven ! The regent of the night he seemed ; and when I looked upon the congregated stars A L D E B ARAN. 117 Burning- around him, rank on rank, afar, Rejoicing in the upper sky, or faint Upon the hlue horizon, there arose Within my mind high thoughts ofHi^r, whose hand Had spread those boundless fields of space, and formed Those myriad orbs, and traced their glorious path Around his throne : — who reigns beyond them all, Throned in a glory, inaccessible To mortal thought, a light invisible To mortal eye; — adored by shining hosts, Whose brilliancy and number these fair stars But faintly image to the eye of man. — Adorable Creator, Ruler wise, The God of nature and of Providence ; Author and finisher of Redemption's work, Jehovah God Triune, the first, the last. In musings such as these, I saw the moon Go down behind the hills ; and as I gazed Upon the orb of Aldebaran, all The p Jesus, Incarnate Gob. ALDEBARAN. 15 1 On Joseph's prison-walls thy beams Through nights of sorrow fell, On Gosheifs fruitful fields and streams, Where Jacob came to dwell ; On the blest patriarch's dying bed, When tearful Israel bowed the head, Mourning a saint at rest ; On Joseph's dying hour, whence wo And hard oppression 'gan to flow From Egypt's kings, who ceased to know The God they once confessed. When wrath upon the oppressors came, And Israel, freed at length, Went out beneath the cloud and flame, Strong in Jehovah's strength, Thy light shone on the parted flood, The scene of overthrow and b'lood, The desert and the rock ; And when in all its stern repose The awful Mount before them rose, Curtained with gloom by him who chose That people for his flock. 152 ALDEBARAN, 'Twere long to tell of all the change, The strife — the sin — the wo — Successes proud, reverses strange, Triumph and overthrow — The long years of captivity, Endured in tears and misery, The joyous journey home , — The long and varied history Of the Prophetic age, till He, Promised from ancient days, should be Hailed as Messiah come. Thou saw'st the shepherds' vigil lone On plains of Bethlehem, When light from heaven around them shone, And pealed th' angelic hymn. Thy light on all Christ's earthly life, With trial, scorn and sorrow rife, Gleam'd changeless and serene — When praying 'neath the midnight sky, When wrestling on Gethsemane, And when he hung on Calvary- God suffering for men. A L D E B AR A X. 153 On Canaan's fruitful plains and hills Thy ruddy lustre shone, "Where green leaves waved, and laughing rills In light and song flowed on ; On the first idol-shrines that there Were reared for sacrifice and prayer, To gods of wood and stone 5 On Samuel's infant prayers and tears His life of toil, his godly years ; On Saul's rebellion, sins and fears, By pride accursed, undone 5 On Sion's courts, where David's lyre Awoke celestial strains, Thou lookedst with thine eye of fire : And o'er Judea's plains Thou saw'st the first grand temple rise All glorious, beneath the skies, In marble majesty 5 Thou sawest Israel's tribes go up From plain and vale to Sion's top, ( hi that high shrine to offer up Praise to the Deity. 154- ALDEBARAN, Thou saw'st enthroned upon her hills, And calm in conscious power, Old Rome her ordered task fulfil For the Messiah's hour. From Britain's isle to where the sea Sweeping round shores of Araby Laves the far Orient, Thou sawest her triumphant way; The nations, tranquil 'neath her sway, Waiting the dawn of Gospel day, The promised Word's intent. When the Barbaric deluge swept Fiercely o'er fallen Rome, And Europe long in darkness slept, In ignorance and gloom : — When freed from superstition's chain The mind of man was strong again ; And truth's celestial ray Dawned on the nations, faintly seen, Obscured, as she hath ever been, With earthly hues, still bright, serene, Dispersing error's night. A L D E B A R A N . 155 On England's martyr-pyres thy rays Shone, in that fearful time, When holy men amid the blaze Stood up, in strengh sublime, In meekness battling for the truth Through good and ill, through joy and ruth, Unshaken, undismayed, Holding the safe and middle path, Braving alike Rome's tiger wrath, And that fanatic zeal, which flings Firebrands amidst most sacred things, Oft cursing while it prayed. Thy beams shone on old Ocean's breast When the brave Genoese Traced his adventurous path, in quest Of new worlds o'er the seas : Thou saw'st the pilgrim fathers stand Adoring, on the wintry sand; Thou saw'st each after-scene, The battle field — the hour of strife, TIT appalling waste of blood and life, The midnight charge, with horror rife, The awful flames between. 156 ALDEBARAN. When the strong cry of liberty- Rolled o'er our favored land, And the glad anthem of the free Arose, to bless the hand Of the Almighty King, who broke The tyrant's chains, the oppressor's yoke, And gave our arms success ; Thy beams shone on our festal day, And mingled with the morning ray Of liberty, that broke away O'er all the joyous West. Thou saw'st the Church of God arise, To bless this favored land, Her rulers, faithful, humble, wise, Appointed at God's hand ; — The goodly tree beneath whose shade Our sires, our fathers' fathers prayed, In the blest olden time, Hath spread her verdant branches wide, From Eastern to the Western tide, And men adore the Crucified, Through all our spreading clime. A L D E B il R A N . 157 Old watcher of the night ! thy light In darkness shall expire, When earth and heaven shall melt away Beneath the sea of fire ; — Yet the immortal ones, whose way Through life's uncertain, varied day, Thy beams hath shone upon, Shall live when time shall be no more, And years and days for aye be o'er, In bliss rejoicing evermore, Or evermore undone. FORWARD. Speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward. Exodus xiv. 15. Forward ! — with zeal and faith, Unshaken, undismay'd ! For darkly round retreating steps Disaster is array'd. Arm thee with strength and soberness, Stout heart and patient mind ; Before thee, rest and triumph wait, Shame and defeat behind ! Forward! — thy journey lies Through darkness, strife and sin, And watchful journeying alone The distant goal may win : Trials and dangers throng the road, Temptations seek thy fall ; But God can give a dauntless soul, And victory in all. FORWARD. 159 Forward ! — thou art not left In solitude and fear : II liirlit from heaven streams o'er thy way Steady, serene and clear. The noble army of the just That selfsame way hath trod, And faithful brethren at thy side Wrestle for thee with God. Forward ! — the glorious arm That smote the sounding sea, And laid his people's journey there, I- still outstretched o'er thee. To guide thee to the promis'd rest, To guard — console — inspire, His still informs the cloud, • rollfl the pillar'd fire. 160 FORWARD. Forward ! — thou hast a gift Of confidence and might, Which earth and hell can never wrest Against thee, in the fight. The rock, the shield, the weapon keen, The spirit, and the power, • The blood-stained banner, all are thine In battle's fiercest hour. Forward ! — a mighty cloud Of witnesses surround ! The Church triumphant — angel hosts, Saints, prophets, martyrs crown'd, The Church, on earth yet militant, The tempter and the foe : — Forward ! before is victory, Behind dismay and wo. F K W A R D . 16 1 Forward ! — the trumpet peal Is ringing in thine ear, Th' archangel's voice, the trump of God, The judgment day is near. Strong as the blast o'er Sinai pour'd, Mid darkness, cloud, and flame, Thy Lord shall come to vindicate His everlasting name. Forward ! — child of God ! Soldier of Christ, press on ! Forward, struggling heir of heav'n, Until its gates are won. Faint not — for God goes forth with thee ; Fail not, his strength is thine ; Forward, unskaken, undismay'd, To rest and peace divine. 11 MISSIONARY WARFARE. ;< Long and faithfully may they wage it — and may the day be very far off when the feeblest shall falter therein, or desire to quit the field." I. Why should ye falter, noble men ! Soldiers of God most High ! When life hath nothing dear but Christ, And death is victory 1 Why should ye falter, hearts of steel ! Strong wrestlers for a name Above the poor rewards of earth, Its censure or its fame I MISSIONARY WARFARE. 163 II. Take courage, and right onward bear, Strong in your Leader's might ; Protected by his glorious arm, And guided by His light. All beautiful and clear it shines Above your toilsome way, Gilding the battle's waning night With hope of cloudless day. III. Dread foes may gather to molest Your journey as ye go — But ye shall break the lifted spear And snap the bended bow. Satan's high towers before your strength Shall crumble into dust, And hoary superstition leave The bulwarks of her trust. 164 MISSIONARY WARFARE. IV. What though sin's gloomy battlements, Above your onset, frown; And error from her lofty heights Looks menacingly down 1 Ye have a might invincible, A force, at faith's command, Before which neither pride of man, Nor power of hell may stand. Ye go to break the prison doors, To set the captive free, To visit the oppress'd with hope, The bound with liberty ! Joy to the captive do ye bring, And to the wounded, balm ; Strength to the soul o'erthrown by sin, And conquest's holy palm. MISSION A R Y WARFARE. 1G5 VI. The words of life divine ye bear To earth's remotest bound, Till every land our God shall own, And with his praise resound. Your feet on every mountain top Shine beauteous from afar, More lovely than the rise of morn, Or light of midnight star. VII. Gird on your armor then with strength, The gospel banner take, With both hands grasp the two-edged sword, And strike for Jesus' sake. Why falter, champions of Christ ! Soldiers of God most High, When life hath nothing dear but Christ, And death is victory. POEMS ff EARLIER DATS -'Tlie pleasing dreams of youth TIiujs fondly we retrace " Wordsworth. *** If the following articles should seem even less wor- thy of forbearance than those which precede them, the author has no apology to offer except that he has in- troduced them in compliance with the suggestion of a friend. BISHOP WHITE. "WHOSE FAITH FOLLOW. Shall we then mourn thee, venerable guide ! Father and friend ! — that thou at length hast trod The vale of death, and passed the bounds that hide The faithful from the Sabbath-land of God 1 Shall we then weep, that thy consoling voice, As that of seraphs, deep with love, may pour Its music on our ear, and we rejoice In the meek triumph of thy faith no more'? 170 BISHOP WHITE, 0, gifted as thou wert, and clothed with grace, With apostolic meekness, Zealand strength \ Nobly thou'st run the Christian's girded race, And to thy full reward art called at length. Long wast thou spared, the church of God to lead, To counsel and instruct in wisdom's ways, With sinners in the Lord's behalf to plead, And cause the tongue of man to sing his praise. Servant of God", well done ! around thy rest Sorrows the sacramental host, which thou, Mighty through God, with peace and joy hast blest, Though oft by trial worn, and made to bow 'Neath obloquy 5 — and as the light that gives Its tender radiance to the sunset sky, Hallowing and softening, thy memory lives Within the heart of Zion pure and high. BISHOP WHITE. 171 The leader, summoned from his post, we weep ! The worthiest of the consecrated band, In faith and years majestic, fall'n asleep, The brow unmitred — cold th' anointing hand. But yet for thee we glory and rejoice With joy unspeakable $ and mid the gloom That rests on thy departure, hear the voice Proclaiming light and strength beyond tomb. We mourn thee — even as those who, mourning bless The pilgrim journeying to his native clime, Watching to mark thy joyful footsteps press The sacred shore, beyond the stream of time, Where angels wait thy coming : many tears, Though not of bitterness, for thee are shed ; Tears of triumphant hope, that need not years To hallow them — nor perish with the dead. THE DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. Written on first seeing the beautiful monument in Trinity Church, New-York, where he is represented in his dying hour, supported by an angei who is pointing to a cross in the heavens. Soldier of Christ! put off thine armor now — Lay the bright weapons of the warfare down : The iron helmet on thy toil-worn brow Shall soon be changed for an immortal crown; Though legion'd foes thronged darkly round thy way, Firmly and nobly hath that way been trod ; And now thy night is bursting into day, Undaunted champion of the Church of God. DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. 173 Thou tried and faithful one ! thy soul was found Ever most strong against the bands of sin, Thy trumpet tones were ever heard to sound Foremost and loudest in the battle's din : A chosen watchman on the temple wall Thou wast ordained of God — to stand on hicrh. And loudly to his slumbering people call When the storm lower'd and the strife was nigh. That strife is past : — the victory is won — The hosts of sin wax'd pale as thou didst name The holy name of God's eternal Son ; And guilt's o'erclouded brow grew dark with shame. The cheering accents of the Gospel fell Like spring dews from thy lip, and mercy lent Her soft wings to thine ardent words, to tell Of love and hope for man's salvation sent. 174 DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART, Lo the bright cross ! look up, thou fainting one ! See through the temple of the upper sky A flood of glory streams, as from the throne Of God's eternal, cloudless majesty \ And from the hosts of the redeemed that there Wake their loud harps to ceaseless songs of love, A glorious strain seems bursting on the air To welcome thee to thy reward above. And thou art with the righteous — with the pure And holy men of heart that, from all time, Firm in that faith which stands for ever sure, Went forth like thee upon their path sublime — And in the throng of holy ones that now Worship the Saviour in the heavenly land, Thou, with the earth-mists fallen from thy brow, Standest most bright, and evermore shalt stand. DEATH OF BISHOP HOBART. 175 Strong, fearless champion of truth! the tears From many a mourning eye flow forth for thee — For the pure lahors of thine earthly years, Thy fervent love, and saintly charity. And though thy spirit's lamp hath ceased to shine Through the thick darkness of our mortal night, Yet on heaven's altar radiant, divine, It burnetii still with deeper, holier light. DIRGE* Thou hast fallen, friend and brother, Nobly, with thine armor on ; Thou hast fallen, and another Of that faithful band is gone. Early called, and richly gifted For thy high but brief career, Ere thy sword was well uplifted Thou wast lain upon the bier. Sion mourns thy loss in sadness ; Tears are shed, but not for thee ; Thou hast sown, to reap in gladness Light and life and victory : They who knew the noble spirit That within thy bosom burned, Joy that it doth now inherit That high bourne for which it yearned". * Written on the occasion of the sudden death of Henry H. Cook, a candidate for orders, who had it in his heart to preach the gospel to the natives of Africa. DIRGE. 177 13 m for that degraded nation O'er the wide and hostile deep, To whose ears the great salvation Thou didst sigh to bear, we weep. We lament a herald taken From God's sacramental host, And a soldier's place forsaken Ere he gained his chosen post. Tears are thine, youthful martyr, Tears of deep but patient grief, Which the wrung heart would not barter For the world's most prized relief ; For, though mournful notes are blending With the strains of earthly love, Triumph high, and joy unending Wait thee in the realms above. 12 ATHANASIA. O prseclarum diem quum ad illud divinum animorum concil- ium castum que proficiscar^ quumque et hacturbaetcolluvionedis- oedam ! — Cicero de Senec. 85. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet ap- pear what we shall be ; but we know that when he who is our life shall appear w r e shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. — 1 John iii. 2. Yes ! 'twas a lonely dream, which bard and sage Nursed in the depth of thought, when o'er the soul The consciousness of its true destiny Flashed like strong inspiration, and the light Of heaven arose to gild the gloom of earth. Tully, thou sayest well! the immortal mind, With its strange wealth of strength and nobleness, Fetter'd and chained by weakness and by sin, Shall live, when the frail dust which it informs Hath mingled with its kindred elements. ATHANASIA. 179 And is it but a dream 1 — a phantom light Which vain philosophy hath conjured up, Host beautiful but false 1 We thank thee, God ! It is not so. The rich and glorious truth Which master spirits of the olden time, By thought severe, and study long and deep, Drew out from reason's clearest, holiest founts. Is spoken by the Word of truth divine Even to the soul of universal man. Oh ! if in this our earthly pilgrimage There be imparted to the human mind One high sustaining gift which can support The spirit of a man in toil and wo, It is the knowledge of his destiny Beyond the brief and troubled scene of life. When care hath cast its blight and bitterness O'er the wrung heart, and sorrow as a cloud Comes down upon it ; when along our path The flowers of early hope lie withering, And the wide past is even as the grave Of all our best affections, and lone grief, With marble eye and brow, sits watching it ; — To rook beyond — to know that there is rest, 180 ATHANASIA. Eternal rest, and perfect happiness In the bright realms above, our fatherland — The spirit's glorious bourne — its shrine — its home. This, this is knowledge ; this is strength and power To find and fill the soul — to nerve the heart, And purify and elevate the mind, And give, in every scene of bliss or pain, Patience and cheerfulness, energy and hope. If in that awful hour, when earth recedes From our dim sight, when links are broken off And ties are sundered, which on earth shall be United never more ; if in the dread And palpable dismay of death, there be A gift consoling unto those that die And those that live, it is the strength, The patience, and the hope that cometh then From the assurance of eternal life, Vouchsafed to faith and meek obedience. Lo ! yonder scene of sorrow ! — there is lain Upon a dying couch, one who is loved And cherished with a depth of tenderness Which none but Christians know. The spoiler comes 3 — A T H A N ASIA. 181 The golden cord is broken — the mysterious wheel Of life is stilled, the fount is closed and dry! But there is calmness, and a blessed light Upon the lonely features of the dead, And there is mingled grief and holy hope Upon the brow of the sad weeper there ! Ask ye the secret of their patient trust? Though severed for a time, those ties shall be United, in a world where parting is A word unknown, and holiness and love Shall bind those tried and faithful hearts to God And to each other, in undying bonds. Father of all ! accept our feeble praise For this thy perfect gift — our perfect hope. Holy Redeemer ! to thy cross we come To learn the wisdom of immortal life. Eternal Spirit ! guide us on our way Until, with songs and everlasting joy I pon our heads, we tread the holy mount, In vision of our God, and take the harp, Whose music is the soul of harmony And love, to pour its strain of praise Around the throne, while countless ages roll. JOHN WICLIF. From out that midnight, so dark and deep, A voice cried, Ho, awaken ! And the sleepers aroused themselves from sleep, And the thrones of the earth were shaken. Rev. D. M. Moir. A stern yet glorious task was thine, Thou lion-hearted champion ! To wage, array'd with strength divine, A mortal fight with sin alone. To speak God's holy mandate out, Alike before the rack and throne : And drown oppression's rabble shout In conscious truth's majestic tone. JOH N W I C L I F . 183 Chosen in evil times to be The advocate of God with man, Thy stirring voice rang fearlessly In danger's Sfrim and threat'ninof van ; As sounds of warning, eloquent, Before a host's advancing path ; Or strong winds through the darkness sent ; Prophetic of the tempest's wrath. Thou didst not quail at power's frown, Thou didst not shrink when ghostly pride, With maniac zeal, was bearing down Its tens of thousands at thy side : Calm, firm, resolved, thy dauntless soul Still bore thee on, whate'er might be, Triumphant over earth's control, To more than earthly victory. 184 JOHN WICLIF To rescue truth oppress'd — to break The spiritual despot's rod ; To bid the slumb'ring mind awake — Such were thine arms, bold man of God! What were thy trials'? Chains and scorn — - The ruler's rage, the people's sneer. What thy rewards 1 Reproaches, borne In threats and curses to thine ear. And what thy triumphs 1 Is there traced No record on the page of time 1 Is that bright registry effaced Of holy strength and faith sublime 1 No ! thou art fitly honor'd now Among the excellent of earth ; And strong hearts leap forth to avow Thy Christian nobleness and worth* JOHN TV I C L I F , 185 For human praise thou didst not ask, glorious and victor one ! And God, for the gigantic task, Gave strength through his eternal Son. The Rock of Ages, firm abreast, Thou stood'st in perils and alarms, And calmly amidst all didst rest Upon the Everlasting Arms. MADELINE : A REMINISCENCE OF A LIBRARY* Suggested by a passage in Richter's Fixlein. We love to watch the golden dawn's uprise In the gray east, all beautiful and still, When the pale stars fade slowly from the skies, And mists roll dim and gradual from the hill Like wreathing incense, and the minstrelsies Of early birds is mingled with the thrill Of forest boughs, yet fragrant with the dew, Op'ning their verdant arches as the winds pass through. M ADELINE. 1S7 A scene like this, whate'er our lot may be, Time hallows to the soul with charms more rare ; Time steals away the glorious energy Of our young years, and hope grows dim in care ; But this hath tokens of the past which we Have linked in thought with all things sweet and fair, And blessed memories of those that stood Around our early path in holy brotherhood. A bright and gentle band they were, in sooth ! United as the odorous leaves that twine Around the household porch we lov'd in youth, Or kindred buds that beautify one vine ; And theirs was friendship garnered up with truth, And deep affection, hope almost divine, And gentleness unmarred, and pure intents Lending angelic grace to earthly lineaments. 188 MADELINE, A lovely image is before me now, A picture of the dead ; — no cloud is cast O'er the clear sunshine of that girlish brow To tell us of the shadows of the past. Thus beauteous in thine innocence wert thou, My sister Madeline, the loved and last ; Spared when the cherished group that brightly shone Upon my boyhood's eye, to their long rest had gone. Fifteen brief summers — they alone can tell How brief they were who knew thee as I knew — Had softened her strange beauty with a spell Of mingled innocence and grace — a hue Floating and dreamlike, yet remembered well In after years ; a purity that grew More heavenly with each succeeding day, As moonlight sweeter grows as night's hours roll away. M ADELINE. 189 The joy of all she was, and oft we deemed We entertained an angel unawares 5 So much unlike this actual earth she seemed, Too fragile foi its storms, and for its cares Too meek ; and guilelessly she dreamed Of that which comes to none, untroubled airs Of peace and love unclouded, and bright years Of happiness, and future bliss unlinked with tears. That bright dream was unbroken, while the clay Held its celestial inmate ; she was bless'd E'en as she wished until her dying day ; And, as a wave of sunlight on the breast Of ocean shed, melts tremulous away, She passed all beauteous and serene to rest, S iling with rapture at the glimpses given To her unclouded faith of God, and Christ, and hea- ven. 190 MADELINE. She loved the library $ yon chair of state, Eobbed of its fringe and gilded dignity, Was as her throne, where wond'ringly she sat Guessing in curious awe at what might be Buried in tomes antique and folios great, Figured with quaint device and tracery ; The lore of Rome, Cologne and Amsterdam, And works of master-minds in England's age of palm. Nor were these treasures all unscanned, I w T een ! That noble volume of the Saviour's life, Fabric most richly wrought of truth serene, By him, victim aud conqueror of strife, The sainted Taylor, long to her had been A mine with truth and calm devotion rife, A well of holy thought whose waters rose, Most clear and beautiful, and pure as Alpine snows. MADELINE. 191 And good George Herbert, pleasing bard and quaint, Whose solemn " temple," as his life on earth, Breathes of deep holiness, who loved to paint The village pastor's gentleness and worth, Fit record of that meek one militant ! And Parnell, — poet of immortal birth, Whose strain flows on, as crystal from the springs, Sweet language fitly linked to sweet imaginings. And Izaak Walton, with his pleasant tales Of those meek worthies of the olden time, Calm spirits girded with the strength that quails Before no mortal foe; whose faith sublime, Yet tranquil, in vicissitude avails To blunt temptation's edge and guard from crime : Beautiful legends of .the human heart Preserved for after days, true wisdom to impart. 192 MADELINE And here, each morn, ere the the first rays of dawn Fell softened throughthe casement, she would flee With simple flowers gathered from the lawn To deck the portait frames and tapestry, Shading her laughing glances, half withdrawn In bashfulness, and half in childish glee. How eloquent, on youthful lips, the words Of purity and virtue, flowing on E'en as the anthems of the summer birds, When the untainted air of heaven is won 5 Or like soft whisperings of angels, heard By those whose earthly race in faith is run, Breathing prophetic in its eloquent close Of an eternal rest for pain, and bliss for woes. MADELINE 193 She lived amon^ us as a beins: sent For a short season, and then called away, A gift of hope and love, in mercy lent To cheer and guide us onward on our way. The died, as dieth from the firmament The holy radiance of departing day! Peace to thy soul, sweet sister Madeline ! If not thy life, yet may thy gentle death be mine. 13 SCENE IN THE ALHAMERA. SUGGESTED BY A DESCRIPTION IN IRVINg's ALHAMBRA. Day dawned upon the castled hills, And on the sunny fields of Spain j And forests waved, and silver rills Burst on their joyous way again, And their low silvery music fell Upon the ear in plaintive mirth, Like a soft murmur of farewell From lips we hold most dear on earth ; When hopes which are a joy to feel> And dreams, we dare not all reveal, Stir the deep ocean of the heart, And make it rapture e'en to part. SCENE IN THE A L II A M B It A . 195 From convent lone, and turret gray, The matin bell rung out its tone, As if to greet the coming day, With music blither than its own: The friar kissed his cross, and knelt Beside the altar, rich and rare, To breathe the glowing praise he felt, Like incense on the fresh free air. The nun bent o'er her beads, and strove To utter all her glowing love : * Manhood and age, youth free and wild, Fair, dark-ey'd maid, and careless child, Sent up their mingled voices there, Winged with the eloquence of prayer. Hark ! from th' Alhambra's regal walls, Loud, stirring sounds come rolling on ; And the broad crescent banner falls, As if in homage to the sun, 196 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA Then waves from its proud height again, Where the stern Moslem lifts in vain, With bended knee and turban'd brow, The empty mockery of his vow. And woman's voice steals soft and low, By the bright fountain's silver glow, Mingling its accents with the breath Of roses, waving underneath. From grove of palm and orange bower, Gay voices greet the kindly hour ; The myrtle's twining leaves are stirred With the clear carol of the bird, That pours his grateful strain among The shaded arches, green and dim ; Where woman's gentle hands hath hung A bright and gilded home for him. And man's quick footsteps lightly bound, All careless o'er the sunny ground 5 Though dear the scene and blithe the air, Away ! ye must not linger there ; For the loud trumpet wakes to call Each idle loiterer to the hall ; SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. 197 Al Hassan holds his court to-day, And wo to him that dares to stray Where love and pleasure call their own, When once that trumpet's blast hath blown ! Lo ! in gay groups unto the court Grenada's chivalry resort ; And lance and sabre proudly shine, And helms of steel flash high in air, And silken banners bright, untwine Their waves of gold and azure there. And darkest plumes sweep proudly by Like clouds across a summer sky, And proud hearts 'neath the glancing mail, Throb quick and high, as if the tale Of hope, which they have long concealed, Already burned to be revealed. 198 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA Where the slight columns lift on high Their arches to the sculptured roof, Like lines of light along the sky, When sunset weaves her magic woof, Bright eyes, like sparkling orbs of dew That gem the violet's robe of blue, Gleam from the harem's rich recess, When fairy fingers waft aside The drapery's crimson sumptuousness ; And houri forms, like starbeams, glide Between the gilded peristyles ; And brows of light, and angel smiles, Shed all the glory of their glow On him who gazes from below. High seated on a brilliant throne, That from the bright hall's farthest niche With gold and polish'd jasper shone, In profuse splendor, over which SCENE IN THE ALHA3IBRA. 1 99 The silken curtain's fold of blue, Rose like a waving- sky to view; With eagle eye and haughty mein, Al Hassan gazes on the scene ; Yet, what though India's brightest gem Shines on his regal diadem 1 Though all the envied pearls that sleep ' In coral grottoes of the deep, Repose like stars upon his brow, It wears a cloud of terror now ; And all the wealth that glitters near, Can not dispel that shade of fear : And why 1 — go seek the fearful cause In broken faith and trampled laws ; — Though the bold mockery of pride, Will strive the rising thought to hide, Yet dark deceit, and shame, and sin, Hold dreadful revelry within. But where are they of yesternight 1 Alethinks the harp might louder swell, And eager glances beam more bright, With all the glowing hope they tell, 200 SCENE IV THE ALHAMBBA If one dark radiant eye that shone Upon the tournay's gathered glow, In days and hours brightly gone, Were there to bless its splendor now ! Faces of light and love are there, And brows of angel beauty gleam Like lilies in the sunny air, That cluster o'er a quiet stream. But she, the star before whose light The brightest there would seem less bright, The maid, to whom at eventide E'en stern Ah Hassan doffs his pride, And humbly sues on bended knee For love's sweet guerdon, where is she 1 A quick thought flushed the monarch's cheek " Bring in the stranger — he who came At dawn of day, alone and weak, A minstrel's sacred rights to claim ; SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA, 201 I marked his quick and flashing eye, As tremblingly he tottered by ; And marvelled much that age could light A glance so strangely wild and bright 5 — Ha ! minstrel — sooth, thou comest well, To grace our morning festival ; Doubtless thy harp is tuned to lays Of knightly strife in other days 5 Sing then of bold Abdallah's reign, The king and conqueror of Spain. The minstrel threw aside his vest, And showed the gilt cross on his breast, u Nay, Moor," he answered — a gold of thine Hath never crossed this palm of mine 3 And my loved harp is yet too free, So basely to be sold to thee 5 202 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. And Bertram's tongue shall never tell, The triumph of the infidel ; But I may sing of knights as brave ; The Christian host " " By Allah, slave ! Thy words, methinks, are strangely bold, For form so frail and hand so old ; Another taunt like that ; — beware, My hate is not a thing to dare ; And links of steel can quickly tame The heart that holds too high a flame. Why cam'st thou hither 1" " To demand Mercy — nay, justice — at thy hand ! The time may come when Bertram's word Shall not sound near thee all unheard : Know then — the maid, whose name e'en now Would call the crimson to thy brow, Is sought by men, as strong and brave As those whose plumes around thee wave !" SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. 203 "Ha! say'st thou so V* the Moor replied, While curled his lip with wrath and pride ; And from his dark eye shot the fire Of mingled triumph, scorn and ire 5 " Ha ! say' st thou so 1 — rash wretch, away ! Thine eye shall never see the day ! The chain — the rack — Al Hassan brooks Nor murm'ring lips, nor wrathful looks. Seize the false villain — to the keep — Alhambra hath not cell too deep, Or chain too galling for the slave, And his shall be a living grave !" Like a quick flash, at midnight sent Across the clouded firmament, The minstrel gained the folding door And struck the wardour to the .floor, . 204 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. While curses deep and tones of fear, Poured like a tempest on his ear. A strong hand grasped his robe ; it fell — His minstrel hood flies from his brow : Allah il Allah ! loudly swell Those sounds of Moslem vengeance now, High gleams his sabre in the air ; No more the arm of age is there ; His youthful brow is high and pale, His eye hath all a lion's rage 5 His form is girt with flashing mail, And bent no more by age ! Now rouse ye — rouse ye, one and all, His step is sounding in the hall, And the high porch is won — " Speed to the tower," Hassan cried, Unless its portal be denied, By Mahmud ! we're undone." CENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. 205 Loud Bertram'! straining accents rose Above the curses of his foes, And mid that fierce and wrathful throng, His battle cry rung loud and long. He faints at length — th' unequal strife Of blood for blood, and life for life, Though nobly waged and long sustained, Gives hope of nought but vengeance gained. And must he die a death like this 1 Unshrived, unblessed, while Pagans hiss, In impious mockery, to see His last hour's fearful agony 1 'Twere well, upon the listed field, INI id trumpet clang and flashing steel, "Where banners richly wave, to yield The spirit up : but oh ! to feel, When life is ebbing slow away, A foeman's foot upon our clay ! And while we darkly gasp, to hear Nought but contumely whispered near! He slowly faints — is there no charm To wing the sword with lightning now 1 206 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. i To nerve with strength the drooping arm, And lend more freshness to the browl He leaned against the pillared wall, Though faint and weak ; unconquered yet, As if no terror could appal His sun-like spirit, till it set. Though death be near, it cannot dim The eagle soul that burns in him. With hasty step and menace loud, Al Hassan darted from the crowd, And paused before the youthful knight, As if to mark his mein aright : Too late — a shriek — a thrilling cry Rung loudly through the vaulted hall ; The monarch turned his wrathful eye, And stayed the arm about to fall. " Ha, fool !" he cried, " and is it so — My very Haram yields a foe 1 Back, woman ! heart so weak as thine, Should seek a more enticing shrine !" SCENE IN THE A L II A M B B A . 207 Zitella heard him not; but hurried past, Her dark hair wildly o'er her forehead cast ; Love, hope and terror struggling in her glance, Too full for words, too strong for utterance. Upon her cheek a transient flush reposed, Like light on flowers, ere the day has closed ; But yet no tear bedewed that changing cheek, Whate'er her grief, she dared not now be weak. A hostile arm in vain her path denied ; Faithful in death, she sprang to Bertram's side, And her blanched lips seemed whispering to his soul That fervent love which death could not con- trol. Fondly his pale lips touched her drooping brow, So bright before, so death-like pallid now — Then stood as firm and nobly as before, For all the bitterness of doubt was o'er; And the frail form that clung upon his breast .Must be sustained, though death should bring the rest. 208 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA, Still darker grew Al Hassan's haughty eye. And must the pure in heart so vainly die, E'en when the links of human love do cling Most tenderly around the spirit's win£ 1 Hath this dark world, alas ! no brighter doom For such most strong affection, than the tomb I 'Tis even so ! The word of death is given — Ye reft of earth, now put your trust in heaven ! "Peace, love," Zitella cried, "myhorae is here! Though dangers come, and frowning foes are near, Yet I can dare them all, when thou dost twine Thy failing hand thus trustingly in mine ; And thy warm heart, thus throbbing to mine own, Makes e'en this place more valued than a throne." " 'Tis well," Al Hassan spake, " yet shalt thou gain Nought of the promised pleasure with the pain : SCENE i JN THE ALIIAMB1U, 20i) Ho ! bind the maiden — bear her from the hall ! My words are wont not idly thus to fall ! Now yield thee, knight, for Moslem steel is true ! And canst thou wish for blood to flow anew, Mingled perhaps with hers, who here hath shown Thy worthless life more sacred than her own 1" Calm as the marble, that uprose In stately grandeur, where he stood, Bertka3I still glared upon his foes, In ail save his own heart subdued. He turned to gaze upon the form That hung all breathless on his arm ; And a brief cloud of anguish came Across his forehead's burning flame ; And, for one moment, o'er his cheek There shot a quiver wild and weak, H 210 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. And a slight tremor thrilled the hand That bade defiance to the band ; But for one moment — then again His spirit held its wonted reign : " Aye, come ! a darker hour hath been My lot amid the strife of men, And my strong soul hath never quailed, When even death itself prevailed." Hark ! hark ! — a free and joyous shout ! A trumpet loudly sounds without ; And a deep cry of voices flung In triumph from the lofty wall Above the guarded tower, rung In startling wildness through the hall: " The cross ! the cross ! — Ho ! strike for Spain ! Shall woman's wrongs call forth in vain 1 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. 211 The cross !" And at that thrilling sound, A thousand lances touched the ground, Sudden and fearful, as the light Of falling stars at dead of ni^ht. A steed is at the castle gate, Caparison'd in lordly state ] A manly form is bending o'er A fainting maiden at the door. He lifts her on the barb — away ! The doubtful strife forbids delay ! A distant land must yet be won, For thee and her, ere set of sun. Night came — the blue and glorious night That gilds the radiant sky of Spain ; And stars shed down their mellow light, Beauteously on hill and plain, 212 SCENE IN THE ALHAMBRA. Like a band of seraphs keeping Silent watch, when earth is sleeping, Shining on, for ever clear, Like eyes of love when hope is near. In gay Toledo's orange bowers, Blithe music winged the fleeting hours, And the voice of love and song Breathed the moonlit waves along : 'Tis well : to-morrow's kindly sun, Shall gladden all he shines upon, And when his latest ray shall beam, Lingeringly on mount and stream, In her own bower at. eventide, Zitella shall be Bertram's bride. THE GHEBER'S DYING HYMN. I. Thou glorious minister of day! that now, On the rich bosom of the crimson wave, E'en as a king, dost rest thy dazzling brow, While earth lies hushed before thee, like a slave, 'Tis fit that this my parting hour, should be, Monarch of light and loveliness, with thee. 214 the gheber's II. For I have loved thy presence ; oft at mom When Iran's worshippers before thee knelt, And thou o'er earth and sky, in radiant scorn, Didst fling thine ardent kiss, as if to melt The world to thine embrace — thy light became To my fond soul a passion, and thy name III. Was as the memory of early dreams, Nursed in the depth of thought, which after years But hallow as they glide — or as the streams Which we are wont to love, before the tears, That darkly hang above life's older day, Have cast their shadows round our earthly way. DYING HYMN. 215 IV. Primeval Fountain of unfading light ! Shadow of Him who holds his glorious throne Enshrined in awful majesty and might, In the full splendor of thy burning zone ! Thou art the spirit's altar, and the shrine Of our deep thought, when thought is most divine ! Is not thy sitting beautiful 1 The west Is diadem'd with clouds, and the young stars, Like sentinels, to guard thy kingly rest, Marshal around thy couch their silver cars, And the broad moon, all beautiful and still, Smiles like a Peri, o'er the eastern hill. 216 the gheber's VI. My spirit breaks its slumber. A deep spell Of power is upon me. I behold Legions of those mysterious shapes which dwell On that bright sea, that rolls its waves of gold Around the sapphire palaces, that rise Magnificent beyond the curtained skies. VII. And there are radiant forms, and eyes that shine In their soft, lustrous beauty, like the dew That halloweth the flowers which entwine Around the silver fountains of Merou 5* And fairest brows, upon whose calm repose Is traced that love, which there forever glows, * " Among Merou's bright palaces and groves."-^ Veiled Prophet- DYING HYMN. 217 VIII. A hoy task is theirs. Around the throne Of the o'ershadowing Glory, that doth fill That spirit-clime with beauty all its own, Veiled from created eyes, yet awful still, They bow, in breathless homage, to adore With worship meet, and fervent evermore. IX. And oh the brightest there ! upon whose wings That awful and unwhispered spell is writ By Mitfra's burning hand, to which all things Withn the temple bow adoring it ; The bri^itest of the genii that hold Their cetseless watch around the throne of gold, 218 the gheber's X. Which, in that wondrous fabric where he dwells, Stands like a column of hewn flame, and bums With the strange incense which the circling spells Do pour unceasing from their starry urns — Pseaned by silver harps, whose tremulous strings Are fed with harmony from viewless wings ! XL Why art thou dim, my soul % The mists o earth Yet darken round thee, and its clinging «hain Yet cumbereth thy wing ! Is not thy birtr Within the splendor of that solemn fane — To weave, eternally, thy fervent hymn Around the shrine \ — Oh wherefore art tfou dim % DYING HYMN. 219 3Iy spirit faints ; — the glorious sun hath past Like a swift thought away, and the bright hues That gilded his pavilion, melt at last, And night comes on with stars, and winds, and dews, Cold — cold ; — the flame grows brighter on the shrine Earth, where art thou 1 High Spirit, I am thine ! SONNET. Daughter of Heaven, star-eyed Freedom ! — thou To whom the brave lift up their ardent eyes, To catch the deep light burning on thy brow, And the strong fervor of thy native skies ! To thee, through countless years, the heart hath knelt, — To thee the soul its gushing vows hath po ured — And godlike men grew breathless as thy felt The proud and tameless spirit they adored. SONNET. 221 Thy throne is high in heaven — e'en as a star Pouring its splendor through the night of time , We hail thy kindling radiance afar, Though dimmed, yet bright — though clouded yet sublime ! Free as the lion- hearts that own thy sway ! Strong as the noontide sun, and glorious as the day! o- NEW WORKS & NEW EDITIONS. The undersigned have the pleasure of presenting to you a ropy of their Catalogue of imp >nant Publications in the several departments of Literature. They would particularly direct your attention to that admirable series of devotional works by Bishop Patrick, Btshop Wilson, Doctor Sutton and others, which have received the un- qualified commendation of the rhurch. In a letter received rom Bishop Whittingham, he says, ' I had forgotten to express my very great satisfaction at your commencement of a series of devo- tional works, lately re published in Oxford and London." Again, Bishop Doane says ol this, '• I write to express my thanks to you for reprints of the Oxford books ; first, for reprinting such books, and se- condly, in such a style I sincerely hope you may be encouraged to go on, and give them all to us. You will dignify the art of print- ing, and you will do great service to the best interests of the coun- try." The undersigned also beg to refer to their beautiful edition of the Poetical Works of Soutiiey, also to that excellent series of M Tales for the People and their Children," by Mary Howitt and ohters, and to that extensive series of popular works for general reading, uniting an interesting style with soundness of Christian principle, such as the works of Archbishop Magee, Guizot, John Angell James, Miss Sinclair, Rev. Robert Philip, Rfcv. Augustus Wm. Hare, Jno. Pye Smith, Frederick Augustus Schlegel, Isaac Taylor, Dr. VV C Taylor, Rev. Dr. Sprague, &c. &c. They also publish those very popular _< s and Travels by Rev. H. Southgate, cf the Episcopal . and Fitch \V. Taylor, together with the Memoirs of General Alexander Hamilton by his son; and will continue to publish standard and popular works, and trust to merit a con- tinuance of public favour. D. APPLETON & Co. Emjr ■ I Literature, i >RK. 'jT !>■ A. fc Co.'s Catal igue of English Books (critical and explanatory; will shortly be ready for delivery. O- o- New Works and New Editions -o SCHLEGEL'S PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORY, The Philosophy of History, in a course of Lectures delivered at Vienna, by Frederick Von Schlegel. translated from the Ger- man, with ocial happiness, and in another perverted to the production of general misery. For this purpose the author has separately examined the principal elements by which society, under all its aspects, is held together, and traced each to its source in human nature. He has then directed attention to the development of these principles, and pointed out the circum- stances by which they were perfected on the one hand, or corrupted on the other." i " We perceive by the preface that the work has had throughout, the superin- tendence ofthe very learned Archbishop YYhately." —New-York American. CARL, IE ON HISTORY AND HEROES. HERO, HERO-WORSHIP. AND THE HEROIC IN HISTORY. Six Lectures, reported -with, emendations and additions. By Thomas Carlyle, author of the " French Revolution,'' "Sar- or Resartus," &c. Contents — The Hero as Divinity, Odin, Paganism, Scandinavian Mythology, The Hero as Prophet, Mahomet, Islam ; The Hero as Poet, Dante, Shakspeare; The Hero as Priest, Lutber, Reformation, Knox, Puritanism ; The Hero as Man of Letters, Johnson, Itossrau, Burns; The Hero as King, Cromwell, Napoleon, Modei u Rt-voiut onism. 1 vol. l w 2mo., beautifully printed on fine white paper. THOUGHTS IN PAST YEARS : A beautiful collection of Poetry, chiefly Devotional. By the Au- thor of the Cathedral. 1 vol. royal lOmo. elegantly printed. Q- -C o o Published by D. Appleton S? Co. 3 MEDITATIONS ON THE SACRAMENT. Godly Meditations upon the most Holy Sacrament of the Lorl'g Supper. By Christopher Sutton, D I)., late Prebend of West- minster. 1vol. royal 16mo., elegantly ornamented. LEARN *T0 DIE. Disce Mori, Learn to Die, a Religious Discourse, moving every Christian man to enter into a serious remembrance of his end. liy Christopher Burrow, D D,, sometime Prebend of West- minster. I vol. 16mo, elegantly ornamented. SACRA PRIVATA: Private Meditations, Devotions and Prayers Of the Right Rev T.Wilson, D. D., Loid Bishop of Soder and Man. First complete edition. 1 vol. royal 16mo., elegantly or- namented. First complete edition. A Discourse Concerning Prayer And tiie Frequenting Daily Public Prayers. By Simon Patrick, D.D., sometime Lord Bishop of Fly. Edited by Francis E. Paget. M A , Chaplain to the Lord Bishop of Oxford. 1 vol. royal lGino., elegantly ornamented. HEART'S EASE: Or a Remedy against all Troubles ; WITH A Consolatory Discourse, Particularly addressed to those who liave lost their friends and dear relations. Bj Simon Paihmk, 1)1)., sometime Lord Bishop of 1 vol. royal lonio., elegantly ornamented. SCIIiniRE und GEOLOGY. On til- - the Holy Scriptures and Mine parti of G :ii, D.I) , author of the Scripture Tcttiiuonj i vol. 12mo. 6 1 O ! 4 New Works and New Editions TOUR THROUGH TURKEY and PERSIA. Narrative of a Tour through Armenia, Kurdistan, Persia, and Meso- potamia, with an Introduction and Occasional Observations upon the Condition of Mohammedanism and < hristianity in those countries. By the Re v. Horatio Southgate, Missionary of the American Episcopal Church. 2 vols. 12mo. plates. Magee on Atonement and Sacrifice. Discourses and Dissertations on the Scriptural Doctrines of Atone- ment and Sacrifice, and on the Prim ipal Arguments advanced, and the Mode of Reasoning employed, by ihe Opponents of those Doctrines, as held by the Established Church. By the late Most Rev. William Magee, D. D., Archbishop of Dublin. 2 vols, royal 8vo., beautifully printt d. SOUTHEY'S POETICAL WORKS. The complete collected edition of the Poetical Works of Robert Southey, Esq., LL.D . edited by himself. Printed verbatim from the ten volume London edition. Illustrated with a fine por- trait and vignette. I vol. royal 8vo. " The beauties of Mr. Southey's Poetry are such that this collected edition can hardly fail to find a place in the Library ol every person fond of elegant l : tera- tuae. "—Eclectic Review. " Southey's principal Poems have been long before the world, extensively read, and highly appreciated. Their appearing in a uniform edition, with the author's final corrections, will afford unfeigned pleasure to those who are married to im- mortal verse." — Literary Gazette. " this edition of the works of Southey is a credit to the press of our country." — JY. A. Keview. GUIZOT'S HISTORY of CIVILIZATION. General History of Civilization in Europe, from the Fall of the Ro- man Empire to the French Revolution. Translated from the French of M GU1ZOP. Professor of History to la Faculte des Leltres of Paris, and Minister of Public Instruction. 2d Ameri- can, from the last London edition. 1 vol. 12mo. BICKERSTETH'S COMPLETE WORKS. The Works o' the Rev. Edward Bickersteth, Rector of Man- ton, Hertfordshire, containing Scripture, Help Treatise on Pray- er, the Christian Hearer, the Chief concerns of Man lor Time and Eternity, Treatise on the Lord's Supper, and the Christian Stu- dent. I vol. 8vo. Q- Published by D. Appleton 8? Co. -o THE LIFE OF ALEXANDER HAMILTON. Edited by liis son, John C. Hamilton. S vols, royal 8fo. ' We cordially recommend the perusal and diligent study of these volumes, ex- hibiting, as they do. much valuable matter relative to the Revolution, tl • lishraent of the Federal Constitution, and other important events in the annals of our country. "— Aetc-l'oK- JZ SCOTLAND and the SCOTCH; OR, THE WESTERN CIRCUIT. By Catherine Sinclair, author of Modern Accomplishments, Modern Society, Ace. 1. IfiUlO. " The circumstances under which tliis liitle volume, for the amusement of children, htts been produced, rive an additional charm to its truth, simplicity, and feeling. The tale, though in one p&aa&ge sorrowful enough to moisten - fun ol interest and character. The latter. tildren as the former; and they will take as Lively an interest in Ailwin'a ignorant and unselfish fidelity and her stalwart arms, and in Roger Redfurn the _ ns of better nature, as in the dewektpement of the main Incident ot" the book, a disastrous flood which ev&statioa over the Isle of Axholme two hundri I years ago."— Athe- I ■ Mai lineau, written to inculcate and illustrate, by practical examples, the truths ot political economy, will survive her later and more controversial works. So in this little story of the History and ill- treatment of some Dutch settlers, in the fens of Lincolnshire— during the wars of the Parliament because they were strangers, and i ause, moreover ; they interfered with the wild and ague-shaken gunners and fishermen of the tens,— we see again the same shrewdness of observation — the same real interest in the welfare of the humble classes — the same sagacity, and occasional natural pa- thos, which rendered the politico-economical tracts so attractive, in despite of their name and subject." — New- York American. EARLY FRIENDSHIP : a Tale by Mrs. Copley, 1 vol. 18mo., plates. In introducing the name of a new writer to this series of popular works, the publishers cannot but express their desire that all who have purchased previous volumes, will buy this, being- ass ured it will ommend itself to the reader so that the name of Mrs. Copley will soon, like the name of Howitt, be a passport to the notice and favour of the whole reading community. FAMILY SECRETS : or Hints to those who would make Home Happy, by Mrs. Ellis, author of "The Women of England," " Poetry of Life," etc. '• The tendency of this book is one of the best and noblest. The scenes and characters are, it is believed, portraits. Aiming as it does at the correc- tion of a too prevalent vice — it is expected that the Family Secrets will com- mand amongst the serious and thinking part of the community as extensive a populai. {ickkbydoea in its peculiar circle." PAST DAYS; a Story for Children. By Esther Whitlock. Square lsmo. "It is a delightful, instructive little book ; and if the child, when she closes the volume, find her 'eyes red with weeping,' let her not be ashamed ; one old . grandfather) caught the &ame disease from the same source." —Philadelphia United State* Gazette. HAZEN'S SYMBOLICAL SPELLING-BOOK. The Symbolical Bpellfng Book, in two parts. By Edward Ha- zkn. Containing 386 engravings, primed <»n good paper. " This work, is already introduced into upwards of one thousand different • ie of the beat works published. 6 o o 12 New Works and New Editions lafevcr's Modern Architecture, Beauties of Modern Architecture; consisting of Forty-eight Plates of Original Designs, with Plans, Elevations and Sections, also a Dictionary of Technical Terms, the whole forming a complete Manual for the Practical Business Man. By M. Lafevkr, Archi- U ct. 1 vol. large 8vo. half bound. Lafever's Stair-Case and Hand-Rail Construction. The Modern Practice of Stair-Case and Hand-Rail Construction, practically explained in a series of Designs. By M. Lafkver, Architect. With Plans and Elevations for Ornamental Villas. Fifteen plates. 1 vol large 8vo. Keightly's Mythology for Schools, The Mythology of Ancient Greece and Italy, designed for the use of Schools. By Thomas Keightly. Numerous wood cut illustra- tions. 1 vol. 18mo. half bound. POLYMICRIAN NEW TESTAMENT, Numerous References, Maps, &c. 1 vol. 18mo. By J.K.Paulding, Esq. Illustrated with one hundred unique original plates by Chapman. Elegantly bound. 1 vol. 12mo. JU 3 Preparing for Publication. LEARN TO LIVE. Disce Vivere, Learn to Live; wherein is shown that the Life of Christ is, and ought to be, an express Pattern for imitation unto the life of a Christian. By Christoiher Sutton, D D., some- time Prebend of Westminster. 1 vol. IGnio. elegantly printed. The Early English Church ; By the Rev. Edward Churton, A.M. 1 vol. 16mo. With a Pre- face by the Right Rev. Bishop Ives. -o o Preparing for Publication. 13 PALMER'S TREATISE on the CHURCH. A TREATISE ON THE CHURQH OF CHRIST, Designed chiefly for the ita in Theology. By the Rev. William Palmkr, M.A., of Woicester College, Oxford. Edited, wiiii Notes, by the Right Key. \V. R. Wbtttxngham, D.D., Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the diocese of Maryland. '2 vols. Bvo. Handsomely printed on fine paper. The Beauties of the Country ; ByTnoM.vs Miller; author of " Rural Sketches," "Day in the Woods," &.c. HISTORY OF NAPOLEON, From the French of M. Laurent dl L'Ardeche. With Five Hundred Illustrations, alter Designs by Horace Vernet. 2 vols. 8vo. The Selected Beauties of British Poetry, With Biographical and Critical Notices, and an Essay on English Poetry. By Thomas Campbell. One handsome volume, royal 8vo. ai?iaa Ai?®g , sp®2&302« From the last London edition. 1 vol. lCmo. elegantly printed. Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe. By Daniel Defoe. With Three Hundred Illustrations ; after De- signs by Grandville. 1 vol. 8vo. THE PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF MANKIND. From the German of Herder. Th«- History of the Reformation in Germany. Bj Lkopolb von Kanke, author of the History of the Popes. Translated by Sa- rah Austen. O 1 -o ' o Recently Published. The Sacred Choir: A COLLECTION OF CHURCH MUSIC. Consisting of Selections from the most distinguished authors, among whom are the names of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Pergo- lessi, &c. &c ; with several pieces of Music by the author ; also a Progressive Elementary System of Instruction for Pupils. By George Kingsley, autnor of the Social Choir, &c. &c. Fourth edition. B3"" 'J ne following are among the many favourable opinions expressed of this work. From L. Meignen, Professor of Music, Philadelphia. ; " G. Kingsley, " if it, — I have carefully perused Ihe copy of your new work, and it is with the greatest pleasure that 1 now tell you that I have been highly gratified with the reading of many of its pieces. The harmony throughout is full, effective and correct; the melodies are well selected and well adapted; and 1 have no doubt, that when known and appreciated, this work will be found in the library of every choir whose director feels, as many do, the want of a complete reformation iu that department of music. .Believe me, dear sir, " Yours respectfully, " L. Meignen." From Mr. B. Denman, President of the David Sacred Music Society, Philadel- phia, to George Kingsley. "Dear sir, — Having examined your ' Sacred Choir,' I feel much pleasure in re- commending it as the very best collecliun of Church Music I have ever seen. It combines the beauties oi other books of the kind, with some decided improve- ments in selection, arrangement and composition, and commends itself U» the choir, the pailour and social circle. Y\ ishing you the success your valuable and well-aranged work iierits, I am, sir, • " Yours respectfully." From the Committee of the Choir of Yale College. ~" Sir,— We have been using for some time past your new publication in the choir with which we are connected. We take pleasure in statiu^ to you our en- tire satisfaction with the manner in which it has been compiled and harmonized, and would willingly reeommend it to any of the associations desiring a collection of Sacred Music of a sterling character and original matter. The melodies are quite varied and of an unusually pleasing character; and uniting, as they do, the devotional with the pleasing, we have no hesitation iu giving them our preference to any other collection of a similar character at present in use among the churches." From Three Leaders of Choirs. <* Mr. George Kingsley. "Sir,— We have examined the 'Sacred Choir' enough to lead us to ap- preciate the work as the best publication of Sa> red Music extant. It is beautifully printed and substantially bound, conferring ci edit on the publishers. We bespeak for the ' Sacred Music Choir' an extensive circulation. Sincerely yours, " U. S. Bowdoin. " E. O. Goodwin. '• 1>. lngraham." O O Q < EMPORIUM FOR STANDARD LITERATURE, English and American. D. APPLETON 86 Co. Beg leave fo invite the attention of their Fiiends and the Public generally, to their Choice and Unique Assortment of the most im- portant Works that emanate from the English and American Pre^s. Their Establishment is distinguished by its large collection of Standard Works in the several departments of Theology, Civil and Ecclesiastical History, Poetry, Natural and Moral Philosophy, Architecture and Engineering, General Bio- ori HY, Voyages and Travels, Fine Arts, Classical and General Literature. 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