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diff --git a/old/50064-0.txt b/old/50064-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 95f8b66..0000000 --- a/old/50064-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,9749 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, Proverbial Philosophy, by Martin F. Tupper - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: Proverbial Philosophy - The First and Second Series - - -Author: Martin F. Tupper - - - -Release Date: September 27, 2015 [eBook #50064] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PROVERBIAL PHILOSOPHY*** - - -E-text prepared by Jonathan Ingram, Chris Pinfield, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 50064-h.htm or 50064-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/50064/50064-h/50064-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/50064/50064-h.zip) - - -Transcriber's note: - - Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - - Small capitals have been replaced by full capitals. - - The illustrations sometimes include the title of a section - of the poem, lines from the section (not reproduced), text - not forming part of the poem, or the initial letter of the - following stanza. Initial letters are placed in quotation - marks. - - - - - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration: Proverbial Philosophy] - - - - -PROVERBIAL PHILOSOPHY. - -(THE FIRST AND SECOND SERIES.) - -by - -MARTIN F. TUPPER, M.A., D.C.L., F.R.S., - -Of Christchurch, Oxford. - -Illustrated. - -A New Edition. - - - - - - - -[Illustration] - -London: -Edward Moxon & Co., Dover Street. -1867. - -London: -Bradbury, Evans, and Co., Printers, Whitefriars. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - -_FIRST SERIES._ - PAGE - - PREFATORY 1 - THE WORDS OF WISDOM 4 - OF TRUTH IN THINGS FALSE 8 - OF ANTICIPATION 12 - OF HIDDEN USES 14 - OF COMPENSATION 21 - OF INDIRECT INFLUENCES 27 - OF MEMORY 33 - THE DREAM OF AMBITION 38 - OF SUBJECTION 41 - OF REST 51 - OF HUMILITY 55 - OF PRIDE 59 - OF EXPERIENCE 62 - OF ESTIMATING CHARACTER 65 - OF HATRED AND ANGER 74 - OF GOOD IN THINGS EVIL 76 - OF PRAYER 81 - THE LORD'S PRAYER 86 - OF DISCRETION 88 - OF TRIFLES 92 - OF RECREATION 95 - THE TRAIN OF RELIGION 100 - OF A TRINITY 103 - OF THINKING 107 - OF SPEAKING 115 - OF READING 119 - OF WRITING 121 - OF WEALTH 125 - OF INVENTION 130 - OF RIDICULE 134 - OF COMMENDATION 137 - OF SELF-ACQUAINTANCE 142 - OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS 150 - OF FRIENDSHIP 153 - OF LOVE 158 - OF MARRIAGE 161 - OF EDUCATION 167 - OF TOLERANCE 177 - OF SORROW 181 - OF JOY 184 - -_SECOND SERIES._ - - INTRODUCTORY 189 - OF CHEERFULNESS 192 - OF YESTERDAY 197 - OF TO-DAY 203 - OF TO-MORROW 207 - OF AUTHORSHIP 210 - OF MYSTERY 219 - OF GIFTS 227 - OF BEAUTY 233 - OF FAME 250 - OF FLATTERY 258 - OF NEGLECT 266 - OF CONTENTMENT 275 - OF LIFE 281 - OF DEATH 288 - OF IMMORTALITY 297 - OF IDEAS 317 - OF NAMES 321 - OF THINGS 327 - OF FAITH 331 - OF HONESTY 341 - OF SOCIETY 348 - OF SOLITUDE 357 - RECAPITULATION 362 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. - - -_FIRST SERIES._ - DESIGNER. ENGRAVER. PAGE - - Title Page GUSTAVE DORÉ. _W. J. Linton._ - Floral Title H. N. HUMPHREYS. _J. Swain._ - Prefatory J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 1 - " " " 3 - The Words of Wisdom H. N. HUMPHREYS. _H. Vizetelly._ 4 - Memory and Diligence M. F. TUPPER. _W. J. Green._ 5 - Of Truth in Things False J. GILBERT. _Dalziel Brs._ 7 - Of Anticipation T. DALZIEL. " 12 - Of Hidden Uses E. DUNCAN. " 14 - " B. FOSTER. _H. Vizetelly._ 18 - Of Compensation J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 20 - " " " 25 - Of Indirect Influences E. H. CORBOULD. " 26 - " G. DODGSON. " 29 - " W. SEVERN. _H. Vizetelly._ 32 - Of Memory W. L. LEITCH. _Dalziel Brs._ 33 - " B. FOSTER. _H. Vizetelly._ 36 - The Dream of Ambition M. F. TUPPER. _W. J. Green._ 38 - Of Subjection E. H. CORBOULD. _Dalziel Brs._ 48 - Of Subjection E. H. CORBOULD. _Dalziel Brs._ 49 - Of Rest M. F. TUPPER. _W. J. Green._ 53 - Of Humility J. C. HORSLEY. _J. Thompson._ 55 - Of Pride J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 59 - " " " 61 - Of Experience T. DALZIEL. " 62 - Of Estimating Character J. TENNIEL. " 65 - " " " 71 - Of Hatred and Anger C. W. COPE, R.A. _S. Williams._ 74 - Of Good in Things Evil J. GILBERT. _Dalziel Brs._ 76 - Of Prayer J. C. HORSLEY. " 81 - The Lord's Prayer C. W. COPE, R.A. _S. Williams._ 86 - Of Discretion E. H. CORBOULD. _Dalziel Brs._ 88 - Of Recreation E. DUNCAN. " 95 - " E. H. CORBOULD. " 99 - The Train of Religion J. TENNIEL. " 100 - Of Thinking " " 107 - Of Speaking G. DODGSON. " 114 - Of Writing J. TENNIEL. " 121 - Of Wealth J. GILBERT. " 125 - Of Invention B. FOSTER. _H. Vizetelly._ 132 - Of Ridicule J. GODWIN. _Dalziel Brs._ 134 - Of Self-Acquaintance J. GILBERT. " 142 - Of Cruelty to Animals W. HARVEY. " 149 - Of Love H. N. HUMPHREYS. _H. Vizetelly._ 158 - Of Marriage J. SEVERN. " 161 - Of Education J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 167 - " J. SEVERN. _H. Vizetelly._ 176 - Of Sorrow C. W. COPE, R.A. _W. J. Green._ 181 - Of Joy J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 184 - - _SECOND SERIES._ - - Title Page J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 187 - Introductory H. N. HUMPHREYS. _H. Vizetelly._ 189 - Of Yesterday B. FOSTER. " 198 - Of To-morrow F. R. PICKERSGILL, A.R.A. _Dalziel Brs._ 206 - Of Mystery J. GILBERT. " 218 - Of Beauty B. FOSTER. _H. Vizetelly._ 237 - " J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 239 - Of Fame F. R. PICKERSGILL, A.R.A. " 249 - Of Neglect E. H. CORBOULD. _H. Vizetelly._ 266 - Of Contentment B. FOSTER. " 275 - Of Death J. TENNIEL. _Dalziel Brs._ 288 - " J. SEVERN. _H. Vizetelly._ 291 - Of Names J. GILBERT. _Dalziel Brs._ 321 - Of Faith J. TENNIEL. " 331 - " W. SEVERN. _H. Vizetelly._ 333 - Of Society E. H. CORBOULD. _Dalziel Brs._ 352 - Of Solitude J. SEVERN. _H. Vizetelly._ 359 - Initial Letters H. N. HUMPHREYS. { _H. Vizetelly_ - { _and_ - { _J. Swain._ - - - - -FIRST SERIES. - - -[Illustration: Prefatory "T"] - -PREFATORY. - - Thoughts, that have tarried in my mind, and peopled its inner chambers, - The sober children of reason, or desultory train of fancy; - Clear running wine of conviction, with the scum and the lees of - speculation; - Corn from the sheaves of science, with stubble from mine own garner: - Searchings after Truth, that have tracked her secret lodes, - And come up again to the surface-world, with a knowledge grounded deeper; - Arguments of high scope, that have soared to the key-stone of heaven, - And thence have swooped to their certain mark, as the falcon to its - quarry; - The fruits I have gathered of prudence, the ripened harvest of my musings, - These commend I unto thee, O docile scholar of Wisdom, - These I give to thy gentle heart, thou lover of the right. - - What, though a guilty man renew that hallowed theme, - And strike with feebler hand the harp of Sirach's son? - What, though a youthful tongue take up that ancient parable, - And utter faintly forth dark sayings as of old? - Sweet is the virgin honey, though the wild bee have stored it in a reed, - And bright the jewelled band, that circleth an Ethiop's arm; - Pure are the grains of gold in the turbid stream of Ganges, - And fair the living flowers, that spring from the dull cold sod. - Wherefore, thou gentle student, bend thine ear to my speech, - For I also am as thou art; our hearts can commune together: - To meanest matters will I stoop, for mean is the lot of mortal; - I will rise to noblest themes, for the soul hath an heritage of glory: - The passions of puny man; the majestic characters of God; - The feverish shadows of time, and the mighty substance of eternity. - - Commend thy mind unto candour, and grudge not as though thou hadst a - teacher, - Nor scorn angelic Truth for the sake of her evil herald; - Heed not him, but hear his words, and care not whence they come; - The viewless winds might whisper them, the billows roar them forth, - The mean unconscious sedge sigh them in the ear of evening, - Or the mind of pride conceive, and the mouth of folly speak them. - Lo now, I stand not forth laying hold on spear and buckler, - I come a man of peace, to comfort, not to combat; - With soft persuasive speech to charm thy patient ear, - Giving the hand of fellowship, acknowledging the heart of sympathy: - Let us walk together as friends in the shaded paths of meditation, - Nor Judgment set his seal until he hath poised his balance; - That the chastenings of mild reproof may meet unwitting error, - And Charity not be a stranger at the board that is spread for brothers. - -[Illustration] - - -[Illustration: The Words of Wisdom] - -THE WORDS OF WISDOM. - - Few and precious are the words which the lips of Wisdom utter: - To what shall their rarity be likened? What price shall count their worth? - Perfect and much to be desired, and giving joy with riches, - No lovely thing on earth can picture all their beauty. - They be chance pearls, flung among the rocks by the sullen waters of - Oblivion, - Which Diligence loveth to gather, and hang around the neck of Memory; - They be white-winged seeds of happiness, wafted from the islands of the - blessed, - Which Thought carefully tendeth, in the kindly garden of the heart; - They be sproutings of an harvest for eternity, bursting through the tilth - of time, - Green promise of the golden wheat, that yieldeth angels' food; - They be drops of the crystal dew, which the wings of seraphs scatter, - When on some brighter sabbath, their plumes quiver most with delight: - Such, and so precious, are the words which the lips of Wisdom utter. - -[Illustration] - - Yet more, for the half is not said, of their might, and dignity, and - value; - For life-giving be they and glorious, redolent of sanctity and heaven: - As fumes of hallowed incense, that veil the throne of the Most High; - As beaded bubbles that sparkle on the rim of the cup of immortality; - As wreaths of the rainbow spray, from the pure cataracts of truth: - Such, and so precious, are the words which the lips of Wisdom utter. - - Yet once again, loving student, suffer the praises of thy teacher, - For verily the sun of the mind, and the life of the heart is Wisdom: - She is pure and full of light, crowning grey hairs with lustre, - And kindling the eye of youth with a fire not its own; - And her words, whereunto canst thou liken them? for earth cannot show - their peers: - They be grains of the diamond sand, the radiant floor of heaven, - Rising in sunny dust behind the chariot of God; - They be flashes of the dayspring from on high, shed from the windows of - the skies; - They be streams of living waters, fresh from the fountain of Intelligence: - Such, and so precious, are the words which the lips of Wisdom utter. - - For these shall guide thee well, and guard thee on thy way; - And wanting all beside, with these shalt thou be rich: - Though all around be woe, these shall make thee happy; - Though all within be pain, these shall bring thee health: - Thy good shall grow into ripeness, thine evil wither and decay, - And Wisdom's words shall sweetly charm thy doubtful into virtues: - Meanness shall then be frugal care; where shame was, thou art modest; - Cowardice riseth into caution, rashness is sobered into courage; - The wrathful spirit, rendering a reason, standeth justified in anger; - The idle hand hath fair excuse, propping the thoughtful forehead. - Life shall have no labyrinth but thy steps can track it, - For thou hast a silken clue, to lead thee through the darkness: - The rampant Minotaur of ignorance shall perish at thy coming, - And thine enfranchised fellows hail thy white victorious sails. - Wherefore, friend and scholar, hear the words of Wisdom; - Whether she speaketh to thy soul in the full chords of revelation; - In the teaching earth, or air, or sea; in the still melodies of thought; - Or, haply, in the humbler strains that would detain thee here. - - -[Illustration] - -OF TRUTH IN THINGS FALSE. - -[Illustration: "E"] - - Error is a hardy plant; it flourisheth in every soil; - In the heart of the wise and good, alike with the wicked and foolish. - For there is no error so crooked, but it hath in it some lines of truth: - Nor is any poison so deadly, that it serveth not some wholesome use: - And the just man, enamoured of the right, is blinded by the speciousness - of wrong; - And the prudent, perceiving an advantage, is content to overlook the harm. - On all things created remaineth the half-effaced signature of God, - Somewhat of fair and good, though blotted by the finger of corruption: - And if error cometh in like a flood, it mixeth with streams of truth; - And the Adversary loveth to have it so, for thereby many are decoyed. - Providence is dark in its permissions; yet one day, when all is known, - The universe of reason shall acknowledge how just and good were they; - For the wise man leaneth on his wisdom, and the righteous trusteth to his - righteousness, - And those, who thirst for independence, are suffered to drink of - disappointment. - Wherefore?--to prove and humble them; and to teach the idolaters of Truth, - That it is but the ladder unto Him, on whom only they should trust. - - There is truth in the wildest scheme that imaginative heat hath - engendered, - And a man may gather somewhat from the crudest theories of fancy: - The alchymist laboureth in folly, but catcheth chance gleams of wisdom, - And findeth out many inventions, though his crucible breed not gold; - The sinner, toying with witchcraft, thinketh to delude his fellows, - But there be very spirits of evil, and what if they come at his bidding? - He is a bold bad man who dareth to tamper with the dead; - For their whereabout lieth in a mystery--that vestibule leading to - Eternity, - The waiting-room for unclad ghosts, before the presence-chamber of their - King: - Mind may act upon mind, though bodies be far divided; - For the life is in the blood, but souls communicate unseen: - And the heat of an excited intellect, radiating to its fellows, - Doth kindle dry leaves afar off, while the green wood around it is - unwarmed. - The dog may have a spirit, as well as his brutal master; - A spirit to live in happiness: for why should he be robbed of his - existence? - Hath he not a conscience of evil, a glimmer of moral sense, - Love and hatred, courage and fear, and visible shame and pride? - There may be a future rest for the patient victims of the cruel; - And a season allotted for their bliss, to compensate for unjust suffering. - Spurn not at seeming error, but dig below its surface for the truth; - And beware of seeming truths, that grow on the roots of error: - For comely are the apples that spring from the Dead Sea's cursed shore, - But within are they dust and ashes, and the hand that plucked them shall - rue it. - - A frequent similar effect argueth a constant cause: - Yet who hath counted the links that bind an omen to its issue? - Who hath expounded the law that rendereth calamities gregarious, - Pressing down with yet more woes the heavy-laden mourner? - Who knoweth wherefore a monsoon should swell the sails of the prosperous, - Blithely speeding on their course the children of good luck? - Who hath companied a vision from the horn or ivory gate? - Or met another's mind in his, and explained its presence? - There is a secret somewhat in antipathies; and love is more than fancy; - Yea, and a palpable notice warneth of an instant danger; - For the soul hath its feelers, cobwebs floating on the wind, - That catch events in their approach with sure and apt presentiment; - So that some halo of attraction heraldeth a coming friend, - Investing in his likeness the stranger that passed on before; - And while the word is in thy mouth, behold thy word fulfilled, - And he of whom we spake can answer for himself. - O man, little hast thou learnt of truth in things most true, - How therefore shall thy blindness wot of truth in things most false? - Thou hast not yet perceived the causes of life or motion, - How then canst thou define the subtle sympathies of mind? - For the spirit, sharpest and strongest when disease hath rent the body, - Hath welcomed kindred spirits in nightly visitations, - Or learnt from restless ghosts dark secrets of the living, - And helped slow justice to her prey by the dreadful teaching of a dream. - - Verily, there is nothing so true, that the damps of error have not warped - it; - Verily, there is nothing so false, that a sparkle of truth is not in it. - For the enemy, the father of lies, the giant Upas of creation, - Whose deadly shade hath blasted this once green garden of the Lord, - Can but pervert the good, but may not create the evil; - He destroyeth, but cannot build; for he is not antagonist deity: - Mighty is his stolen power, yet is he a creature and a subject; - Not a maker of abstract wrong, but a spoiler of concrete right: - The fiend hath not a royal crown; he is but a prowling robber, - Suffered, for some mysterious end, to haunt the King's highway; - And the keen sword he beareth, once was a simple ploughshare; - Yea, and his panoply of error is but a distortion of the truth: - The sickle that once reaped righteousness, beaten from its useful curve, - With axe, and spike, and bar, headeth the marauder's halbert. - Seek not further, O man, to solve the dark riddle of sin; - Suffice it, that thine own bad heart is to thee thine origin of evil. - - -[Illustration] - -OF ANTICIPATION. - - Thou hast seen many sorrows, travel-stained pilgrim of the world, - But that which hath vexed thee most hath been the looking for evil; - And though calamities have crossed thee, and misery been heaped on thy - head, - Yet ills, that never happened, have chiefly made thee wretched. - The sting of pain and the edge of pleasure are blunted by long - expectation, - For the gall and the balm alike are diluted in the waters of patience: - And often thou sippest sweetness, ere the cup is dashed from thy lip; - Or drainest the gall of fear, while evil is passing by thy dwelling. - A man too careful of danger liveth in continual torment, - But a cheerful expecter of the best hath a fountain of joy within him: - Yea, though the breath of disappointment should chill the sanguine heart, - Speedily gloweth it again, warmed by the live embers of hope; - Though the black and heavy surge close above the head for a moment, - Yet the happy buoyancy of Confidence riseth superior to Despair. - Verily, evils may be courted, may be wooed and won by distrust: - For the wise Physician of our weal loveth not an unbelieving spirit; - And to those giveth He good, who rely on His hand for good; - And those leaveth He to evil, who fear, but trust Him not. - Ask for good, and hope it, for the ocean of good is fathomless; - Ask for good, and have it, for thy Friend would see thee happy; - But to the timid heart, to the child of unbelief and dread, - That leaneth on his own weak staff, and trusteth the sight of his eyes, - The evil he feared shall come, for the soil is ready for the seed, - And suspicion hath coldly put aside the hand that was ready to help him. - Therefore look up, sad spirit; be strong, thou coward heart, - Or fear will make thee wretched, though evil follow not behind: - Cease to anticipate misfortune; there are still many chances of escape; - But if it come, be courageous; face it, and conquer thy calamity. - There is not an enemy so stout, as to storm and take the fortress of the - mind, - Unless its infirmity turn traitor, and Fear unbar the gates. - The valiant standeth as a rock, and the billows break upon him; - The timorous is a skiff unmoored, tost and mocked at by a ripple: - The valiant holdeth fast to good, till evil wrench it from him; - The timorous casteth it aside, to meet the worst half way: - Yet oftentimes is evil but a braggart, that provoketh and will not fight; - Or the feint of a subtle fencer, who measureth his thrust elsewhere: - Or perchance a blessing in a masque, sent to try thy trust, - The precious smiting of a friend, whose frowns are all in love: - Often the storm threateneth, but is driven to other climes, - And the weak hath quailed in fear, while the firm hath been glad in his - confidence. - - -[Illustration] - -OF HIDDEN USES. - -[Illustration: "T"] - - The sea-wort floating on the waves, or rolled up high along the shore, - Ye counted useless and vile, heaping on it names of contempt: - Yet hath it gloriously triumphed, and man been humbled in his ignorance, - For health is in the freshness of its savour, and it cumbereth the beach - with wealth; - Comforting the tossings of pain with its violet-tinctured essence, - And by its humbler ashes enriching many proud. - Be this, then, a lesson to thy soul, that thou reckon nothing worthless, - Because thou heedest not its use, nor knowest the virtues thereof. - And herein, as thou walkest by the sea, shall weeds be a type and an - earnest - Of the stored and uncounted riches lying hid in all creatures of God: - There be flowers making glad the desert, and roots fattening the soil, - And jewels in the secret deep, scattered among groves of coral, - And comforts to crown all wishes, and aids unto every need, - Influences yet unthought, and virtues, and many inventions, - And uses above and around, which man hath not yet regarded. - Not long to charm away disease hath the crocus yielded up its bulb, - Nor the willow lent its bark, nor the nightshade its vanquished poison; - Not long hath the twisted leaf, the fragrant gift of China, - Nor that nutritious root, the boon of far Peru, - Nor the many-coloured dahlia, nor the gorgeous flaunting cactus, - Nor the multitude of fruits and flowers, ministered to life and luxury: - Even so, there be virtues yet unknown in the wasted foliage of the elm, - In the sun-dried harebell of the downs, and the hyacinth drinking in the - meadow, - In the sycamore's winged fruit, and the facet-cut cones of the cedar; - And the pansy and bright geranium live not alone for beauty, - Nor the waxen flower of the arbute, though it dieth in a day, - Nor the sculptured crest of the fir, unseen but by the stars; - And the meanest weed of the garden serveth unto many uses, - The salt tamarisk, and juicy flag, the freckled orchis, and the daisy. - The world may laugh at famine, when forest-trees yield bread, - When acorns give out fragrant drink, and the sap of the linden is as - fatness: - For every green herb, from the lotus to the darnel, - Is rich with delicate aids to help incurious man. - - Still, Mind is up and stirring, and pryeth in the corners of contrivance, - Often from the dark recesses picking out bright seeds of truth: - Knowledge hath clipped the lightning's wings, and mewed it up for a - purpose, - Training to some domestic task the fiery bird of heaven; - Tamed is the spirit of the storm, to slave in all peaceful arts, - To walk with husbandry and science; to stand in the vanguard against - death: - And the chemist balanceth his elements with more than magic skill, - Commanding stones that they be bread, and draining sweetness out of - wormwood. - Yet man, heedless of a God, counteth up vain reckonings, - Fearing to be jostled and starved out, by the too prolific increase of - his kind; - And asketh, in unbelieving dread, for how few years to come - Will the black cellars of the world yield unto him fuel for his winter. - Might not the wide waste sea be pent within narrower bounds? - Might not the arm of diligence make the tangled wilderness a garden? - And for aught thou canst tell, there may be a thousand methods - Of comforting thy limbs in warmth, though thou kindle not a spark. - Fear not, son of man, for thyself nor thy seed:--with a multitude is - plenty; - God's blessing giveth increase, and with it larger than enough. - - Search out the wisdom of nature, there is depth in all her doings; - She seemeth prodigal of power, yet her rules are the maxims of frugality: - The plant refresheth the air, and the earth filtereth the water, - And dews are sucked into the cloud, dropping fatness on the world: - She hath, on a mighty scale, a general use for all things; - Yet hath she specially for each its microscopic purpose: - There is use in the prisoned air, that swelleth the pods of the laburnum; - Design in the venomed thorns, that sentinel the leaves of the nettle; - A final cause for the aromatic gum, that congealeth the moss around a - rose: - A reason for each blade of grass, that reareth its small spire. - How knoweth discontented man what a train of ills might follow, - If the lowest menial of nature knew not her secret office? - If the thistle never sprang up to mock the loose husbandry of indolence, - Or the pestilence never swept away an unknown curse from among men? - Would ye crush the buzzing myriads that float on the breath of evening? - Would ye trample the creatures of God that people the rotting fruit? - Would ye suffer no mildew forest to stain the unhealthy wall, - Nor a noisome savour to exhale from the pool that breedeth disease? - Pain is useful unto man, for it teacheth him to guard his life, - And the fetid vapours of the fen warn him to fly from danger: - And the meditative mind, looking on, winneth good food for its hunger, - Seeing the wholesome root bring forth a poisonous berry; - For otherwhile falleth it out that truth, driven to extremities, - Yieldeth bitter folly as the spoilt fruit of wisdom. - O, blinded is thine eye, if it see not just aptitude in all things: - O, frozen is thy heart, if it glow not with gratitude for all things: - In the perfect circle of creation not an atom could be spared, - From earth's magnetic zone to the bindweed round a hawthorn. - - The sage, and the beetle at his feet, hath each a ministration to perform: - The briar and the palm have the wages of life, rendering secret service. - Neither is it thus alone with the definite existences of matter; - But motion and sound, circumstance and quality, yea, all things have - their office. - The zephyr playing with an aspen-leaf,--the earthquake that rendeth a - continent; - The moon-beam silvering a ruined arch,--the desert-wave dashing up a - pyramid; - The thunder of jarring icebergs,--the stops of a shepherd's pipe; - The howl of the tiger in the glen,--and the wood-dove calling to her mate; - The vulture's cruel rage,--the grace of the stately swan; - The fierceness looking from the lynx's eye, and the dull stupor of the - sloth: - To these, and to all, is there added each its USE, though man considereth - it lightly; - For Power hath ordained nothing which Economy saw not needful. - -[Illustration] - - All things being are in concord with the ubiquity of God; - Neither is there one thing overmuch, nor freed from honourable servitude. - Were there not a need-be of wisdom, nothing would be as it is; - For essence without necessity argueth a moral weakness. - We look through a glass darkly, we catch but glimpses of truth; - But, doubtless, the sailing of a cloud hath Providence to its pilot, - Doubtless, the root of an oak is gnarled for a special purpose, - The foreknown station of a rush is as fixed as the station of a king, - And chaff from the hand of the winnower, steered as the stars in their - courses. - Man liveth only in himself, but the Lord liveth in all things; - And His pervading unity quickeneth the whole creation. - Man doeth one thing at once, nor can he think two thoughts together; - But God compasseth all things, mantling the globe like air: - And we render homage to His wisdom, seeing use in all His creatures, - For, perchance, the universe would die, were not all things as they are. - - -[Illustration: Of Compensation] - -OF COMPENSATION. - -[Illustration: "E"] - - Equal is the government of heaven in allotting pleasures among men, - And just the everlasting law, that hath wedded happiness to virtue: - For verily on all things else broodeth disappointment with care, - That childish man may be taught the shallowness of earthly enjoyment. - Wherefore, ye that have enough, envy ye the rich man his abundance? - Wherefore, daughters of affluence, covet ye the cottager's content? - Take the good with the evil, for ye all are pensioners of God, - And none may choose or refuse the cup His wisdom mixeth. - The poor man rejoiceth at his toil, and his daily bread is sweet to him: - Content with present good, he looketh not for evil to the future: - The rich man languisheth with sloth, and findeth pleasure in nothing, - He locketh up care with his gold, and feareth the fickleness of fortune. - Can a cup contain within itself the measure of a bucket? - Or the straitened appetites of man drink more than their fill of luxury? - There is a limit to enjoyment, though the sources of wealth be boundless: - And the choicest pleasures of life lie within the ring of moderation. - - Also, though penury and pain be real and bitter evils, - I would reason with the poor afflicted, for he is not so wretched as he - seemeth. - What right hath an offender to complain, though others escape punishment, - If the stripes of earned misfortune overtake him in his sin? - Wherefore not endure with resignation the evils thou canst not avert? - For the coward pain will flee, if thou meet him as a man: - Consider, whatever be thy fate, that it might and ought to have been - worse, - And that it lieth in thy hand to gather even blessing from afflictions: - Bethink thee, wherefore were they sent? and hath not use blunted their - keenness? - Need hope, and patience, and courage, be strangers to the meanest hovel? - Thou art in an evil case, it were cruel to deny to thee compassion, - But there is not unmitigated ill in the sharpest of this world's sorrows: - I touch not the sore of thy guilt; but of human griefs I counsel thee, - Cast off the weakness of regret, and gird thee to redeem thy loss: - Thou hast gained, in the furnace of affliction, self-knowledge, patience, - and humility, - And these be as precious ore, that waiteth the skill of the coiner: - Despise not the blessings of adversity, nor the gain thou hast earned so - hardly, - And now thou hast drained the bitter, take heed that thou lose not the - sweet. - - Power is seldom innocent, and envy is the yoke-fellow of eminence; - And the rust of the miser's riches wasteth his soul as a canker. - The poor man counteth not the cost at which such wealth hath been - purchased; - He would be on the mountain's top, without the toil and travail of the - climbing. - But equity demandeth recompense: for high-place, calumny and care; - For state, comfortless splendour eating out the heart of home; - For warrior fame, dangers and death; for a name among the learned, a - spirit overstrained; - For honour of all kinds, the goad of ambition; on every acquirement, the - tax of anxiety. - He that would change with another, must take the cup as it is mixed: - Poverty, with largeness of heart; or a full purse, with a sordid spirit; - Wisdom, in an ailing body; or a common mind, with health: - Godliness, with man's scorn; or the welcome of the mighty, with guilt: - Beauty, with a fickle heart; or plainness of face, with affection. - For so hath Providence determined, that a man shall not easily discover - Unmingled good or evil, to quicken his envy or abhorrence. - A bold man or a fool must he be, who would change his lot with another; - It were a fearful bargain, and mercy hath lovingly refused it: - For we know the worst of ourselves, but the secrets of another we see not, - And better is certain bad, than the doubt and dread of worse. - - Just, and strong, and opportune is the moral rule of God; - Ripe in its times, firm in its judgments, equal in the measure of its - gifts: - Yet men, scanning the surface, count the wicked happy, - Nor heed the compensating peace, which gladdeneth the good in his - afflictions. - They see not the frightful dreams that crowd a bad man's pillow, - Like wreathed adders crawling round his midnight conscience; - They hear not the terrible suggestions, that knock at the portal of his - will, - Provoking to wipe away from life the one weak witness of the deed; - They know not the torturing suspicions that sting his panting breast, - When the clear eye of penetration quietly readeth off the truth. - Likewise of the good what know they? The memories bringing pleasure, - Shrined in the heart of the benevolent, and glistening from his eye; - The calm self-justifying reason that establisheth the upright in his - purpose; - The warm and gushing bliss that floodeth all the thoughts of the - religious. - Many a beggar at the cross-way, or grey-haired shepherd on the plain, - Hath more of the end of all wealth, than hundreds who multiply the means. - - Moreover, a moral compensation reacheth to the secrecy of thought; - For if thou wilt think evil of thy neighbour, soon shalt thou have him - for thy foe: - And yet he may know nothing of the cause that maketh thee distasteful to - his soul,-- - The cause of unkind suspicion, for which thou hast thy punishment: - And if thou think of him in charity, wishing or praying for his weal, - He shall not guess the secret charm that lureth his soul to love thee. - For just is retributive ubiquity: Samson did sin with Dalilah, - And his eyes and captive strength were forfeit to the Philistine: - Jacob robbed his brother, and sorrow was his portion to the grave: - David must fly before his foes, yea, though his guilt is covered: - And He who, seeming old in youth, was marred for others' sin, - For every special crime must bear its special penalty: - By luxury, or rashness, or vice, the member that hath erred suffereth,-- - And therefore the Sacrifice for all was pained at every pore. - - Alike to the slave and his oppressor cometh night with sweet refreshment, - And half of the life of the most wretched is gladdened by the soothings - of sleep. - Pain addeth zest unto pleasure, and teacheth the luxury of health; - There is a joy in sorrow, which none but a mourner can know: - Madness hath imaginary bliss, and most men have no more; - Age hath its quiet calm, and youth enjoyeth not for haste: - Daily, in the midst of its beatitude, the righteous soul is vexed; - And even the misery of guilt doth attain to the bliss of pardon. - Who, in the face of the born-blind, ever looked on other than content? - And the deaf ear listeneth within to the silent music of the heart. - There is evil poured upon the earth from the overflowings of corruption,-- - Sickness, and poverty, and pain, and guilt, and madness, and sorrow; - But, as the water from a fountain riseth and sinketh to its level, - Ceaselessly toileth justice to equalize the lots of men: - For, habit and hope and ignorance, and the being but one of a multitude, - And strength of reason in the sage, and dulness of feeling in the fool, - And the light elasticity of courage, and the calm resignation of meekness, - And the stout endurance of decision, and the weak carelessness of apathy, - And helps invisible but real, and ministerings not unfelt, - Angelic aid with worldly discomfiture, bodily loss with the soul's gain, - Secret griefs, and silent joys, thorns in the flesh, and cordials for the - spirit, - (--Short of the insuperable barrier dividing innocence from guilt,--) - Go far to level all things, by the gracious rule of Compensation. - -[Illustration] - - -[Illustration: Of Indirect Influences] - -OF INDIRECT INFLUENCES. - -[Illustration: "F"] - - Face thy foe in the field, and perchance thou wilt meet thy master, - For the sword is chained to his wrist, and his armour buckled for the - battle; - But find him when he looketh not for thee, aim between the joints of his - harness, - And the crest of his pride will be humbled, his cruelty will bite the - dust. - Beard not a lion in his den, but fashion the secret pitfall; - So shall thou conquer the strong, thyself triumphing in weakness. - The hurricane rageth fiercely, and the promontory standeth in its might, - Breasting the artillery of heaven, as darts glance from the crocodile: - But the small continual creeping of the silent footsteps of the sea - Mineth the wall of adamant, and stealthily compasseth its ruin. - The weakness of accident is strong, where the strength of design is weak: - And a casual analogy convinceth, when a mind beareth not argument. - Will not a man listen? be silent; and prove thy maxim by example: - Never fear, thou losest not thy hold, though thy mouth doth not render a - reason. - Contend not in wisdom with a fool, for thy sense maketh much of his - conceit; - And some errors never would have thriven, had it not been for learned - refutation: - Yea, much evil hath been caused by an honest wrestler for truth, - And much of unconscious good, by the man that hated wisdom: - For the intellect judgeth closely, and if thou overstep thy argument, - Or seem not consistent with thyself, or fail in thy direct purpose, - The mind that went along with thee, shall stop and return without thee, - And thou shalt have raised a foe, where thou mightest have won a friend. - - Hints, shrewdly strown, mightily disturb the spirit, - Where a bare-faced accusation would be too ridiculous for calumny: - The sly suggestion toucheth nerves, and nerves contract the fronds, - And the sensitive mimosa of affection trembleth to its root; - And friendships, the growth of half a century, those oaks that laugh at - storms, - Have been cankered in a night by a worm, even as the prophet's gourd. - Hast thou loved, and not known jealousy? for a sidelong look - Can please or pain thy heart more than the multitude of proofs: - Hast thou hated, and not learned that thy silent scorn - Doth deeper aggravate thy foe than loud-cursing malice?-- - A wise man prevaileth in power, for he screeneth his battering engine, - But a fool tilteth headlong, and his adversary is aware. - - Behold those broken arches, that oriel all unglazed, - That crippled line of columns bleaching in the sun, - The delicate shaft stricken midway, and the flying buttress - Idly stretching forth to hold up tufted ivy: - Thinkest thou the thousand eyes that shine with rapture on a ruin, - Would have looked with half their wonder on the perfect pile? - And wherefore not--but that light hints, suggesting unseen beauties, - Fill the complacent gazer with self-grown conceits? - And so, the rapid sketch winneth more praise to the painter, - Than the consummate work elaborated on his easel: - And so, the Helvetic lion caverned in the living rock - Hath more of majesty and force, than it upon a marble pedestal. - -[Illustration] - - Tell me, daughter of taste, what hath charmed thine ear in music? - Is it the laboured theme, the curious fugue or cento,-- - Nor rather the sparkles of intelligence flashing from some strange chord, - Or the soft melody of sounds far sweeter for simplicity? - Tell me, thou son of science, what hath filled thy mind in reading? - Is it the volume of detail where all is orderly set down, - And they that read may run, nor need to stop and think; - The book carefully accurate, that counteth thee no better than a fool, - Gorging the passive mind with annotated notes;-- - Nor rather the half-suggested thoughts, the riddles thou mayst solve, - The fair ideas, coyly peeping like young loves out of roses, - The quaint arabesque conceptions, half cherub and half flower, - The light analogy, or deep allusion, trusted to thy learning, - The confidence implied in thy skill to unravel meaning mysteries? - For ideas are ofttimes shy of the close furniture of words, - And thought, wherein only is power, may be best conveyed by a suggestion: - The flash that lighteth up a valley, amid the dark midnight of a storm, - Coineth the mind with that scene sharper than fifty summers. - - A worldly man boasteth in his pride, that there is no power but of money; - And he judgeth the characters of men by the differing measures of their - means: - He stealeth all goodly names, as worth, and value, and substance, - Which be the ancient heritage of Virtue, but such an one ascribeth unto - Wealth: - He spurneth the needy sage, whose wisdom hath enriched nations, - And the sons of poverty and learning, without whom earth were a desert: - Music, the soother of cares, the tuner of the dank discordant - heart-strings, - It is nought unto such an one but sounds, whereby some earn their living: - The poem, and the picture, and the statue, to him seem idle baubles, - Which wealth condescendeth to favour, to gain him the name of patron. - But little wotteth he the might of the means his folly despiseth; - He considereth not that these be the wires which move the puppets of the - world. - A sentence hath formed a character, and a character subdued a kingdom; - A picture hath ruined souls, or raised them to commerce with the skies: - The pen hath shaken nations, and stablished the world in peace; - And the whole full horn of plenty been filled from the vial of science. - He regardeth man as sensual, the monarch of created matter, - And careth not aught for mind, that linketh him with spirits unseen; - He feedeth his carcase and is glad, though his soul be faint and famished, - And the dull brute power of the body bindeth him a captive to himself. - - Man liveth from hour to hour, and knoweth not what may happen; - Influences circle him on all sides, and yet must he answer for his - actions: - For the being that is master of himself, bendeth events to his will, - But a slave to selfish passion is the wavering creature of circumstance. - To this man temptation is a poison, to that man it addeth vigour; - And each may render to himself influences good or evil. - As thou directest the power, harm or advantage will follow, - And the torrent that swept the valley, may be led to turn a mill; - The wild electric flash, that could have kindled comets, - May by the ductile wire give ease to an ailing child. - For outward matter or event fashion not the character within, - But each man, yielding or resisting, fashioneth his mind for himself. - - Some have said, What is in a name?--most potent plastic influence; - A name is a word of character, and repetition stablisheth the fact: - A word of rebuke, or of honour, tending to obscurity or fame; - And greatest is the power of a name, when its power is least suspected. - A low name is a thorn in the side, that hindereth the footman in his - running; - But a name of ancestral renown shall often put the racer to his speed. - Few men have grown unto greatness whose names are allied to ridicule, - And many would never have been profligate, but for the splendour of a - name. - A wise man scorneth nothing, be it never so small or homely, - For he knoweth not the secret laws that may bind it to great effects. - The world in its boyhood was credulous, and dreaded the vengeance of the - stars, - The world in its dotage is not wiser, fearing not the influence of small - things: - Planets govern not the soul, nor guide the destinies of man, - But trifles, lighter than straws, are levers in the building up of - character. - A man hath the tiller in his hand, and may steer against the current, - Or may glide down idly with the stream, till his vessel founder in the - whirlpool. - - [Illustration: - Helvetiorum Fidei ac Virtuti - Die X Augusti II et III - Septembris MDCCXCII] - - -[Illustration] - -OF MEMORY. - - Where art thou, storehouse of the mind, garner of facts and fancies,-- - In what strange firmament are laid the beams of thine airy chambers? - Or art thou that small cavern, the centre of the rolling brain, - Where still one sandy morsel testifieth man's original? - Or hast thou some grand globe, some common hall of intellect, - Some spacious market-place for thought, where all do bring their wares, - And gladly rescued from the littleness, the narrow closet of a self, - The privileged soul hath large access, coming in the livery of learning? - Live we as isolated worlds, perfect in substance and spirit, - Each a sphere, with a special mind, prisoned in its shell of matter? - Or rather, as converging radiations, parts of one majestic whole, - Beams of the Sun, streams from the River, branches of the mighty Tree, - Some bearing fruit, some bearing leaves, and some diseased and barren,-- - Some for the feast, some for the floor, and some--how many--for the fire? - Memory may be but a power of coming to the treasury of Fact, - A momentary self-desertion, an absence in spirit from the Now, - An actual coursing hither and thither, by the mind, slipped from its - leash, - A life, as in the mystery of dreams, spent within the limits of a moment. - - A brutish man knoweth not this, neither can a fool comprehend it, - But there be secrets of the Memory, deep, wondrous, and fearful. - Were I at Petra, could I not declare, My soul hath been here before me? - Am I strange to the columned halls, the calm dead grandeur of Palmyra? - Know I not thy mount, O Carmel! Have I not voyaged on the Danube, - Nor seen the glare of Arctic snows,--nor the black tents of the Tartar? - Is it then a dream, that I remember the faces of them of old, - While wandering in the grove with Plato, and listening to Zeno in the - porch? - Paul have I seen, and Pythagoras, and the Stagyrite hath spoken me - friendly, - And His meek eye looked also upon me, standing with Peter in the palace. - Athens and Rome, Persepolis and Sparta, am I not a freeman of you all? - And chiefly can my yearning heart forget thee, O Jerusalem?-- - For the strong magic of conception, mingled with the fumes of memory, - Giveth me a life in all past time, yea, and addeth substance to the - future. - Be ye my judges, imaginative minds, full-fledged to soar into the sun, - Whose grosser natural thoughts the chemistry of wisdom hath sublimed, - Have ye not confessed to a feeling, a consciousness strange and vague, - That ye have gone this way before, and walk again your daily life, - Tracking an old routine, and on some foreign strand, - Where bodily ye have never stood, finding your own footsteps? - Hath not at times some recent friend looked out an old familiar, - Some newest circumstance or place teemed as with ancient memories? - A startling sudden flash lighteth up all for an instant, - And then it is quenched, as in darkness, and leaveth the cold spirit - trembling. - -[Illustration] - - Memory is not wisdom; idiots can rote volumes: - Yet, what is wisdom without memory? a babe that is strangled in its birth, - The path of the swallow in the air, the path of the dolphin in the waters, - A cask running out, a bottomless chasm: such is wisdom without memory. - There be many wise, who cannot store their knowledge; - Yet from themselves are they satisfied, for the fountain is within: - There be many who store, but have no wisdom of their own, - Lumbering their armoury with weapons their muscles cannot lift: - There be many thieves and robbers, who glean and store unlawfully, - Calling in to memory's help some cunningly devised Cabala: - But to feed the mind with fatness, to fill thy granary with corn, - Nor clog with chaff and straw the threshing-floor of reason, - Reap the ideas, and house them well; but leave the words high stubble: - Strive to store up what was thought, despising what was said. - For the mind is a spirit, and drinketh in ideas, as flame melteth into - flame; - But for words it must pack them as on floors, cumbrous and perishable - merchandize. - To be pained for a minute, to fear for an hour, to hope for a week--how - long and weary! - But to remember fourscore years, is to look back upon a day. - An avenue seemeth to lengthen in the eyes of the wayfaring man, - But let him turn, those stationed elms crowd up within a yard; - Pace the lamp-lit streets of some sleeping city, - The multitude of cressets shall seem one, in the false picture of - perspective; - Even so, in sweet treachery, dealeth the aged with himself, - He gazeth on the green hill-tops, while the marshes beneath are hidden; - And the partial telescope of memory pierceth the blank between, - To look with lingering love at the fair star of childhood. - Life is as the current spark on the miner's wheel of flints; - Whiles it spinneth there is light; stop it, all is darkness: - Life is as a morsel of frankincense burning in the hall of Eternity; - It is gone, but its odorous cloud curleth to the lofty roof: - Life is as a lump of salt, melting in the temple-laver; - It is gone,--yet its savour reacheth to the farthest atom: - Even so, for evil or for good, is life the criterion of a man, - For its memories of sanctity or sin pervade all the firmament of being. - There is but the flitting moment, wherein to hope or to enjoy, - But in the calendar of Memory, that moment is all time. - - -[Illustration] - -THE DREAM OF AMBITION. - - I left the happy fields that smile around the village of Content, - And sought with wayward feet the torrid desert of Ambition. - Long time, parched and weary, I travelled that burning sand, - And the hooded basilisk and adder were strewed in my way for palms; - Black scorpions thronged me round, with sharp uplifted stings, - Seeming to mock me as I ran; (then I guessed it was a dream,-- - But life is oft so like a dream, we know not where we are.) - So I toiled on, doubting in myself, up a steep gravel cliff, - Whose yellow summit shot up far into the brazen sky; - And quickly, I was wafted to the top, as upon unseen wings - Carrying me upward like a leaf: (then I thought it was a dream,-- - Yet life is oft so like a dream, we know not where we are.) - So I stood on the mountain, and behold! before me a giant pyramid, - And I clomb with eager haste its high and difficult steps; - For I longed, like another Belus, to mount up, yea, to heaven, - Nor sought I rest until my feet had spurned the crest of earth. - - Then I sat on my granite throne under the burning sun, - And the world lay smiling beneath me, but I was wrapt in flames; - (And I hoped, in glimmering consciousness, that all this torture was a - dream,-- - Yet life is oft so like a dream, we know not where we are.) - And anon, as I sat scorching, the pyramid shuddered to its root, - And I felt the quarried mass leap from its sand foundations: - Awhile it tottered and tilted, as raised by invisible levers,-- - (And now my reason spake with me; I knew it was a dream: - Yet I hushed that whisper into silence, for I hoped to learn of wisdom, - By tracking up my truant thoughts, whereunto they might lead.) - And suddenly, as rolling upon wheels, adown the cliff it rushed, - And I thought, in my hot brain, of the Muscovites' icy slope; - A thousand yards in a moment we ploughed the sandy seas, - And crushed those happy fields, and that smiling village, - And onward, as a living thing, still rushed my mighty throne, - Thundering along, and pounding, as it went, the millions in my way: - Before me all was life, and joy, and full-blown summer, - Behind me death and woe, the desert and simoom. - Then I wept and shrieked aloud, for pity and for fear; - But might not stop, for, comet-like, flew on the maddened mass - Over the crashing cities, and falling obelisks and towers, - And columns, razed as by a scythe, and high domes, shivered as an - egg-shell, - And deep embattled ranks, and women, crowded in the streets, - And children, kneeling as for mercy, and all I had ever loved, - Yea, over all, mine awful throne rushed on with seeming instinct,-- - And over the crackling forests, and over the rugged beach, - And on with a terrible hiss through the foaming wild Atlantic - That roared around me as I sat, but could not quench my spirit,-- - Still on, through startled solitudes we shattered the pavement of the sea, - Down, down, to that central vault, the bolted doors of hell; - And these, with horrid shock, my huge throne battered in, - And on to the deepest deep, where the fierce flames were hottest, - Blazing tenfold as conquering furiously the seas that rushed in with me,-- - And there I stopped: and a fearful voice shouted in mine ear, - "Behold the home of Discontent; behold the rest of Ambition!" - - -OF SUBJECTION. - -[Illustration: "L"] - - Law hath dominion over all things, over universal mind and matter; - For there are reciprocities of right, which no creature can gainsay. - Unto each was there added by its Maker, in the perfect chain of being, - Dependencies and sustentations, accidents, and qualities, and powers: - And each must fly forward in the curve, unto which it was forced from the - beginning; - Each must attract and repel, or the monarchy of Order is no more. - Laws are essential emanations from the self-poised character of God, - And they radiate from that sun to the circling edges of creation. - Verily, the mighty Lawgiver hath subjected Himself unto Laws, - And God is the primal grand example of free unstrained obedience; - His perfection is limited by right, and cannot trespass into wrong, - Because He hath established Himself as the fountain of only good, - And in thus much is bounded, that the evil hath He left unto another, - And that dark other hath usurped the evil which Omnipotence laid down. - Unto God there exist impossibilities; for the True One cannot lie, - Nor the Wise One wander from the track which He hath determined for - Himself: - For His will was purposed from eternity, strong in the love of order; - And that will altereth not, as the law of the Medes and Persians. - God is the origin of order, and the first exemplar of His precept; - For there is subordination of His Essence, self-guided unto holiness; - And there is subordination of His Persons, in due procession of dignity; - For the Son, as a son, is subject; and to Him doth the Spirit minister: - But these things be mysteries to man, he cannot reach nor fathom them, - And ever must he speak in paradox, when labouring to expound his God; - For, behold, God is alone, mighty in unshackled freedom; - And with those wondrous Persons abideth eternal equality. - - So then, start ye from the fountain, and follow the river of existence; - For its current is bounded throughout by the banks of just subordination: - Thrones, and dominions, and powers, Archangels, Cherubim, and Seraphim, - Angels, and flaming ministers, and breathing chariots and harps. - For there are degrees in heaven, and varied capabilities of bliss, - And steps in the ladder of Intelligence, and ranks in approaches to - Perfection: - Doubtless, reverence is given, as their due, to the masters in wisdom; - Doubtless, there are who serve; or a throne would have small glory. - Regard now the universe of matter, the substance of visible creation, - Which of old, with well-observing truth, the Greek hath surnamed, Order: - Where is there an atom out of place? or a particle that yieldeth not - obedience? - Where is there a fragment that is free? or one thing the equal of - another?-- - The chain is unbroken down to man, and beyond him the links are perfect: - But he standeth solitary sin, a marvel of permitted chaos. - - And shall this seeming error in the scale of due subordination - Be a spot of desert unreclaimed, in the midst of the vineyard of the Lord? - Shall his presumptuous pride snap the safe tether of connexion, - And his blind selfish folly refuse the burden of maintenance? - O man, thou art a creature; boast not thyself above the law: - Think not of thyself as free: thou art bound in the trammels of - dependence. - What is the sum of thy duty, but obedience to righteous rule; - To the great commanding Oracle, uttered by delegated organs? - Thou canst not render homage to abstract Omnipresent Power, - Save through the concrete symbol of visible ordained authority. - Those who obey not man, are oftenest found rebels against God; - And seldom is the delegate so bold, as to order what he knoweth to be - wrong. - Yet mark me, proud gainsayer! I say not, obey unto sin; - But, where the Principal is silent, take heed thou despise not the Deputy: - And He that loveth order, will bless thee for thy faith, - If thou recognize His sanction in the powers that fashion human laws. - - Thou, the vicegerent of the Lord, His high anointed image, - Towards whom a good man's loyalty floweth from the heart of his religion, - Thou, whose deep responsibilities are fathomed by a nation's prayers, - Whom wise men fear for while they love, and envy thee nothing but thy - virtues, - From thy dizzy pinnacle of greatness, remember thou also art a subject, - And the throne of thine earthly glory is itself but the footstool of thy - God. - The homage thy kingdoms yield thee, regard thou as yielded unto Him; - And while girt with all the majesty of state, consider thee the Lord's - chief servant: - So shalt thou prosper, and be strong, grafted on the strength of Another; - So shall thy royal heart be happy, in being humble. - And thou shalt flourish as an oak, the monarch of thine island forests, - Whose deep-dug roots are twisted around the stout ribs of the globe, - That mocketh at the fury of the storm, and rejoiceth in summer sunshine, - Glad in the smiles of heaven, and great in the stability of earth. - - A ruler hath not power for himself, neither is his pomp for his pride; - But beneath the ermine of his office should he wear the rough hair-cloth - of humility. - Nevertheless, every way obey him, so thou break not a higher commandment; - For Nero was an evil king, yet Paul prescribeth subjection. - If the rulers of a nation be holy, the Lord hath blessed that nation; - If they be lewd and impious, chastisement hath come upon that people: - For the bitterest scourge of a land is ungodliness in them that govern it, - And the guilt of the sons of Josiah drove Israel weeping into Babylon. - Yet be thou resolute against them, if they change the mandates of thy God, - If they touch the ark of His covenant, wherein all His mercies are - enshrined: - Be resolute, but not rebellious; lest thou be of the company of Korah: - Set thy face against them as a flint: but be not numbered with Abiram. - Daniel nobly disobeyed; but not from a spirit of sedition: - And Azarias shouted from the furnace,--I will not bow down, O KING. - If truth must be sacrificed to unity, then faithfulness were folly; - If man must be obeyed before God, the martyrs have bled in vain: - Yet none of that blessed army reviled the rulers of the land, - They were loud and bold against the sin, but bent before the ensign of - authority. - Honesty, scorning compromise, walketh most suitably with Reverence; - Otherwise righteous daring may show but as obstinate rebellion: - Therefore, suffer not thy censure to lack the savour of courtesy, - And remember, the mortal sinneth, but the staff of his power is from God. - - Man, thou hast a social spirit, and art deeply indebted to thy kind: - Therefore claim not all thy rights; but yield, for thine own advantage. - Society is a chain of obligations, and its links must support each other; - The branch can not but wither, that is cut from the parent vine. - Wouldst thou be a dweller in the woods, and cast away the cords that bind - thee, - Seeking, in thy bitterness or pride, to be exiled from thy fellows? - Behold, the beasts shall hunt thee, weak, naked, houseless outcast, - Disease and Death shall track thee out, as bloodhounds in the wilderness: - Better to be vilest of the vile, in the hated company of men, - Than to live a solitary wretch, dreading and wanting all things; - Better to be chained to thy labour, in the dusky thoroughfares of life, - Than to reign monarch of Sloth, in lonesome savage freedom. - - Whence then cometh the doctrine, that all should be equal and free?-- - It is the lie that crowded hell, when Seraphs flung away subjection. - No man is his neighbour's equal, for no two minds are similar, - And accidents, alike with qualities, have every shade but sameness: - The lightest atom of difference shall destroy the nice balance of - equality, - And all things, from without and from within, make one man to differ from - another. - We are equal and free! was the watchword that spirited the legions of - Satan; - We are equal and free! is the double lie that entrappeth to him - conscripts from earth: - The messengers of that dark despot will pander to thy licence and thy - pride, - And draw thee from the crowd where thou art safe, to seize thee in the - solitary desert. - Woe unto him whose heart the syren-song of Liberty hath charmed; - Woe unto him whose mind is bewitched by her treacherous beauty; - In mad zeal flingeth he away the fetters of duty and restraint, - And yieldeth up the holocaust of self to that fair Idol of the Damned. - No man hath freedom in aught, save in that from which the wicked would be - hindered, - He is free toward God and good; but to all else a bondman. - - Thou art in a middle sphere, to render and receive honour; - If thy king commandeth, obey; and stand not in the way with rebels: - But if need be, lay thy hand upon thy sword, and fear not to smite a - traitor, - For the universe acquitteth thee with honour, fighting in defence of thy - king. - If a thief break thy dwelling, and thou take him, it were sin in thee to - let him go; - Yea, though he pleadeth to thy mercy, thou canst not spare him and be - blameless: - For his guilt is not only against thee, it is not thy moneys or thy - merchandize, - But he hath done damage to the Law, which duty constraineth thee to - sanction. - Feast not thine appetite of vengeance, remembering thou also art a man, - But weep for the sad compulsion, in which the chain of Providence hath - bound thee: - Mercy is not thine to give; wilt thou steal another's privilege? - Or send abroad, among thy neighbours, a felon whom impunity hath hardened? - Remember the Roman father, strong in his stern integrity, - And let not thy slothful self-indulgence make thee a conniver at the - crime. - Also, if the knife of the murderer be raised against thee or thine, - And through good providence and courage, thou slay him that would have - slain thee, - Thou losest not a tittle of thy rectitude, having executed sudden justice; - Still mayst thou walk among the blessed, though thy hands be red with - blood. - For thyself, thou art neither worse nor better; but thy fellows should - count thee their creditor: - Thou hast manfully protected the right, and the right is stronger for thy - deed. - Also, in the rescuing of innocence, fear not to smite the ravisher; - What though he die at thy hand? for a good name is better than the life; - And if Phineas had everlasting praise in the matter of Salu's son, - With how much greater honour standeth such a rescuer acquitted? - Uphold the laws of thy country, and fear not to fight in their defence: - But first be convinced in thy mind; for herein the doubter sinneth. - Above all things, look thou well around, if indeed stern duty forceth thee - To draw the sword of justice, and stain it with the slaughter of thy - fellows. - - She, that lieth in thy bosom, the tender wife of thy affections, - Must obey thee, and be subject, that evil drop not on thy dwelling. - The child that is used to constraint, feareth not more than he loveth; - But give thy son his way, he will hate thee and scorn thee together. - The master of a well-ordered home knoweth to be kind to his servants; - Yet he exacteth reverence, and each one feareth at his post. - There is nothing on earth so lowly, but duty giveth it importance; - No station so degrading, but it is ennobled by obedience: - Yea, break stones upon the highway, acknowledging the Lord in thy lot, - Happy shalt thou be, and honourable, more than many children of the - mighty. - Thou that despisest the outward forms, beware thou lose not the inward - spirit; - For they are as words unto ideas, as symbols to things unseen. - Keep then the form that is good; retain, and do reverence to example; - And in all things observe subordination, for that is the whole duty of - man. - -[Illustration] - - A horse knoweth his rider, be he confident or timid, - And the fierce spirit of Bucephalus stoopeth unto none but Alexander; - The tigress, roused in the jungle by the prying spaniels of the fowler, - Will quail at the eye of man, so he assert his dignity; - Nay, the very ships, those giant swans breasting the mighty waters, - Roll in the trough, or break the wave, to the pilot's fear or courage: - How much more shall man, discerning the Fountain of authority, - Bow to superior commands, and make his own obeyed. - And yet, in travelling the world, hast thou not often known - A gallant host led on to ruin by a feeble Xerxes? - Hast thou not often seen the wanton luxury of indolence - Sullying with its sleepy mist the tarnished crown of headship? - Alas! for a thousand fathers, whose indulgent sloth - Hath emptied the vial of confusion over a thousand homes: - Alas! for the palaces and hovels, that might have been nurseries for - heaven, - By hot intestine broils blighted into schools for hell: - None knoweth his place, yet all refuse to serve, - None weareth the crown, yet all usurp the sceptre; - And perchance some fiercer spirit, of natural nobility of mind, - That needed but the kindness of constraint to have grown up great and - good, - Now--the rich harvest of his heart choked by unweeded tares,-- - All bold to dare and do, unchecked by wholesome fear, - A scoffer about bigotry and priestcraft, a rebel against government and - God, - And standard-bearer of the turbulent, leading on the sons of Belial, - Such an one is king of that small state, head tyrant of the thirty, - Brandishing the torch of discord in his village home: - And the timid Eli of the house, yon humble parish-priest, - Liveth in shame and sorrow, fearing his own handywork; - The mother, heart-stricken years agone, hath dropped into an early grave; - The silent sisters long to leave a home they cannot love; - The brothers, casting off restraint, follow their wayward wills; - And the chance-guest, early departing, blesseth his kind stars, - That on his humbler home hath brooded no domestic curse! - Yet is that curse the fruit; wouldest thou the root of the evil? - A kindness--most unkind, that hath always spared the rod; - A weak and numbing indecision in the mind that should be master; - A foolish love, pregnant of hate, that never frowned on sin; - A moral cowardice of heart, that never dared command. - -[Illustration] - - A kingdom is a nest of families, and a family a small kingdom; - And the government of whole or part differeth in nothing but extent. - The house, where the master ruleth, is strong in united subjection, - And the only commandment with promise, being honoured, is a blessing to - that house: - But and if he yieldeth up the reins, it is weak in discordant anarchy, - And the bonds of love and union melt away, as ropes of sand. - The realm, that is ruled with vigour, lacketh neither peace nor glory, - It dreadeth not foes from without, nor the sons of riot from within: - But the meanness of temporizing fear robbeth a kingdom of its honour, - And the weakness of indulgent sloth ravageth its bowels with discord. - The best of human governments is the patriarchal rule; - The authorized supremacy of one, the prescriptive subjection of many: - Therefore, the children of the East have thriven from age to age, - Obeying, even as a god, the royal father of Cathay: - Therefore, to this our day, the Rechabite wanteth not a man, - But they stand before the Lord, forsaking not the mandate of their sire: - Therefore shall Magog among nations arise from his northern lair, - And rend, in the fury of his power, the insurgent world beneath him: - For the thunderbolt of concentrated strength can be hurled by the will of - one, - While the dissipated forces of many are harmless as summer lightning. - - -OF REST. - -[Illustration: "I"] - - In the silent watches of the night, calm night that breedeth thoughts, - When the task-weary mind disporteth in the careless play-hours of sleep, - I dreamed; and behold, a valley, green and sunny and well watered, - And thousands moving across it, thousands and tens of thousands: - And though many seemed faint and toil-worn, and stumbled often, and fell, - Yet moved they on unresting, as the ever-flowing cataract. - Then I noted adders in the grass, and pitfalls under the flowers, - And chasms yawned among the hills, and the ground was cracked and - slippery: - But Hope and her brother Fear suffered not a foot to linger; - Bright phantoms of false joys beckoned alluringly forward, - While yelling grisly shapes of dread came hunting on behind: - And ceaselessly, like Lapland swarms, that miserable crowd sped along - To the mist-involved banks of a dark and sullen river. - There saw I, midway in the water, standing a giant fisher, - And he held many lines in his hand, and they called him Iron Destiny. - So I tracked those subtle chains, and each held one among the multitude: - Then I understood what hindered, that they rested not in their path: - For the fisher had sport in his fishing, and drew in his lines - continually, - And the new-born babe, and the aged man, were dragged into that dark - river: - And he pulled all those myriads along, and none might rest by the way, - Till many, for sheer weariness, were eager to plunge into the drowning - stream. - - So I knew that valley was Life, and it sloped to the waters of Death. - But far on the thither side spread out a calm and silent shore, - Where all was tranquil as a sleep, and the crowded strand was quiet: - And I saw there many I had known, but their eyes glared chillingly upon - me, - As set in deepest slumber; and they pressed their fingers to their lips. - Then I knew that shore was the dwelling of Rest, where spirits held their - Sabbath, - And it seemed they would have told me much, but they might not break that - silence; - For the law of their being was mystery: they glided on, hushing as they - went. - Yet further, under the sun, at the roots of purple mountains, - I noted a blaze of glory, as the night-fires on northern skies; - And I heard the hum of joy, as it were a sea of melody; - And far as the eye could reach, were millions of happy creatures - Basking in the golden light; and I knew that land was Heaven. - Then the hill whereon I stood split asunder, and a crater yawned at my - feet, - Black and deep and dreadful, fenced round with ragged rocks; - Dimly was the darkness lit up by spires of distant flame: - And I saw below a moving mass of life, like reptiles bred in corruption, - Where all was terrible unrest, shrieks and groans and thunder. - -[Illustration] - - So I woke, and I thought upon my dream; for it seemed of Wisdom's - ministration. - What man is he that findeth Rest, though he hunt for it year after year? - As a child he had not yet been wearied, and cared not then to court it; - As a youth he loved not to be quiet, for excitement spurred him into - strife; - As a man he tracketh rest in vain, toiling painfully to catch it, - But still is he pulled from the pursuit, by the strong compulsion of his - fate: - So he hopeth to have peace in old age, as he cannot rest in manhood, - But troubles thicken with his years, till Death hath dodged him to the - grave. - There remaineth a rest for the spirit on the shadowy side of life; - But unto this world's pilgrim no rest for the sole of his foot. - Ever, from stage to stage, he travelleth wearily forward, - And though he pluck flowers by the way, he may not sleep among the - flowers. - Mind is the perpetual motion; for it is a running stream - From an unfathomable source, the depth of the Divine Intelligence: - And though it be stopped in its flowing, yet hath it a current within, - The surface may sleep unruffled, but underneath are whirlpools of - contention. - Seekest thou rest, O mortal?--seek it no more on earth, - For destiny will not cease from dragging thee through the rough - wilderness of life; - Seekest thou rest, O immortal?--hope not to find it in heaven, - For sloth yieldeth not happiness: the bliss of a spirit is action. - Rest dwelleth only on an island in the midst of the ocean of existence, - Where the world-weary soul for a while may fold its tired wings, - Until, after short sufficient slumber, it is quickened unto deathless - energy, - And speedeth in eagle flight to the Sun of unapproachable Perfection. - - -[Illustration: Of Humility] - -OF HUMILITY. - - Vice is grown aweary of her gawds, and donneth russet garments, - Loving for change to walk as a nun, beneath a modest veil: - For Pride hath noted how all admire the fairness of Humility, - And to clutch the praise he coveteth, is content to be drest in - hair-cloth; - And wily Lust tempteth the young heart, that is proof against the bravery - of harlots, - With timid tears and retiring looks of an artful seeming maid; - And indolent Apathy, sleepily ashamed of his dull lack-lustre face, - Is glad of the livery of meekness, that charitable cloak and cowl; - And Hatred hideth his demon frown beneath a gentle mask; - And Slander, snake-like, creepeth in the dust, thinking to escape - recrimination. - But the world hath gained somewhat from its years, and is quick to - penetrate disguises, - Neither in all these is it deceived, but divideth the true from the false. - - Yet there is a meanness of spirit, that is fair in the eyes of most men, - Yea, and seemeth fair unto itself, loving to be thought Humility. - Its choler is not roused by insolence, neither do injuries disturb it: - Honest indignation is strange unto its breast, and just reproof unto its - lip. - It shrinketh, looking fearfully on men, fawning at the feet of the great; - The breath of calumny is sweet unto its ear, and it courteth the rod of - persecution. - But what! art thou not a man, deputed chief of the creation? - Art thou not a soldier of the right, militant for God and good? - Shall virtue and truth be degraded, because thou art too base to uphold - them? - Or Goliath be bolder in blaspheming for want of a David in the camp? - I say not, avenge injuries; for the ministry of vengeance is not thine: - But wherefore rebuke not a liar? wherefore do dishonour to thyself? - Wherefore let the evil triumph, when the just and the right are on thy - side? - Such Humility is abject, it lacketh the life of sensibility, - And that resignation is but mock, where the burden is not felt: - Suspect thyself and thy meekness: thou art mean and indifferent to sin; - And the heart that should grieve and forgive, is case-hardened and - forgetteth. - - Humility mainly becometh the converse of man with his Maker, - But oftentimes it seemeth out of place in the intercourse of man with man: - Yea, it is the cringer to his equal, that is chiefly seen bold to his God, - While the martyr, whom a world cannot brow-beat, is humble as a child - before Him. - Render unto all men their due, but remember thou also art a man, - And cheat not thyself of the reverence which is owing to thy reasonable - being. - Be courteous, and listen, and learn: but teach and answer if thou canst: - Serve thee of thy neighbour's wisdom, but be not enslaved as to a master. - Where thou perceivest knowledge, bend the ear of attention and respect; - But yield not further to the teaching, than as thy mind is warranted by - reasons. - Better is an obstinate disputant, that yieldeth inch by inch, - Than the shallow traitor to himself, who surrendereth to half an argument. - - Modesty winneth good report, but scorn cometh close upon servility; - Therefore, use meekness with discretion, casting not pearls before swine. - For a fool will tread upon thy neck, if he seeth thee lying in the dust; - And there be companies and seasons where a resolute bearing is but duty. - If a good man discloseth his secret failings unto the view of the profane, - What doeth he but harm unto his brother, confirming him in his sin? - There is a concealment that is right, and an open-mouthed humility that - erreth; - There is a candour near akin to folly, and a meekness looking like shame. - Masculine sentiments, vigorously holden, well become a man; - But a weak mind hath a timorous grasp, and mistaketh it for tenderness of - conscience. - Many are despised for their folly, who put it to the account of their - religion, - And because men treat them with contempt, they look to their God for - glory; - But contempt shall still be their reward, who betray their Master unto - ridicule, - Reflecting on Him in themselves, meanness and ignorance and cowardice. - A Christian hath a royal spirit, and need not be ashamed but unto One: - Among just men walketh he softly, but the world should see him as a - champion. - His humbleness is far unlike the shame that covereth the profligate and - weak, - When the sober reproof of virtue hath touched their tingling ears; - It is born of love and wisdom, and is worthy of all honour, - And the sweet persuasion of its smile changeth contempt into reverence. - - A man of a haughty spirit is daily adding to his enemies: - He standeth as the Arab in the desert, and the hands of all men are - against him: - A man of a base mind daily subtracteth from his friends, - For he holdeth himself so cheaply, that others learn to despise him: - But where the meekness of self-knowledge veileth the front of - self-respect, - There look thou for the man, whom none can know but they will honour. - Humility is the softening shadow before the stature of Excellence, - And lieth lowly on the ground, beloved and lovely as the violet: - Humility is the fair-haired maid, that calleth Worth her brother, - The gentle silent nurse, that fostereth infant virtues: - Humility bringeth no excuse; she is welcome to God and to man: - Her countenance is needful unto all, who would prosper in either world: - And the mild light of her sweet face is mirrored in the eyes of her - companions, - And straightway stand they accepted, children of penitence and love. - As when the blind man is nigh unto a rose, its sweetness is the herald of - its beauty, - So when thou savourest Humility, be sure thou art nigh unto merit. - A gift rejoiceth the covetous, and praise fatteneth the vain, - And the pride of man delighteth in the humble bearing of his fellow; - But to the tender benevolence of the unthanked Almoner of good, - Humility is queen among the graces, for she giveth Him occasion to bestow. - - -[Illustration: Of Pride] - -OF PRIDE. - - Deep is the sea, and deep is hell, but Pride mineth deeper; - It is coiled as a poisonous worm about the foundations of the soul. - If thou expose it in thy motives, and track it in thy springs of thought, - Complacent in its own detection, it will seem indignant virtue; - Smoothly will it gratulate thy skill, O subtle anatomist of self, - And spurn at its very being, while it nestleth the deeper in thy bosom. - Pride is a double traitor, and betrayeth itself to entrap thee, - Making thee vain of thy self-knowledge; proud of thy discoveries of Pride. - Fruitlessly thou strainest for humility, by darkly diving into self; - Rather look away from innate evil, and gaze upon extraneous good: - For in sounding the deep things of the heart, thou shalt learn to be vain - of its capacities, - But in viewing the heights above thee, thou shalt be taught thy - littleness: - Could an emmet pry into itself, it might marvel at its own anatomy, - But let it look on eagles, to discern how mean a thing it is. - And all things hang upon comparison; to the greater, great is small: - Neither is there anything so vile, but somewhat yet is viler: - On all sides is there an infinity: the culprit at the gallows hath his - worse, - And the virgin martyr at the stake need not look far for a better. - Therefore see thou that thine aim reacheth unto higher than thyself: - Beware that the standard of thy soul wave from the loftiest battlement: - For Pride is a pestilent meteor, flitting on the marshes of corruption, - That will lure thee forward to thy death, if thou seek to track it to its - source: - Pride is a gloomy bow, arching the infernal firmament, - That will lead thee on, if thou wilt hunt it, even to the dwelling of - despair. - Deep calleth unto deep, and mountain overtoppeth mountain, - And still shalt thou fathom to no end the depth and the height of Pride: - For it is the vast ambition of the soul, warped to an idol object, - And nothing but a Deity in Self can quench its insatiable thirst. - - Be aware of the smiling enemy, that openly sheatheth his weapon, - But mingleth poison in secret with the sacred salt of hospitality: - For Pride will lie dormant in thy heart, to snatch his secret opportunity, - Watching, as a lion-ant, in the bottom of his toils. - Stay not to parley with thy foe, for his tongue is more potent than his - arm; - But be wiser, fighting against Pride in the simple panoply of prayer. - As one also of the poets hath said, let not the Proteus escape thee; - For he will blaze forth as fire, and quench himself in likeness of water; - He will fright thee as a roaring beast, or charm thee as a subtle reptile. - Mark, amid all his transformations, the complicate deceitfulness of Pride, - And the more he striveth to elude thee, bind him the closer in thy toils. - Prayer is the net that snareth him; prayer is the fetter that holdeth him: - Thou canst not nourish Pride, while waiting as an almsman on thy God,-- - Waiting in sincerity and trust, or Pride shall meet thee even there; - Yea, from the palaces of Heaven, hath Pride cast down his millions. - Root up the mandrake from thy heart, though it cost thee blood and groans, - Or the cherished garden of thy graces will fade and perish utterly. - -[Illustration] - - -[Illustration: Of Experience] - -OF EXPERIENCE. - - I knew that age was enriched with the hard-earned wages of knowledge, - And I saw that hoary wisdom was bred in the school of disappointment: - I noted that the wisest of youth, though provident and cautious of evil, - Yet sailed along unsteadily, as lacking some ballast of the mind: - And the cause seemed to lie in this, that while they considered around - them, - And warded off all dangers from without, they forgat their own weakness - within. - So steer they in self-confidence, until, from the multitude of perils, - They begin to be wary of themselves, and learn the first lesson of - Experience. - I knew that in the morning of life, before its wearisome journey, - The youthful soul doth expand, in the simple luxury of being; - It hath not contracted its wishes, nor set a limit to its hopes; - The wing of fancy is unclipt, and sin hath not seared the feelings: - Each feature is stamped with immortality, for all its desires are - infinite, - And it seeketh an ocean of happiness, to fill the deep hollow within. - But the old and the grave look on, pitying that generous youth, - For they also have tasted long ago the bitterness of hope destroyed: - They pity him, and are sad, remembering the days that are past, - But they know he must taste for himself, or he will not give ear to their - wisdom. - For Experience hath another lesson, which a man will do well if he learn, - By checking the flight of expectation, to cheat disappointment of its - pain. - - Experience teacheth many things, and all men are his scholars: - Yet is he a strange tutor, unteaching that which he hath taught. - Youth is confident, manhood wary, and old age confident again: - Youth is kind, manhood cold, and age returneth unto kindness. - For youth suspecteth nought, till manhood, bitterly learned, - Mistrusteth all, overleaping the mark; and age correcteth his excess. - Suspicion is the scaffold unto faith, a temporary needful eyesore, - By which the strong man's dwelling is slowly builded up behind; - But soon as the top-stone hath been set to the well-proved goodly edifice, - The scaffold is torn down, and timely trust taketh its long leave of - suspicion. - - A thousand volumes in a thousand tongues enshrine the lessons of - Experience, - Yet a man shall read them all, and go forth none the wiser: - For self-love lendeth him a glass, to colour all he conneth, - Lest in the features of another he find his own complexion. - And we secretly judge of ourselves as differing greatly from all men, - And love to challenge causes to show how we can master their effects: - Pride is pampered in expecting that we need not fear a common fate, - Or wrong-headed prejudice exulteth, in combating old Experience; - Or perchance caprice and discontent are the spurs that goad us into - danger, - Careless, and half in hope to find there an enemy to joust with. - Private Experience is an unsafe teacher, for we rarely learn both sides, - And from the gilt surface reckon not on steel beneath: - The torrid sons of Guinea think scorn of icy seas, - And the frostbitten Greenlander disbelieveth suns too hot. - But thou, student of Wisdom, feed on the marrow of the matter: - If thou wilt suspect, let it be thyself; if thou wilt expect, let it not - be gladness. - - -[Illustration: Of Estimating Character] - -OF ESTIMATING CHARACTER. - - Rashly, nor ofttimes truly, doth man pass judgment on his brother; - For he seeth not the springs of the heart, nor heareth the reasons of the - mind. - And the world is not wiser than of old, when justice was meted by the - sword, - When the spear avenged the wrong, and the lot decided the right, - When the footsteps of blinded innocence were tracked by burning - plough-shares, - And the still condemning water delivered up the wizard to the stake: - For we wait, like the sage of Salamis, to see what the end will be, - Fixing the right or the wrong, by the issues of failure or success. - Judge not of things by their events: neither of character by providence; - And count not a man more evil, because he is more unfortunate: - For the blessings of a better covenant lie not in the sunshine of - prosperity, - But pain and chastisement the rather show the wise Father's love. - - Behold that daughter of the world: she is full of gaiety and gladness; - The diadem of rank is on her brow, uncounted wealth is in her coffers: - She tricketh out her beauty like Jezebel, and is welcome in the courts of - kings: - She is queen of the fools of fashion, and ruleth the revels of luxury: - And though she sitteth not as Tamar, nor standeth in the ways as Rahab, - Yet in the secret of her chamber, she shrinketh not from dalliance and - guilt. - She careth not if there be a God, or a soul, or a time of retribution; - Pleasure is the idol of her heart: she thirsteth for no purer heaven. - And she laugheth with light good humour, and all men praise her - gentleness; - They are glad in her lovely smile, and the river of her bounty filleth - them. - So she prospered in the world: the worship and desire of thousands; - And she died even as she had lived, careless and courteous and liberal. - The grave swallowed up her pomp, the marble proclaimed her virtues, - For men esteemed her excellent, and charities soundeth forth her praise: - But elsewhere far other judgment setteth her--with infidels and harlots! - She abused the trust of her splendour: and the wages of her sin shall be - hereafter. - - Look again on this fair girl, the orphan of a village pastor - Who is dead, and hath left her his all,--his blessing, and a name - unstained. - And friends, with busy zeal, that their purses be not taxed, - Place the sad mourner in a home, poor substitute for that she hath lost. - A stranger among strange faces she drinketh the wormwood of dependence; - She is marked as a child of want: and the world hateth poverty. - Prayer is not heard in that house; the day she hath loved to hallow - Is noted but by deeper dissipation, the riot of luxury and gaming: - And wantonness is in her master's eye, and she hath nowhere to flee to; - She is cared for by none upon earth, and her God seemeth to forsake her. - Then cometh, in fair show, the promise and the feint of affection, - And her heart, long unused to kindness, remembereth her father, and - loveth. - And the villain hath wronged her trust, and mocked, and flung her from - him, - And men point at her and laugh; and women hate her as an outcast: - But elsewhere, far other judgment seateth her--among the martyrs! - And the Lord, who seemed to forsake, giveth double glory to the fallen. - - Once more, in the matter of wealth: if thou throw thine all on a chance, - Men will come around thee, and wait, and watch the turning of the wheel: - And if, in the lottery of life, thou hast drawn a splendid prize, - What foresight hadst thou, and skill! yea, what enterprize and wisdom! - But if it fall out against thee, and thou fail in thy perilous endeavour, - Behold, the simple did sow, and hath reaped the right harvest of his - folly: - And the world will be gladly excused, nor will reach out a finger to help; - For why should this speculative dullard be a whirlpool to all around him? - Go to, let him sink by himself: we knew what the end of it would be:-- - For the man hath missed his mark, and his fellows look no further. - - Also, touching guilt and innocence: a man shall walk in his uprightness - Year after year without reproach, in charity and honesty with all: - But in one evil hour the enemy shall come in like a flood; - Shall track him, and tempt him, and hem him,--till he knoweth not whither - to fly. - Perchance his famishing little ones shall scream in his ears for bread, - And, maddened by that fierce cry, he rusheth as a thief upon the world; - The world that hath left him to starve, itself wallowing in plenty,-- - The world, that denieth him his rights,--he daringly robbeth it of them. - I say not, such an one is innocent; but, small is the measure of his guilt - To that of his wealthy neighbour, who would not help him at his need; - To that of the selfish epicure, who turned away with coldness from his - tale; - To that of unsuffering thousands, who look with complacence on his fall. - - Or perchance the continual dropping of the venomed words of spite, - Insult and injury and scorn, have galled and pierced his heart; - Yet, with all long-suffering and meekness, he forgiveth unto seventy - times seven: - Till, in some weaker moment, tempted beyond endurance, - He striketh, more in anger than in hate; and, alas! for his heavy chance, - He hath smitten unto instant death his spiteful life-long enemy! - And none was by to see it; and all men knew of their contentions: - Fierce voices shout for his blood, and rude hands hurry him to judgment. - Then man's verdict cometh,--Murderer, with forethought malice; - And his name is a note of execration; his guilt is too black for devils. - But to the Righteous Judge, seemeth he the suffering victim; - For his anger was not unlawful, but became him as a Christian and a man; - And though his guilt was grievous when he struck that heavy bitter blow, - Yet light is the sin of the smiter, and verily kicketh the beam, - To the weight of that man's wickedness, whose slow relentless hatred - Met him at every turn, with patient continuance in evil. - Doubtless, eternal wrath shall be heaped upon that spiteful enemy. - - It is vain, it is vain, saith the preacher; there be none but the - righteous and the wicked, - Base rebels, and staunch allies, the true knight, and the traitor: - And he beareth strong witness among men, There is no neutral ground, - The broad highway and narrow path map out the whole domain; - Sit here among the saints, these holy chosen few, - Or grovel there a wretched condemned, to die among the million. - And verily for ultimate results, there be but good and bad; - Heaven hath no dusky twilight; hell is not gladdened with a dawn. - Yet looking round among his fellows, who can pass righteous judgment, - Such an one is holy and accepted, and such an one reprobate and doomed? - There is so much of good among the worst, so much of evil in the best, - Such seeming partialities in providence, so many things to lessen and - expand, - Yea, and with all man's boast, so little real freedom of his will,-- - That, to look a little lower than the surface, garb or dialect or fashion, - Thou shalt feebly pronounce for a saint, and faintly condemn for a sinner. - Over many a good heart and true, fluttereth the Great King's pennant; - By many an iron hand, the pirate's black banner is unfurled: - But there be many more besides, in the yacht and the trader and the - fishing-boat, - In the feathered war-canoe, and the quick mysterious gondola: - And the army of that Great King hath no stated uniform; - Of mingled characters and kinds goeth forth the countless host; - There is the turbaned Damascene, with his tattooed Zealand brother, - There the slim bather in the Ganges, with the sturdy Russian boor, - The sluggish inmate of a Polar cave, with the fire-souled daughter of - Brazil, - The embruted slave from Cuba, and the Briton of gentle birth. - For all are His inheritance, of all He taketh tithe: - And the church, His mercy's ark, hath some of every sort. - Who art thou, O man, that art fixing the limits of the fold? - Wherefore settest thou stakes to spread the tent of heaven? - Lay not the plummet to the line: religion hath no landmarks: - No human keenness can discern the subtle shades of faith: - In some it is as earliest dawn, the scarce diluted darkness; - In some as dubious twilight, cold and grey and gloomy: - In some the ebon east is streaked with flaming gold: - In some the dayspring from on high breaketh in all its praise. - And who hath determined the when, separating light from darkness? - Who shall pluck from earliest dawn the promise of the day? - Leave that care to the Husbandman, lest thou garner tares; - Help thou the Shepherd in His seeking, but to separate be His: - For I have often seen the noble erring spirit - Wrecked on the shoals of passion, and numbered of the lost; - Often the generous heart, lit by unhallowed fire, - Counted a brand among the burning, and left uncared for in his sin: - Yet I waited a little year, and the mercy thou hadst forgotten - Hath purged that noble spirit, washing it in waters of repentance; - That glowing generous heart, having burnt out all its dross, - Is as a golden censer, ready for the aloes and cassia: - While thou, hard-visaged man, unlovely in thy strictness, - Who turned from him thy sympathies with self-complacent pride, - How art thou shamed by him! his heart is a spring of love, - While the dry well of thine affections is choked with secret mammon. - -[Illustration] - - Sometimes at a glance thou judgest well; years could add little to thy - knowledge: - When charity gloweth on the cheek, or malice is lowering in the eye, - When honesty's open brow, or the weasel-face of cunning is before thee, - Or the loose lip of wantonness, or clear bright forehead of reflection. - But often, by shrewd scrutiny, thou judgest to the good man's harm: - For it may be his hour of trial, or he slumbereth at his post, - Or he hath slain his foe, but not yet levelled the stronghold, - Or barely recovered of the wounds, that fleshed him in his fray with - passion. - Also, of the worst, through prejudice, thou loosely shalt think well: - For none is altogether evil, and thou mayst catch him at his prayers: - There may be one small prize, though all beside be blanks; - A silver thread of goodness in the black serge-cloth of crime. - - There is to whom all things are easy; his mind, as a master-key, - Can open, with intuitive address, the treasuries of art and science: - There is to whom all things are hard; but industry giveth him a crow-bar, - To force, with groaning labour, the stubborn lock of learning: - And often, when thou lookest on an eye, dim in native dulness, - Little shalt thou wot of the wealth diligence hath gathered to its gaze; - Often, the brow that should be bright with the dormant fire of genius, - Within its ample halls, hath ignorance the tenant. - Yet are not the sons of men cast as in moulds by the lot? - The like in frame and feature have much alike in spirit; - Such a shape hath such a soul, so that a deep discerner - From his make will read the man, and err not far in judgment: - Yea, and it holdeth in the converse, that growing similarity of mind - Findeth or maketh for itself an apposite dwelling in the body: - Accident may modify, circumstance may bevil, externals seem to change it, - But still the primitive crystal is latent in its many variations: - For the map of the face, and the picture of the eye, are traced by the - pen of passion; - And the mind fashioneth a tabernacle suitable for itself. - A mean spirit boweth down the back, and the bowing fostereth meanness; - A resolute purpose knitteth the knees, and the firm tread nourisheth - decision; - Love looketh softly from the eye, and kindleth love by looking; - Hate furroweth the brow, and a man may frown till he hateth: - For mind and body, spirit and matter, have reciprocities of power, - And each keepeth up the strife; a man's works make or mar him. - - There be deeper things than these, lying in the twilight of truth; - But few can discern them aright, from surrounding dimness of error. - For perchance, if thou knewest the whole, and largely with comprehensive - mind - Couldst read the history of character, the chequered story of a life, - And into the great account, which summeth a mortal's destiny, - Wert to add the forces from without, dragging him this way and that, - And the secret qualities within, grafted on the soul from the womb, - And the might of other men's example, among whom his lot is cast, - And the influence of want or wealth, of kindness or harsh ill-usage, - Of ignorance he cannot help, and knowledge found for him by others, - And first impressions, hard to be effaced, and leadings to right or to - wrong, - And inheritance of likeness from a father, and natural human frailty, - And the habit of health or disease, and prejudices poured into his mind, - And the myriad little matters none but Omniscience can know, - And accidents that steer the thoughts, where none but Ubiquity can trace - them;-- - If thou couldst compass all these, and the consequents flowing from them, - And the scope to which they tend, and the necessary fitness of all things, - Then shouldst thou see as He seeth, who judgeth all men equal,-- - Equal, touching innocence and guilt; and different alone in this, - That one acknowledged his evil, and looketh to his God for mercy; - Another boasteth of his good, and calleth on his God for justice; - So He, that sendeth none away, is largely munificent to prayer, - But, in the heart of presumption, sheatheth the sword of vengeance. - - -[Illustration] - -OF HATRED AND ANGER. - - Blunted unto goodness is the heart which anger never stirreth, - But that which hatred swelleth, is keen to carve out evil. - Anger is a noble infirmity, the generous failing of the just, - The one degree that riseth above zeal, asserting the prerogatives of - virtue: - But hatred is a slow continuing crime, a fire in the bad man's breast, - A dull and hungry flame, for ever craving insatiate. - Hatred would harm another; anger would indulge itself: - Hatred is a simmering poison; anger, the opening of a valve: - Hatred destroyeth as the upas-tree; anger smiteth as a staff: - Hatred is the atmosphere of hell; but anger is known in heaven. - Is there not a righteous wrath, an anger just and holy, - When goodness is sitting in the dust, and wickedness enthroned on Babel? - Doth pity condemn guilt?--is justice not a feeling but a law - Appealing to the line and to the plummet, incognizant of moral sense? - Thou that condemnest anger, small is thy sympathy with angels, - Thou that hast accounted it for sin, cold is thy communion with heaven. - - Beware of the angry in his passion; but fear not to approach him - afterward; - For if thou acknowledge thine error, he himself will be sorry for his - wrath: - Beware of the hater in his coolness; for he meditateth evil against thee: - Commending the resources of his mind calmly to work thy ruin. - Deceit and treachery skulk with hatred, but an honest spirit flieth with - anger: - The one lieth secret, as a serpent; the other chaseth, as a leopard. - Speedily be reconciled in love, and receive the returning offender, - For wittingly prolonging Anger, thou tamperest unconsciously with Hatred. - Patience is power in a man, nerving him to rein his spirit: - Passion is as palsy to his arm, while it yelleth on the coursers to their - speed: - Patience keepeth counsel, and standeth in solid self-possession, - But the weakness of sudden passion layeth bare the secrets of the soul. - The sentiment of anger is not ill, when thou lookest on the impudence of - vice, - Or savourest the breath of calumny, or hast earned the hard wages of - injustice; - But see that thou curb it in expression, rendering the mildness of rebuke, - So shall thou stand without reproach, mailed in all the dignity of virtue. - - -[Illustration] - -OF GOOD IN THINGS EVIL. - -[Illustration: "I"] - - I heard the man of sin reproaching the goodness of Jehovah, - Wherefore, if He be Almighty Love, permitteth He misery and pain? - I saw the child of hope vexed in the labyrinth of doubt, - Wherefore, O holy One and just, is the horn of Thy foul foe so high - exalted? - And, alas! for this our groaning world, for that grief and guilt are here; - Alas! for that Earth is the battle-field, where good must combat with - evil: - Angels look on and hold their breath, burning to mingle in the conflict, - But the troops of the Captain of Salvation may be none but the soldiers - of the cross: - And that slender band must fight alone, and yet shall triumph gloriously, - Enough shall they be for conquest, and the motto of their standard is, - ENOUGH. - Thou art sad, O denizen of earth, for pains and diseases and death, - But remember, thy hand hath earned them; grudge not at the wages of thy - doings: - Thy guilt, and thy fathers' guilt, must bring many sorrows in their - company, - And if thou wilt drink sweet poison, doubtless it shall rot thee to the - core. - What art thou but the heritor of evil, with a right to nothing good? - The respite of an interval of ease were a boon which Justice might deny - thee: - Therefore lay thy hand upon thy mouth, O man much to be forgiven, - And wait, thou child of hope, for time shall teach thee all things. - - Yet hear, for my speech shall comfort thee: reverently, but with boldness, - I would raise the sable curtain, that hideth the symmetry of Providence. - Pain and sin are convicts, and toil in their fetters for good; - The weapons of evil are turned against itself, fighting under better - banners: - The leech delighteth in stinging, and the wicked loveth to do harm, - But the wise Physician of the Universe useth that ill tendency for health. - Verily, from others' griefs are gendered sympathy and kindness; - Patience, humility, and faith, spring not seldom from thine own: - An enemy, humbled by his sorrows, cannot be far from thy forgiveness; - A friend, who hath tasted of calamity, shall fan the dying incense of thy - love: - And for thyself, is it a small thing, so to learn thy frailty, - That from an aching bone thou savest the whole body? - The furnace of affliction may be fierce, but if it refineth thy soul, - The good of one meek thought shall outweigh years of torment. - Nevertheless, wretched man, if thy bad heart be hardened in the flame, - Being earth-born, as of clay, and not of moulded wax, - Judge not the hand that smiteth, as if thou wert visited in wrath: - Reproach thyself, for He is Justice; repent thee, for He is Mercy. - - Cease, fond caviller at wisdom, to be satisfied that everything is wrong: - Be sure there is good necessity, even for the flourishing of evil. - Would the eye delight in perpetual noon? or the ear in unqualified - harmonics? - Hath winter's frost no welcome, contrasting sturdily with summer? - Couldst thou discern benevolence, if there were no sorrows to be soothed? - Or discover the resources of contrivance, if nothing stood opposed to the - means? - What were power without an enemy? or mercy without an object? - Or truth, where the false were impossible? or love, where love were a - debt? - The characters of God were but idle, if all things around Him were - perfection, - And virtues might slumber on like death, if they lacked the opportunities - of evil. - There is One all-perfect, and but one; man dare not reason of His essence: - But there must be deficiencies in heaven, to leave room for progression - in bliss: - A realm of unqualified BEST were a stagnant pool of being, - And the circle of absolute perfection, the abstract cipher of indolence. - Sin is an awful shadow, but it addeth new glories to the light; - Sin is a black foil, but it setteth off the jewelry of heaven: - Sin is the traitor that hath dragged the majesty of mercy into action; - Sin is the whelming argument, to justify the attribute of vengeance. - It is a deep dark thought, and needeth to be diligently studied, - But perchance evil was essential, that God should be seen of His - creatures: - For where perfection is not, there lacketh possible good, - And the absence of better that might be, taketh from the praise of it is - well: - And creatures must be finite, and finite cannot be perfect: - Therefore, though in small degree, creation involveth evil, - He chargeth His angels with folly, and the heavens are not clean in His - sight: - For every existence in the universe hath either imperfection or Godhead: - And the light that blazeth but in One, must be softened with shadow for - the many. - There is then good in evil; or none could have known his Maker; - No spiritual intellect or essence could have gazed on His high - perfections, - No angel harps could have tuned the wonders of His wisdom, - No ransomed souls have praised the glories of His mercy, - No howling fiends have shown the terrors of His justice, - But God would have dwelt alone, in the fearful solitude of holiness. - - Nevertheless, O sinner, harden not thine heart in evil; - Nor plume thee in imaginary triumph, because thou art not valueless as - vile; - Because thy dark abominations add lustre to the clarity of Light; - Because a wonder-working alchemy draineth elixir out of poisons; - Because the same fiery volcano that scorcheth and ravageth a continent, - Hath in the broad blue bay cast up some petty island; - Because to the full demonstration of the qualities and accidents of good - The swarthy legions of the Devil have toiled as unwitting pioneers. - For sin is still sin; so hateful Love doth hate it; - A blot on the glory of creation, which Justice must wipe out. - Sin is a loathsome leprosy, fretting the white robe of innocence; - A rottenness, eating out the heart of the royal cedars of Lebanon; - A pestilential blast, the terror of that holy pilgrimage; - A rent in the sacred veil, whereby God left His temple. - Therefore, consider thyself, thou that dost not sorrow for thy guilt: - Fear evil, or face its Enemy: dread sin, or dare Justice. - - Yea, saith the Spirit: and their works do follow them; - Habits, and thoughts, and deeds, are shadows and satellites of self. - What! shall the claimant to a throne stand forward with a rabble rout,-- - Meanness, impiety, and lust; riot and indolence and vanity? - Nay, man! the train wherewith thou comest attend whither thou shalt go: - A throne for a king's son, but an inner dungeon for the felon. - For a man's works do follow him: bodily, standing in the judgment, - Behold the false accuser, behold the slandered saint; - The slave, and his bloody driver; the poor, and his generous friend; - The simple dupe, and the crafty knave: the murderer, and--his victim! - Yet all are in many characters; the best stand guilty at the bar; - And he that seemed the worst may have most of real excuse. - The talents unto which a man is born, be they few or many, - Are dropped into the balance of account, working unlooked-for changes; - And perchance the convict from the galleys may stand above the hermit in - his cell, - For that, the obstacles in one outweigh the propensions in the other. - There be, who have made themselves friends, yea, by unrighteous mammon,-- - Friends, ready waiting as an escort to those everlasting habitations; - Embodied in living witnesses, thronging to meet them in a cloud, - Charity, meekness and truth, zeal, sincerity and patience, - There be, who have made themselves foes, yea, by honest gain, - Foes, whose plaint must have its answer, before the bright portal is - unbarred: - Pride, and selfishness, and sloth, apathy, wrath and falsehood, - Bind to their everlasting toil many that must weary in the fires. - Love hath a power and a longing to save the gathered world, - And rescue universal man from the hunting hell-hounds of his doings: - Yet few, here one and there one, scanty as the gleaning after harvest, - Are glad of the robes of praise which Mercy would fling around the naked; - But wrapping closer to their skin the poisoned tunic of their works, - They stand in self-dependence, to perish in abandonment of God. - - -[Illustration] - -OF PRAYER. - - A wicked man scorneth prayer, in the shallow sophistry of reason, - He derideth the silly hope that God can be moved by supplication:-- - Shall the Unchangeable be changed, or waver in His purpose? - Can the weakness of pity affect Him? Should He turn at the bidding of a - man? - Methought He ruled all things, and ye called His decrees immutable, - But if thus He listeneth to words, wherein is the firmness of His will?-- - So I heard the speech of the wicked, and, lo, it was smoother than oil; - But I knew that his reasonings were false, for the promise of the - Scripture is true: - Yet was my soul in darkness, for his words were too hard for me; - Till I turned to my God in prayer: for I know He heareth always. - Then I looked abroad on the earth, and, behold, the Lord was in all - things; - Yet saw I not His hand in aught, but perceived that He worketh by means; - Yea, and the power of the mean proveth the wisdom that ordained it, - Yea, and no act is useless, to the hurling of a stone through the air. - So I turned my thoughts to supplication, and beheld the mercies of - Jehovah, - And I saw sound argument was still the faithful friend of godliness; - For as the rock of the affections is the solid approval of reason, - Even so the temple of Religion is founded on the basis of Philosophy. - - Scorner, thy thoughts are weak, they reach not the summit of the matter; - Go to, for the mouth of a child might show thee the mystery of prayer: - Verily, there is no change in the counsels of the Mighty Ruler: - Verily, His purpose is strong, and rooted in the depths of necessity: - But who hath shown thee His purpose, who hath made known to thee His will? - When, O gainsayer! hast thou been schooled in the secrets of wisdom? - Fate is a creature of God, and all things move in their orbits, - And that which shall surely happen is known unto Him from eternity; - But as, in the field of nature, He useth the sinews of the ox, - And commandeth diligence and toil, Himself giving the increase; - So, in the kingdom of His grace, granteth He omnipotence to prayer, - For He knoweth what thou wilt ask, and what thou wilt ask aright. - No man can pray in faith, whose prayer is not grounded on a promise: - Yet a good man commendeth all things to the righteous wisdom of his God: - For those, who pray in faith, trust the immutable Jehovah, - And they, who ask blessings unpromised, lean on uncovenanted mercy. - - Man, regard thy prayers as a purpose of love to thy soul; - Esteem the providence that led to them as an index of God's good will; - So shalt thou pray aright, and thy words shall meet with acceptance. - Also, in pleading for others, be thankful for the fulness of thy prayer: - For if thou art ready to ask, the Lord is more ready to bestow. - The salt preserveth the sea, and the saints uphold the earth; - Their prayers are the thousand pillars that prop the canopy of nature. - Verily, an hour without prayer, from some terrestrial mind, - Were a curse in the calendar of time, a spot of the blackness of darkness. - Perchance the terrible day, when the world must rock into ruins, - Will be one unwhitened by prayer,--shall He find faith on the earth? - For there is an economy of mercy, as of wisdom, and power, and means; - Neither is one blessing granted, unbesought from the treasury of good: - And the charitable heart of the Being, to depend upon whom is happiness, - Never withholdeth a bounty, so long as His subject prayeth; - Yea, ask what thou wilt, to the second throne in heaven, - It is thine, for whom it was appointed; there is no limit unto prayer: - But and if thou cease to ask, tremble, thou self-suspended creature, - For thy strength is cut off as was Samson's: and the hour of thy doom is - come. - - Frail art thou, O man, as a bubble on the breaker, - Weak and governed by externals, like a poor bird caught in the storm; - Yet thy momentary breath can still the raging waters, - Thy hand can touch a lever that may move the world. - O Merciful, we strike eternal covenant with thee, - For man may take for his ally the King who ruleth kings: - How strong, yet how most weak, in utter poverty how rich, - What possible omnipotence to good is dormant in a man! - Behold that fragile form of delicate transparent beauty, - Whose light-blue eye and hectic cheek are lit by the bale-fires of - decline: - All droopingly she lieth, as a dew-laden lily, - Her flaxen tresses, rashly luxuriant, dank with unhealthy moisture; - Hath not thy heart said of her, Alas! poor child of weakness? - Thou hast erred; Goliah of Gath stood not in half her strength: - Terribly she fighteth in the van as the virgin daughter of Orleans, - She beareth the banner of Heaven, her onset is the rushing cataract, - Seraphim rally at her side, and the captain of that host is God, - And the serried ranks of evil are routed by the lightning of her eye; - She is the King's remembrancer, and steward of many blessings, - Holding the buckler of security over her unthankful land: - For that weak fluttering heart is strong in faith assured, - Dependence is her might, and behold--she prayeth. - - Angels are round the good man, to catch the incense of his prayers, - And they fly to minister kindness to those for whom he pleadeth; - For the altar of his heart is lighted, and burneth before God continually, - And he breatheth, conscious of his joy, the native atmosphere of heaven: - Yea, though poor, and contemned, and ignorant of this world's wisdom, - Ill can his fellows spare him, though they know not of his value. - Thousands bewail a hero, and a nation mourneth for its king, - But the whole universe lamenteth the loss of a man of prayer. - Verily, were it not for One, who sitteth on His rightful throne, - Crowned with a rainbow of emerald, the green memorial of earth,-- - For One, a mediating man, that hath clad His Godhead with mortality, - And offereth prayer without ceasing, the royal priest of Nature, - Matter and life and mind had sunk into dark annihilation, - And the lightning frown of Justice withered the world into nothing. - - Thus, O worshipper of reason, thou hast heard the sum of the matter: - And woe to his hairy scalp that restraineth prayer before God. - Prayer is a creature's strength, his very breath and being; - Prayer is the golden key that can open the wicket of Mercy: - Prayer is the magic sound that saith to Fate, So be it; - Prayer is the slender nerve that moveth the muscles of Omnipotence. - Wherefore, pray, O creature, for many and great are thy wants; - Thy mind, thy conscience, and thy being, thy rights commend thee unto - prayer, - The cure of all cares, the grand panacea for all pains, - Doubt's destroyer, ruin's remedy, the antidote to all anxieties. - - So then, God is true, and yet He hath not changed: - It is He that sendeth the petition, to answer it according to His will. - - -[Illustration] - -THE LORD'S PRAYER. - - Inquirest thou, O man, wherewithal may I come unto the Lord? - And with what wonder-working sounds may I move the majesty of Heaven? - There is a model to thy hand; upon that do thou frame thy supplication; - Wisdom hath measured its words; and redemption urgeth thee to use them. - Call thy God thy Father, and yet not thine alone, - For thou art but one of many, thy brotherhood is with all: - Remember His high estate, that He dwelleth King of Heaven; - So shall thy thoughts be humbled, nor love be unmixed with reverence: - Be thy first petition unselfish, the honour of Him who made thee, - And that in the depths of thy heart His memory be shrined in holiness: - Pray for that blessed time, when good shall triumph over evil, - And one universal temple echo the perfections of Jehovah: - Bend thou to His good will, and subserve His holy purposes, - Till in thee, and those around thee, grow a little heaven upon earth: - Humbly, as a grateful almsman, beg thy bread of God,-- - Bread for thy triple estate, for thou hast a trinity of nature: - Humility smootheth the way, and gratitude softeneth the heart, - Be then thy prayer for pardon mingled with the tear of penitence; - Yea, and while, all unworthy, thou leanest on the hand that should smite, - Thou canst not from thy fellows withhold thy less forgiveness. - To thy Father thy weaknesses are known, and thou hast not hid thy sin, - Therefore ask Him, in all trust, to lead thee from the dangers of - temptation; - While the last petition of the soul, that breatheth on the confines of - prayer, - Is deliverance from sin and the evil one, the miseries of earth and hell. - And wherefore, child of hope, should the rock of thy confidence be sure? - Thou knowest that God heareth and promiseth an answer of peace; - Thou knowest that He is King, and none can stay His hand; - Thou knowest His power to be boundless, for there is none other: - And to Him thou givest glory, as a creature of His workmanship and favour, - For the never-ending term of thy saved and bright existence. - - -[Illustration: Of Discretion] - -OF DISCRETION. - - For what then was I born?--to fill the circling year - With daily toil for daily bread, with sordid pains and pleasures?-- - To walk this chequered world, alternate light and darkness, - The day-dreams of deep thought followed by the night-dreams of fancy?-- - To be one in a full procession?--to dig my kindred clay?-- - To decorate the gallery of art?--to clear a few acres of forest? - For more than these, my soul, thy God hath lent thee life. - Is then that noble end to feed this mind with knowledge, - To mix for mine own thirst the sparkling wine of wisdom, - To light with many lamps the caverns of my heart, - To reap, in the furrows of my brain, good harvest of right reasons?-- - For more than these, my soul, thy God hath lent thee life. - Is it to grow stronger in self-government, to check the chafing will, - To curb with tightening rein the mettled steeds of passion, - To welcome with calm heart, far in the voiceless desert, - The gracious visitings of heaven that bless my single self?-- - For more than these, my soul, thy God hath lent thee life. - To aim at thine own happiness, is an end idolatrous and evil; - In earth, yea in heaven, if thou seek it for itself, seeking thou shalt - not find. - Happiness is a road-side flower, growing on the highway of Usefulness; - Plucked, it shall wither in thy hand; passed by, it is fragrance to thy - spirit: - Love not thine own soul, regard not thine own weal, - Trample the thyme beneath thy feet; be useful, and be happy! - - Thus unto fair conclusions argueth generous youth, - And quickly he starteth on his course, knight-errant to do good. - His sword is edged with arguments, his vizor terrible with censures; - He goeth full mailed in faith, and zeal is flaming at his heart. - Yet one thing he lacketh, the Mentor of the mind, - The quiet whisper of Discretion--Thy time is not yet come. - For he smiteth an oppressor; and vengeance for that smiting - Is dealt in doubled stripes on the faint body of the victim: - He is glad to give and to distribute; and clamorous pauperism feasteth, - While honest labour, pining, hideth his sharp ribs: - He challengeth to a fair field that subtle giant Infidelity, - And, worsted in the unequal fight, strengtheneth the hands of error; - He hasteth to teach and preach, as the war-horse rusheth to the battle, - And to pave a way for truth, would break up the Apennines of prejudice: - He wearieth by stale proofs, where none looked for a reason, - And to the listening ear will urge the false argument of feeling. - So hath it often been, that, judging by results, - The hottest friends of truth have done her deadliest wrong. - Alas! for there are enemies without, glad enough to parley with a traitor, - And a zealot will let down the drawbridge, to prove his own prowess: - Yea, from within will he break away a breach in the citadel of truth, - That he may fill the gap, for fame, with his own weak body. - - Zeal without judgment is an evil, though it be zeal unto good; - Touch not the ark with unclean hand, yea, though it seem to totter. - There are evil who work good, and there are good who work evil, - And foolish backers of wisdom have brought on her many reproaches. - Truth hath more than enough to combat in the minds of all men, - For the mist of sense is a thick veil, and sin hath warped their wills; - Yet doth an officious helper awkwardly prevent her victory,-- - These thy wounded hands were smitten in the house of friends:-- - To point out a meaning in her words, he will blot those words with his - finger; - And winnow chaff into the eyes, before he hath wheat to show: - He will heap sturdy logs on a faint expiring fire, - And with a room in flames, will cast the casement open; - By a shoulder to the wheel down hill harasseth the labouring beast, - And where obstruction were needed, will harm by an ill-judged - thrusting-on. - - A vessel foundereth at sea, if a storm hath unshipped the rudder; - And a mind with much sail shall require heavy ballast. - Take a lever by the middle, thou shalt seem to prove it powerless, - Argue for truth indiscreetly, thou shalt toil for falsehood. - There is plenty of room for a peaceable man in the most thronged assembly; - But a quarrelsome spirit is straitened in the open field: - Many a teacher, lacking judgment, hindereth his own lessons; - And the savoury mess of pottage is spoiled by a bitter herb: - The garment woven of a piece is rashly torn by schism, - Because its unwise claimants will not cast lots for its possession. - - Discretion guide thee on thy way, noble-minded youth, - Help thee to humour infirmities, to wink at innocent errors, - To take small count of forms, to bear with prejudice and fancy: - Discretion guard thine asking, discretion aid thine answer, - Teach thee that well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech, - Whisper thee, thou art Weakness, though thy cause be Strength, - And tell thee, the key-stone of an arch can be loosened with least labour - from within. - The snows of Hecla lie around its troubled smoking Geysers; - Let the cool streams of prudence temper the hot spring of zeal: - So shalt thou gain thine honourable end, nor lose the midway prize: - So shall thy life be useful, and thy young heart happy. - - -OF TRIFLES. - -[Illustration: "Y"] - - Yet once more, saith the fool, yet once, and is it not a little one? - Spare me this folly yet an hour, for what is one among so many? - And he blindeth his conscience with lies, and stupifieth his heart with - doubts;-- - Whom shall I harm in this matter? and a little ill breedeth much good; - My thoughts, are they not mine own? and they leave no mark behind them; - And if God so pardoneth crime, how should these petty sins affect Him?-- - So he transgresseth yet again, and falleth by little and little, - Till the ground crumble beneath him, and he sinketh in the gulf - despairing. - For there is nothing in the earth so small that it may not produce great - things, - And no swerving from a right line, that may not lead eternally astray. - A landmark tree was once a seed; and the dust in the balance maketh a - difference; - And the cairn is heaped high by each one flinging a pebble: - The dangerous bar in the harbour's mouth is only grains of sand; - And the shoal that hath wrecked a navy is the work of a colony of worms: - Yea, and a despicable gnat may madden the mighty elephant; - And the living rock is worn by the diligent flow of the brook. - Little art thou, O man, and in trifles thou contendest with thine equals, - For atoms must crowd upon atoms, ere crime groweth to be a giant. - What, is thy servant a dog?--not yet wilt thou grasp the dagger, - Not yet wilt thou laugh with the scoffers, not yet betray the innocent; - But, if thou nourish in thy heart the reveries of injury or passion, - And travel in mental heat the mazy labyrinths of guilt, - And then conceive it possible, and then reflect on it as done, - And use, by little and little, thyself to regard thyself a villain, - Not long will crime be absent from the voice that doth invoke him to thy - heart, - And bitterly wilt thou grieve, that the buds have ripened into poison. - - A spark is a molecule of matter, yet may it kindle the world: - Vast is the mighty ocean, but drops have made it vast. - Despise not thou a small thing, either for evil or for good; - For a look may work thy ruin, or a word create thy wealth: - The walking this way or that, the casual stopping or hastening, - Hath saved life, and destroyed it, hath cast down and built up fortunes. - Commit thy trifles unto God, for to Him is nothing trivial; - And it is but the littleness of man that seeth no greatness in a trifle. - All things are infinite in parts, and the moral is as the material, - Neither is anything vast, but it is compacted of atoms. - Thou art wise, and shalt find comfort, if thou study thy pleasure in - trifles, - For slender joys, often repeated, fall as sunshine on the heart: - Thou art wise, if thou beat off petty troubles, nor suffer their stinging - to fret thee; - Thrust not thine hand among the thorns, but with a leathern glove. - Regard nothing lightly which the wisdom of Providence hath ordered; - And therefore, consider all things that happen unto thee or unto others. - The warrior that stood against a host, may be pierced unto death by a - needle; - And the saint that feareth not the fire, may perish the victim of a - thought: - A mote in the gunner's eye is as bad as a spike in the gun; - And the cable of a furlong is lost through an ill-wrought inch. - The streams of small pleasures fill the lake of happiness: - And the deepest wretchedness of life is continuance of petty pains. - A fool observeth nothing, and seemeth wise unto himself; - A wise man heedeth all things, and in his own eyes is a fool: - He that wondereth at nothing hath no capabilities of bliss: - But he that scrutinizeth trifles hath a store of pleasure to his hand. - If pestilence stalk through the land, ye say, This is God's doing; - Is it not also His doing when an aphis creepeth on a rosebud? - If an avalanche roll from its Alp, ye tremble at the will of Providence: - Is not that will concerned when the sear leaves fall from the poplar?-- - A thing is great or little only to a mortal's thinking, - But abstracted from the body, all things are alike important: - The Ancient of Days noteth in His book the idle converse of a creature, - And happy and wise is the man to whose thought existeth not a trifle. - - -[Illustration] - -OF RECREATION. - - To join advantage to amusement, to gather profit with pleasure, - Is the wise man's necessary aim, when he lieth in the shade of recreation. - For he cannot fling aside his mind, nor bar up the flood-gates of his - wisdom; - Yea, though he strain after folly, his mental monitor shall check him: - For knowledge and ignorance alike have laws essential to their being,-- - The sage studieth amusements, and the simple laugheth in his studies. - Few, but full of understanding, are the books of the library of God, - And fitting for all seasons are the gain and the gladness they bestow: - The volume of mystery and Grace, for the hour of deep communings, - When the soul considereth intensely the startling marvel of itself: - The book of destiny and Providence, for the time of sober study, - When the mind gleaneth wisdom from the olive grove of history: - And the cheerful pages of Nature, to gladden the pleasant holiday, - When the task of duty is complete, and the heart swelleth high with - satisfaction. - The soul may not safely dwell too long with the deep things of futurity; - The mind may not always be bent back, like the Parthian, straining at the - past; - And, if thou art wearied with wrestling on the broad arena of science, - Leave awhile thy friendly foe, half vanquished in the dust, - Refresh thy jaded limbs, return with vigour to the strife,-- - Thou shalt easier find thyself his master, for the vacant interval of - leisure. - - That which may profit and amuse is gathered from the volume of creation, - For every chapter therein teemeth with the playfulness of wisdom. - The elements of all things are the same, though nature hath mixed them - with a difference, - And Learning delighteth to discover the affinity of seeming opposites: - So out of great things and small draweth he the secrets of the universe, - And argueth the cycles of the stars, from a pebble flung by a child. - It is pleasant to note all plants, from the rush to the spreading cedar, - From the giant king of palms, to the lichen that staineth its stem; - To watch the workings of instinct, that grosser reason of brutes,-- - The river horse browsing in the jungle, the plover screaming on the moor, - The cayman basking on a mud-bank, and the walrus anchored to an iceberg, - The dog at his master's feet, and the milch-kine lowing in the meadow; - To trace the consummate skill that hath modelled the anatomy of insects, - Small fowls that sun their wings on the petals of wild flowers; - To learn a use in the beetle, and more than a beauty in the butterfly; - To recognize affections in a moth, and look with admiration on a spider. - It is glorious to gaze upon the firmament, and see from far the mansions - of the blest, - Each distant shining world, a kingdom for one of the redeemed; - To read the antique history of earth, stamped upon those medals in the - rocks - Which Design hath rescued from decay, to tell of the green infancy of - time; - To gather from the unconsidered shingle mottled starlike agates, - Full of unstoried flowers in the bubbling bloom-chalcedony: - Or gay and curious shells, fretted with microscopic carving, - Corallines, and fresh seaweeds, spreading forth their delicate branches. - It is an admirable lore, to learn the cause in the change, - To study the chemistry of Nature, her grand, but simple secrets, - To search out all her wonders, to track the resources of her skill, - To note her kind compensations, her unobtrusive excellence. - In all it is wise happiness to see the well-ordained laws of Jehovah, - The harmony that filleth all His mind, the justice that tempereth His - bounty, - The wonderful all-prevalent analogy that testifieth one Creator, - The broad arrow of the Great King, carved on all the stores of His - arsenal. - But beware, O worshipper of God, thou forget not Him in His dealings, - Though the bright emanations of His power hide Him in created glory; - For if, on the sea of knowledge, thou regardest not the pole-star of - religion, - Thy bark will miss her port, and run upon the sand-bar of folly: - And if, enamoured of the means, thou considerest not the scope to which - they tend, - Wherein art thou wiser than the child, that is pleased with toys and - baubles? - Verily, a trifling scholar, thou heedest but the letter of instruction: - For, as motive is spirit unto action, as memory endeareth place, - As the sun doth fertilize the earth, as affection quickeneth the heart, - So is the remembrance of God in the varied wonders of creation. - - Man hath found out inventions, to cheat him of the weariness of life, - To help him to forget realities, and hide the misery of guilt. - For love of praise, and hope of gain, for passion and delusive happiness, - He joineth the circle of folly, and heapeth on the fire of excitement; - Oftentimes sadly out of heart at the tiresome insipidity of pleasure, - Oftentimes labouring in vain, convinced of the palpable deceit: - Yet a man speaketh to his brother, in the voice of glad congratulation, - And thinketh others happy, though he himself be wretched: - And hand joineth hand to help in the toil of amusement, - While the secret aching heart is vacant of all but disappointment. - The cheapest pleasures are the best; and nothing is more costly than sin; - Yet we mortgage futurity, counting it but little loss: - Neither can a man delight in that which breedeth sorrow, - Yet do we hunt for joy even in the fires that consume it. - Whoso would find gladness may meet her in the hovel of poverty, - Where benevolence hath scattered around the gleanings of the horn of - plenty; - Whoso would sun himself in peace, may be seen of her in deeds of mercy, - When the pale lean cheek of the destitute is wet with grateful tears. - If the mind is wearied by study, or the body worn with sickness, - It is well to lie fallow for a while, in the vacancy of sheer amusement; - But when thou prosperest in health, and thine intellect can soar untired, - To seek uninstructive pleasure is to slumber on the couch of indolence. - -[Illustration] - - -[Illustration: The Train of Religion.] - -The Train of Religion. - - Stay awhile, thou blessed band! be entreated, daughters of heaven! - While the chance-met scholar of Wisdom learneth your sacred names: - He is resting a little from his toil, yet a little on the borders of - earth, - And fain would he have you his friends, to bid him glad welcome hereafter. - Who among the glorious art thou, that walkest a Goddess and a Queen, - Thy crown of living stars, and a golden cross thy sceptre? - Who among flowers of loveliness is she, thy seeming herald, - Yet she boasteth not thee nor herself, and her garments are plain in - their neatness? - Wherefore is there one among the train, whose eyes are red with weeping, - Yet is her open forehead beaming with the sun of ecstasy? - And who is that bloodstained warrior, with glory sitting on his crest? - And who that solemn sage, calm in majestic dignity? - Also, in the lengthening troop see I some clad in robes of triumph, - Whose fair and sunny faces I have known and loved on earth: - Welcome, ye glorified Loves, Graces, and Sciences, and Muses, - That, like sisters of charity, tended in this world's hospital; - Welcome, for verily I knew, ye could not but be children of the light, - Though earth hath soiled your robes, and robbed you of half your glory; - Welcome, chiefly welcome, for I find I have friends in heaven, - And some I might scarce have looked for, as thou, light-hearted Mirth; - Thou also, star-robed Urania; and thou, with the curious glass, - That rejoicedst in tracking wisdom where the eye was too dull to note it: - And art thou too among the blessed, mild, much-injured Poetry? - Who quickenest with light and beauty the leaden face of matter, - Who not unheard, though silent, fillest earth's gardens with music, - And not unseen, though a spirit, dost look down upon us from the stars,-- - That hast been to me for oil and for wine, to cheer and uphold my soul, - When wearied, battling with the surge, the stunning surge of life: - Of thee, for well have I loved thee, of thee may I ask in hope, - Who among the glorious is she, that walketh a Goddess and a Queen? - And who that fair-haired herald, and who that weeping saint? - And who that mighty warrior, and who that solemn sage? - - Son, happy art thou that Wisdom hath led thee hitherward: - For otherwise never hadst thou known the joy-giving name of our Queen. - Behold her, the life of men, the anchor of their shipwrecked hopes: - Behold her, the shepherdess of souls, who bringeth back the wanderers to - God. - And for that modest herald, she is named on earth, Humility: - And hast thou not known, my son, the tearful face of Repentance? - Faith is yon time-scarred hero, walking in the shade of his laurels: - And Reason, the serious sage, who followeth the footsteps of Faith: - And we, all we, are but handmaids, ministers of minor bliss, - Who rejoice to be counted servants in the train of a Queen so glorious: - But for her name, son of man, it is strange to the language of heaven, - For those who have never fallen need not and may not learn it: - Ligeance we swear to our God, and ligeance well have we kept; - It is only the band of the redeemed who can tell thee the fulness of that - name; - Yet will I comfort thee, my son, for the love wherewith thou hast loved - me, - And thou shalt touch for thyself the golden sceptre of Religion. - - So that blessed train passed by me; but the vision was sealed upon my - soul; - And its memory is shrined in fragrance, for the promise of the Spirit was - true: - I learn from the silent poem of all creation round me, - How beautiful their feet, who follow in that train. - - -OF A TRINITY. - -[Illustration: "D"] - - Despise not, shrewd reckoner, the God of a good man's worship, - Neither let thy calculating folly gainsay the unity of three: - Nor scorn another's creed, although he cannot solve thy doubts; - Reason is the follower of faith, where he may not be precursor: - It is written, and so we believe, waiting not for outward proof, - Inasmuch as mysteries inscrutable are the clear prerogatives of godhead. - Reason hath nothing positive, faith hath nothing doubtful; - And the height of unbelieving wisdom is to question all things. - When there is marvel in a doctrine, faith is joyful and adoreth; - But when all is clear, what place is left for faith? - Tell me the sum of thy knowledge,--is it yet assured of anything? - Despise not what is wonderful, when all things are wonderful around thee. - From the multitude of like effects, thou sayest, Behold a law: - And the matter thou art baffled in unmaking, is to thy mind an element. - Then look abroad, I pray thee, for analogy holdeth everywhere, - And the Maker hath stamped His name on every creature of His hand: - I know not of a matter or a spirit, that is not three in one, - And truly should account it for a marvel, a coin without the image of its - Cæsar. - - Man talketh of himself as ignorant, but judgeth by himself as wise: - His own guess counteth he truth, but the notions of another are his scorn; - But bear thou yet with a brother, whose thought may be less subtle than - thine own, - And suffer the passing speculation suggested by analogies to faith. - Like begetteth like, and the great sea of Existence - In each of its uncounted waves holdeth up a mirror to its Maker: - Like begetteth like, and the spreading tree of being - With each of its trefoil leaves pointeth at the Trinity of God. - Let him whose eyes have been unfilmed, read this homily in all things, - And thou, of duller sight, despise not him that readeth: - There be three grand principles; life, generation, and obedience; - Shadowing in every creature, the Spirit, and the Father, and the Son. - There be three grand unities, variously mixed in trinities, - Three catholic divisors of the million sums of matter: - Yea, though science hath not seen it, climbing the ladder of experiment, - Let faith, in the presence of her God, promulgate the mighty truth; - Of three sole elements all nature's works consist: - The pine, and the rock to which it clingeth, and the eagle sailing around - it: - The lion, and the northern whale, and the deeps wherein he sporteth; - The lizard sleeping in the sun; the lightning flashing from a cloud; - The rose, and the ruby, and the pearl; each one is made of three; - And the three be the like ingredients, mingled in diverse measures. - Thyself hast within thyself body, and life, and mind: - Matter, and breath, and instinct, unite in all beasts of the field; - Substance, coherence, and weight, fashion the fabrics of the earth; - The will, the doing, and the deed, combine to frame a fact: - The stem, the leaf, and the flower; beginning, middle, and end; - Cause, circumstance, consequent: and every three is one. - Yea, the very breath of man's life consisteth of a trinity of vapours, - And the noonday light is a compound, the triune shadow of Jehovah. - - Shall all things else be in mystery, and God alone be understood? - Shall finite fathom infinity, though it sound not the shallows of - creation? - Shall a man comprehend his Maker, being yet a riddle to himself? - Or time teach the Lesson that eternity cannot master? - If God be nothing more than one, a child can compass the thought; - But seraphs fail to unravel the wondrous unity of three. - One verily He is, for there can be but one who is all mighty; - Yet the oracles of nature and religion proclaim Him three in one. - And where were the value to thy soul, O miserable denizen of earth, - Of the idle pageant of the cross, where hung no sacrifice for thee? - Where the worth to thine impotent heart, of that stirred Bethesda, - All numbed and palsied as it is, by the scorpion stings of sin? - No, thy trinity of nature, enchained by treble death, - Helplessly craveth of its God, Himself for three salvations: - The soul to be reconciled in love, the mind to be glorified in light, - While this poor dying body leapeth into life. - And if indeed for us all the costly ransom hath been paid, - Bethink thee, could less than Deity have owned so vast a treasure? - Could a man contend with God, and stand against the bosses of His buckler, - Rendering the balance for guilt, atonement to the uttermost? - Thou art subtle to thine own thinking, but wisdom judgeth thee a fool, - Resolving thou wilt not bow the knee to a Being thou canst not comprehend: - The mind that could compass perfection were itself perfection's equal; - And reason refuseth its homage to a God who can be fully understood. - - Thou that despiseth mystery, yet canst expound nothing, - Wherefore rejectest thou the fact that solveth the enigma of all things? - Wherefore veilest thou thine eyes, lest the light of revelation sun them, - And puttest aside the key that would open the casket of truth? - The mind and the nature of God are shadowed in all His works, - And none could have guessed of His essence, had He not uttered it Himself. - Therefore, thou child of folly, that scornest the record of His wisdom, - Learn from the consistencies of nature the needful miracle of Godhead: - Yea, let the heathen be thy teacher, who adoreth many gods, - For there is no wide-spread error that hath not truth for its beginning. - Be content; thine eye cannot see all the sides of a cube at one view, - Nor thy mind in the self-same moment follow two ideas: - There are now many marvels in thy creed, believing what thou seest, - Then let not the conceit of intellect hinder thee from worshipping - mystery. - - -[Illustration: Of Thinking.] - -OF THINKING. - - Reflection is a flower of the mind, giving out wholesome fragrance, - But reverie is the same flower, when rank and running to seed. - Better to read little with thought, than much with levity and quickness; - For mind is not as merchandize, which decreaseth in the using, - But liker to the passions of man, which rejoice and expand in exertion: - Yet live not wholly on thine own ideas, lest they lead thee astray; - For in spirit, as in substance, thou art a social creature; - And if thou leanest on thyself, thou rejectest the guidance of thy - betters, - Yea, thou contemnest all men,--Am I not wiser than they?-- - Foolish vanity hath blinded thee, and warped thy weak judgment: - For, though new ideas flow from new springs, and enrich the treasury of - knowledge, - Yet listen often, ere thou think much; and look around thee ere thou - judgest. - Memory, the daughter of Attention, is the teeming mother of Wisdom, - And safer is he that storeth knowledge, than he that would make it for - himself. - - Imagination is not thought, neither is fancy reflection: - Thought paceth like a hoary sage, but imagination hath wings as an eagle: - Reflection sternly considereth, nor is sparing to condemn evil, - But fancy lightly laugheth, in the sun-clad gardens of amusement. - For the shy game of the fowler the quickest shot is the surest; - But with slow care and measured aim the gunner pointeth his cannon: - So for all less occasions, the surface-thought is best, - But to be master of the great take thou heavier metal. - It is a good thing, and a wholesome, to search out bosom sins, - But to be the hero of selfish imaginings, is the subtle poison of pride: - At night, in the stillness of thy chamber, guard and curb thy thoughts, - And in recounting the doings of the day, beware that thou do it with - prayer, - Or thinking will be an idle pleasure, and retrospect yield no fruit. - Steer the bark of thy mind from the syren isle of reverie, - And let a watchful spirit mingle with the glance of recollection: - Also, in examining thine heart, in sounding the fountain of thine actions, - Be more careful of the evil than of the good; and humble thyself in thy - sin. - - The root of all wholesome thought is knowledge of thyself, - For thus only canst thou learn the character of God toward thee. - He made thee, and thou art; He redeemed thee, and thou wilt be: - Thou art evil, yet He loveth thee; thou sinnest, yet He pardoneth thee. - Though thou canst not perceive Him, yet is He in all His works, - Infinite in grand outline, infinite in minute perfection: - Nature is the chart of God, mapping out all His attributes; - Art is the shadow of His wisdom, and copieth His resources. - Thou knowest the laws of matter to be emanations of His will, - And thy best reason for aught is this,--Thou, Lord, wouldst have it so. - Yea, what is any law but an absolute decree of God? - Or the properties of matter and mind, but the arbitrary fiats of Jehovah? - He made and ordained necessity; He forged the chain of reason; - And holdeth in His own right hand the first of the golden links. - A fool regardeth mind as the spiritual essence of matter, - And not rather matter as the gross accident of mind. - Can finite govern infinite, or a part exceed the whole, - Or the wisdom of God sit down at the feet of innate necessity? - Necessity is a creature of His hand: for He can never change; - And chance hath no existence where everything is needful. - - Canst thou measure Omnipotence, canst thou conceive Ubiquity, - Which guideth the meanest reptile, and quickeneth the brightest seraph, - Which steereth the particle of dust, and commandeth the path of the comet? - To Him all things are equal, for all things are necessary. - The smith was weary at his forge, and welded the metal carelessly, - And the anchor breaketh in its bed; and the vessel foundereth with her - crew: - A word of anger is muttered, engendering the midnight murder: - The sun bursteth from a cloud, and maddeneth the toiling husbandman. - Shall these things be, and God not know it? - Shall He know, and not be in them? shall He see, and not be among them? - And how can they be otherwise than as He knoweth? - Truly, the Lord is in all things; verily, He worketh in all. - Think thus, and thy thoughts are firm, ascribing each circumstance to Him; - Yet know surely, and believe the truth, that God willeth not evil; - For adversities are blessings in disguise, and wickedness the Lord - abhorreth: - That He is in all things is an axiom, and that He is righteous in all: - Ascribe holiness to Him, while thou musest on the mystery of sin, - For infinite can grasp that, which finite cannot compass. - - In works of art, think justly: what praise canst thou render unto man? - For he made not his own mind, nor is he the source of contrivance. - If a cunning workman make an engine that fashioneth curious works, - Which hath the praise, the machine or its maker,--the engine, or he that - framed it? - And could he frame it so subtly as to give it a will and freedom, - Endow it with complicated powers, and a glorious living soul, - Who, while he admireth the wondrous understanding creature, - Will not pay deeper homage to the Maker of master minds? - Otherwise, thou art senseless as the pagan, that adoreth his own - handywork; - Yea, while thou boastest of thy wisdom, thy mind is as the mind of the - savage, - For he boweth down to his idols, and thou art a worshipper of self, - Giving to the reasoning machine the credit due to its creator. - - The key-stone of thy mind, to give thy thoughts solidity, - To bind them as in an arch, to fix them as the world in its sphere, - Is to learn from the book of the Lord, to drink from the well of His - wisdom. - Who can condense the sun, or analyse the fulness of the Bible, - So that its ideas be gathered, and the harvest of its wisdom be brought - in? - That book is easy to the man who setteth his heart to understand it, - But to the careless and profane it shall seem the foolishness of God; - And it is a delicate test to prove thy moral state; - To the humble disciple it is bread, but a stone to the proud and - unbelieving: - A scorner shall find nothing but the husks, wherewith to feed his hunger, - But for the soul of the simple, it is plenty of full-ripe wheat. - The Scripture abideth the same, in the sober majesty of truth; - And the differing aspects of its teaching proceed from diversity in minds. - He that would learn to think may gain that knowledge there; - For the living word, as an angel, standeth at the gate of wisdom, - And publisheth, This is the way, walk ye surely in it. - Religion taketh by the hand the humble pupil of repentance, - And teacheth him lessons of mystery, solving the questions of doubt; - She maketh man worthy of himself, of his high prerogative of reason, - Threadeth all the labyrinths of thought, and leadeth him to his God. - - Come hither, child of meditation, upon whose high fair forehead - Glittereth the star of mind in its unearthly lustre: - Hast thou nought to tell us of thine airy joys,-- - When, borne on sinewy pinions, strong as the western condor, - The soul, after soaring for a while round the cloud-capped Andes of - reflection, - Glad in its conscious immortality, leaveth a world behind, - To dare at one bold flight the broad Atlantic to another? - Hast thou no secret pangs to whisper common men, - No dread of thine own energies, still active day and night, - Lest too ecstatic heat sublime thyself away, - Or vivid horrors, sharp and clear, madden thy tense fibres? - In half-shaped visions of sleep hast thou not feared thy flittings, - Lest reason, like a raking hawk, return not to thy call: - Nor waked to work-day life with throbbing head and heart, - Nor welcomed early dawn to save thee from unrest? - For the wearied spirit lieth as a fainting maiden, - Captive and borne away on the warrior's foam-covered steed, - And sinketh down wounded, as a gladiator on the sand, - While the keen faulchion of Intellect is cutting through the scabbard of - the brain. - Imagination, like a shadowy giant looming on the twilight of the Hartz, - Shall overwhelm judgment with affright, and scare him from his throne: - In a dream thou mayst be mad, and feel the fire within thee; - In a dream thou mayst travel out of self, and see thee with the eyes of - another; - Or sleep in thine own corpse: or wake as in many bodies; - Or swell, as expanded to infinity; or shrink, as imprisoned to a point; - Or among moss-grown ruins mayst wander with the sullen disembodied, - And gaze upon their glassy eyes until thy heart-blood freeze. - - Alone must thou stand, O man! alone at the bar of judgment; - Alone must thou bear thy sentence, alone must thou answer for thy deeds: - Therefore it is well thou retirest often to secresy and solitude, - To feel that thou art accountable separately from thy fellows: - For a crowd hideth truth from the eyes, society drowneth thought, - And being but one among many, stifleth the chidings of conscience. - Solitude bringeth woe to the wicked, for his crimes are told out in his - ear; - But addeth peace to the good, for the mercies of his God are numbered. - Thou mayst know if it be well with a man,--loveth he gaiety or solitude? - For the troubled river rusheth to the sea, but the calm lake slumbereth - among the mountains. - How dear to the mind of the sage are the thoughts that are bred in - loneliness; - For there is as it were music at his heart, and he talketh within him as - with friends: - But guilt maddeneth the brain, and terror glareth in the eye, - Where, in his solitary cell, the malefactor wrestleth with remorse. - Give me but a lodge in the wilderness, drop me on an island in the desert, - And thought shall yield me happiness, though I may not increase it by - imparting: - For the soul never slumbereth, but is as the eye of the Eternal, - And mind, the breath of God, knoweth not ideal vacuity: - At night, after weariness and watching, the body sinketh into sleep, - But the mental eye is awake, and thou reasonest in thy dreams: - In a dream, thou mayst live a lifetime, and all be forgotten in the - morning: - Even such is life, and so soon perisheth its memory. - - -OF SPEAKING. - -[Illustration: "S"] - - Speech is the golden harvest that followeth the flowering of thought; - Yet oftentimes runneth it to husk, and the grains be withered and scanty: - Speech is reason's brother, and a kingly prerogative of man, - That likeneth him to his Maker, who spake, and it was done: - Spirit may mingle with spirit, but sense requireth a symbol; - And speech is the body of a thought, without which it were not seen. - When thou walkest, musing with thyself, in the green aisles of the forest, - Utter thy thinkings aloud, that they take a shape and being: - For he that pondereth in silence crowdeth the storehouse of his mind, - And though he hath heaped great riches, yet is he hindered in the using. - A man that speaketh too little, and thinketh much and deeply, - Corrodeth his own heart-strings, and keepeth back good from his fellows: - A man that speaketh too much, and museth but little and lightly, - Wasteth his mind in words, and is counted a fool among men: - But thou, when thou hast thought, weave charily the web of meditation, - And clothe the ideal spirit in the suitable garments of speech. - -[Illustration] - - Uttered out of time, or concealed in its season, good savoureth of evil; - To be secret looketh like guilt, to speak out may breed contention: - Often have I known the honest heart, flaming with indignant virtue, - Provoke unneeded war by its rash ambassador the tongue: - Often have I seen the charitable man go so slily on his mission, - That those who met him in the twilight, took him for a skulking thief: - I have heard the zealous youth telling out his holy secrets - Before a swinish throng, who mocked him as he spake; - And I considered, his openness was hardening them that mocked, - Whereas a judicious keeping-back might have won their sympathy: - I have judged rashly and harshly the hand, liberal in the dark, - Because in the broad daylight, it hath holden it a virtue to be close; - And the silent tongue have I condemned, because reserve hath chained it, - That it hid, yea from a brother, the kindness it had done by comforting. - No need to sound a trumpet, but less to hush a footfall: - Do thou thy good openly, not as though the doing were a crime. - Secresy goeth cowled, and Honesty demandeth wherefore? - For he judgeth--judgeth he not well?--that nothing need be hid but guilt. - Why should thy good be evil spoken of, through thine unrighteous silence? - If thou art challenged, speak, and prove the good thou doest. - The free example of benevolence, unobtruded, yet unhidden, - Soundeth in the ears of sloth, Go, and do thou likewise: - And I wot the hypocrite's sin to be of darker dye, - Because the good man, fearing, thereby hideth his light: - But neither God nor man hath bid thee cloak thy good, - When a seasonable word would set thee in thy sphere, that all might see - thy brightness. - Ascribe the honour to thy Lord, but be thou jealous of that honour, - Nor think it light and worthless, because thou mayst not wear it for - thyself: - Remember, thy grand prerogative is free unshackled utterance, - And suffer not the flood-gates of secresy to lock the full river of thy - speech. - - Come, I will show thee an affliction, unnumbered among this world's - sorrows, - Yet real and wearisome and constant, embittering the cup of life. - There be, who can think within themselves, and the fire burneth at their - heart, - And eloquence waiteth at their lips, yet they speak not with their tongue: - There be, whom zeal quickeneth, or slander stirreth to reply, - Or need constraineth to ask, or pity sendeth as her messengers, - But nervous dread and sensitive shame freeze the current of their speech; - The mouth is sealed as with lead, a cold weight presseth on the heart, - The mocking promise of power is once more broken in performance, - And they stand impotent of words, travailing with unborn thoughts; - Courage is cowed at the portal; wisdom is widowed of utterance; - He that went to comfort is pitied; he that should rebuke, is silent: - And fools who might listen and learn, stand by to look and laugh; - While friends, with kinder eyes, wound deeper by compassion: - And thought, finding not a vent, smouldereth, gnawing at the heart, - And the man sinketh in his sphere, for lack of empty sounds. - There be many cares and sorrows thou hast not yet considered, - And well may thy soul rejoice in the fair privilege of speech; - For at every turn to want a word,--thou canst not guess that want; - It is as lack of breath or bread: life hath no grief more galling. - - Come, I will tell thee of a joy, which the parasites of pleasure have not - known, - Though earth and air and sea have gorged all the appetites of sense. - Behold, what fire is in his eye, what fervour on his cheek! - That glorious burst of winged words! how bound they from his tongue! - The full expression of the mighty thought, the strong triumphant argument, - The rush of native eloquence, resistless as Niagara, - The keen demand, the clear reply, the fine poetic image, - The nice analogy, the clenching fact, the metaphor bold and free, - The grasp of concentrated intellect wielding the omnipotence of truth, - The grandeur of his speech in his majesty of mind! - Champion of the right,--patriot, or priest, or pleader of the innocent - cause, - Upon whose lips the mystic bee hath dropped the honey of persuasion, - Whose heart and tongue have been touched, as of old, by the live coal - from the altar, - How wide the spreading of thy peace, how deep the draught of thy - pleasures! - To hold the multitude as one, breathing in measured cadence, - A thousand men with flashing eyes, waiting upon thy will; - A thousand hearts kindled by thee with consecrated fire, - Ten flaming spiritual hecatombs offered on the mount of God: - And now a pause, a thrilling pause,--they live but in thy words,-- - Thou hast broken the bounds of self, as the Nile at its rising, - Thou art expanded into them, one faith, one hope, one spirit, - They breathe but in thy breath, their minds are passive unto thine, - Thou turnest the key of their love, bending their affections to thy - purpose, - And all, in sympathy with thee, tremble with tumultuous emotions: - Verily, O man, with truth for thy theme, eloquence shall throne thee with - archangels. - - -OF READING. - -[Illustration: "O"] - - One drachma for a good book, and a thousand talents for a true friend;-- - So standeth the market, where scarce is ever costly: - Yea, were the diamonds of Golconda common as shingles on the shore, - A ripe apple would ransom kings before a shining stone: - And so, were a wholesome book as rare as an honest friend, - To choose the book be mine: the friend let another take. - For altered looks and jealousies and fears have none entrance there: - The silent volume listeneth well, and speaketh when thou listest: - It praiseth thy good without envy, it chideth thine evil without malice, - It is to thee thy waiting slave, and thine unbending teacher. - Need to humour no caprice, need to bear with no infirmity; - Thy sin, thy slander, or neglect, chilleth not, quencheth not, its love: - Unalterably speaketh it the truth, warped nor by error nor interest; - For a good book is the best of friends, the same to-day and for ever. - - To draw thee out of self, thy petty plans and cautions, - To teach thee what thou lackest, to tell thee how largely thou art blest, - To lure thy thought from sorrow, to feed thy famished mind, - To graft another's wisdom on thee, pruning thine own folly, - Choose discreetly, and well digest the volume most suited to thy case, - Touching not religion with levity, nor deep things when thou art wearied. - Thy mind is freshened by morning air, grapple with science and philosophy; - Noon hath unnerved thy thoughts, dream for a while on fictions: - Grey evening sobereth thy spirit, walk thou then with worshippers: - But reason shall dig deepest in the night, and fancy fly most free. - - O books, ye monuments of mind, concrete wisdom of the wisest; - Sweet solaces of daily life; proofs and results of immortality; - Trees yielding all fruits, whose leaves are for the healing of the - nations; - Groves of knowledge, where all may eat, nor fear a flaming sword: - Gentle comrades, kind advisers; friends, comforts, treasures: - Helps, governments, diversities of tongues; who can weigh your worth?-- - To walk no longer with the just; to be driven from the porch of science; - To bid long adieu to those intimate ones, poets, philosophers, and - teachers; - To see no record of the sympathies which bind thee in communion with the - good; - To be thrust from the feet of Him who spake as never man spake; - To have no avenue to heaven but the dim aisle of superstition; - To live as an Esquimaux, in lethargy; to die as the Mohawk, in ignorance: - O what were life, but a blank? what were death, but a terror? - What were man, but a burden to himself? what were mind, but misery? - Yea, let another Omar burn the full library of knowledge, - And the broad world may perish in the flames, offered on the ashes of its - wisdom! - - -[Illustration] - -OF WRITING. - -[Illustration: "T"] - - The pen of a ready writer, whereunto shall it be likened? - Ask of the scholar, he shall know,--to the chains that bind a Proteus: - Ask of the poet, he shall say,--to the sun, the lamp of heaven: - Ask of thy neighbour, he can answer,--to the friend that telleth my - thought: - The merchant considereth it well, as a ship freighted with wares; - The divine holdeth it a miracle, giving utterance to the dumb. - It fixeth, expoundeth, and disseminateth sentiment; - Chaining up a thought, clearing it of mystery, and sending it bright into - the world. - To think rightly, is of knowledge; to speak fluently, is of nature; - To read with profit, is of care; but to write aptly, is of practice. - No talent among men hath more scholars, and fewer masters: - For to write is to speak beyond hearing, and none stand by to explain. - To be accurate, write; to remember, write; to know thine own mind, write; - And a written prayer is a prayer of faith: special, sure, and to be - answered. - Hast thou a thought upon thy brain, catch it while thou canst; - Or other thoughts shall settle there, and this shall soon take wing: - Thine uncompounded unity of soul, which argueth and maketh it immortal, - Yieldeth up its momentary self to every single thought; - Therefore, to husband thine ideas, and give them stability and substance, - Write often for thy secret eye; so shalt thou grow wiser. - The commonest mind is full of thoughts; some worthy of the rarest: - And could it see them fairly writ, would wonder at its wealth. - - O precious compensation to the dumb, to write his wants and wishes; - O dear amends to the stammering tongue, to pen his burning thoughts! - To be of the college of Eloquence, through these silent symbols; - To pour out all the flowing mind without the toil of speech; - To show the babbling world how it might discourse more sweetly; - To prove that merchandize of words bringeth no monopoly of wisdom; - To take sweet vengeance on a prating crew, for the tongue's dishonour, - By the large triumph of the pen, the homage rendered to a writing. - With such, that telegraph of mind is dearer than wealth or wisdom, - Enabling to please without pain, to impart without humiliation. - - Fair girl, whose eye hath caught the rustic penmanship of love, - Let thy bright brow and blushing cheek confess in this sweet hour,-- - Let thy full heart, poor guilty one, whom the scroll of pardon hath just - reached,-- - Thy wet glad face, O mother, with news of a far-off child,-- - Thy strong and manly delight, pilgrim of other shores, - When the dear voice of thy betrothed speaketh in the letter of - affection,-- - Let the young poet, exulting in his lay, and hope (how false) of fame, - While watching at deep midnight, he buildeth up the verse,-- - Let the calm child of genius, whose name shall never die, - For that the transcript of his mind hath made his thoughts immortal,-- - Let these, let all, with no faint praise, with no light gratitude, confess - The blessings poured upon the earth from the pen of a ready writer. - - Moreover, their preciousness in absence is proved by the desire of their - presence: - When the despairing lover waiteth day after day, - Looking for a word in reply, one word writ by that hand, - And cursing bitterly the morn ushered in by blank disappointment: - Or when the long-looked-for answer argueth a cooling friend, - And the mind is plied suspiciously with dark inexplicable doubts, - While thy wounded heart counteth its imaginary scars, - And thou art the innocent and injured, that friend the capricious and in - fault: - Or when the earnest petition, that craveth for thy needs, - Unheeded, yea, unopened, tortureth with starving delay: - Or when the silence of a son, who would have written of his welfare, - Racketh a father's bosom with sharp-cutting fears. - For a letter, timely writ, is a rivet to the chain of affection, - And a letter, untimely delayed, is as rust to the solder. - The pen, flowing with love, or dipped black in hate, - Or tipped with delicate courtesies, or harshly edged with censure, - Hath quickened more good than the sun, more evil than the sword, - More joy than woman's smile, more woe than frowning fortune; - And shouldst thou ask my judgment of that which hath most profit in the - world, - For answer take thou this, The prudent penning of a letter. - - Thou hast not lost an hour, whereof there is a record; - A written thought at midnight shall redeem the livelong day. - Idea is as a shadow that departeth, speech is fleeting as the wind, - Reading is an unremembered pastime; but a writing is eternal: - For therein the dead heart liveth, the clay-cold tongue is eloquent, - And the quick eye of the reader is cleared by the reed of the scribe. - As a fossil in the rock, or a coin in the mortar of a ruin, - So the symbolled thoughts tell of a departed soul: - The plastic hand hath its witness in a statue, and exactitude of vision - in a picture, - And so, the mind that was among us, in its writings is embalmed. - - -[Illustration] - -OF WEALTH. - - Prodigality hath a sister Meanness, his fixed antagonist heart-fellow, - Who often outliveth the short career of the brother she despiseth: - She hath lean lips and a sharp look, and her eyes are red and hungry; - But he sloucheth in his gait, and his mouth speaketh loosely and maudlin. - Let a spendthrift grow to be old, he will set his heart on saving, - And labour to build up by penury that which extravagance threw down: - Even so, with most men, do riches earn themselves a double curse; - They are ill-got by tight dealing: they are ill-spent by loose - squandering. - Give me enough, saith Wisdom;--for he feareth to ask for more; - And that by the sweat of my brow, addeth stout-hearted Independence: - Give me enough, and not less, for want is leagued with the tempter; - Poverty shall make a man desperate, and hurry him ruthless into crime: - Give me enough, and not more, saving for the children of distress; - Wealth ofttimes killeth, where want but hindereth the budding: - There is green glad summer near the pole, though brief and after long - winter, - But the burnt breasts of the torrid zone yield never kindly nourishment. - Wouldst thou be poor, scatter to the rich,--and reap the tares of - ingratitude; - Wouldst thou be rich, give unto the poor; thou shalt have thine own with - usury: - For the secret hand of Providence prospereth the charitable all ways, - Good luck shall he have in his pursuits, and his heart shall be glad - within him; - Yet perchance he never shall perceive, that, even as to earthly gains, - The cause of his weal as of his joy, hath been small givings to the poor. - - In the plain of Benares is there found a root that fathereth a forest, - Where round the parent banian-tree drop its living scions; - Thirstily they strain to the earth, like stalactites in a grotto, - And strike broad roots, and branch again, lengthening their cool arcades: - And the dervish madly danceth there, and the faquir is torturing his - flesh, - And the calm brahmin worshippeth the sleek and pampered bull: - At the base lean jackals coil, while from above depending - With dull malignant stare watcheth the branch-like boa. - Even so, in man's heart is a sin that is the root of all evil; - Whose fibres strangle the affections, whose branches overgrow the mind: - And oftenest beneath its shadow thou shalt meet distorted piety,-- - The clenched and rigid fist, with the eyes upturned to heaven, - Fanatic zeal with miserly severity, a mixture of gain with godliness, - And him, against whom passion hath no power, kneeling to a golden calf: - The hungry hounds of extortion are there, the bond, and the mortgage, and - the writ, - While the appetite for gold, unslumbering, watcheth to glut its maw:-- - And the heart, so tenanted and shaded, is cold to all things else; - It seeth not the sunshine of heaven, nor is warmed by the light of - charity. - - For covetousness disbelieveth God, and laugheth at the rights of men; - Spurring unto theft and lying, and tempting to the poison and the knife; - It sundereth the bonds of love, and quickeneth the flames of hate; - A curse that shall wither the brain, and case the heart with iron. - Content is the true riches, for without it there is no satisfying, - But a ravenous all-devouring hunger gnaweth the vitals of the soul. - The wise man knoweth where to stop, as he runneth in the race of fortune, - For experience of old hath taught him, that happiness lingereth midway; - And many in hot pursuit have hasted to the goal of wealth, - But have lost, as they ran, those apples of gold,--the mind and the power - to enjoy it. - - There is no greater evil among men than a testament framed with injustice: - Where caprice hath guided the boon, or dishonesty refused what was due. - Generous is the robber on the highway, in the open daring of his guilt, - To the secret coward, whose malice liveth and harmeth after him; - Who smoothly sank into the tomb, with the smile of fraud upon his face, - And the last black deed of his existence was injury without redress: - For deaf is the ear of the dead, and can hear no palliating reasons; - The smiter is not among the living, and Right pleadeth but in vain. - Yet shall the curse of the oppressed be as blight upon the grave of the - unjust; - Yea, bitterly shall that handwriting testify against him at the judgment. - I saw the humble relation that tended the peevishness of wealth, - And ministered, with kind hand, to the wailings of disease and discontent: - I noted how watchfulness and care were feeding on the marrow of her youth, - How heavy was the yoke of dependence, loaded by petty tyranny; - Yet I heard the frequent suggestion,--It can be but a little longer, - Patience and mute submission shall one day reap a rich reward. - So, tacitly enduring much, waited that humble friend, - Putting off the lover of her youth until the dawn of wealth: - And it came, that day of release, and the freed heart could not sorrow, - For now were the years of promise to yield their golden harvest: - Hope, so long deferred, sickly sparkled in her eye, - The miserable past was forgotten, as she looked for the happier future, - And she checked, as unworthy and ungrateful, the dark suspicious thought - That perchance her right had been the safer, if not left alone with - honour: - But, alas, the sad knowledge soon came, that her stern task-master's will - Hath rewarded her toil with a jibe, her patience with utter destitution!-- - Shall not the scourge of justice lash that cruel coward, - Who mingled the gall of ingratitude with the bitterness of disappointment? - Shall not the hate of men, and vengeance, fiercely pursuing, - Hunt down the wretched being that sinneth in his grave? - He fancied his idol self safe from the wrath of his fellows, - But Hades rose as he came in, to point at him the finger of scorn; - And again must he meet that orphan-maid to answer her face to face, - And her wrongs shall cling around his neck, to hinder him from rising - with the just: - For his last most solemn act hath linked his name with liar, - And the crime of Ananias is branded on his brow! - - A good man commendeth his cause to the one great Patron of innocence, - Convinced of justice to the last, and sure of good meanwhile. - He knoweth he hath a Guardian, wise and kind and strong, - And can thank Him for giving, or refusing, the trust or the curse of - riches: - His confidence standeth as a rock; he dreadeth not malice nor caprice, - Nor the whisperings of artful men, nor envious secret influence; - He scorneth servile compromise, and the pliant mouthings of deceit; - He maketh not a show of love, where he cannot concede esteem; - He regardeth ill-got wealth, as the root most fruitful of wretchedness, - So he walketh in straight integrity, leaning on God and his right. - - No gain, but by its price: labour, for the poor man's meal, - Ofttimes heart-sickening toil, to win him a morsel for his hunger: - Labour, for the chapman at his trade, a dull unvaried round, - Year after year, unto death; yea, what a weariness is it! - Labour, for the pale-faced scribe, drudging at his hated desk, - Who bartereth for needful pittance the untold gold of health; - Labour, with fear, for the merchant, whose hopes are ventured on the sea; - Labour, with care, for the man of law, responsible in his gains; - Labour, with envy and annoyance, where strangers will thee wealth; - Labour, with indolence and gloom, where wealth falleth from a father; - Labour unto all, whether aching thews, or aching head, or spirit,-- - The curse on the sons of men, in all their states, is labour. - Nevertheless, to the diligent, labour bringeth blessing: - The thought of duty sweeteneth toil, and travail is as pleasure; - And time spent in doing hath a comfort that is not for the idle, - The hardship is transmuted into joy by the dear alchemy of Mercy. - Labour is good for a man, bracing up his energies to conquest, - And without it life is dull, the man perceiving himself useless: - For wearily the body groaneth, like a door on rusty hinges, - And the grasp of the mind is weakened, as the talons of a caged vulture. - Wealth hath never given happiness, but often hastened misery: - Enough hath never caused misery, but often quickened happiness: - Enough is less than thy thought, O pampered creature of society, - And he that hath more than enough, is a thief of the rights of his - brother. - - -OF INVENTION. - -[Illustration: "M"] - - Man is proud of his mind, boasting that it giveth him divinity, - Yet with all its powers can it originate nothing; - For the Great God into all His works hath largely poured out Himself, - Saving one special property, the grand prerogative,--Creation. - To improve and expand is ours, as well as to limit and defeat; - But to create a thought or a thing is hopeless and impossible. - Can a man make matter?--and yet this would-be god - Thinketh to make mind, and form original idea: - The potter must have his clay, and the mason his quarry, - And mind must drain ideas from everything around it. - Doth the soil generate herbs, or the torrid air breed flies, - Or the water frame its monads, or the mist its swarming blight?-- - Mediately, through thousand generations, having seed within themselves, - All things, rare or gross, own one common Father. - Truly spake Wisdom, There is nothing new under the sun: - We only arrange and combine the ancient elements of all things. - Invention is activity of mind, as fire is air in motion; - A sharpening of the spiritual sight, to discern hidden aptitudes: - From the basket and acanthus, is modelled the graceful capital; - The shadowed profile on the wall helpeth the limner to his likeness; - The footmarks, stamped in clay, lead on the thoughts to printing; - The strange skin garments cast upon the shore suggest another hemisphere: - A falling apple taught the sage pervading gravitation; - The Huron is certain of his prey, from tracks upon the grass: - And shrewdness, guessing out the hint, followeth on the trail; - But the hint must be given, the trail must be there, or the keenest sight - is as blindness. - - [Illustration] - - Behold the barren reef, which an earthquake hath just left dry; - It hath no beauty to boast of, no harvest of fair fruits: - But soon the lichen fixeth there, and, dying, diggeth its own grave, - And softening suns and splitting frosts crumble the reluctant surface; - And cormorants roost there, and the snail addeth its slime, - And efts, with muddy feet, bring their welcome tribute; - And the sea casteth out her dead, wrapped in a shroud of weeds; - And orderly nature arrangeth again the disunited atoms; - Anon, the cold smooth stone is warm with feathery grass, - And the light sporules of the fern are dropt by the passing wind, - The wood-pigeon, on swift wing, leaveth its crop-full of grain, - The squirrel's jealous care planteth the fir-cone and the filbert: - Years pass, and the sterile rock is rank with tangled herbage; - The wild-vine clingeth to the briar, and ivy runneth green among the corn, - Lordly beeches are studded on the down, and willows crowd around the - rivulet, - And the tall pine and hazel-thicket shade the rambling hunter. - Shall the rock boast of its fertility? shall it lift the head in pride?-- - Shall the mind of man be vain of the harvest of its thoughts? - The savage is that rock; and a million chances from without, - By little and little acting on the mind, heap up the hot-bed of society; - And the soul, fed and fattened on the thoughts and things around it, - Groweth to perfection, full of fruit, the fruit of foreign seeds. - For we learn upon a hint, we find upon a clue, - We yield an hundred-fold; but the great sower is Analogy. - There must be an acrid sloe before a luscious peach, - A boll of rotting flax before the bridal veil, - An egg before an eagle, a thought before a thing, - A spark struck into tinder to light the lamp of knowledge, - A slight suggestive nod to guide the watching mind, - A half-seen hand upon the wall, pointing to the balance of Comparison. - By culture man may do all things, short of the miracle,--Creation; - Here is the limit of thy power,--here let thy pride be stayed: - The soil may be rich, and the mind may be active, but neither yield - unsown; - The eye cannot make light, nor the mind make spirit. - Therefore it is wise in man to name all novelty Invention; - For it is to find out things that are, not to create the unexisting: - It is to cling to contiguities, to be keen in catching likeness, - And with energetic elasticity to leap the gulphs of contrast. - The globe knoweth not increase, either of matter or spirit; - Atoms and thoughts are used again, mixing in varied combinations; - And though, by moulding them anew, thou makest them thine own, - Yet have they served thousands, and all their merit is of God. - - -[Illustration] - -OF RIDICULE. - - Seams of thought for the sage's brow, and laughing lines for the fool's - face; - For all things leave their track in the mind; and the glass of the mind - is faithful. - Seest thou much mirth upon the cheek? there is then little exercise of - virtue; - For he that looketh on the world, cannot be glad and good: - Seest thou much gravity in the eye? be not assured of finding wisdom; - For she hath too great praise, not to get many mimics. - There is a grave-faced folly; and verily, a laughter-loving wisdom; - And what, if surface-judges account it vain frivolity? - There is indeed an evil in excess, and a field may lie fallow too long; - Yet merriment is often as a froth, that mantleth on the strong mind: - And note thou this for a verity,--the subtlest thinker when alone, - From ease of thoughts unbent, will laugh the loudest with his fellows: - And well is the loveliness of wisdom mirrored in a cheerful countenance, - Justly the deepest pools are proved by dimpling eddies; - For that, a true philosophy commandeth an innocent life, - And the unguilty spirit is lighter than a linnet's heart: - Yea, there is no cosmetic like a holy conscience; - The eye is bright with trust, the cheek bloomed over with affection, - The brow unwrinkled by a care, and the lip triumphant in its gladness. - - And for yon grave-faced folly, need not far to look for her; - How seriously on trifles dote those leaden eyes, - How ruefully she sigheth after chances long gone by, - How sulkily she moaneth over evils without cure! - I have known a true-born mirth, the child of innocence and wisdom, - I have seen a base-born gravity, mingled of ignorance and guilt: - And again, a base-born mirth, springing out of carelessness and folly; - And again, a true-born gravity, the product of reflection and right fear. - The wounded partridge hideth in a furrow, and a stricken conscience would - be left alone; - But when its breast is healed, it runneth gladly with its fellows: - Whereas the solitary heron, standing in the sedgy fen, - Holdeth aloof from the social world, intent on wiles and death. - - Need but of light philosophy to dare the world's dread laugh; - For a little mind courteth notoriety, to illustrate its puny self: - But the sneer of a man's own comrades trieth the muscles of courage, - And to be derided in his home is as a viper in the nest: - The laugh of a hooting world hath in it a notion of sublimity, - But the tittering private circle stingeth as a hive of wasps. - Some have commended ridicule, counting it the test of truth, - But neither wittily nor wisely; for truth must prove ridicule: - Otherwise a blunt bulrush is to pierce the proof armour of argument, - Because the stolidity of ignorance took it for a barbed shaft. - Softer is the hide of the rhinoceros, than the heart of deriding unbelief, - And truth is idler there, than the Bushman's feathered reed: - A droll conceit parrieth a thrust, that should have hit the conscience, - And the leering looks of humour tickle the childish mind; - For that the matter of a man is mingled most with folly, - Neither can he long endure the searching gaze of wisdom. - It is pleasanter to see a laughing cheek than a serious forehead, - And there liveth not one among a thousand whose idol is not pleasure. - Ridicule is a weak weapon, when levelled at a strong mind: - But common men are cowards, and dread an empty laugh. - Fear a nettle, and touch it tenderly, its poison shall burn thee to the - shoulder; - But grasp it with a bold hand,--is it not a bundle of myrrh? - Betray mean terror of ridicule, thou shalt find fools enough to mock thee; - But answer thou their laughter with contempt, and the scoffers will lick - thy feet. - - -OF COMMENDATION. - -[Illustration: "T"] - - The praise of holy men is a promise of praise from their Master; - A fore-running earnest of thy welcome,--Well done, faithful servant; - A rich preludious note, that droppeth softly on thine ear, - To tell thee the chords of thy heart are in tune with the choirs of - heaven. - Yet is it a dangerous hearing, for the sweetness may lull thee into - slumber, - And the cordial quaffed with thirst may generate the fumes of presumption. - So seek it not for itself, but taste, and go gladly on thy way, - For the mariner slacketh not his sail, though the sandal-groves of Araby - allure him; - And the fragrance of that incense would harm thee, as when, on a summer - evening, - The honied yellow flowers of the gorse oppress thy charmed sense: - And a man hath too much of praise, for he praiseth himself continually; - Neither lacketh he at any time self-commendation or excuse. - - Praise a fool, and slay him: for the canvas of his vanity is spread; - His bark is shallow in the water, and a sudden gust shall sink it: - Praise a wise man, and speed him on his way; for he carrieth the ballast - of humility, - And is glad when his course is cheered by the sympathy of brethren ashore. - The praise of a good man is good, for he holdeth up the mirror of Truth, - That Virtue may see her own beauty, and delight in her own fair face: - The praise of a bad man is evil, for he hideth the deformity of Vice, - Casting the mantle of a queen around the limbs of a leper. - Praise is rebuke to the man whose conscience alloweth it not: - And where conscience feeleth it her due, no praise is better than a - little. - He that despiseth the outward appearance, despiseth the esteem of his - fellows; - And he that overmuch regardeth it, shall earn only their contempt: - The honest commendation of an equal no one can scorn, and be blameless, - Yet even that fair fame no one can hunt for, and be honoured: - If it come, accept it and be thankful, and be thou humble in accepting; - If it tarry, be not thou cast down; the bee can gather honey out of rue: - And is thine aim so low, that the breath of those around thee - Can speed thy feathered arrow, or retard its flight? - The child shooteth at a butterfly, but the man's mark is an eagle; - And while his fellows talk, he hath conquered in the clouds. - Ally thee to truth and godliness, and use the talents in thy charge; - So shall thou walk in peace, deserving, if not having. - With a friend, praise him when thou canst; for many a friendship hath - decayed, - Like a plant in a crowded corner, for want of sunshine on its leaves: - With another, praise him not often--otherwise he shall despise thee; - But be thou frugal in commending; so will he give honour to thy judgment: - For thou that dost so zealously commend, art acknowledging thine own - inferiority, - And he, thou so highly hast exalted, shall proudly look down on thy - esteem. - - Wilt thou that one remember a thing?--praise him in the midst of thy - advice; - Never yet forgat man the word whereby he hath been praised. - Better to be censured by a thousand fools, than approved but by one man - that is wise; - For the pious are slower to help right, than the profane to hinder it: - So, where the world rebuketh, there look thou for the excellent, - And be suspicious of the good, which wicked men can praise. - The captain bindeth his troop, not more by severity than kindness, - And justly, should recompense well doing, as well as be strict with an - offender; - The laurel is cheap to the giver, but precious in his sight who hath won - it, - And the heart of the soldier rejoiceth in the approving glance of his - chief. - Timely given praise is even better than the merited rebuke of censure, - For the sun is more needful to the plant than the knife that cutteth out - a canker. - Many a father hath erred, in that he hath withheld reproof, - But more have mostly sinned, in withholding praise where it was due: - There be many such as Eli among men; but these be more culpable than Eli, - Who chill the fountain of exertion by the freezing looks of indifference: - Ye call a man easy and good, yet he is as a two-edged sword; - He rebuketh not vice, and it is strong: he comforteth not virtue, and it - fainteth. - There is nothing more potent among men than a gift timely bestowed; - And a gift kept back where it was hoped, separateth chief friends: - For what is a gift but a symbol, giving substance to praise and esteem? - And where is a sharper arrow than the sting of unmerited neglect? - - Expect not praise from the mean, neither gratitude from the selfish; - And to keep the proud thy friend, see thou do him not a service: - For, behold, he will hate thee for his debt: thou hast humbled him by - giving; - And his stubbornness never shall acknowledge the good he hath taken from - thy hand: - Yea, rather will he turn and be thy foe, lest thou gather from his - friendship - That he doth account thee creditor, and standeth in the second place. - Still, O kindly feeling heart, be not thou chilled by the thankless, - Neither let the breath of gratitude fan thee into momentary heat: - Do good for good's own sake, looking not to worthiness nor love; - Fling thy grain among the rocks, cast thy bread upon the waters, - His claim be strongest to thy help, who is thrown most helplessly upon - thee,-- - So shalt thou have a better praise, and reap a richer harvest of reward. - - If a man hold fast to thy creed, and fit his thinkings to thy notions, - Thou shalt take him for a man right-minded, yea, and excuse his evil: - But seest thou not, O bigot, that thy zeal is but a hunting after praise, - And the full pleasure of a proselyte lieth in the flattering of self? - A man of many praises meeteth many welcomes, - But he, who blameth often, shall not keep a friend; - The velvet-coated apricot is one thing, and the spiked horse-chestnut is - another, - A handle of smooth amber is pleasanter than rough buck-horn. - Show me a popular man; I can tell thee the secret of his power; - He hath soothed them with glozing words, lulling their ears with flattery, - The smile of seeming approbation is ever the companion of his presence, - And courteous looks, and warm regards, earn him all their hearts. - - Nothing but may be better, and every better might be best; - The blind may discern, and the simple prove, fault or want in all things; - And a little mind looketh on the lily with a microscopic eye, - Eager and glad to pry out specks on its robe of purity; - But a great mind gazeth on the sun, glorying in his brightness, - And taking large knowledge of his good, in the broad prairie of creation: - What, though he hatch basilisks? what, though spots are on the sun? - In fulness is his worth, in fulness be his praise! - - -[Illustration] - -OF SELF-ACQUAINTANCE. - -[Illustration: "K"] - - Knowledge holdeth by the hilt, and heweth out a road to conquest; - Ignorance graspeth the blade, and is wounded by its own good sword: - Knowledge distilleth health from the virulence of opposite poisons; - Ignorance mixeth wholesomes, unto the breeding of disease: - Knowledge is leagued with the universe, and findeth a friend in all - things; - But ignorance is everywhere a stranger; unwelcome, ill at ease, and out - of place. - A man is helpless and unsafe up to the measure of his ignorance, - For he lacketh perception of the aptitudes commending such a matter to - his use, - Clutching at the horn of danger, while he judgeth it the handle of - security, - Or casting his anchor so widely, that the granite reef is just within the - tether. - Untaught in science, he is but half alive, stupidly taking note of - nothing, - Or listening with dull wonder to the crafty saws of an empiric: - Simple in the world, he trusteth unto knaves; and then to make amends for - folly, - Dealeth so shrewdly with the honest, they cannot but suspect him for a - thief; - With an unknown God, he maketh mock of reason, fathering contrivance on - chance, - Or doting with superstitious dread on some crooked image of his fancy: - But ignorant of Self, he is weakness at heart; the key-stone crumbleth - into sand, - There is panic in the general's tent, the oak is hollow as hemlock; - Though the warm sap creepeth up its bark, filling out the sheaf of leaves, - Though knowledge of all things beside add proofs of seeming vigour, - Though the master-mind of the royal sage feast on the mysteries of wisdom, - Yet ignorance of self shall bow down the spirit of a Solomon to idols; - The storm of temptation, sweeping by, shall snap that oak like a reed, - And the proud luxuriance of its tufted crown drag it the sooner to the - dust. - - Youth, confident in self, tampereth with dangerous dalliance, - Till the vice his heart once hated hath locked him in her foul embrace: - Manhood, through zeal of doing good, seeketh high place for its occasions, - Unwitting that the bleak mountain-air will nip the tender budding of his - motives: - Or painfully, for love of truth, he climbeth the ladder of science, - Till pride of intellect heating his heart, warpeth it aside to delusion: - The maiden, to give shadow to her fairness, plaiteth her raven hair, - Heedlessly weaving for her soul the silken net of vanity: - The grey-beard looketh on his gold, till he loveth its yellow smile, - Unconscious of the bright decoy which is luring his heart unto avarice: - Wrath avoideth no quarrel, jealousy counteth its suspicions, - Pining envy gazeth still, and melancholy seeketh solitude, - The sensitive broodeth on his slights, the fearful poreth over horrors, - The train of wantonness is fired, the nerves of indecision are unstrung; - Each special proneness unto harm is pampered by ignorant indulgence, - And the man, for want of warning, yieldeth to the apt temptation. - - A smith at the loom, and a weaver at the forge, were but sorry craftsmen; - And a ship that saileth on every wind never shall reach her port: - Yet there be thousands among men who heed not the leaning of their - talents, - But cutting against the grain, toil on to no good end; - And the light of a thoughtful spirit is quenched beneath the bushel of - commerce, - While meaner plodding minds are driven up the mountain of philosophy: - The cedar withereth on a wall, while the house-leek is fattening in a - hot-bed, - And the dock with its rank leaves hideth the sun from violets. - To everything a fitting place, a proper honourable use; - The humblest measure of mind is bright in its humble sphere: - The glow-worm, creeping in the hedge, lighteth her evening torch, - And her far-off mate, on gossamer sail, steereth his course by that star: - But ignorance mocketh at proprieties, bringing out the glow-worm at noon; - And setteth the faults of mediocrity in the full blaze of wisdom. - Ravens croaking in darkness, and a skylark trilling to the sun, - The voice of a screech-owl from a ruin, and the blackbird's whistle in a - wood, - A cushion-footed camel for the sands, and a swift rein-deer for the snows, - A naked skin for Ethiopia, and rich soft furs for the Pole: - In all things is there a fitness: discord with discord hath its music; - And the harmony of nature is preserved by each one knowing his place. - - The blind at an easel, the palsied with a graver, the halt making for the - goal, - The deaf ear tuning psaltery, the stammerer discoursing eloquence,-- - What wonder if all fail? the shaft flieth wide of the mark - Alike if itself be crooked, or the bow be strung awry; - And the mind which were excellent in one way, but foolishly toileth in - another, - What is it but an ill-strung bow, and its aim a crooked arrow? - By knowledge of self, thou provest thy powers: put not the racer to the - plough, - Nor goad the toilsome ox to wager his slowness with the fleet: - Consider thy failings, heed thy propensities, search out thy latent - virtues, - Analyze the doubtful, cultivate the good, and crush the head of evil; - So shalt thou catch with quick hand the golden ball of opportunity, - The warrior armed shall be ready for the fray, beside his bridled steed; - Thou shall ward off special harms, and have the sway of circumstance, - And turn to thy special good the common current of events; - Choosing from the wardrobe of the world, thou shalt suitably clothe thy - spirit, - Nor thrust the white hand of peace into the gauntlet of defiance: - The shepherd shall go with a staff, and conquer by sling and stone; - The soldier shall let alone the distaff, and the scribe lay down the - sword; - The man unlearned shall keep silence, and earn one attribute of wisdom, - The sage be sparing of his lessons before unhearing ears: - Calm shalt thou be, as a lion in repose, conscious of passive strength, - And the shock that splitteth the globe, shall not unthrone thy - self-possession. - - Acquaint thee with thyself, O man! so shalt thou be humble: - The hard hot desert of thy heart shall blossom with the lily and the rose; - The frozen cliffs of pride shall melt, as an iceberg in the tropics; - The bitter fountains of self-seeking be sweeter than the waters of the - Nile. - But if thou lack that wisdom,--thy frail skiff is doomed, - On stronger eddy whirling to the dreadful gorge; - Untaught in that grand lore, thou standest, cased in steel, - To dare with mocking unbelief the thunderbolts of heaven. - For look now around thee on the universe, behold how all things serve - thee; - The teeming soil, and the buoyant sea, and undulating air, - Golden crops, and bloomy fruits, and flowers, and precious gems, - Choice perfumes and fair sights, soft touches and sweet music: - For thee, shoaling up the bay, crowd the finny nations, - For thee, the cattle on a thousand hills live, and labour, and die: - Light is thy daily slave, darkness inviteth thee to slumber; - Thou art served by the hands of Beauty, and Sublimity kneeleth at thy - feet: - Arise, thou sovereign of creation, and behold thy glory! - Yet more, thou hast a mind; intellect wingeth thee to heaven, - Tendeth thy state on earth, and by it thou divest down to hell; - Thou hast measured the belts of Saturn, thou hast weighed the moons of - Jupiter, - And seen, by reason's eye, the centre of thy globe; - Subtly hast thou numbered by billions the leagues between sun and sun, - And noted in thy book the coming of their shadows; - With marvellous unerring truth, thou knowest to an inch and to an instant, - The where and the when of the comet's path that shall seem to rush by at - thy command: - Arise, thou king of mind, and survey thy dignity! - Yet more,--for once believe religion's flattering tale; - Thou hast a soul, yea, and a God,--but be not therefore humbled; - Thy Maker's self was glad to live and die--a man; - The brightest jewel in His crown is voluntary manhood: - By deep dishonour, and great price, bought He that envied freedom, - But thou wast born an heir of all, thy Master scarce could earn. - O climax unto pride, O triumph of humanity, - O triple crown upon thy brow, most high and mighty Self! - Arise, thou Lord of all, thou greater than a God!-- - How saidst thou, wretched being?--cast thy glance within; - Regard that painted sepulchre, the hovel of thy heart: - Ha! with what fearful imagery swarmeth that small chamber; - The horrid eye of murder, scowling in the dark, - The bony hand of avarice, filching from the poor, - The lurid fires of lust, the idiot face of folly, - The sickening deed of cruelty, the foul fierce orgies of the drunken, - Weak contemptible vanity, stubborn stolid unbelief, - Envy's devilish sneer, and the vile features of ingratitude,-- - Man, hast thou seen enough? or are these full proof - That thou art a miracle of mercy, and all thy dignity is dross? - - Well, said the wisdom of earth, O mortal, know thyself; - But better the wisdom of heaven, O man, learn thou thy God: - By knowledge of self thou art conusant of evil, and mailed in panoply to - meet it; - By knowledge of God cometh knowledge of good, and universal love is at - thy heart. - Every creature knoweth its capacities, running in the road of instinct, - And reason must not lag behind, but serve itself of all proprieties: - The swift to the race, and the strong to the burden, and the wise for - right direction; - For self-knowledge filleth with acceptance its niche in the temple of - utility: - But vainly wilt thou look for that knowledge, till the clue of all truth - is in thy hand, - For the labyrinth of man's heart windeth in complicate deceivings: - Thou canst not sound its depths with the shallow plumb-line of reason, - Till religion, the pilot of the soul, have lent thee her unfathomable - coil: - Therefore, for this grand knowledge, and knowledge is the parent of - dominion, - Learn God, thou shalt know thyself; yea, and shalt have mastery of all - things. - - -[Illustration: Of Cruelty to Animals] - -OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS. - -[Illustration: "S"] - - Shame upon thee, savage Monarch-Man, proud monopolist of reason; - Shame upon Creation's lord, the fierce ensanguined despot: - What, man! are there not enough, hunger, and diseases, and fatigue,-- - And yet must thy goad or thy thong add another sorrow to existence? - What! art thou not content thy sin hath dragged down suffering and death - On the poor dumb servants of thy comfort, and yet must thou rack them - with thy spite? - The prodigal heir of creation hath gambled away his all,-- - Shall he add torment to the bondage that is galling his forfeit serfs? - The leader in nature's pæan himself hath marred her psaltery, - Shall he multiply the din of discord by overstraining all the strings? - The rebel hath fortified his stronghold, shutting in his vassals with - him,-- - Shall he aggravate the woes of the besieged by oppression from within? - Thou twice deformed image of thy Maker, thou hateful representative of - Love, - For very shame be merciful, be kind unto the creatures thou hast ruined; - Earth and her million tribes are cursed for thy sake, - Earth and her million tribes still writhe beneath thy cruelty: - Liveth there but one among the million that shall not bear witness - against thee, - A pensioner of land or air or sea, that hath not whereof it will accuse - thee? - From the elephant toiling at a launch, to the shrew-mouse in the - harvest-field, - From the whale which the harpooner hath stricken, to the minnow caught - upon a pin, - From the albatross wearied in its flight, to the wren in her covered nest, - From the death-moth and lace-winged dragon-fly, to the lady-bird and the - gnat, - The verdict of all things is unanimous, finding their master cruel: - The dog, thy humble friend, thy trusting, honest friend; - The ass, thine uncomplaining slave, drudging from morn to even; - The lamb, and the timorous hare, and the labouring ox at plough; - The speckled trout, basking in the shallow, and the partridge, gleaning - in the stubble, - And the stag at bay, and the worm in thy path, and the wild bird pining - in captivity, - And all things that minister alike to thy life and thy comfort and thy - pride, - Testify with one sad voice that man is a cruel master. - - Verily, they are all thine: freely mayst thou serve thee of them all: - They are thine by gift for thy needs, to be used in all gratitude and - kindness; - Gratitude to their God and thine,--their Father and thy Father, - Kindness to them who toil for thee, and help thee with their all: - For meat, but not by wantonness of slaying: for burden, but with limits - of humanity; - For luxury, but not through torture; for draught, but according to the - strength: - For a dog cannot plead his own right, nor render a reason for exemption, - Nor give a soft answer unto wrath, to turn aside the undeserved lash; - The galled ox cannot complain, nor supplicate a moment's respite; - The spent horse hideth his distress, till he panteth out his spirit at - the goal; - Also, in the winter of life, when worn by constant toil, - If ingratitude forget his services, he cannot bring them to remembrance; - Behold, he is faint with hunger; the big tear standeth in his eye; - His skin is sore with stripes, and he tottereth beneath his burden; - His limbs are stiff with age, his sinews have lost their vigour, - And pain is stamped upon his face, while he wrestleth unequally with toil; - Yet once more mutely and meekly endureth he the crushing blow; - That struggle hath cracked his heart-strings,--the generous brute is dead! - Liveth there no advocate for him? no judge to avenge his wrongs? - No voice that shall be heard in his defence? no sentence to be passed on - his oppressor? - Yea, the sad eye of the tortured pleadeth pathetically for him; - Yea, all the justice in heaven is roused in indignation at his woes; - Yea, all the pity upon earth shall call down a curse upon the cruel; - Yea, the burning malice of the wicked is their own exceeding punishment. - The Angel of Mercy stoppeth not to comfort, but passeth by on the other - side, - And hath no tear to shed, when a cruel man is damned. - - -OF FRIENDSHIP. - -[Illustration: "A"] - - As frost to the bud, and blight to the blossom, even such is - self-interest to Friendship: - For Confidence cannot dwell where Selfishness is porter at the gate. - If thou see thy friend to be selfish, thou canst not be sure of his - honesty; - And in seeking thine own weal, thou hast wronged the reliance of thy - friend. - Flattery hideth her varnished face when Friendship sitteth at his board: - And the door is shut upon Suspicion, but Candour is bid glad welcome. - For Friendship abhorreth doubt, its life is in mutual trust, - And perisheth, when artful praise proveth it is sought for a purpose. - A man may be good to thee at times, and render thee mighty service, - Whom yet thy secret soul could not desire as a friend; - For the sum of life is in trifles, and though, in the weightier masses, - A man refuse thee not his purse, nay his all in thine utmost need, - Yet if thou canst not feel that his character agreeth with thine own, - Thou never wilt call him friend, though thou render him a heartful of - gratitude. - A coarse man grindeth harshly the finer feelings of his brother; - A common mind will soon depart from the dull companionship of wisdom; - A weak soul dareth not to follow in the track of vigour and decision; - And the worldly regardeth with scorn the seeming foolishness of faith. - A mountain is made up of atoms, and friendship of little matters, - And if the atoms hold not together, the mountain is crumbled into dust. - - Come, I will show thee a friend; I will paint one worthy of thy trust: - Thine heart shall not weary of him: thou shalt not secretly despise him. - Thou art long in learning him, in unravelling all his worth; - And he dazzleth not thine eyes at first, to be darkened in thy sight - afterward, - But riseth from small beginnings, and reacheth the height of thine esteem. - He remembereth that thou art only man; he expecteth not great things from - thee: - And his forbearance toward thee silently teacheth thee to be considerate - unto him. - He despiseth not courtesy of manner, nor neglecteth the decencies of life: - Nor mocketh the failings of others, nor is harsh in his censures before - thee: - For so, how couldst thou tell, if he talketh not of thee in ridicule? - He withholdeth no secret from thee, and rejecteth not thine in turn; - He shareth his joys with thee, and is glad to bear part in thy sorrows. - Yet one thing, he loveth thee too well to show thee the corruptions of - his heart: - For as an ill example strengthened the hands of the wicked, - So to put forward thy guilt, is a secret poison to thy friend: - For the evil in his nature is comforted, and he warreth more weakly - against it, - If he find that the friend whom he honoureth, is a man more sinful than - himself. - I hear the communing of friends; ye speak out the fulness of your souls, - And being but men, as men, ye own to all the sympathies of manhood: - Confidence openeth the lips, indulgence beameth from the eye, - The tongue loveth not boasting, the heart is made glad with kindness: - And one standeth not as on a hill, beckoning to the other to follow, - But ye toil up hand in hand, and carry each other's burdens. - Ye commune of hopes and aspirations, the fervent breathings of the heart, - Ye speak with pleasant interchange the treasured secrets of affection, - Ye listen to the voice of complaint, and whisper the language of comfort, - And as in a double solitude, ye think in each other's hearing. - - Choose thy friend discreetly, and see thou consider his station, - For the graduated scale of ranks accordeth with the ordinance of Heaven. - If a low companion ripen to a friend, in the full sunshine of thy - confidence, - Know, that for old age thou hast heaped up sorrow; - For thou sinkest to that level, and thy kin shall scorn thee, - Yea, and the menial thou hast pampered haply shall neglect thee in thy - death: - And if thou reachest up to high estates, thinking to herd with princes, - What art thou but a footstool, though so near a throne? - O rush among the lilies, be taught thou art a weed, - O briar among the cedars, hot contempt shall burn thee. - But thou, friend and scholar, select from thine own caste, - And make not an intimate of one, thy servant or thy master; - For only friendship among men is the true republic, - Where all have equality of service, and all have freedom of command. - And yet, if thou wilt take my judgment, be shy of too much openness with - any, - Lest thou repent hereafter, should he turn and rend thee: - For many an apostate friend hath abused unguarded confidence, - And bent to selfish ends the secret of the soul. - - Absence strengthened friendship, where the last recollections were kindly; - But it must be good wine at the last, or absence shall weaken it daily. - A rare thing is faith, and friendship is a marvel among men, - Yet strange faces call they friends, and say they believe when they doubt. - Those hours are not lost that are spent in cementing affection; - For a friend is above gold, precious as the stores of the mind. - Be sparing of advice by words, but teach thy lesson by example: - For the vanity of man may be wounded, and retort unkindly upon thee. - There be some that never had a friend, because they were gross and - selfish; - Worldliness, and apathy, and pride, leave not many that are worthy: - But one who meriteth esteem, need never lack a friend: - For as thistle-down flieth abroad, and casteth its anchor in the soil, - So philanthropy yearneth for a heart, where it may take root and blossom. - - Yet I hear the child of sensibility moaning at the wintry cold, - Wherein the mists of selfishness have wrapped the society of men: - He grieveth, and hath deep reasons; for falsehood hath wronged his trust, - And the breaches in his bleeding heart have been filled with the briars - of suspicion. - For, alas, how few be friends, of whom charity hath hoped well! - How few there be among men who forget themselves for other! - Each one seeketh his own, and looketh on his brethren as rivals, - Masking envy with friendship, to serve his secret ends. - And the world, that corrupteth all good, hath wronged that sacred name, - For it calleth any man friend, who is not known for an enemy: - And such be as the flies of summer, while plenty sitteth at thy board: - But who can wonder at their flight from the cold denials of want? - Such be as vultures round a carcase, assembled together for the feast; - But a sudden noise scareth them, and forthwith are they specks among the - clouds. - There be few, O child of sensibility, who deserve to have thy confidence; - Yet weep not, for there are some, and such some live for thee: - To them is the chilling world a drear and barren scene, - And gladly seek they such as thou art, for seldom find they the occasion: - For, though no man excludeth himself from the high capability of - friendship, - Yet verily the man is a marvel whom truth can write a friend. - - -[Illustration: Of Love] - -Of Love. - - There is a fragrant blossom, that maketh glad the garden of the heart; - Its root lieth deep: it is delicate, yet lasting, as the lilac crocus of - autumn: - Loneliness and thought are the dews that water it morn and even; - Memory and Absence cherish it, as the balmy breathings of the south: - Its sun is the brightness of Affection, and it bloometh in the borders of - Hope; - Its companions are gentle flowers, and the briar withereth by its side. - I saw it budding in beauty; I felt the magic of its smile; - The violet rejoiced beneath it, the rose stooped down and kissed it; - And I thought some cherub had planted there a truant flower of Eden, - As a bird bringeth foreign seeds, that they may flourish in a kindly soil. - I saw, and asked not its name; I knew no language was so wealthy, - Though every heart of every clime findeth its echo within. - And yet what shall I say? Is a sordid man capable of Love? - Hath a seducer known it? Can an adulterer perceive it? - Or he that seeketh strange women, can he feel its purity? - Or he that changeth often, can he know its truth? - Longing for another's happiness, yet often destroying its own; - Chaste, and looking up to God, as the fountain of tenderness and joy: - Quiet, yet flowing deep, as the Rhine among rivers; - Lasting, and knowing not change--it walketh with Truth and Sincerity. - - Love:--what a volume in a word, an ocean in a tear, - A seventh heaven in a glance, a whirlwind in a sigh, - The lightning in a touch, a millennium in a moment, - What concentrated joy or woe in blest or blighted love! - For it is that native poetry springing up indigenous to Mind, - The heart's own-country music thrilling all its chords, - The story without an end that angels throng to hear, - The word, the king of words, carved on Jehovah's heart! - Go, call thou snake-eyed malice mercy, call envy honest praise, - Count selfish craft for wisdom, and coward treachery for prudence, - Do homage to blaspheming unbelief as to bold and free philosophy, - And estimate the recklessness of license as the right attribute of - liberty,-- - But with the world, thou friend and scholar, stain not this pure name; - Nor suffer the majesty of Love to be likened to the meanness of desire: - For love is no more such, than seraphs' hymns are discord, - And such is no more Love, than Etna's breath is summer. - - Love is a sweet idolatry enslaving all the soul, - A mighty spiritual force, warring with the dulness of matter, - An angel-mind breathed into a mortal, though fallen yet how beautiful! - All the devotion of the heart in all its depth and grandeur. - Behold that pale geranium, pent within the cottage window; - How yearningly it stretcheth to the light its sickly long-stalked leaves, - How it straineth upward to the sun, coveting his sweet influences, - How real a living sacrifice to the god of all its worship! - Such is the soul that loveth; and so the rose-tree of affection - Bendeth its every leaf to look on those dear eyes, - Its every blushing petal basketh in their light, - And all its gladness, all its life, is hanging on their love. - - If the love of the heart is blighted, it buddeth not again: - If that pleasant song is forgotten, it is to be learnt no more: - Yet often will thought look back, and weep over early affection; - And the dim notes of that pleasant song will be heard as a reproachful - spirit, - Moaning in Æolian strains over the desert of the heart, - Where the hot siroccos of the world have withered its one oasis. - - -[Illustration] - -OF MARRIAGE. - - Seek a good wife of thy God, for she is the best gift of His providence; - Yet ask not in bold confidence that which He hath not promised: - Thou knowest not His good will:--be thy prayer then submissive there-unto; - And leave thy petition to His mercy, assured that He will deal well with - thee. - If thou art to have a wife of thy youth, she is now living on the earth; - Therefore think of her, and pray for her weal; yea, though thou hast not - seen her. - They that love early become like-minded, and the tempter toucheth them - not: - They grow up leaning on each other, as the olive and the vine. - Youth longeth for a kindred spirit, and yearneth for a heart that can - commune with his own; - He meditateth night and day, doting on the image of his fancy. - Take heed that what charmeth thee is real, nor springeth of thine own - imagination; - And suffer not trifles to win thy love; for a wife is thine unto death. - The harp and the voice may thrill thee,--sound may enchant thine ear, - But consider thou, the hand will wither, and the sweet notes turn discord: - The eye, so brilliant at even, may be red with sorrow in the morning; - And the sylph-like form of elegance must writhe in the crampings of pain. - - O happy lot, and hallowed, even as the joy of angels, - Where the golden chain of godliness is entwined with the roses of love: - But beware thou seem not to be holy, to win favour in the eyes of a - creature, - For the guilt of the hypocrite is deadly, and winneth thee wrath - elsewhere. - The idol of thy heart is, as thou, a probationary sojourner on earth; - Therefore be chary of her soul, for that is the jewel in her casket: - Let her be a child of God, that she bring with her a blessing to thy - house,-- - A blessing above riches, and leading contentment in its train: - Let her be an heir of Heaven; so shall she help thee on thy way: - For those who are one in faith, fight double-handed against evil. - Take heed lest she love thee before God; that she be not an idolater: - Yet see thou that she love thee well: for her heart is the heart of woman; - And the triple nature of humanity must be bound by a triple chain, - For soul and mind and body--godliness, esteem, and affection. - - How beautiful is modesty! it winneth upon all beholders: - But a word or a glance may destroy the pure love that should have been - for thee. - Affect not to despise beauty: no one is freed from its dominion; - But regard it not a pearl of price:--it is fleeting as the bow in the - clouds. - If the character within be gentle, it often hath its index in the - countenance: - The soft smile of a loving face is better than splendour that fadeth - quickly. - When thou choosest a wife, think not only of thyself, - But of those God may give thee of her, that they reproach thee not for - their being: - See that He hath given her health, lest thou lose her early and weep: - See that she springeth of a wholesome stock, that thy little ones perish - not before thee: - For many a fair skin hath covered a mining disease, - And many a laughing cheek been bright with the glare of madness. - - Mark the converse of one thou lovest, that it be simple and sincere; - For an artful or false woman shall set thy pillow with thorns. - Observe her deportment with others, when she thinketh not that thou art - nigh, - For with thee will the blushes of love conceal the true colour of her - mind. - Hath she learning? it is good, so that modesty go with it: - Hath she wisdom? it is precious, but beware that thou exceed; - For woman must be subject, and the true mastery is of the mind. - Be joined to thine equal in rank, or the foot of pride will kick at thee; - And look not only for riches, lest thou be mated with misery: - Marry not without means; for so shouldst thou tempt Providence; - But wait not for more than enough; for Marriage is the DUTY of most men: - Grievous indeed must be the burden that shall outweigh innocence and - health, - And a well-assorted marriage hath not many cares. - In the day of thy joy consider the poor; thou shall reap a rich harvest - of blessing; - For these be the pensioners of One who filleth thy cup with pleasures: - In the day of thy joy be thankful: He hath well deserved thy praise: - Mean and selfish is the heart that seeketh Him only in sorrow. - For her sake who leaneth on thine arm, court not the notice of the world, - And remember that sober privacy is comelier than public display. - If thou marriest, thou art allied unto strangers; see they be not such as - shame thee: - If thou marriest, thou leavest thine own; see that it be not done in - anger. - - Bride and bridegroom, pilgrims of life, henceforward to travel together, - In this the beginning of your journey, neglect not the favour of Heaven: - Let the day of hopes fulfilled be blest by many prayers, - And at eventide kneel ye together, that your joy be not unhallowed: - Angels that are round you shall be glad, those loving ministers of mercy, - And the richest blessings of your God shall be poured on His favoured - children. - Marriage is a figure and an earnest of holier things unseen, - And reverence well becometh the symbol of dignity and glory. - Keep thy heart pure, lest thou do dishonour to thy state; - Selfishness is base and hateful; but love considereth not itself. - The wicked turneth good into evil, for his mind is warped within him; - But the heart of the righteous is chaste: his conscience casteth off sin. - If thou wilt be loved, render implicit confidence; - If thou wouldst not suspect, receive full confidence in turn: - For where trust is not reciprocal, the love that trusted withereth. - Hide not your grief nor your gladness; be open one with the other; - Let bitterness be strange unto your tongues, but sympathy a dweller in - your hearts: - Imparting halveth the evils, while it doubleth the pleasures of life, - But sorrows breed and thicken in the gloomy bosom of Reserve. - - Young wife, be not froward, nor forget that modesty becometh thee: - If it be discarded now, who will not hold it feigned before? - But be not as a timid girl,--there is honour due to thine estate; - A matron's modesty is dignified: she blusheth not, neither is she bold. - Be kind to the friends of thine husband, for the love they have to him: - And gently bear with his infirmities: hast thou no need of his - forbearance? - Be not always in each other's company; it is often good to be alone; - And if there be too much sameness, ye cannot but grow weary of each other: - Ye have each a soul to be nourished, and a mind to be taught in wisdom, - Therefore, as accountable for time, help one another to improve it. - If ye feel love to decline, track out quickly the secret cause; - Let it not rankle for a day, but confess and bewail it together: - Speedily seek to be reconciled, for love is the life of marriage; - And be ye co-partners in triumph, conquering the peevishness of self. - - Let no one have thy confidence, O wife, saving thine husband: - Have not a friend more intimate, O husband, than thy wife. - In the joy of a well-ordered home be warned that this is not your rest; - For the substance to come may be forgotten in the present beauty of the - shadow. - If ye are blessed with children, ye have a fearful pleasure, - A deeper care and a higher joy, and the range of your existence is - widened: - If God in wisdom refuse them, thank Him for an unknown mercy: - For how can ye tell if they might be a blessing or a curse? - Yet ye may pray, like Hannah, simply dependent on His will: - Resignation sweeteneth the cup, but impatience dasheth it with vinegar. - Now this is the sum of the matter:--if ye will be happy in marriage, - Confide, love, and be patient: be faithful, firm, and holy. - - -[Illustration] - -OF EDUCATION. - - A babe in a house is a well-spring of pleasure, a messenger of peace and - love: - A resting place for innocence on earth; a link between angels and men: - Yet is it a talent of trust, a loan to be rendered back with interest; - A delight, but redolent of care; honey-sweet, but lacking not the bitter. - For character groweth day by day, and all things aid it in unfolding, - And the bent unto good or evil may be given in the hours of infancy: - Scratch the green rind of a sapling, or wantonly twist it in the soil, - The scarred and crooked oak will tell of thee for centuries to come; - Even so mayst thou guide the mind to good, or lead it to the marrings of - evil, - For disposition is builded up by the fashioning of first impressions: - Wherefore, though the voice of instruction waiteth for the ear of reason, - Yet with his mother's milk the young child drinketh Education. - Patience is the first great lesson; he may learn it at the breast: - And the habit of obedience and trust may be grafted on his mind in the - cradle: - Hold the little hands in prayer, teach the weak knees their kneeling; - Let him see thee speaking to thy God; he will not forget it afterward: - When old and grey will he feelingly remember a mother's tender piety, - And the touching recollection of her prayers shall arrest the strong man - in his sin. - - Select not to nurse thy darling one that may taint his innocence, - For example is a constant monitor, and good seed will die among the tares. - The arts of a strange servant have spoiled a gentle disposition: - Mother, let him learn of thy lips, and be nourished at thy breast. - Character is mainly moulded by the cast of the minds that surround it: - Let then the playmates of thy little one be not other than thy judgment - shall approve: - For a child is in a new world, and learneth somewhat every moment, - His eye is quick to observe, his memory storeth in secret, - His ear is greedy of knowledge, and his mind is plastic as soft wax. - Beware then that he heareth what is good, that he feedeth not on evil - maxims, - For the seeds of first instructions are dropped into the deepest furrows. - That which immemorial use hath sanctioned, seemeth to be right and true; - Therefore, let him never have to recollect the time when good things were - strangers to his thought. - Strive not to centre in thyself, fond mother, all his love; - Nay, do not thou so selfishly, but enlarge his heart for others; - Use him to sympathy betimes, that he learn to be sad with the afflicted; - And check not a child in his merriment,--should not his morning be sunny? - Give him not all his desire, so shalt thou strengthen him in hope; - Neither stop with indulgence the fountain of his tears, so shall he fear - thy firmness. - Above all things graft on him subjection, yea, in the veriest trifle; - Courtesy to all, reverence to some, and to thee unanswering obedience. - - Read thou first, and well approve, the books thou givest to thy child; - But remember the weakness of his thought, and that wisdom for him must be - diluted: - In the honied waters of infant tales, let him taste the strong wine of - truth: - Pathetic stories soften the heart; but legends of terror breed midnight - misery; - Fairy fictions cram the mind with folly, and knowledge of evil tempteth - to like evil: - Be not loth to curb imagination, nor be fearful that truths will depress - it; - And for evil, he will learn it soon enough; be not thou the devil's envoy. - Induce not precocity of intellect, for so shouldst thou nourish vanity; - Neither can a plant, forced in the hot-bed, stand against the frozen - breath of winter. - The mind is made wealthy by ideas, but the multitude of words is a - clogging weight: - Therefore be understood in thy teaching, and instruct to the measure of - capacity. - Analogy is milk for babes, but abstract truths are strong meat; - Precepts and rules are repulsive to a child, but happy illustration - winneth him: - In vain shalt thou preach of industry and prudence, till he learn of the - bee and the ant; - Dimly will he think of his soul, till the acorn and the chrysalis have - taught him; - He will fear God in thunder, and worship His loveliness in flowers; - And parables shall charm his heart, while doctrines seem dead mystery: - Faith shall he learn of the husbandman casting good corn into the soil; - And if thou train him to trust thee, he will not withhold his reliance - from the Lord. - Fearest thou the dark, poor child? I would not have thee left to thy - terrors; - Darkness is the semblance of evil, and nature regardeth it with dread: - Yet know thy father's God is with thee still, to guard thee: - It is a simple lesson of dependence; let thy tost mind anchor upon Him. - Did a sudden noise affright thee? lo, this or that hath caused it: - Things undefined are full of dread, and stagger stouter nerves. - The seeds of misery and madness have been sowed in the nights of infancy; - Therefore be careful that ghastly fears be not the night companions of - thy child. - - Lo, thou art a landmark on a hill; thy little ones copy thee in all - things: - Let, then, thy religion be perfect: so shalt thou be honoured in thy - house. - Be instructed in all wisdom, and communicate that thou knowest, - Otherwise thy learning is hidden, and thus thou seemest unwise. - A sluggard hath no respect; an epicure commandeth not reverence; - Meanness is always despicable, and folly provoketh contempt. - Those parents are best honoured whose characters best deserve it; - Show me a child undutiful, I shall know where to look for a foolish - father: - Never hath a father done his duty, and lived to be despised of his son: - But how can that son reverence an example he dare not follow? - Should he imitate thee in thine evil? his scorn is thy rebuke. - Nay, but bring him up aright, in obedience to God and to thee; - Begin betimes, lest thou fail of his fear; and with judgment, that thou - lose not his love: - Herein use good discretion, and govern not all alike, - Yet, perhaps, the fault will be in thee, if kindness prove not all - sufficient: - By kindness, the wolf and the zebra become docile as the spaniel and the - horse; - The kite feedeth with the starling, under the law of kindness: - That law shall tame the fiercest, bring down the battlements of pride, - Cherish the weak, control the strong, and win the fearful spirit. - Be obeyed when thou commandest; but command not often: - Let thy carriage be the gentleness of love, not the stern front of - tyranny. - Make not one child a warning to another; but chide the offender apart: - For self-conceit and wounded pride rankle like poisons in the soul. - A mild rebuke in the season of calmness, is better than a rod in the heat - of passion; - Nevertheless, spare not, if thy word hath passed for punishment; - Let not thy child see thee humbled, nor learn to think thee false; - Suffer none to reprove thee before him, and reprove not thine own - purposes by change; - Yet speedily turn thou again, and reward him where thou canst, - For kind encouragement in good cutteth at the roots of evil. - - Drive not a timid infant from his home, in the early spring-time of his - life, - Commit not that treasure to an hireling, nor wrench the young heart's - fibres: - In his helplessness leave him not alone, a stranger among strange - children, - Where affection longeth for thy love, counting the dreary hours; - Where religion is made a terror, and innocence weepeth unheard; - Where oppression grindeth without remedy, and cruelty delighteth in - smiting. - Wherefore comply with an evil fashion? Is it not to spare thee trouble? - Can he gather no knowledge at thy mouth? Wilt thou yield thine honour to - another? - What can he gain in learning, to equal what he loseth in innocence? - Alas! for the price above gold, by which such learning cometh! - For emulative pride and envy are the specious idols of the diligent, - Oaths and foul-mouthed sin burn in the language of the idle: - Bolder in that mimic world of boys stareth brazen-fronted vice, - Than thereafter in the haunts of men, where society doth shame her into - corners. - My soul, look well around thee, ere thou give thy timid infant unto - sorrows. - There be many that say, We were happiest in days long past, - When our deepest care was an ill-conned book, - And when we sported in that merry sunshine of our life, - Sadness a stranger to the heart, and cheerfulness its gay inhabitant. - True, ye are now less pure, and therefore are more wretched: - But have ye quite forgotten how sorely ye travailed at your tasks, - How childish griefs and disappointments bowed down the childish mind? - How sorrow sat upon your pillow, and terror hath waked you up betimes, - Dreading the strict hand of justice, that would not wait for a reason, - Or the whims of petty tyrants, children like yourselves, - Or the pestilent extract of evil poured into the ear of innocence? - Behold the coral island, fresh from the floor of the Atlantic, - It is dinted by every ripple, and a soft wave can smooth its surface; - But soon its substance hardeneth in the winds and tropic sun, - And weakly the foaming billows break against its adamantine wall: - Even thus, though sin and care dash upon the firmness of manhood, - The timid child is wasted most by his petty troubles; - And seldom, when life is mature, and the strength proportioned to the - burden, - Will the feeling mind, that can remember, acknowledge to deeper anguish, - Than when, as a stranger and a little one, the heart first ached with - anxiety, - And the sprouting buds of sensibility were bruised by the harshness of a - school. - My soul, look well around thee, ere thou give thine infant unto sorrows. - Yet there be boisterous tempers, stout nerves, and stubborn hearts, - And there is a riper season, when the mind is well disciplined in good, - And a time, when youth may be bettered by the wholesome occasions of - knowledge, - Which rarely will he meet with so well, as among the congregation of his - fellows. - Only for infancy, fond mother, rend not those first affections; - Only for the sensitive and timorous, consign not thy darling unto misery. - - A man looketh on his little one, as a being of better hope; - In himself ambition is dead, but it hath a resurrection in his son: - That vein is yet untried,--and who can tell if it be not golden? - While his, well nigh worked out, never yielded aught but lead: - And thus is he hurt more sorely, if his wishes are defeated there, - He has staked his all upon a throw, and lo! the dice have foiled him. - All ways, and at all times, men follow on in flocks, - And the rife epidemic of the day shall tincture the stream of education. - Fashion is a foolish watcher posted at the tree of knowledge, - Who plucketh its unripe fruit to pelt away the birds; - But, for its golden apples,--they dry upon the boughs, - And few have the courage or the wisdom to eat in spite of fashion. - One while, the fever is to learn, what none will be wiser for knowing, - Exploded errors in extinct tongues, and occasions for their use are small; - And the bright morning of life, for years of misspent time, - Wasted in following sounds, hath tracked up little sense, - Till at noon a man is thrown upon the world, with a mind expert in - trifles, - Having yet everything to learn that can make him good or useful: - The curious spirit of youth is crammed with unwholesome garbage, - While starving for the mother's milk the breasts of nature yield; - And high-coloured fables of depravity lure with their classic varnish, - While truth is holding out in vain her mirror much despised. - - Of olden time, the fashion was for arms, to make an accomplished slayer, - And set gregarious man a-tilting with his fellows; - Thereafter, occult sciences, and mystic arts, and symbols, - How to exorcise a wizard, and how to lay a ghost; - Anon, all for gallantry and presence, the minuet, the palfrey, and the - foil, - And the grand aim of education was to produce a coxcomb; - Soon came scholastical dispute with hydra-headed argument, - And the true philosophy of mind confounded in a labyrinth of words; - Then the Pantheon, and its orgies, initiating docile childhood, - While diligent youth strove hard to render his all unto Cæsar; - And now is seen the passion for utility, when all things are accounted by - their price, - And the wisdom of the wise is busied in hatching golden eggs: - Perchance, not many moons to come, and all will again be for abstrusity, - Unravelling the figured veil that hideth Egypt's gods; - Or in those strange Avatars seeking benignant Vishnu, - Kali, and Kamala the fair, and much invoked Ganesa. - - The mines of knowledge are oft laid bare through the forked hazel wand of - chance, - And in a mountain of quartz we find a grain of gold. - Of a truth, it were well to know all things, and to learn them all at - once, - And what, though mortal insufficiency attain to small knowledge of any? - Man loveth exclusions, delighting in the sterile trodden path, - While the broad green meadow is jewelled with wild flowers: - And whether is it better with the many to follow a beaten track, - Or by eccentric wanderings to cull unheeded sweets? - - When his reason yieldeth fruit, make thy child thy friend; - For a filial friend is a double gain, a diamond set in gold. - As an infant, thy mandate was enough, but now let him see thy reasons; - Confide in him, but with discretion: and bend a willing ear to his - questions. - More to thee than to all beside, let him owe good counsel and good - guidance; - Let him feel his pursuits have an interest, more to thee than to all - beside. - Watch his native capacities; nourish that which suiteth him the readiest; - And cultivate early those good inclinations wherein thou fearest he is - most lacking: - Is he phlegmatic and desponding? let small successes comfort his hope: - Is he obstinate and sanguine? let petty crosses accustom him to life: - Showeth he a sordid spirit? be quick, and teach him generosity: - Inclineth he to liberal excess? prove to him how hard it is to earn. - Gather to thy hearth such friends as are worthy of honour and attention; - For the company a man chooseth is a visible index of his heart: - But let not the pastor whom thou hearest be too much a familiar in thy - house, - For thy children may see his infirmities, and learn to cavil at his - teaching. - It is well to take hold on occasions, and render indirect instruction; - It is better to teach upon a system, and reap the wisdom of books: - The history of nations yieldeth grand outlines: of persons, minute - details: - Poetry is polish to the mind, and high abstractions cleanse it. - Consider the station of thy son, and breed him to his fortune with - judgment: - The rich may profit in much which would bring small advantage to the poor. - But with all thy care for thy son, with all thy strivings for his welfare, - Expect disappointment, and look for pain: for he is of an evil stock, and - will grieve thee. - -[Illustration] - - -OF TOLERANCE. - -[Illustration: "A"] - - A wise man in a crowded street winneth his way with gentleness, - Nor rudely pusheth aside the stranger that standeth in his path; - He knoweth that blind hurry will but hinder, stirring up contention - against him, - Yet holdeth he steadily right on, with his face to the scope of his - pursuit: - Even so, in the congress of opinions, the bustling highway of - intelligence, - Each man should ask of his neighbour, and yield to him again, concession. - Terms ill-defined, and forms misunderstood, and customs, where their - reasons are unknown, - Have stirred up many zealous souls to fight against imaginary giants: - But wisdom will hear the matter out, and often, by keenness of perception, - Will find in strange disguise the precious truth he seeketh; - So he leaveth unto prejudice or taste the garb and the manner of her - presence, - Content to see so nigh the mistress of his love. - There is no similitude in nature that owneth not also to a difference, - Yea, no two berries are alike, though twins upon one stem; - No drop in the ocean, no pebble on the beach, no leaf in the forest, hath - its counterpart, - No mind in its dwelling of mortality, no spirit in the world unseen: - And therefore, since capacity and essence differ alike with accident, - None but a bigot partizan will hope for impossible unity. - Wilt thou ensue peace, nor buffet with the waters of contention, - Wilt thou be counted wise and gain the love of men, - Let unobtruded error escape the frown of censure, - Nor lift the glass of truth alway before thy fellows: - I say not, compromise the right, I would not have thee countenance the - wrong, - But hear with charitable heart the reasons of an honest judgment; - For thou also hast erred, and knowest not when thou art most right, - Nor whether to-morrow's wisdom may not prove thee simple to-day: - Perchance thou art chiding in another what once thou wast thyself; - Perchance thou sharply reprovest what thou wilt be hereafter. - A man that can render a reason, is a man worthy of an answer; - But he that argueth for victory, deserveth not the tenderness of Truth. - - Whiles a man liveth he may mend: count not thy brother reprobate; - When he is dead his chance is gone: remember not his faults in bitterness. - A man, till he dieth, is immortal in thy sight; and then he is as nothing: - Make not the living thy foe, nor take weak vengeance of the dead. - For life is as a game of chess, where least causeth greatest, - And an ill move bringeth loss, and a pawn may ensure victory. - Dost thou suspect? seek out certainty: for now, by self-inflicted pain, - Or ill-directed wrath, thou wrongest thyself or thy neighbour: - Suspicion is an early lesson, taught in the school of experience, - Neither shalt thou easily unlearn it, though charity ply thee with her - preaching; - Yet look thou well for reasons, or ever mistrust hath marred thee, - Or fear curdled thy blood, or jealousy goaded thee to madness; - For a look, or a word, or an act, may be taken well or ill - As construed by the latitude of love, or the closeness of cold suspicion. - - Better is the wrong with sincerity, rather than the right with falsehood: - And a prudent man will not lay siege to the stronghold of ignorant - bigotry. - To unsettle a weak mind were an easy inglorious triumph, - And a strong cause taketh little count of the worthless suffrage of a - fool: - Lightly he held to the wrong, loosely will he cling to the right; - Weakness is the essence of his mind, and the reed cannot yield an acorn. - Dogged obstinacy is oftentimes the buttress that proppeth an unstable - spirit, - But a candid man blusheth not to own, he is wiser to-day than yesterday. - A man of a little wisdom is a sage among fools; - But himself is chief among the fools, if he look for admiration from them. - A heresy is an evil thing, for its shame is its pride: - Its necessary difference of error is the character it most esteemeth: - Give a man all things short of liberty, thou shalt have no thanks, - And little wilt thou speed with thine opponent, by proving points he will - concede. - The tost sand darkeneth the waves; and clear had been the pages of truth, - Had not the glosses of men obscured the simplicity of faith. - In all things consider thine own ignorance, and gladly take occasion to - be taught; - But suffer not excess of liberality to neutralize thy mental independence. - - The faults and follies of most men make their deaths a gain: - But thou also art a man, full of faults and follies: - Therefore sorrow for the dead, or none shall weep for thee, - For the measure of charity thou dealest, shall be poured into thine own - bosom. - That which vexeth thee now, provoking thee to hate thy brother, - Bear with it; the annoyance passeth, and may not return for ever: - The same combinations and results which aggravate thy soul to-day, - May not meet again for centuries in the kaleidoscope of circumstance; - For men and matters change, new elements mixing in continually, - And, as with chemical magic, the sour is transmuted into sweetness: - A little explained, a little endured, a little passed over as a foible, - And lo, the jagged atoms fit like smooth mosaic. - Thou canst not shape another's mind to suit thine own body, - Think not, then, to be furnishing his brain with thy special notions. - Charity walketh with a high step, and stumbleth not at a trifle: - Charity hath keen eyes, but the lashes half conceal them: - Charity is praised of all, and fear not thou that praise, - God will not love thee less, because men love thee more. - - -[Illustration] - -OF SORROW. - - I said, I will seek out Sorrow, and minister the balm of pity; - So I sought her in the house of mourning; but peace followed in her train. - Then I marked her brooding silently in the gloomy cavern of Regret; - But a sunbeam of heavenly hope gleamed on her folded wing. - So I turned to the cabin of the poor, where famine dwelt with disease: - But the bed of the sick was smoothed, and the ploughman whistled at his - labour. - So I stopt, and mused within myself, to remember where Sorrow dwelt, - For I sought to see her alone, uncomforted, uncompanioned. - I went to the prison, but penitence was there, and promise of better - times; - I listened at the madman's cell, but it echoed with deluded laughter. - Then I turned me to the rich and noble; I noted the sons of fashion: - A smile was on the languid cheek, that had no commerce with the heart; - Unhallowed thoughts, like fires, gleamed from the window of the eye; - And sorrow lived with those whose pleasures add unto their sins. - - His infancy wanted not guilt; his life was continued evil: - He drew in pride with his mother's milk, and a father's lips taught him - cursing. - I marked him as the wayward boy; I traced the dissolute youth: - I saw him betray the innocent, and sacrifice affection to his lust; - I saw him the companion of knaves, and a squanderer of ill-got gain; - I heard him curse his own misery, while he hugged the chains that galled - him: - For well had experience declared the bitterness of guilty pleasure, - But habit, with its iron net, involved him in its folds. - Behind him lowered the thunder-storm, which the caldron of his wickedness - had brewed; - Before him was the smooth steep cliff, whose base is ruin and despair. - So he rushed madly on, and tried to forget his being: - The noisy revel and the low debauch, and fierce excitement of play, - With dreary interchange of palling pleasures, filled the dull round of - existence: - Memory was to him as a foe, so he flew for false solace to the wine-cup, - And stunned his enemy at even; but she rent him as a giant in the morning. - - I turned aside to weep; I lost him a little while: - I looked, and years had past; he was hoar with the winter of his age. - And what was now his hope? where was the balm for his sadness? - The memory of the past was guilt: the feeling of the present, remorse. - Then he set his affections on gold, he worshipped the shrine of Mammon, - And to lay richer gifts before his idol, he starved his own bowels; - So, the youth spent in profligacy ended in the gripings of want: - The miser grudged himself husks to take deeper vengeance of the prodigal. - And I said, this is Sorrow, but pity cannot reach it; - This is to be wretched indeed, to be guilty without repentance. - - -[Illustration: Of Joy] - -OF JOY. - - My soul was sickened within me, so I sought the dwelling place of Joy: - And I met it not in laughter; I found it not in wealth or power; - But I saw it in the pleasant home, where religion smiled upon content, - And the satisfied ambition of the heart rejoiced in the favour of its God. - Behold the happy man, his face is rayed with pleasure, - His thoughts are of calm delight, and none can know his blessedness. - I have watched him from his infancy, and seen him in the grasp of death, - Yet, never have I noted on his brow the cloud of desponding sorrow. - He hath knelt beside his cradle; his mother's hymn lulled him to sleep: - In childhood he hath loved holiness, and drank from that fountain-head of - peace. - Wisdom took him for her scholar, guiding his steps in purity: - He lived unpolluted by the world; and his young heart hated sin. - But he owned not the spurious religion engendered of faction and - moroseness, - Neither were the sproutings of his soul seared by the brand of - superstition. - His love is pure and single, sincere, and knoweth not change; - For his manhood hath been blest with the pleasant choice of his youth: - Behold his one beloved, she leaneth on his arm, - And he looketh on the years that are past, to review the dawn of her - affection. - Memory is sweet unto him, as a perfect landscape to the sight; - Each object is lovely in itself, but the whole is the harmony of nature. - Behold his little ones around him, they bask in the warmth of his smile, - And infant innocence and joy lighten their happy faces; - He is holy, and they honour him: he is loving, and they love him: - He is consistent, and they esteem him: he is firm, and they fear him. - His friends are the excellent among men; and the bands of their - friendship are strong: - His house is the palace of peace: for the Prince of Peace is there. - As the wearied man to his couch, as the thoughtful man to his musings, - Even so, from the bustle of life, he goeth to his well-ordered home. - And though he often sin, he returneth with weeping eyes: - For he feeleth the mercies of forgiveness, and gloweth with warmer - gratitude. - - Thus did he walk in happiness, and sorrow was a stranger to his soul; - The light of affection sunned his heart, the tear of the grateful bedewed - his feet, - He put his hand with constancy to good, and angels knew him as a brother, - And the busy satellites of evil trembled as at God's ally: - He used his wealth as a wise steward, making him friends for futurity: - He bent his learning to religion, and religion was with him at the last: - For I saw him after many days, when the time of his release was come, - And I longed for a congregated world, to behold that dying saint. - As the aloe is green and well-liking, till the last best summer of its - age, - And then hangeth out its golden bells, to mingle glory with corruption; - As a meteor travelleth in splendour, but bursteth in dazzling light; - Such was the end of the righteous: his death was the sun at its setting. - - Look on this picture of joy, and remember that portrait of sorrow: - Behold the beauty of holiness, behold the deformity of sin! - How long, ye sons of men, will ye scorn the words of wisdom? - How long will ye hunt for happiness in the caverns that breed despair? - Will ye comfort yourselves in misery, by denying the existence of delight, - And from experience in woe, will ye reason that none are happy? - Joy is not in your path, for it loveth not that bleak broad road, - But its flowers are hung upon the hedges that line a narrower way; - And there the faint travellers of earth may wander and gather for - themselves, - To soothe their wounded hearts with balm from the amaranths of heaven. - -ΘΕΩ ΔΟΞΑ - - - - -[Illustration: Proverbial philosophy; Second series.] - -SECOND SERIES. - - -INTRODUCTORY. - -[Illustration: Introductory "C"] - - Come again, and greet me as a friend, fellow-pilgrim upon life's highway, - Leave awhile the hot and dusty road, to loiter in the greenwood of - Reflection. - Come unto my cool dim grotto, that is watered by the rivulet of truth, - And over whose time-stained rock climb the fairy flowers of content; - Here, upon this mossy bank of leisure fling thy load of cares, - Taste my simple store, and rest one soothing hour. - - Behold, I would count thee for a brother, and commune with thy charitable - soul; - Though wrapt within the mantle of a prophet, I stand mine own weak - scholar. - Heed no disciple for a teacher, if knowledge be not found upon his tongue; - For vanity and folly were the lessons these lips untaught could give: - The precious staple of my merchandise cometh from a better country, - The harvest of my reaping sprang of foreign seed: - And this poor pensioner of Mercy--should he boast of merit? - The grafted stock,--should that be proud of apples not its own? - Into the bubbling brook I dip my hermit shell; - Man receiveth as a cup, but Wisdom is the river. - - Moreover, for this fillagree of fancy, this Oriental garnish of - similitude, - Alas, the world is old,--and all things old within it: - I walk a trodden path, I love the good old ways; - Prophets, and priests, and kings have tuned the harp I faintly touch. - Truth, in a garment of the past, is my choice and simple theme; - No truth is new to-day: and the mantle was another's. - - Still, there is an insect swarm, the buzzing cloud of imagery, - Mote-like steaming on my sight, and thronging my reluctant mind; - The memories of studious culling, and multiplied analogies of nature, - Fresh feelings unrepressed, welling from the heart spontaneous, - Facts, and comparisons, and meditative atoms, gathered on the heap of - combination, - Mingle in the fashion of my speech with gossamer dreams of Reverie. - I need not beat the underwood for game; my pheasants flock upon the lawn, - And gamboling hares disport fearless in my dewy field; - I roam no heath-empurpled hills, wearily watching for a covey, - But thoughts fly swift to my decoy, eager to be caught; - I sit no quiet angler, lingering patiently for sport, - But spread my nets for a draught, and take the glittering shoal; - I chase no solitary stag, tracking it with breathless toil, - But hunt with Aurung-zebe, and spear surrounded thousands. - - What then,--count ye this a boast?--sweet charity, think it other, - For the dog-fish and poisonous ray are captured in the mullet-haul: - The crane and the kite are of my thoughts, alike with the partridge and - the quail, - And unclean meats as of the clean hang upon my Seric shambles. - --How saith he? shall a man deceive, dressing up his jackal as a lion? - Or colour in staid hues of fact the changing vest of falsehood?-- - Brother, unwittingly he may; doubtless, unwillingly he doth: - For men are full of fault, and how should he be righteous? - Carefully my garden hath been weeded, yet shall it be foul with thistle; - My grapery is diligently thinned, and yet many berries will be sour: - From my nets have I flung the bad away, to my small skill and caution; - Yet may some slimy snake have counted for an eel. - The rudder of Man's best hope cannot always steer himself from error; - The arrow of Man's straightest aim flieth short of truth. - Thus, the confession of sincerity visit not as if it were presumption: - Nor own me for a leader, where thy reason is not guide. - - -OF CHEERFULNESS. - -[Illustration: "T"] - - Take courage, prisoner of time, for there be many comforts, - Cease thy labour in the pit, and bask awhile with truants in the sun; - Be cheerful, man of care, for great is the multitude of chances, - Burst thy fetters of anxiety, and walk among the citizens of ease: - Wherefore dost thou doubt? if present good is round thee, - It may be well to look for change, but to trust in a continuance is - better; - Whilst, at the crisis of adversity, to hope for some amends were wisdom, - And cheerfully to bear thy cross in patient strength is duty. - I speak of common troubles, and the petty plagues of life, - The phantom-spies of Unbelief, that lurk about his outposts: - Sharp suspicion, dull distrust, and sullen stern moroseness - Are captains in that locust swarm to lead the cloudy host. - Thou hast need of fortitude and faith, for the adversaries come on - thickly, - And he that fled hath added wings to his pursuing foes; - Fight them, and the cravens flee; thy boldness is their panic; - Fear them, and thy treacherous heart hath lent the ranks a legion: - Among their shouts of victory resoundeth the wail of Heraclitus, - While Democrite, confident and cheerful, hath plucked up the standard of - their camp. - - Not few nor light are the burdens of life; then load it not with - heaviness of spirit; - Sicknesses, and penury, and travail,--there be real ills enow: - We are wandering benighted, with a waning moon; plunge not rashly into - jungles, - Where cold and poisonous damps will quench the torch of hope: - The tide is strong against us; good oarsmen, pull or perish,-- - If your arms be slack for fear, ye shall not stem the torrent. - A wise traveller goeth on cheerily, through fair weather or foul; - He knoweth that his journey must be sped, so he carrieth his sunshine - with him. - Calamities come not as a curse,--nor prosperity for other than a trial; - Struggle,--thou art better for the strife, and the very energy shall - hearten thee. - Good is taught in a Spartan school,--hard lessons and a rough discipline; - But evil cometh idly of itself, in the luxury of Capuan holidays: - And Wisdom will go bravely forth to meet the chastening scourge, - Enduring with a thankful heart that punishment of Love. - - There be three chief rivers of despondency: sin, sorrow, fear; - Sin is the deepest, sorrow hath its shallows, and fear is a noisy rapid: - But even to the darkest holes in guilt's profoundest river - Hope can pierce with quickening ray, and all those depths are lightened. - So long as there is mercy in a God, hope is the privilege of creatures, - And so soon as there is penitence in creatures, that hope is exalted into - duty. - Verily, consider this for courage; that the fearful and the unbelieving - Are classed with idolaters and liars, because they trusted not in God: - For it is none other than selfish sin, a hard and proud ingratitude, - Where seeming repentance is herald of despair, instead of hope's - forerunner. - - Moreover, in thy day of grief,--for friends, or fame, or fortune, - Well I wot the heart shall ache, and mind be numbed in torpor; - Let nature weep; leave her alone; the freshet of her sorrow must run off; - And sooner will the lake be clear, relieved of turbid floodings. - Yet see that her license hath a limit; with the novelty her agony is over; - Hasten in that earliest calm, to tie her in the leash with Reason. - For regrets are an enervating folly, and the season for energy is come, - Yea rather, that the future may repair with diligence the ruins of the - past. - - Again, for empty fears, the harassings of possible calamity, - Pray, and thou shalt prosper; trust in God, and tread them down. - Yield to the phantasy,--thou sinnest; resist it, He will aid thee: - Out of Him there is no help, nor any sober courage. - Feeble is the comfort of the faithless, a man without a God; - Who dare counsel such an one to fling away his fears? - Fear is the heritage of him, a portion wise and merciful, - To drive the trembler into safety, if haply he may turn and flee: - Nevertheless, let him reckon an he will, that all be counteth casual - May as well be for him as against him; dice have many sides: - And, even as in ailments of the body, diseases follow closely upon dreads, - So, with infirmities of mind, is fear the pallid harbinger of failure. - It were wise to walk undaunted even in an accidental chaos, - For the brave man is at peace, and free to get the mastery of - circumstance. - The stoutest armour of defence is that which is worn within the bosom, - And the weapon that no enemy can parry, is a bold and cheerful spirit: - Catapults in old war worked like Titans, crushing foes with rocks; - So doth a strong-springed heart throw back every load on its assailants. - - I went heavily for cares, and fell into the trance of sorrow; - And behold, a vision in my trance, and my ministering angel brought it. - There stood a mountain huge and steep, the awful Rock of Ages; - The sun upon its summit, and storms midway, and deep ravines at foot. - And, as I looked, a dense black cloud, suddenly dropping from the thunder, - Filled, like a cataract with yeasty foam, a narrow smiling valley: - Close and hard that vaporous mass seemed to press the ground, - And lamentable sounds came up, as of some that were smothering beneath. - Then, as I walked upon the mountain, clear in summer's noon, - For charity I called aloud, Ho! climb up hither to the sunshine. - And even like a stream of light my voice had pierced the mist; - I saw below two families of men, and knew their names of old: - Courage, struggling through the darkness, stout of heart and gladsome, - Ran up the shining ladder which the voice of Hope had made; - And tripping lightly by his side, a sweet-eyed helpmate with him, - I looked upon her face to welcome pleasant Cheerfulness; - And a babe was cradled in her bosom, a laughing little prattler, - The child of Cheerfulness and Courage,--could his name be other than - Success? - So, from his happy wife, when they both stood beside me on the mountain, - The fond father took that babe, and set him on his shoulder in the - sunshine. - - Again I peered into the valley, for I heard a gasping moan, - A desolate weak cry, as muffled in the vapours. - So down that crystal shaft into the poisonous mine - I sped for charity to seek and save,--and those I sought fled from me. - At length, I spied, far distant, a trembling withered dwarf - Who crouched beneath the cloak of a tall and spectral mourner: - Then I knew Cowardice and Gloom, and followed them on in darkness, - Guided by their rustling robes and moans and muffled cries, - Until in a suffocating pit the wretched pair had perished,-- - And lo, their whitening bones were shaping out an epitaph of Failure. - - So I saw that despondency was death, and flung my burdens from me, - And, lightened by that effort, I was raised above the world; - Yea, in the strangeness of my vision, I seemed to soar on wings, - And the names they called my wings were Cheerfulness and Wisdom. - - -OF YESTERDAY. - - Speak, poor almsman of to-day, whom none can assure of a to-morrow, - Tell out, with honest heart, the price thou settest upon yesterday. - Is it then a writing in the dust, traced by the finger of idleness, - Which Industry, clean housewife, can wipe away for ever? - Is it as a furrow on the sand, fashioned by the toying waves, - Quickly to be trampled then again by the feet of the returning tide? - Is it as the pale blue smoke, rising from a peasant's hovel, - That melted into limpid air, before it topped the larches? - Is it but a vision, unstable and unreal, which wise men soon forget? - Is it as the stranger of a night,--gone, we heed not whither? - Alas! thou foolish heart, whose thoughts are but as these, - Alas! deluded soul, that hopeth thus of Yesterday. - - For, behold,--those temples of Ellora, the Brahmin's rock-built shrine, - Behold--yon granite cliff, which the North Sea buffeteth in vain,-- - That stout old forest fir,--these waking verities of life, - This guest abiding ever, not strange, nor a servant, but a son,-- - Such, O man, are vanity and dreams, transient as a rainbow on the cloud, - Weighed against that solid fact, thine ill-remembered Yesterday. - - Come, let me show thee an ensample, where Nature shall instruct us; - Luxuriantly the arguments for truth spring native in her gardens. - Seek we yonder woodman of the plain; he is measuring his axe to the elm, - And anon the sturdy strokes ring upon the wintry air: - Eagerly the village school-boys cluster on the tightened rope, - Shouting, and bending to the pull, or lifted from the ground elastic; - The huge tree boweth like Sisera, boweth to its foes with faintness,-- - Its sinews crack,--deep groans declare the reeling anguish of Goliath, - The wedge is driven home,--and the saw is at its heart,--and lo, with - solemn slowness, - The shuddering monarch riseth from his throne,--toppled with a - crash,--and is fallen! - -[Illustration] - - Now shall the mangled stump teach proud man a lesson: - Now, can we from that elm-tree's sap distil the wine of Truth. - Heed ye those hundred rings, concentric from the core, - Eddying in various waves to the red bark's shore-like rim? - These be the gatherings of yesterdays, present all to-day, - This is the tree's judgment, self-history that cannot be gainsaid: - Seven years agone there was a drought,--and the seventh ring is narrowed; - The fifth from hence was half a deluge,--the fifth is cellular and broad. - Thus, Man, thou art a result, the growth of many yesterdays, - That stamp thy secret soul with marks of weal or woe: - Thou art an almanack of self, the living record of thy deeds; - Spirit hath its scars as well as body, sore and aching in their season: - Here is a knot,--it was a crime; there is a canker,--selfishness; - Lo, here, the heart-wood rotten; lo, there, perchance, the sap-wood sound. - Nature teacheth not in vain; thy works are in thee, of thee; - Some present evil bent hath grown of older errors: - And what if thou be walking now uprightly? Salve not thy wounds with - poison, - As if a petty goodness of to-day hath blotted out the sin of yesterday: - It is well, thou hast life and light; and the Hewer showeth mercy, - Dressing the root, pruning the branch, and looking for thy tardy fruits; - But, even here as thou standest, cheerful belike and careless, - The stains of ancient evil are upon thee, the record of thy wrong is in - thee: - For, a curse of many yesterdays is thine, many yesterdays of sin, - That, haply heeded little now, shall blast thy many morrows. - - Shall then a man reck nothing, but hurl mad defiance at his Judge, - Knowing that less than an Omnipotent cannot make the has been, not been? - He ought,--so Satan spake; he must,--so Atheism urgeth; - He may,--it was the libertine's thought; he doth,--the bad world said it. - But thou of humbler heart, thou student wiser for simplicity, - While Nature warneth thee betimes, heed the loving counsel of Religion. - True, this change is good, and penitence most precious; - But trust not thou thy change, nor rest upon repentance: - For all we are corrupted at the core, smooth as surface seemeth; - What health can bloom in a beautiful skin, when rottenness hath fed upon - the bones? - And guilt is parcel of us all; not thou, sweet nursling of affection, - Art spotless, though so passing fair,--nor thou, mild patriarch of virtue. - - Behold then the better Tree of Life, free unto us all for grafting, - Cut thee from the hollow root of self, to be budded on a richer Vine. - Be desperate, O man, as of evil, so of good; tear that tunic from thee; - The past can never be retrieved, be the present what it may. - Vain is the penance and the scourge, vain the fast and vigil: - The fencer's cautious skill to-day, can this erase his scars? - It is Man's to famish as a faquir, it is Man's to die a devotee, - Light is the torture and the toil, balanced with the wages of Eternity: - But, it is God's to yearn in love, on the humblest, the poorest, and the - worst, - For He giveth freely, as a king, asking only thanks for mercy. - Look upon this noble-hearted Substitute; seeing thy woes, He pitied thee, - Bowed beneath the mountain of thy sin, and perished,--but for Godhead; - There stood the Atlas in his power, and Prometheus in his love is there, - Emptying on wretched men the blessings earned from Heaven: - Put them not away, hide them in thy heart, poor and penitent receiver, - Be gratitude thy counseller to good, and wholesome fear unto obedience; - Remember, the pruning-knife is keen, cutting cankers even from the vine; - Remember, twelve were chosen, and one among them liveth--in perdition. - - Yea,--for standing unatoned, the soul is a bison on the prairie, - Hunted by those trooping wolves, the many sinful yesterdays: - And it speedeth a terrified Deucalion, flinging back the pebble in his - flight, - The pebble that must add one more to those pursuing ghosts. - O man, there is a storm behind should drive thy bark to haven; - The foe, the foe is on thy track, patient, certain, and avenging; - Day by day, solemnly, and silently, followeth the fearful past,-- - His step is lame, but sure; for he catcheth the present in eternity: - And how to escape that foe, the present-past in future? - How to avert that fate, living consequence of causes unexistent?-- - Boldly we must overleap his birth, and date above his memories, - Grafted on the living Tree, that WAS before a yesterday: - No refuge of a younger birth than one that saw creation - Can hide the child of time from still condemning Yesterday. - There, is the Sanctuary-city, mocking at the wrath of thine Avenger, - Close at hand, with the wicket on the latch; haste for thy life, poor - hunted one! - The gladiator, Guilt, fighteth as of old, armed with net and dagger; - Snaring in the mesh of yesterdays, stabbing with the poignard of to-day: - Fly, thy sword is broken at the hilt; fly, thy shield is shivered; - Leap the barriers, and baffle him: the arena of the past is his. - The bounds of Guilt are the cycles of Time: thou must be safe within - Eternity; - The arms of God alone shall rescue thee from Yesterday. - -[Illustration] - - -OF TO-DAY. - -[Illustration: "N"] - - Now, is the constant syllable ticking from the clock of time, - Now, is the watchword of the wise, Now, is on the banner of the prudent. - Cherish thy to-day and prize it well, or ever it be gulphed into the past, - Husband it, for who can promise, if it shall have a morrow? - Behold, thou art,--it is enough; that present care be thine; - Leave thou the past to thy Redeemer, entrust the future to thy Friend; - But for To-day, child of man, tend thou charily the minutes, - The harvest of thy yesterday, the seed-corn of thy morrow. - - Last night died its day; and the deeds thereof were judged: - Thou didst lay thee down as in a shroud, in darkness and death-like - slumber: - But at the trumpet of this morn, waking the world to resurrection, - Thou didst arise, like others, to live a new day's life: - Fear, lest folly give thee cause to mourn its passing presence, - Fear, that to-morrow's sigh be not, would God it had not dawned! - - For, To-day the lists are set, and thou must bear thee bravely, - Tilting for honour, duty, life, or death without reproach: - To-day, is the trial of thy fortitude, O dauntless Mandan chief; - To-day, is thy watch, O sentinel; To-day, thy reprieve, O captive: - What more? To-day is the golden chance wherewith to snatch fruition,-- - Be glad, grateful, temperate: there are asps among the figs. - For the potter's clay is in thy hands,--to mould it or to mar it at thy - will, - Or idly to leave it in the sun, an uncouth lump to harden. - - O bright presence of To-day, let me wrestle with thee, gracious angel, - I will not let thee go, except thou bless me; bless me, then, To-day: - O sweet garden of To-day, let me gather of thee, precious Eden; - I have stolen bitter knowledge, give me fruits of life To-day: - O true temple of To-day, let me worship in thee, glorious Zion; - I find none other place nor time, than where I am To-day: - O living rescue of To-day, let me run into thee, ark of refuge: - I see none other hope nor chance, but standeth in To-day: - O rich banquet of To-day, let me feast upon thee, saving manna; - I have none other food nor store, but daily bread To-day! - - Behold, thou art pilot of the ship, and owner of that freighted galleon, - Competent, with all thy weakness, to steer into safety or be lost: - Compass and chart are in thy hand: roadstead and rocks thou knowest; - Thou art warned of reefs and shallows; thou beholdest the harbour and its - lights. - What? shall thy wantonness or sloth drive the gallant vessel on the - breakers? - What? shall the helmsman's hand wear upon the black lee shore? - Vain is that excuse; thou canst escape: thy mind is responsible for wrong: - Vain that murmur; thou mayst live: thy soul is debtor for the right. - To-day, in the voyage of thy life down the dark tide of time, - Stand boldly to thy tiller, guide thee by the pole-star, and be safe; - To-day, passing near the sunken rocks, the quicksands and whirlpools of - probation, - Leave awhile the rudder to swing round, give the wind its heading, and be - wrecked. - - The crisis of man's destiny is Now, a still recurring danger; - Who can tell the trials and temptations coming with the coming hour? - Thou standest a target-like Sebastian, and the arrows whistle near thee; - Who knoweth when he may be hit? for great is the company of archers. - Each breath is burdened with a bidding, and every minute hath its mission; - For spirits, good and bad, cluster on the thickly-peopled air: - Sin may blast thee, grace may bless thee, good or ill this hour: - Chance, and change, and doubt, and fear, are parasites of all. - A man's life is a tower, with a staircase of many steps, - That, as he toileth upward, crumble successively behind him: - No going back; the past is an abyss; no stopping, for the present - perisheth; - But ever hasting on, precarious on the foothold of To-day; - Our cares are all To-day; our joys are all To-day; - And in one little word, our life, what is it, but--To-day? - - -[Illustration: Of To-morrow] - -OF TO-MORROW. - -[Illustration: "T"] - - There is a floating island, forward on the stream of time, - Buoyant with fermenting air, and borne along the rapids; - And on that island is a siren, singing sweetly as she goeth, - Her eyes are bright with invitation, and allurement lurketh in her cheeks; - Many lovers, vainly pursuing, follow her beckoning finger, - Many lovers seek her still, even to the cataract of death. - To-morrow is that island, a vain and foolish heritage, - And, laughing with seductive lips, Delusion hideth there: - Often the precious present is wasted in visions of the future, - And coy To-morrow cometh not with prophecies fulfilled. - - There is a fairy skiff, plying on the sea of life, - And charitably toiling still to save the shipwrecked crews; - Within, kindly patient, sitteth a gentle mariner, - Piloting, through surf and strait, the fragile barks of men: - How cheering is her voice, how skilfully she guideth, - How nobly leading onward yet, defying even death! - To-morrow is that skiff, a wise and welcome rescue, - And, full of gladdening words and looks, that mariner is Hope: - Often, the painful present is comforted by flattering the future, - And kind To-morrow beareth half the burdens of To-day. - - To-morrow, whispereth weakness: and To-morrow findeth him the weaker; - To-morrow, promiseth conscience; and behold, no To-day for a fulfilment. - O name of happy omen unto youth, O bitter word of terror to the dotard, - Goal of folly's lazy wish, and sorrow's ever-coming friend; - Fraud's loophole,--caution's hint,--and trap to catch the honest,-- - Thou wealth to many poor, disgrace to many noble, - Thou hope and fear, thou weal and woe, thou remedy, thou ruin, - How thickly swarms of thought are clustering round To-morrow! - The hive of memory increaseth, to every day its cell; - There is the labour stored, the honey or corruption; - Each morn the bees fly forth, to fill the growing comb, - And levy golden tribute of the uncomplaining flowers: - To-morrow is their care; they toil for rest to-morrow; - But man deferreth duty's task, and loveth ease to-day. - - To-morrow, is that lamp upon the marsh, which a traveller never reacheth; - To-morrow, the rainbow's cup, coveted prize of ignorance; - To-morrow, the shifting anchorage, dangerous trust of mariners; - To-morrow, the wrecker's beacon, wily snare of the destroyer. - Reconcile convictions with delay, and To-morrow is a fatal lie; - Frighten resolutions into action, To-morrow is a wholesome truth: - I must, for I fear To-morrow; this is the Cassava's food; - Why should I? let me trust To-morrow,--this is the Cassava's poison. - - Lo, it is the even of To-day,--a day so lately a To-morrow; - Where are those high resolves, those hopes of yesternight? - O faint fond heart, still shall thy whisper be, To-morrow, - And must the growing avalanche of sin roll down that easy slope? - Alas, it is ponderous, and moving on in might, that a Sisyphus may not - stop it; - But haste thee with the lever of a prayer, and stem its strength To-day: - For its race may speedily be run, and this poor hut, thyself, - Be whelmed in death and suffocating guilt, that dreary Alpine snow-wreath. - - Pensioner of life, be wise, and heed a brother's counsel; - I also am a beadsman, with scrip and staff as thou: - Wouldest thou be bold against the past, and all its evil memories, - Wouldest thou be safe amid the present, its dangers and temptations, - Wouldest thou be hopeful of the future, vague though it be and endless? - Haste thee, repent, believe, obey! thou standest in the courage of a - legion. - Commend the Past to God, with all its irrevocable harm, - Humbly, but in cheerful trust, and banish vain regrets; - Come to Him, continually come, casting all the Present at His feet, - Boldly, but in prayerful love, and fling off selfish cares; - Commit the Future to His will, the viewless fated future; - Zealously go forward with integrity, and God will bless thy faith. - For that, feeble as thou art, there is with thee a mighty Conqueror, - Thy Friend, the same for ever, yesterday, to-day, and to-morrow; - That Friend, changeless as eternity, Himself shall make thee friends - Of those thy foes transformed, yesterday, to-day, and to-morrow. - - -OF AUTHORSHIP. - -[Illustration: "G"] - - Great is the dignity of Authorship: I magnify mine office; - Albeit in much feebleness I hold it thus unworthily. - For it is to be one of a noble band, the welfare of the world, - Whose haunt is on the lips of men, whose dwelling in their hearts, - Who are precious in the retrospect of Memory, and walk among the visions - of Hope, - Who commune with the good for everlasting, and call the wisest, brother, - Whose voice hath burst the Silence, and whose light is flung upon the - Darkness, - --Flashing jewels on a robe of black, and harmony bounding out of chaos,-- - Who gladden empires with their wisdom, and bless to the farthest - generation, - Doers of illimitable good, gainers of inestimable glory!-- - We speak but of the Magnates, we heed none humbler than the highest, - We take no count of sorry scribes, nor waste one thought upon the - groundlings; - Our eyes are lifted from the multitude, groping in the dark with candles, - To gaze upon that firmament of praise, the constellated lamps of learning. - Ever-during witnesses of Mind, undisputed evidence of Power, - Goodly volumes, living stones, build up their author's temple; - Though of low estate, his rank is above princes,--though needy, he hath - worship of the rich, - When Genius unfurleth on the winds his banner as a mighty leader. - Just in purpose, and self-possessed in soul, lord of many talents, - The mental Crœsus goeth forth, rejoicing in his wealth; - Keen and clear perception gloweth on his forehead like a sunbeam, - He readeth men at a glance, and mists roll away before him; - The wise have set him as their captain, the foolish are rebuked at his - presence, - The excellent bless him with their prayers, and the wicked praise him by - their curses; - His voice, mighty in operation, stirreth up the world as a trumpet, - And kings account it honour to be numbered of his friends. - - Rare is the worthiness of authorship: I justify mine office; - Albeit fancies weak as mine credit not the calling. - For it addeth immortality to dying facts, that are ready to vanish away, - Embalming as in amber the poor insects of an hour; - Shedding upon stocks and stones the tender light of interest, - And illumining dark places of the earth, with radiance of classic lustre. - It hath power to make past things present, and availeth for the present - in the future, - Delivering thoughts, and words, and deeds, from the outer darkness of - oblivion. - Where are the sages and the heroes, giants of old time?-- - Where are the mighty kings, that reigned before Agamemnon?-- - Alas they lie unwept, unhonoured, hidden in the midnight: - Alas, for they died unchronicled: their memorial perished with them. - Where are the nobles of Nineveh, and mitred rulers of Babylon? - Where are the lords of Edom, and the royal pontiffs of Thebais? - The golden Satrap, and the Tetrarch,--the Hun, and the Druid, and the - Celt? - The merchant princes of Phœnicia, and the minds that fashioned - Elephanta? - Alas, for the poet hath forgotten them; and lo! they are outcasts of - Memory; - Alas, that they are withered leaves, sapless and fallen from the chaplet - of fame. - Speak, Etruria, whose bones be these, entombed with costly care,-- - Tell out, Herculaneum, the titles that have sounded in those thy - palaces,-- - Lycian Xanthus, thy citadels are mute, and the honour of their architects - hath died; - Copan and Palenque, dreamy ruins in the West, the forest hath swallowed - up your sculptures; - Syracuse,--how silent of the past!--Carthage, thou art blotted from - remembrance! - Egypt, wondrous shores, ye are buried in the sand-hills of forgetfulness! - Alas,--for in your glorious youth Time himself was young, - And none durst wrestle with that Angel, iron-sinewed bridegroom of Space; - So he flew by, strong upon the wing, nor dropped one failing feather, - Wherewith some hoary scribe might register your honour and renown. - Beyond the broad Atlantic, in the regions of the setting sun, - Ask of the plume-crowned Incas, that ruled in old Peru,-- - Ask of grand Caziques, and priests of the pyramids in Mexico,-- - Ask of a thousand painted tribes, high nobility of Nature, - Who, once, could roam their own Elysian plains, free, generous, and happy, - Who, now, degraded and in exile, having sold their fatherland for nought, - Sink and are extinguished in the western seas, even as the sun they - follow,-- - Where is the record of their deeds, their prowess worthy of Achilles, - Nestor's wisdom, the chivalry of Manlius, the native eloquence of Cicero, - The skill of Xenophon, the spirit of Alcibiades, the firmness of a - Maccabæan mother, - Brotherly love that Antigone might envy, the honour and the fortitude of - Regulus? - Alas, their glory and their praise have vanished like a summer cloud; - Alas! that they are dead indeed; they are not written down in the Book of - the living. - - High is the privilege of Authorship: I purify mine office; - Albeit earthy stains pollute it in my hands. - For it is to the world a teacher and a guide, Mentor of that gay - Telemachus; - Warning, comforting, and helping,--a lover and friend of Man. - Heaven's almoner, Earth's health, patient minister of goodness, - With kind and zealous pen, the wise religious blesseth: - Nature's worshipper, and neophyte of grace, rich in tender sympathies, - With kindled soul and flashing eye, the poet poureth out his heartful: - Priest of truth, champion of innocence, warder of the gates of praise, - Carefully with sifting search laboureth the pale historian: - Error's enemy, and acolyte of science, firm in sober argument, - The calm philosopher marshalleth his facts, noting on his page their - principles. - These pour mercies upon men; and others, little less in honour, - By cheerful wit and graphic tale refreshening the harassed spirit. - But, there be other some beside, buyers and sellers in the temple, - Who shame their high vocation, greedy of inglorious gain; - There be, who fabricating books, heed of them meanly as of merchandise; - And seek nor use, nor truth, nor fame, but sell their minds for lucre: - O false brethren! ye wot indeed the labour, but are witless of the love; - O lying prophets, chilled in soul, unquickened by the life of - inspiration!-- - And there be, who, frivolous and vain, seek to make others foolish, - Snaring youth by loose sweet song, and age by selfish maxim; - Cleverly heartless, and wittily profane, they swell the river of - corruption: - Brilliant satellites of sin,--my soul, be not found among their company. - And there be, who, haters of religion, toil to prove it priestcraft, - Owning none other aim nor hope, but to confound the good: - Woe unto them! for their works shall live; yea, to their utter - condemnation: - Woe! for their own handwriting shall testify against them for ever. - - Pure is the happiness of Authorship: I glorify mine office; - Albeit lightly having sipped the cup of its lower pleasures. - For it is to feel with a father's heart, when he yearneth on the child of - his affections; - To rejoice in a man's own miniature world, gladdened by its rare - arrangement. - The poem, is it not a fabric of mind? we love what we create: - That choice and musical order,--how pleasant is the toil of composition! - Yea, when the volume of the universe was blazoned out in beauty by its - Author, - God was glad, and blessed His work; for it was very good. - And shall not the image of his Maker be happy in his own mind's doing, - Looking on the structure he hath reared, gratefully with sweet - complacence? - Shall not the Minerva of his brain, panoplied and perfect in proportions, - Gladden the soul and give light unto the eyes, of him the travailing - parent? - Go to the sculptor, and ask him of his dreams,--wherefore are his nights - so moonlit? - Angel faces, and beautiful shapes, fascinate the pale Pygmalion: - Go to the painter, and trace his reveries,--wherefore are his days so - sunny? - Choice design, and skilful colouring, charm the flitting hours of - Parrhasius: - Even so, walking in his buoyancy, intoxicate with fairy fancies, - The young enthusiast of authorship goeth on his way rejoicing: - Behold,--he is gallantly attended; legions of thrilling thoughts - Throng about the standard of his mind, and call his Will their captain; - Behold,--his court is as a monarch's; ideas, and grand imaginations - Swell, with gorgeous cavalcade, the splendour of his Spiritual State; - Behold,--he is delicately served: for oftentimes, in solitary calmness, - Some mental fair Egeria smileth on her Numa's worship; - Behold,--he is happy; there is gladness in his eye, and his heart is a - sealed fountain, - Bounding secretly with joys unseen, and keeping down its ecstasy of - pleasure! - - Yea: how dignified, and worthy, full of privilege and happiness, - Standeth in majestic independence the self-ennobled Author! - For God hath blessed him with a mind, and cherished it in tenderness and - purity, - Hath taught it in the whisperings of wisdom, and added all the riches of - content: - Therefore, leaning on his God, a pensioner for soul and body, - His spirit is the subject of none other, calling no man Master. - His hopes are mighty and eternal, scorning small ambitions: - He hideth from the pettiness of praise, and pitieth the feebleness of - envy. - If he meet honours, well; it may be his humility to take them: - If he be rebuked, better; his veriest enemy shall teach him. - For the master-mind hath a birthright of eminence; his cradle is an - eagle's eyrie: - Need but to wait till his wings are grown, and Genius soareth to the sun: - To creeping things upon the mountain leaveth he the gradual ascent, - Resting his swiftness on the summit only for a higher flight. - Glad in clear good-conscience, lightly doth he look for commendation; - What, if the prophet lacketh honour? for he can spare that praise: - The honest giant careth not to be patted on the back by pigmies; - Flatter greatness, he brooketh it good-humouredly: blame him,--thou - tiltest at a pyramid: - Yet, just censure of the good never can he hear without contrition; - Neither would he miss one wise man's praise, for scarce is that jewel and - costly: - Only for the herd of common minds, and the vulgar trumpetings of fame, - If aught he heedeth in the matter, his honour is sought in their neglect. - Slender is the marvel, and little is the glory, when round his luscious - fruits - The worm and the wasp and the multitude of flies are gathered as to - banquet; - Fashion's freak, and the critical sting, and the flood of flatteries he - scorneth; - Cheerfully asking of the crowd the favour to forget him: - The while his blooming fruits ripen in richer fragrance, - A feast for the few,--and the many yet unborn,--who still shall love - their savour. - - So then, humbly with his God, and proudly independent of his fellows, - Walketh, in pleasures multitudinous, the man ennobled by his pen: - He hath built up, glorious architect, a monument more durable than brass; - His children's children shall talk of him in love, and teach their sons - his honour: - His dignity hath set him among princes, the universe is debtor to his - worth, - His privilege is blessing for ever, his happiness shineth now, - For he standeth of that grand Election, each man one among a thousand, - Whose sound is gone out into all lands, and their words to the end of the - world! - - -[Illustration: Of Mystery.] - -OF MYSTERY. - -[Illustration: "A"] - - All things being are in mystery; we expound mysteries by mysteries; - And yet the secret of them all is one in simple grandeur: - All intricate, yet each path plain, to those who know the way; - All unapproachable, yet easy of access, to them that hold the key: - We walk among labyrinths of wonder, but thread the mazes with a clue; - We sail in chartless seas, but behold! the pole-star is above us. - For, counting down from God's good will, thou meltest every riddle into - Him, - The axiom of reason is an undiscovered God, and all things live in His - ubiquity: - There is only one great secret; but that one hideth everywhere; - How should the infinite be understood in Time, when it stretcheth on - ungrasped for ever? - Can a halting Œdipus of earth guess that enigma of the universe? - Not one: the sword of faith must cut the Gordian knot of nature. - - God, pervading all, is in all things the mystery of each; - The wherefore of its character and essence, the fountain of its virtues - and its beauties. - The child asketh of its mother,--Wherefore is the violet so sweet? - The mother answereth her babe,--Darling, God hath willed it. - And sages, diving into science, have but a profundity of words; - They track for some few links the circling chain of consequence, - And then, after doubts and disputations, are left where they began, - At the bald conclusion of a clown, things are because they are. - Wherefore are the meadows green, is it not to gratify the eye? - But why should greenness charm the eye? such is God's good will. - Wherefore is the ear attuned to a pleasure in musical sounds, - And who set a number to those sounds, and fixed the laws of harmony? - Who taught the bird to build its nest, or lent the shrub its life, - Or poised in the balances of order the power to attract and to repel? - Who continueth the worlds, and the sea, and the heart, in motion? - Who commanded gravitation to tie down all upon its sphere?-- - For, even as a limestone cliff is an aggregate of countless shells, - One riddle concrete of many, a mystery compact of mysteries, - So God, cloud-capped in immensity, standeth the cohesion of all things, - And secrets, sublimely indistinct, permeate that Universe, Himself; - As is the whole, so are the parts, whether they be mighty or minute, - The sun is not more unexplained than the tissue of an emmet's wing. - - Thus then, omnipresent Deity worketh His unbiassed mind, - A mind, one in moral, but infinitely multiplied in means: - And the uniform prudence of His will cometh to be counted law, - Till mutable man fancieth volition stirring in the potter's clay: - God, a wise father, showeth not His reasons to His babes; - But willeth in secresy and goodness: for causes generate dispute: - Then we, His darkling children, watch that invariable purpose, - And invest the passive creature with its Maker's energy and skill: - Therefore, they of old time stopped short of God in idols, - Therefore, in these latter days, we heed not the Jehovah in His works. - Mystery is God's great name; He is the mystery of goodness: - Some other, from the hierarchs of heaven, usurped the mystery of sin. - God is the King, yea even of Himself; He crowned Himself with holiness; - The burning circlet of iniquity another found and wore. - God is separate, even from His attributes; but He willed eternally the - good; - Therefore freely, though unchangeably, is wise, righteous, and loving: - But ambition, open unto angels, saw the evil, flung aside from the - beginning, - It was Lucifer that saw, and nothing loathed those black unclaimed - regalia, - So he coveted and stole, to be counted for a king, antagonist of God, - But when he touched the leprous robes, behold! a cheated traitor. - - For self-existence, charactered with love, with power, wisdom, and - ubiquity, - Could not dwell alone, but willed and worked creation. - Thus, in continual exhalation, darkening the void with matter, - Sprang from prolific Deity the creatures of His skill. - And beings living on His breath, were needfully less perfect than Himself, - Therefore less capable of bliss, whereat His benevolence was bounded; - So, to make the capability expand, intensely progressive to eternity, - He suffered darkness to illustrate the light, and pain to heighten - pleasure: - To heap up happiness on souls He loved, allowed He sin and sorrow, - And then to guilt and grief and shame, He brought unbidden amnesty: - Sinless, none had been redeemed, nor wrapt again in God: - Sorrowless, no conflict had been known, and Heaven had been mulcted of - its comfort: - Yea, with evil unexhibited, probationary toils unfelt, - Men had not appreciated good, nor angels valued their security. - Herein, to reason's eye, is revealed the mystery of goodness, - Blessing through permitted woe, and teaching by the mystery of sin. - - O Christian, whose chastened curiosity loveth things mysterious, - Accounting them shadows and eclipses of Him the one great light, - Look now, satisfied with faith, on minds that judge by sense, - And, dull from contemplating matter, take small heed of spirit. - Toiling feebly upward, their argument tracketh from below, - They catch the latest consequent, and prove the nearest cause: - What is this? that a seed produced a seed, and so for a thousand seasons; - Ascend a thousand steps, thy ladder leaveth thee in air: - Thou canst not climb to God, and short of Him is nothing; - There is no cause for aught we see, but in His present will. - Begin from the Maker, thou carriest down His attributes to reptiles, - The sharded beetle and the lizard live and move in Him: - Begin from the creature, corruption and infirmity mar thy foolish toil, - Heap Ossa on Olympus, how much art thou nearer to the stars? - It is easy running from a mountain's top down to the valleys at its foot, - But difficult and steep the laborious ascent, and feebly shalt thou reach - it: - Yet man, beginning from himself, that first deluding mystery, - Hopeth from the pit of lies to struggle up to truth; - So, taxing knowledge to its strength, he pusheth one step further, - And fancieth complacently that much is done by reaching a remote effect: - Then he maketh answer to himself, as a silly nurse to her little one, - Evading, in a mist of words, hard things he cannot solve; - Till, like an ostrich in the desert, he burieth his head in atoms, - Thinking that, if he is blind, no sun can shine in heaven. - - Therefore cometh it to pass, that an atheist is ever the most credulous, - Snatching at any foolish cause, that may dispel his doubts; - And, even as it were for ridicule, a spectacle for men and angels, - The captious and cautious unbeliever is of all men weakest to believe: - Cut from the anchorage of God, his bark is a plaything of the billows; - The compass of his principle is broken, the rudder of his faith unshipped: - Chance and Fate, in a stultified antagonism, govern all for him; - Truth sprang from the conflict of falsities, and the multitude of - accidents hath bred design! - Where is the imposture so gross, that shall not entrap his curiosity? - What superstition is so abject, that it doth not blanch his cheek? - Whereof can he be sure, with whom Chaos is substitute for Order? - How should his silly structure stand, a pyramid built upon its apex?-- - Yea, I have seen grey-headed men, the bastard slips of science, - Go for light to glow-worms, while they scorn the sun at noon: - Men, who fear no God, trembling at a gipsy's curse, - Men, who jest at revelation, clinging to a madman's prophecy! - - There is a pleasing dread in the fashion of all mysteries, - For hope is mixed therein and fear; who shall divine their issues? - Even the orphan, wandering by night, lost on dreary moors, - Is sensible of some vague bliss amidst his shapeless terrors; - The buoyancy of instant expectation, spurring on the mind to venture, - Overbeareth, in its energy, the cramp and the chill of apprehension. - There is a solitary pride, when the heart, in new importance, - Writeth gladly on its archives, the secrets none other men have seen: - And there is a caged terror, evermore wrestling with the mind, - When crime hath whispered his confession, and the secrets are written - there in blood: - The village maiden is elated at the tenderly confided tale: - The bandit's wife with sickening fear guessed the premeditated murder: - The sage, with triumph on his brow, hideth up his deep discovery; - The idlest clown shall delve all day, to find a hidden treasure. - - For mystery is man's life; we wake to the whisperings of novelty: - And what, though we lie down disappointed? we sleep, to wake in hope. - The letter, or the news, the chances and the changes, matters that may - happen, - Sweeten or embitter daily life with the honey-gall of mystery. - For we walk blindfold,--and a minute may be much,--a step may reach the - precipice; - What earthly loss, what heavenly gain, may not this day produce? - Levelled of Alps and Andes, without its valleys and ravines, - How dull the face of earth, unfeatured of both beauty and sublimity: - And so, shorn of mystery, beggared in its hopes and fears, - How flat the prospect of existence, mapped by intuitive foreknowledge. - Praise God, creature of earth, for the mercies linked with secresy, - That spices of uncertainty enrich the cup of life; - Praise God, His hosts on high, for the mysteries that make all joy; - What were intelligence with nothing more to learn, or heaven, in eternity - of sameness? - - To number every mystery were to sum the sum of all things: - None can exhaust a theme, whereof God is example and similitude. - Nevertheless, take a garland from the garden, a handful from the harvest, - Some scattered drops of spray from the ceaseless mighty cataract. - Whence are we,--whither do we tend,--how do we feel, and reason? - How strange a thing is man, a spirit saturating clay! - When doth soul make embryos immortal,--how do they rank hereafter,-- - And will the unconscious idiot be quenched in death as nothing? - In essence immaterial, are these minds, as it were, thinking machines? - For, to understand may but rightly be to use a mechanism all possess, - So that in reading or hearing of another, a man shall seem unto himself - To be recollecting images or arguments, native and congenial to his mind: - And yet, what shall we say,--who can arede the riddle? - The brain may be clockwork, and mind its spring, mechanism quickened by a - spirit. - - Who so shrewd as rightly to divide life, instinct, reason; - Trees, zoophytes, creatures of the plain, and savage men among them? - Hath the mimosa instinct,--or the scallop more than life,-- - Or the dog less than reason,--or the brute-man more than instinct? - What is the cause of health,--and the gendering of disease? - Why should arsenic kill, and whence is the potency of antidotes? - Behold, a morsel,--eat and die; the term of thy probation is expired: - Behold, a potion,--drink and be alive; the limit of thy trial is enlarged. - Who can expound beauty? or explain the character of nations? - Who will furnish a cause for the epidemic force of fashion? - Is there a moral magnetism living in the light of example? - Is practice electricity?--Yet all these are but names. - Doth normal Art imprison, in its works, spirit translated into substance, - So that the statue, the picture, or the poem, are crystals of the mind? - And doth Philosophy with sublimating skill shred away the matter, - Till rarefied intelligence exudeth even out of stocks and stones? - - O Mysteries, ye all are one, the mind of an inexplicable Architect - Dwelleth alike in each, quickening and moving in them all. - Fields, and forests, and cities of men, their woes and wealth and works, - And customs, and contrivances of life, with all we see and know, - For a little way, a little while, ye hang dependent on each other, - But all are held in one right-hand, and by His will ye are. - Here is an answer unto mystery, an unintelligible God, - This is the end and the beginning, it is reason that He be not understood. - Therefore it were probable and just, even to a man's weak thinking, - To have one for God who always may be learnt, yet never fully known: - That He, from whom all mysteries spring, in whom they all converge, - Throned in His sublimity beyond the grovellings of lower intellect, - Should claim to be truer than man's truest, the boasted certainty of - numbers, - Should baffle his arithmetic, confound his demonstrations, and paralyse - the might of his necessity, - Standing supreme as the mystery of mysteries, everywhere, yet impersonate, - Essential One in three, essential Three in one! - - -OF GIFTS. - -[Illustration: "I"] - - I had a seeming friend;--I gave him gifts, and he was gone: - I had an open enemy;--I gave him gifts, and won him: - Common friendship standeth on equalities, and cannot bear a debt; - But the very heart of hate melteth at a good man's love: - Go to, then, thou that sayest,--I will give and rivet the links: - For pride shall kick at obligation, and push the giver from him. - The covetous spirit may rejoice, revelling in thy largess, - But chilling selfishness will mutter,--I must give again: - The vain heart may be glad, in this new proof of man's esteem, - But the same idolatry of self abhorreth thoughts of thanking. - - Nevertheless, give; for it shall be a discriminating test - Separating honesty from falsehood, weeding insincerity from friendship. - Give, it is like God; thou weariest the bad with benefits: - Give, it is like God; thou gladdenest the good by gratitude. - Give to thy near of kin, for providence hath stationed thee his helper: - Yet see that he claim not, as his right, thy freewill offering of duty. - Give to the young, they love it; neither hath the poison of suspicion - Spoilt the flavour of their thanks, to look for latent motives. - Give to merit, largely give; his conscious heart will bless thee: - It is not flattery, but love,--the sympathy of men his brethren. - Give, for encouragement in good; the weak desponding mind - Hath many foes, and much to do, and leaneth on its friends. - Yet heed thou wisely these; give seldom to thy better; - For such obtrusive boon shall savour of presumption; - Or, if his courteous bearing greet thy proffered kindness, - Shall not thine independent honesty be vexed at the semblance of a bribe? - Moreover, heed thou this; give to thine equal charily, - The occasion fair and fitting, the gift well chosen and desired: - Hath he been prosperous and blest? a flower may show thy gladness; - Is he in need? with liberal love, tender him the well-filled purse: - Disease shall welcome friendly care in grapes and precious unguents; - And where a darling child hath died, give praise, and hope, and sympathy. - Yet once more, heed thou this; give to the poor discreetly, - Nor suffer idle sloth to lean upon thy charitable arm: - To diligence give, as to an equal, on just and fit occasion; - Or he bartereth his hard-earned self-reliance for the casual lottery of - gifts. - The timely loan hath added nerve, where easy liberality would palsy; - Work and wages make a light heart; but the mendicant asked with a heavy - spirit. - A man's own self-respect is worth unto him more than money, - And evil is the charity that humbleth, and maketh man less happy. - - There are who sow liberalities, to reap the like again; - But men accept his boon, scorning the shallow usurer: - I have known many such a fisherman lose his golden baits: - And oftentimes the tame decoy escapeth with the flock. - Yea, there are who give unto the poor, to gain large interest of God,-- - Fool,--to think His wealth is money, and not mind: - And haply after thine alms, thy calculated givings, - The hurricane shall blast thy crops, and sink the homeward ship; - Then shall thy worldly soul murmur that the balances were false, - Thy trader's mind shall think of God,--He stood not to His bargain! - - Give, saith the preacher, be large in liberality, yield to the holy - impulse, - Tarry not for cold consideration, but cheerfully and freely scatter. - So, for complacency of conscience, in a gush of counterfeited charity, - He that hath not wherewith to be just, selfishly presumeth to be generous: - The debtor, and the rich by wrong, are known among the band of the - benevolent; - And men extol the noble hearts, who rob that they may give. - Receivers are but little prone to challenge rights of giving, - Nor stop to test, for conscience-sake, the righteousness of mammon: - And the zealot in a cause is a receiver, at the hand which bettereth his - cause; - And thus an unsuspected bribe shall blind the good man's judgment: - It is easy to excuse greatness, and the rich are readily forgiven: - What, if his gains were evil, sanctified by using them aright? - O shallow flatterer, self-interest is thy thought, - Hopeless of partaking in the like, thou too wouldst scorn the giver. - - Money hath its value; and the scatterer thereof his thanks: - Few men, drinking at a rivulet, stop to consider its source. - The hand that closeth on an alm, be it for necessities or zeal, - Hath small scruple whence it came: Vespasian rejoiceth in his tribute. - Therefore have colleges and hospitals risen upon orphans' wrongs, - Chapels and cathedrals have thriven on the welcome wages of iniquity, - And fraud, in evil compensation, hath salved his guilty conscience, - Not by restoring to the cheated, but by ostentatious giving to the - grateful. - - So, those who reap rejoice; and reaping, bless the sower: - No one is eager to discover, where discovery tendeth unto loss: - Yet, if knowledge of a theft make gainers thereby guilty, - Can he be altogether innocent, who never asked the honesty of gain? - Therefore, O preacher, zealous for charity, temper thy warm appeal,-- - Warning the debtor and unjustly rich, they may not dare to give: - To do good is a privilege and guerdon: how shouldst thou rejoice - If ill-got gifts of presumptuous fraud be offered on the altar? - The question is not of degrees; unhallowed alms are evil; - Discourage and reject alike the obolus or talent of iniquity. - - Yet more, be careful that, unworthily, thou gain not an advantage over - weakness, - Unstable souls, fervent and profuse, fluttered by the feeling of the - moment; - For eloquence swayeth to its will the feeble and the conscious of defect: - Rashly give they, and afterward are sad,--a gift that doubly erred. - It was the worldliness of priestcraft that accounted alms-giving for - charity; - And many a father's penitence hath steeped his son in penury; - Yet, considered he lightly the guilt of a death-bed selfishness - That strove to take with him, for gain, the gold no longer his; - So he died in a false peace, and dying robbed his kindred; - The cunning friar at his side having cheated both the living and the dead. - - Charity sitteth on a fair hill-top, blessing far and near, - But her garments drop ambrosia, chiefly, on the violets around her: - She gladdeneth indeed the map-like scene, stretching to the verge of the - horizon, - For her angel face is lustrous and beloved, even as the moon in heaven: - But the light of that beatific vision gloweth in serener concentration - The nearer to her heart, and nearer to her home,--that hill-top where she - sitteth: - Therefore is she kind unto her kin, yearning in affection on her - neighbours, - Giving gifts to those around, who know and love her well. - But the counterfeit of charity, an hypocrite of earth, not a grace of - heaven, - Seeketh not to bless at home, for her nearer aspect is ill-favoured: - Therefore hideth she for shame, counting that pride humility, - And none of those around her hearth are gladdened by her gifts: - Rather, with an overreaching zeal, flingeth she her bounty to the - stranger, - And scattered prodigalities abroad compensate for meanness in her home: - For benefits showered on the distant shine in unmixed beauty, - So that even she may reap their undiscerning praise: - Therefore native want hath pined, where foreign need was fattened; - Woman been crushed by the tyrannous hand that upheld the flag of - liberality; - Poverty been prisoned up and starved, by hearts that are maudlin upon - crime; - And freeborn babes been manacled by men, who liberate the sturdy slave. - - Policy counselleth a gift, given wisely and in season, - And policy afterwards approveth it, for great is the influence of gifts. - The lover, unsmiled upon before, is welcome for his jewelled bauble; - The righteous cause without a fee, must yield to bounteous guilt: - How fair is a man in thine esteem, whose just discrimination seeketh thee, - And so, discerning merit, honoureth it with gifts! - Yea, let the cause appear sufficient, and the motive clear and - unsuspicious, - As given to one who cannot help, or proving honest thanks, - There liveth not one among a million, who is proof against the charm of - liberality, - And flattery, that boon of praise, hath power with the wisest. - - Man is of three natures, craving all for charity; - It is not enough to give him meats, withholding other comfort: - For the mind starveth, and the soul is scorned, and so the human animal - Eateth his unsatisfying pittance, a thankless heartless pauper: - Yet would he bless thee and be grateful, didst thou feed his spirit, - And teach him that thine alms-givings are charities, are loves: - --I saw a beggar in the street, and another beggar pitied him; - Sympathy sank into his soul, and the pitied one felt happier: - Anon passed by a cavalcade, children of wealth and gaiety; - They laughed, and looked upon the beggar, and the gallants flung him gold; - He, poor spirit-humbled wretch, gathered up their givings with a curse, - And went--to share it with his brother, the beggar who had pitied him! - - -OF BEAUTY. - -[Illustration: "T"] - - Thou mightier than Manoah's son, whence is thy great strength, - And wherein the secret of thy craft, O charmer charming wisely?-- - For thou art strong in weakness, and in artlessness well skilled, - Constant in the multitude of change, and simple amidst intricate - complexity. - Folly's shallow lip can ask the deepest question, - And many wise in many words should answer, what is beauty?-- - Who shall separate the hues that flicker on a dying dolphin, - Or analyse the jewelled lights that deck the peacock's train, - Or shrewdly mix upon a palette the tints of an iridescent spar, - Or set in rank the wandering shades about a watered silk? - - For beauty is intangible, vague, ill to be defined; - She hath the coat of a chameleon, changing while we watch it. - Strangely woven is the web, disorderly yet harmonious, - A glistering robe of mingled mesh, that may not be unravelled. - It is shot with heaven's blue, the soul of summer skies, - And twisted strings of light, the mind of noonday suns, - And ruddy gleams of life, that roll along the veins, - A coat of many colours, running curiously together. - There is threefold beauty for man; twofold beauty for the animal; - And the beauty of inanimates is single: body, temper, spirit. - Multiplied in endless combination, issue the changeable results; - Each class verging on the other twain, with imperceptible gradation; - And every individual in each having his propriety of difference, - So that the meanest of creation bringeth in a tribute of the beautiful. - Yea, from the worst in favour shineth out a fitness of design, - The patent mark of beauty, its Maker's name imprest. - For the great Creator's seal is set to all His works; - Its quarterings are Attributes of praise, and all the shield is Beauty: - So, that heraldic blazon is Creation's common signet; - And the universal family of life goeth in the colours of its Lord: - But each one, as a several son, shall bear those arms with a difference; - Beauty, various in phase, and similar in seeming oppositions. - The coins of old Rome were struck with a diversity for each, - Barely two be found alike, in every Cæsar's image: - So, note thou the seals, ranged round the charters of the Universe, - The finger of God is the stamp upon them all, but each hath its separate - variety. - - Beauty, theme of innocence, how may guilt discourse thee? - Let holy angels sing thy praise, for man hath marred thy visage. - Still the maimed torso of a Theseus can gladden taste with its - proportions; - Though sin hath shattered every limb, how comely are the fragments! - And music leaveth on the ear a memory of sweet sounds; - And broken arches charm the sight with hints of fair completeness. - So, while humbled at the ruin, be thou grateful for the relics; - Go forth, and look on all around with kind uncaptious eye: - Freely let us wander through these unfrequented ways, - And talk of glorious beauty, filling all the world. - - For beauty hideth everywhere, that Reason's child may seek her, - And having found the gem of price, may set it in God's crown. - Beauty nestleth in the rosebud, or walketh the firmament with planets, - She is heard in the beetle's evening hymn, and shouteth in the matins of - the sun; - The cheek of the peach is glowing with her smile, her splendour blazeth - in the lightning, - She is the dryad of the woods, the naiad of the streams; - Her golden hair hath tapestried the silkworm's silent chamber, - And to her measured harmonies the wild waves beat in time; - With tinkling feet at eventide she danceth in the meadow, - Or, like a Titan, lieth stretched athwart the ridgy Alps; - She is rising, in her veil of mist, a Venus from the waters,-- - Men gaze upon the loveliness,--and lo, it is beautiful exceedingly; - She, with the might of a Briareus, is dragging down the clouds upon the - mountain,-- - Men look upon the grandeur,--and lo, it is excellent in glory. - For I judge that beauty and sublimity be but the lesser and the great, - Sublime, as magnified to giants, and beautiful, diminished into fairies. - It were a false fancy to solve all beauty by desire, - It were a lowering thought to expound sublimity by dread. - Cowardly men with trembling hearts have feared the furious storm, - Nor felt its thrilling beauty; but is it then not beautiful? - And careless men, at summer's eve, have loved the dimpled waves; - O that smile upon the seas,--hath it no sublimity? - Dost thou nothing know of this,--to be awed at woman's beauty? - Nor, with exhilarated heart, to hail the crashing thunder? - Thou hast much to learn, that never found a fearfulness in flowers; - Thou hast missed of joy, that never basked in beauties of the terrible. - - Show me an enthusiast in aught; he hath noted one thing narrowly, - And lo, his keenness hath detected the one dear hiding place of beauty: - Then he boasteth, simple soul, flattered by discovery, - Fancying that no science else can show so fair and precious: - He hath found a ray of light, and cherisheth the treasure in his closet, - Mocking at those larger minds, that bathe in floods of noon; - Lo, what a jewel hath he gotten,--this is the monopolist of beauty,-- - And lightly heeding all beside, he poured his yearnings thitherward: - Be it for love, or for learning, habit, art, or nature, - Exclusive thought is all the cause of this particular zeal. - But like intensity of fitness, kind and skilful beauty, - So pleasant to his mind in one thing, filleth all beside: - From the waking minute of a chrysalis, to the perfect cycle of chronology, - From the centipede's jointed armour to the mammoth's fossil ribs, - From the kingfisher's shrill note, to the cataract's thundering bass, - From the greensward's grateful hues, to the fascinating eye of woman, - Beauty, various in all things, setteth up her home in each, - Shedding graciously around an omnipresent smile. - - There is beauty in the rolling clouds, and placid shingle beach, - In feathery snows, and whistling winds, and dun electric skies; - There is beauty in the rounded woods, dank with heavy foliage, - In laughing fields, and dinted hills, the valley and its lake; - There is beauty in the gullies, beauty on the cliffs, beauty in sun and - shade, - In rocks and rivers, seas and plains,--the earth is drowned in beauty. - -[Illustration] - - Beauty coileth with the watersnake, and is cradled in the shrewmouse's - nest, - She flitteth out with evening bats, and the soft mole hid her in his - tunnel; - The limpet is encamped upon the shore, and beauty not a stranger to his - tent; - The silvery dace and golden carp thread the rushes with her: - She saileth into clouds with an eagle, she fluttereth into tulips with a - humming bird; - The pasturing kine are of her company, and she prowleth with the leopard - in his jungle. - - Moreover, for the reasonable world, its words, and acts, and speculations, - For frail and fallen manhood, in his every work and way, - Beauty, wrecked and stricken, lingereth still among us, - And morsels of that shattered sun are dropt upon the darkness. - Yea, with savages and boors, the mean, the cruel, and besotted, - Ever in extenuating grace hide some relics of the beautiful. - Gleams of kindness, deeds of courage, patience, justice, generosity, - Truth welcomed, knowledge prized, rebukes taken with contrition, - All, in various measure, have been blest with some of these, - And never yet hath lived the man, utterly beggared of the beautiful. - - Beauty is as crystal in the torchlight, sparkling on the poet's page; - Virgin honey of Hymettus, distilled from the lips of the orator; - A savour of sweet spikenard, anointing the hands of liberality; - A feast of angels' food set upon the tables of religion. - She is seen in the tear of sorrow, and heard in the exuberance of mirth; - She goeth out early with the huntsman, and watcheth at the pillow of - disease. - Science in his secret laws hath found out latent beauty, - Sphere and square, and cone and curve, are fashioned by her rules: - Mechanism met her in his forces, fancy caught her in its flittings, - Day is lightened by her eyes, and her eyelids close upon the night. - -[Illustration] - - Beauty is dependence in the babe, a toothless tender nurseling; - Beauty is boldness in the boy, a curly rosy truant; - Beauty is modesty and grace in fair retiring girlhood; - Beauty is openness and strength in pure high-minded youth: - Man, the noble and intelligent, gladdeneth earth with beauty, - And woman's beauty sunneth him, as with a smile from heaven. - - There is none enchantment against beauty, Magician for all time, - Whose potent spells of sympathy have charmed the passive world: - Verily, she reigneth a Semiramis; there is no might against her; - The lords of every land are harnessed to her triumph. - Beauty is conqueror of all, nor ever yet was found among the nations - That iron-moulded mind, full proof against her power. - Beauty, like a summer's day, subdueth by sweet influences; - Who can wrestle against Sleep?--yet is that giant, very gentleness. - - Ajax may rout a phalanx, but beauty shall enslave him single-handed; - Pericles ruled Athens, yet he is the servant of Aspasia: - Light were the labour, and often-told the tale, to count the victories of - beauty,-- - Helen, and Judith, and Omphale, and Thais, many a trophied name. - At a glance the misanthrope was softened, and repented of his vows, - When Beauty asked, he gave, and banned her--with a blessing; - The cold ascetic loved the smile that lit his dismal cell, - And kindly stayed her step, and wept when she departed; - The bigot abbess felt her heart gush with a mother's feeling, - When looking on some lovely face beneath the cloister's shade; - Usury freed her without ransom; the buccaneer was gentle in her presence; - Madness kissed her on the cheek, and Idiotcy brightened at her coming: - Yea, the very cattle in the field, and hungry prowlers of the forest - With fawning homage greeted her, as Beauty glided by. - A welcome guest unbidden, she is dear to every hearth; - A glad spontaneous growth of friends is springing round her rest: - Learning sitteth at her feet, and Idleness laboureth to please her, - Folly hath flung aside his bells, and leaden Dulness gloweth; - Prudence is rash in her defence; Frugality filleth her with riches; - Despair came to her for counsel; and Bereavement was glad when she - consoled; - Justice putteth up his sword at the tear of supplicating beauty, - And Mercy, with indulgent haste, hath pardoned beauty's sin. - - For beauty is the substitute for all things, satisfying every absence, - The rich delirious cup to make all else forgotten: - She also is the zest unto all things, enhancing every presence, - The rare and precious ambergris, to quicken each perfume. - O beauty, thou art eloquent; yea, though slow of tongue, - Thy breast, fair Phryne, pleaded well before the dazzled judge: - O beauty, thou art wise; yea, though teaching falsely, - Sages listen, sweet Corinna, to commend thy lips; - O beauty, thou art ruler; yea, though lowly as a slave, - Myrrha, that imperial brow is monarch of thy lord; - O beauty, thou art winner; yea, though halting in the race, - Hippodame, Camilla, Atalanta,--in gracefulness ye fascinate your umpires; - O beauty, thou art rich; yea, though clad in russet, - Attalus cannot boast his gold against the wealth of beauty; - O beauty, thou art noble; yea, though Esther be an exile, - Set her up on high, ye kings, and bow before the majesty of beauty! - - Friend and scholar, who, in charity, hast walked with me thus far, - We have wandered in a wilderness of sweets, tracking beauty's footsteps: - And ever as we rambled on among the tangled thicket, - Many a startled thought hath tempted further roaming: - Passion, sympathetic influence, might of imaginary haloes,-- - Many the like would lure aside, to hunt their wayward themes. - And, look you!--from his ferny bed in yonder hazel coppice, - A dappled hart hath flung aside the boughs and broke away; - He is fleet and capricious as the zephyr, and with exulting bounds - Hieth down a turfy lane between the sounding woods; - His neck is garlanded with flowers, his antlers hung with chaplets, - And rainbow-coloured ribbons stream adown his mottled flanks: - Should we follow?--foolish hunters, thus to chase afoot,-- - Who can track the airy speed and doubling wiles of Taste? - - For the estimates of human beauty, dependent upon time and clime, - Manifold and changeable, are multiplied the more by strange gregarious - fashion: - And notable ensamples in the great turn to epidemics in the lower, - So that a nation's taste shall vary with its rulers. - Stern Egypt, humbled to the Greek, fancied softer idols; - Greece, the Roman province, nigh forgat her classic sculpture; - Rome, crushed beneath the Goth, loved his barbarian habits; - And Alaric, with his ruffian horde, is tamed by silken Rome. - Columbia's flattened head, and China's crumpled feet,-- - The civilized tapering waist,--and the pendulous ears of the savage,-- - The swollen throat among the mountains, and an ebon skin beneath the - tropics,-- - These shall all be reckoned beauty: and for weighty cause. - First, for the latter: Providence in mercy tempereth taste by - circumstance, - So that Nature's must shall hit her creature's liking; - Second, for the middle: though the foolishness of vanity seek to mar - proportion, - Still, defects in those we love shall soon be counted praise; - Third, for the first: a chief, and a princess, maimed or distorted from - the cradle - Shall coax the flattery of slaves to imitate the great in their deformity: - Hence groweth habit: and habits make a taste, - And so shall servile zeal deface the types of beauty. - Whiles Alexander conquered, crookedness was comely: - And followers learn to praise the scars upon their leader's brow. - Youth hath sought to flatter age by mimicking grey hairs; - Age plastereth her wrinkles, and is painted in the ruddiness of Youth. - Fashion, the parasite of Rank, apeth faults and failings, - Until the general Taste depraved hath warped its sense of beauty. - - Each man hath a measure for himself, yet all shall coincide in much; - A perfect form of human grace would captivate the world: - Be it manhood's lustre, or the loveliness of woman, all would own its - beauty, - The Caffre and Circassian, Russians and Hindoos, the Briton, the Turk and - Japanese. - Not all alike, nor all at once, but each in proportion to intelligence, - His purer state in morals, and a lesser grade in guilt: - For the high standard of the beautiful is fixed in Reason's forum, - And sins, and customs, and caprice, have failed to break it down: - And reason's standard for the creature pointeth three perfections, - Frame, knowledge, and the feeling heart, well and kindly mingled; - A fair dwelling, furnished wisely, with a gentle tenant in it,-- - This is the glory of humanity: thou hast seen it seldom. - - There is a beauty for the body; the superficial polish of a statue, - The symmetry of form and feature delicately carved and painted. - How bright in early bloom the Georgian sitteth at her lattice, - How softened off in graceful curves her young and gentle shape: - Those dark eyes, lit by curiosity, flash beneath the lashes, - And still her velvet cheek is dimpled with a smile. - Dost thou count her beautiful?--even as a mere fair figure, - A plastic image, little more,--the outer garb of woman: - Yea,--and thus far it is well; but Reason's hopes are higher,-- - Can he sate his soul on a scantling third of beauty? - - Yet is this the pleasing trickery, that cheateth half the world, - Nature's wise deceit to make up waste in life; - And few be they that rest uncaught, for many a twig is limed; - Where is the wise among a million, that took not form for beauty? - But watch it well; for vanity and sin, malice, hate, suspicion, - Louring as clouds upon the countenance, will disenchant its charms. - The needful complexity of beauty claimeth mind and soul, - Though many coins of foul alloy pass current for the true: - And albeit fairness in the creature shall often co-exist with excellence, - Yet hath many an angel shape been tenanted by fiends. - A man, spiritually keen, shall detect in surface beauty - Those marring specks of evil which the sensual cannot see; - Therefore is he proof against a face, unlovely to his likings, - And common minds shall scorn the taste, that shrunk from sin's distortion. - - There is a beauty for the reason; grandly independent of externals, - It looketh from the windows of the house, shining in the man triumphant. - I have seen the broad blank face of some misshapen dwarf - Lit on a sudden as with glory, the brilliant light of mind: - Who then imagined him deformed? intelligence is blazing on his forehead, - There is empire in his eye, and sweetness on his lip, and his brown cheek - glittereth with beauty: - And I have known some Nireus of the camp, a varnished paragon of - chamberers, - Fine, elegant, and shapely, moulded as the master-piece of Phidias,-- - Such an one, with intellects abased, have I noted crouching to the dwarf, - Whilst his lovers scorn the fool, whose beauty hath departed! - - And there is a beauty for the spirit; mind in its perfect flowering, - Fragrant, expanded into soul, full of love and blessed. - Go to some squalid couch, some famishing death-bed of the poor; - He is shrunken, cadaverous, diseased;--there is here no beauty of the - body: - Never hath he fed on knowledge, nor drank at the streams of science, - He is of the common herd, illiterate;--there is here no beauty of the - reason: - But lo! his filming eye is bright with love from heaven, - In every look it beameth praise, as worshipping with seraphs; - What honeycomb is hived upon his lips, eloquent of gratitude and prayer,-- - What triumph shrined serene upon that clammy brow, - What glory flickering transparent under those thin cheeks,-- - What beauty in his face!--Is it not the face of an angel? - - Now, of these three, infinitely mingled and combined, - Consisteth human beauty, in all the marvels of its mightiness: - And forth from human beauty springeth the intensity of Love; - Feeling, thought, desire, the three deep fountains of affection. - Son of Adam, or daughter of Eve, art thou trapped by nature, - And is thy young eye dazzled with the pleasant form of beauty? - This is but a lower love; still it hath its honour; - What God hath made and meant to charm, let not man despise. - Nevertheless, as reason's child, look thou wisely farther, - For age, disease, and care, and sin, shall tarnish all the surface: - Reach a loftier love: be lured by the comeliness of mind,-- - Gentle, kind, and calm, or lustrous in the livery of knowledge. - And more, there is a higher grade; force the mind to its perfection-- - Win those golden trophies of consummate love: - Add unto riches of the reason, and a beauty moulded to thy liking, - The precious things of nobler grace that well adorn a soul; - Thus, be thou owner of a treasure, great in earth and heaven, - Beauty, wisdom, goodness, in a creature like its God. - - So then, draw we to an end; with feeble step and faltering, - I follow beauty through the universe, and find her home Ubiquity: - In all that God hath made, in all that man hath marred, - Lingereth beauty, or its wreck, a broken mould and castings. - And now, having wandered long time, freely and with desultory feet, - To gather in the garden of the world a few fair sample flowers, - With patient scrutinizing care let us cull the conclusion of their - essence, - And answer to the riddle of Zorobabel, Whence the might of beauty? - - Ugliness is native unto nothing, but an attribute of concrete evil; - In everything created, at its worst, lurk the dregs of loveliness: - We be fallen into utter depths, yet once we stood sublime, - For man was made in perfect praise, his Maker's comely image: - And so his new-born ill is spiced with older good, - He carrieth with him, yea to crime, the withered limbs of beauty. - Passions may be crooked generosities; the robber stealeth for his - children; - Murder was avenger of the innocent, or wiped out shame with blood. - Many virtues, weighted by excess, sink among the vices; - Many vices, amicably buoyed, float among the virtues. - For, albeit sin is hate, a foul and bitter turpitude, - As hurling back against the Giver all His gifts with insult, - Still when concrete in the sinner, it will seem to partake of his - attractions, - And in seductive masquerade shall cloak its leprous skin; - His broken lights of beauty shall illumine its utter black, - And those refracted rays glitter on the hunch of its deformity. - - Verily the fancy may be false, yet hath it met me in my musings, - (As expounding the pleasantness of pleasure, but no ways extenuating - licence,) - That even those yearnings after beauty, in wayward wanton youth, - When, guileless of ulterior end, it craveth but to look upon the lovely, - Seem like struggles of the soul, dimly remembering pre-existence, - And feeling in its blindness for a long-lost god, to satisfy its longing; - As if the sucking babe, tenderly mindful of his mother, - Should pull a dragon's dugs, and drain the teats of poison. - Our primal source was beauty, and we pant for it ever and again; - But sin hath stopped the way with thorns; we turn aside, wander, and are - lost. - - God, the undiluted good, is root and stock of beauty, - And every child of reason drew his essence from that stem. - Therefore, it is of intuition, an innate hankering for home, - A sweet returning to the well, from which our spirit flowed, - That we, unconscious of a cause, should bask these darkened souls - In some poor relics of the light that blazed in primal beauty, - And, even like as exiles of idolatry, should quaff from the cisterns of - creation - Stagnant draughts, for those fresh springs that rise in the Creator. - - Only, being burdened with the body, spiritual appetite is warped, - And sensual man, with taste corrupted, drinketh of pollutions: - Impulse is left, but indiscriminate; his hunger feasteth upon carrion; - His natural love of beauty doateth over beauty in decay. - He still thirsteth for the beautiful; but his delicate ideal hath grown - gross, - And the very sense of thirst hath been fevered from affection into - passion. - He remembereth the blessedness of light, but it is with an old man's - memory, - A blind old man from infancy, that once hath seen the sun, - Whom long experience of night hath darkened in his cradle recollections, - Until his brightest thought of noon is but a shade of black. - - This then is thy charm, O beauty all pervading; - And this thy wondrous strength, O beauty, conqueror of all: - The outline of our shadowy best, the pure and comely creature, - That winneth on the conscience with a saddening admiration: - And some untutored thirst for God, the root of every pleasure, - Native to creatures, yea in ruin, and dating from the birthday of the - soul. - For God sealeth up the sum, confirmed exemplar of proportions, - Rich in love, full of wisdom, and perfect in the plenitude of Beauty. - - -[Illustration: Of Fame.] - -OF FAME. - -[Illustration: "B"] - - Blow the trumpet, spread the wing, fling thy scroll upon the sky, - Rouse the slumbering world, O Fame, and fill the sphere with echo! - --Beneath thy blast they wake, and murmurs come hoarsely on the wind, - And flashing eyes and bristling hands proclaim they hear thy message: - Rolling and surging as a sea, that upturned flood of faces - Hasteneth with its million tongues to spread the wondrous tale; - The hum of added voices groweth to the roaring of a cataract, - And rapidly from wave to wave is tossed that exaggerated story, - Until those stunning clamours, gradually diluted in the distance, - Sink ashamed, and shrink afraid of noise, and die away. - Then brooding Silence, forth from his hollow caverns, - Cloaked and cowled, and gliding along, a cold and stealthy shadow, - Once more is mingled with the multitude, whispering as he walketh, - And hushing all their eager ears, to hear some newer Fame. - So all is still again; but nothing of the past hath been forgotten; - A stirring recollection of the trumpet ringeth in the hearts of men: - And each one, either envious or admiring, hath wished the chance were his - To fill as thus the startled world with fame, or fear, or wonder. - This lit thy torch of sacrilege, Ephesian Eratostratus; - This dug thy living grave, Pythagoras, the traveller from Hadës; - For this, dived Empedocles into Etna's fiery whirlpool; - For this, conquerors, regicides, and rebels, have dared their perilous - crimes. - In all men, from the monarch to the menial, lurketh lust of fame: - The savage and the sage alike regard their labours proudly: - Yea, in death, the glazing eye is illumined by the hope of reputation, - And the stricken warrior is glad, that his wounds are salved with glory. - - For fame is a sweet self-homage, an offering grateful to the idol, - A spiritual nectar for the spiritual thirst, a mental food for mind, - A pregnant evidence to all of an after immaterial existence, - A proof that soul is scatheless, when its dwelling is dissolved. - And the manifold pleasures of fame are sought by the guilty and the good: - Pleasures, various in kind, and spiced to every palate: - The thoughtful loveth fame as an earnest of better immortality, - The industrious and deserving, as a symbol of just appreciation, - The selfish, as a promise of advancement, at least to a man's own kin, - And common minds, as a flattering fact that men have been told of their - existence. - - There is a blameless love of fame, springing from desire of justice, - When a man hath featly won and fairly claimed his honours: - And then fame cometh as encouragement to the inward consciousness of - merit, - Gladdening by the kindliness and thanks, wherewithal his labours are - rewarded. - But there is a sordid imitation, a feverish thirst for notoriety, - Waiting upon vanity and sloth, and utterly regardless of deserving: - And then fame cometh as a curse; the fire-damp is gathered in the mine: - The soul is swelled with poisonous air, and a spark of temptation shall - explode it. - - Idle causes, noised awhile, shall yield most active consequents, - And therefore it were ill upon occasion to scorn the voice of rumour. - Ye have seen the chemist in his art mingle invisible gases; - And lo, the product is a substance, a heavy dark precipitate: - Even so fame, hurtling on the quiet with many meeting tongues, - Can out of nothing bring forth fruits, and blossom on a nourishment of - air. - For many have earned honour, and thereby rank and riches, - From false and fleeting tales, some casual mere mistake; - And many have been wrecked upon disgrace, and have struggled with poverty - and scorn, - From envious hints and ill reports, the slanders cast on innocence. - Whom may not scandal hit? those shafts are shot at a venture: - Who standeth not in danger of suspicion? that net hath caught the noblest. - Cæsar's wife was spotless, but a martyr to false fame; - And Rumour, in temporary things, is gigantic as a ruin or a remedy: - Many poor and many rich have testified its popular omnipotence, - And many a panic-stricken army hath perished with the host of the - Assyrians. - - Nevertheless, if opportunity be nought, let a man bide his time; - So the matter be not merchandise nor conquest, fear thou less for - character. - If a liar accuseth thee of evil, be not swift to answer; - Yea, rather give him license for awhile; it shall help thine honour - afterward: - Never yet was calumny engendered, but good men speedily discerned it, - And innocence hath burst from its injustice, as the green world rolling - out of Chaos. - What, though still the wicked scoff,--this also turneth to his praise; - Did ye never hear that censure of the bad is buttress to a good man's - glory? - What, if the ignorant still hold out, obstinate in unkind judgment,-- - Ignorance and calumny are paired; we affirm by two negations: - Let them stand round about, pushing at the column in a circle, - For all their toil and wasted strength, the foolish do but prop it. - And note thou this; in the secret of their hearts, they feel the taunt is - false, - And cannot help but reverence the courage, that walketh amid calumnies - unanswering: - He standeth as a gallant chief, unheeding shot or shell; - He trusteth in God his Judge: neither arrows nor the pestilence shall - harm him. - - A high heart is a sacrifice to Heaven: should it stoop among the creepers - in the dust, - To tell them that what God approved, is worthy of their praise? - Never shall it heed the thought; but flaming on in triumph to the skies, - And quite forgetting fame, shall find it added as a trophy. - A great mind is an altar on a hill: should the priest descend from his - altitude, - To canvass offerings and worship from dwellers on the plain? - Rather, with majestic perseverance will he minister in solitary grandeur, - Confident the time will come, when pilgrims shall be flocking to the - shrine. - For fame is the birthright of genius; and he recketh not how long it be - delayed; - The heir need not hasten to his heritage, when he knoweth that his tenure - is eternal. - The careless poet of Avon, was he troubled for his fame, - Or the deep-mouthed chronicler of Paradise, heeded he the suffrage of his - equals? - Mæonides took no thought, committing all his honours to the future, - And Flaccus, standing on his watch-tower, spied the praise of ages. - - Smoking flax will breed a flame, and the flame may illuminate a world; - Where is he who scorned that smoke as foul and murky vapour? - The village stream swelled to a river, and the river was a kingdom's - wealth, - Where is he who boasted he could step across that stream? - Such are the beginnings of the famous: little in the judgment of their - peers, - The juster verdict of posterity shall fix them in the orbits of the Great. - Therefore dull Zoilus, clamouring ascendant of the hour, - Will soon be fain to hide his hate, and bury up his bitterness for shame: - Therefore mocking Momus, offended at the footsteps of Beauty, - Shall win the prize of his presumption, and be hooted from his throne - among the stars. - For, as the shadow of a mountain lengtheneth before the setting sun, - Until that screening Alp have darkened all the canton,-- - So, Fame groweth to its great ones; their images loom longer in departing; - But the shadow of mind is light, and earth is filled with its glory. - - And thou, student of the truth, commended to the praise of God, - Wouldst thou find applause with men?--seek it not, nor shun it. - Ancient fame is roofed in cedar, and her walls are marble; - Modern fame lodgeth in a hut, a slight and temporary dwelling: - Lay not up the treasures of thy soul within so damp a chamber, - For the moth of detraction shall fret thy robe, and drop its eggs upon - thy motive; - Or the rust of disheartening reserve shall spoil the lustre of thy gold, - Until its burnished beauty shall be dim as tarnished brass; - Or thieves, breaking through to steal, shall claim thy jewelled thoughts, - And turn to charge the theft on thee, a pilferer from them! - - There is a magnanimity in recklessness of fame, so fame be well deserving, - That rusheth on in fearless might, the conscious sense of merit: - And there is a littleness in jealousy of fame, looking as aware of - weakness, - That creepeth cautiously along, afraid that its title will be challenged. - The wild boar, full of beechmast, flingeth him down among the brambles; - Secure in bristly strength, without a watch, he sleepeth: - But the hare, afraid to feed, croucheth in its own soft form; - Wakefully with timid eyes, and quivering ears, he listeneth. - Even so, a giant's might is bound up in the soul of Genius, - His neck is strong with confidence, and he goeth tusked with power: - Sturdily he roameth in the forest, or sunneth him in fen and field, - And scareth from his marshy lair a host of fearful foes. - But there is a mimic Talent, whose safety lieth in its quickness, - A timorous thing of doubling guile, that scarce can face a friend: - This one is captious of reproof, provident to snatch occasion, - Greedy of applause, and vexed to lose one tittle of the glory. - He is a poor warder of his fame, who is ever on the watch to keep it - spotless; - Such care argueth debility, a garrison relying on its sentinel. - Passive strength shall scorn excuses, patiently waiting a re-action, - He wotteth well that truth is great, and must prevail at last; - But fretful weakness hasteth to explain, anxiously dreading prejudice, - And ignorant that perishable falsehood dieth as a branch cut off. - - Purity of motive and nobility of mind shall rarely condescend - To prove its rights, and prate of wrongs, or evidence its worth to others. - And it shall be small care to the high and happy conscience - What jealous friends, or envious foes, or common fools may judge. - Should the lion turn and rend every snarling jackal, - Or an eagle be stopt in his career to punish the petulance of sparrows? - Should the palm-tree bend his crown to chide the briar at his feet, - Nor kindly help its climbing, if it hope, and be ambitious? - Should the nightingale account it worth her pains to vindicate her music, - Before some sorry finches, that affect to judge of song? - No: many an injustice, many a sneer, and slur, - Is passed aside with noble scorn by lovers of true fame: - For well they wot that glory shall be tinctured good or evil, - By the character of those who give it, as wine is flavoured by the - wineskin: - So that worthy fame floweth only from a worthy fountain, - But from an ill-conditioned troop the best report is worthless. - And if the sensibility of genius count his injuries in secret, - Wisely will he hide the pains a hardened herd would mock: - For the great mind well may be sad to note such littleness in brethren, - The while he is comforted and happy in the firmest assurance of desert. - - Cease awhile, gentle scholar;--seek other thoughts and themes; - Or dazzling Fame with wildfire light shall lure us on for ever. - For look, all subjects of the mind may range beneath its banner, - And time would fail and patience droop, to count that numerous host. - The mine is deep, and branching wide,--and who can work it out? - Years of thought would leave untold the boundless topic, Fame. - Every matter in the universe is linked in suchwise unto others, - That a deep full treatise upon one thing might reach to the history of - all things: - And before some single thesis had been followed out in all its branches, - The wandering thinker would be lost in the pathless forest of existence. - What were the matter or the spirit, that hath no part in Fame? - Where were the fact irrelevant, or the fancy out of place? - For the handling of that mighty theme should stretch from past to future, - Catching up the present on its way, as a traveller burdened with time. - All manner of men, their deeds, hopes, fortunes, and ambitions, - All manner of events and things, climate, circumstance, and custom, - Wealth and war, fear and hope, contentment, jealousy, devotion, - Skill and learning, truth, falsehood, knowledge of things gone and things - to come, - Pride and praise, honour and dishonour, warnings, ensamples, emulations, - The excellent in virtues, and the reprobate in vice, with the cloud of - indifferent spectators,-- - Wave on wave with flooding force throng the shoals of thought, - Filling that immeasurable theme, the height and depth of Fame. - With soul unsatisfied and mind dismayed, my feet have touched the - threshold, - Fain to pour these flowers and fruits an offering on that altar: - Lo, how vast the temple,--there are clouds within the dome! - Yet might the huge expanse be filled, with volumes writ on Fame. - - -OF FLATTERY. - -[Illustration: "M"] - - Music is commended of the deaf:--but is that praise despised? - I trow not: with flattered soul the musician heard him gladly. - Beauty is commended of the blind:--but is that compliment misliking? - I trow not: though false and insincere, woman listened greedily. - Vacant Folly talketh high of Learning's deepest reason: - Is she hated for her hollowness?--learning held her wiser for the nonce. - The worldly and the sensual, to gain some end, did homage to religion: - And the good man gave thanks as for a convert, where others saw the - hypocrite. - - Yet none of these were cheated at the heart, nor steadily believed those - flatteries; - They feared the core was rotten, while they hoped the skin was sound: - But the fruits have so sweet fragrance, and are verily so pleasant to the - eyes, - It were an ungracious disenchantment to find them apples of Sodom. - So they laboured to think all honest, winking hard with both their eyes; - And hushed up every whisper that could prove that praise absurd: - They willingly regard not the infirmities that make such worship vain, - And palliate to their own fond hearts the faults they will not see. - For the idol rejoiceth in his incense, and loveth not to shame his - suppliants, - Should he seek to find them false, his honours die with theirs: - An offering is welcome for its own sake, set aside the giver, - And praise is precious to a man, though uttered by the parrot or the - mocking-bird. - - The world is full of fools; and sycophancy liveth on the foolish: - So he groweth great and rich, that fawning supple parasite. - Sometimes he boweth like a reed, cringing to the pompousness of pride, - Sometimes he strutteth as a gallant, pampering the fickleness of vanity; - I have known him listen with the humble, enacting silent marveller, - To hear some purse-proud dunce expose his poverty of mind; - I have heard him wrangle with the obstinate, vowing that he will not be - convinced, - When some weak youth hath wisely feared the chance of ill success: - Now, he will barely be a winner,--to magnify thy triumphs afterward; - Now, he will hardly be a loser,--but cannot cease to wonder at thy skill: - He laudeth his own worth, that the leader may have glory in his follower; - He meekly confesseth his unworthiness, that the leader may have glory in - himself. - Many wiles hath he, and many modes of catching, - But every trap is selfishness, and every bait is praise. - - Come, I would forewarn thee and forearm thee; for keen are the weapons of - his warfare; - And, while my soul hath scorned him, I have watched his skill from far. - His thoughts are full of guile, deceitfully combining contrarieties, - And when he doeth battle in a man, he is leagued with traitorous - Self-love. - Strange things have I noted, and opposite to common fancy; - We leave the open surface, and would plumb the secret depths. - For he will magnify a lover, even to disparaging his mistress; - So much wisdom, goodness, grace,--and all to be enslaved? - Till the Narcissus, self-enamoured, whelmed in floods of flattery, - Is cheated from the constancy and fervency of love by friendship's subtle - praise. - Moreover, he will glorify a parent, even to the censure of his child,-- - O degenerate scion, of a stock so excellent and noble! - Scant will he be in well-earned praise of a son before his father; - And rarely commendeth to a mother her daughter's budding beauty: - Yet shall he extol the daughter to her father, and be warm about the son - before his mother; - Knowing that self-love entereth not, to resist applause with jealousies. - Wisely is he sparing of hyperbole where vehemence of praise would humble, - For many a father liketh ill to be counted second to his son: - And shrewdly the flatterer hath reckoned on a self still lurking in the - mother, - When his tongue was slow to speak of graces in the daughter. - But if he descend a generation, to the grandsire his talk is of the - grandson, - Because in such high praise he hideth the honours of the son; - And the daughter of a daughter may well exceed, in beauty, love, and - learning, - For unconsciously old age perceived--she cannot be my rival. - These are of the deep things of flattery: and many a shallow sycophant - Hath marvelled ill that praise of children seldom won their parents. - This therefore note, unto detection: flattery can sneer as well as smile; - And a master in the craft wotteth well, that his oblique thrust is surest. - - Flattery sticketh like a burr, holding to the soil with anchors, - A vital, natural, subtle seed, everywhere hardy and indigenous. - Go to the storehouse of thy memory, and take what is readiest to thy - hand,-- - The noble deed, the clever phrase, for which thy pride was flattered: - Oh, it hath been dwelt upon in solitude, and comforted thy heart in - crowds, - It hath made thee walk as in a dream, and lifted up the head above thy - fellows; - It hath compensated months of gloom, that minute of sweet sunshine, - Drying up the pools of apathy, and kindling the fire of ambition: - Yea, the flavour of that spice, mingled in the cup of life, - Shall linger even to the dregs, and still be tasted with a welcome; - The dame shall tell her grandchild of her coy and courted youth, - And the grey-beard prateth of a stranger, who praised his task at school. - - Oftimes to the sluggard and the dull, flattery hath done good service, - Quickening the mind to emulation, and encouraging the heart that failed. - Even so, a stimulating poison, wisely tendered by the leech, - Shall speed the pulse, and rally life, and cheat astonished death. - For, as a timid swimmer ventureth afloat with bladders, - Until self-confidence and growth of skill have made him spurn their aid, - Thus commendation may be prudent, where a child hath ill deserved it; - But praise unmerited is flattery, and the cure will bring its cares: - For thy son may find thee out, and thou shalt rue the remedy: - Yea, rather, where thou canst not praise, be honest in rebuke. - - I have seen the objects of a flatterer mirrored clearly on the surface, - Where self-love scattereth praise, to gather praise again. - This is a commodity of merchandize, words put out at interest: - A scheme for canvassing opinions, and tinging them all with partiality. - He is but a harmless fool; humour him with pitiful good-nature: - If a poetaster quote thy song, be thou tender to his poem: - Did the painter praise thy sketch? be kind, commend his picture; - He looketh for a like return; then thank him with thy praise. - In these small things with these small minds count thou the sycophant a - courtier, - And pay back, as blindly as ye may, the too transparent honour. - - Also, where the flattery is delicate, coming unobtrusive and in season, - Though thou be suspicious of its truth, be generous at least to its - gentility. - The skilful thief of Lacedæmon had praise before his judges, - And many caitiffs win applause for genius in their callings. - Moreover, his meaning may be kind,--and thou art a debtor to his tongue; - Hasten well to pay the debt, with charity and shrewdness: - He must not think thee caught, nor feel himself discovered, - Nor find thine answering compliment as hollow as his own. - Though he be a smiling enemy, let him heed thee as the fearless and the - friendly; - A searching look, a poignant word, may prove thou art aware: - Still, with compassion to the frail, though keen to see his soul, - Let him not fear for thy discretion: see thou keep his secret, and thine - own. - - However, where the flattery is gross, a falsehood clear and fulsome, - Crush the venomous toad, and spare not for a jewel in its head. - Tell the presumptuous in flattery, that or ever he bespatter thee with - praise, - It might be well to stop and ask how little it were worth: - Thou hast not solicited his suffrage,--let him not force thee to refuse - it; - Look to it, man, thy fence is foiled,--and thus we spoil the plot. - Self-knowledge goeth armed, girt with many weapons, - But carrieth whips for flattery, to lash it like a slave: - But the dunce in that great science goeth as a greedy tunny, - To gorge both bait and hook, unheeding all but appetite: - He smelleth praise and swalloweth,--yea, though it be palpable and plain, - Say unto him, Folly, thou art Wisdom,--he will bless thee for thy lie. - - Flatterer, thou shalt rue thy trade, though it have many present gains; - Those varnished wares may sell apace, yet shall they spoil thy credit. - Thine is the intoxicating cup, which whoso drinketh it shall nauseate: - Thine is trickery and cheating; but deception never pleased for long. - And though while fresh thy fragrance seemed even as the dews of charity, - Yet afterward it fouled thy censer, as with savour of stale smoke. - For the great mind detected thee at once, answering thine emptiness with - pity, - He saw thy self-interested zeal, and was not cozened by vain-glory: - And the little mind is bloated with the praise, scorning him who gave it, - A fool shall turn to be thy tyrant, an thou hast dubbed him great: - And the medium mind of common men, loving first thy music, - After, when the harmonies are done, shall feel small comfort in their - echoes; - For either he shall know thee false, conscious of contrary deservings, - And, hating thee for falsehood, soon will scorn himself for truth, - Or, if in aught to toilsome merit honest praise be due, - Though for a season, belike, his weakness hath been raptured at thy - witching, - Shall he not speedily perceive, to the vexing of his disappointed spirit, - That thine exaggerated tongue hath robbed him of fair fame? - Thou hast paid in forger's coins, and he had earned true money: - For the substance of just praise, thou hast put him off with shadows of - the sycophant: - Thou art all things to all men, for ends false and selfish, - Therefore shalt be nothing unto any one, when those thine ends are seen. - - Turn aside, young scholar, turn from the song of Flattery! - She hath the Siren's musical voice, to ravish and betray. - Her tongue droppeth honey, but it is the honey of Anticyra; - Her face is a mask of fascination, but there hideth deformity behind; - Her coming is the presence of a queen, heralded by courtesy and beauty, - But, going away, her train is held by the hideous dwarf, Disgust. - - Know thyself, thine evil as thy good, and flattery shall not harm thee: - Yea, her speech shall be a warning, a humbling and a guide. - For wherein thou lackest most, there chiefly will the sycophant commend - thee, - And then most warmly will congratulate, when a man hath least deserved. - Behold, she is doubly a traitor; and will underrate her victim's best, - That, to the comforting of conscience, she may plead his worse for better. - - Therefore, is she dangerous,--as every lie is dangerous: - Believe her tales, and perish: if thou act upon such counsel. - Her aims are thine not thee, thy wealth and not thy welfare, - Thy suffrage not thy safety, thine aid and not thine honour. - Moreover, with those aims insured, ceaseth all her glozing; - She hath used thee as a handle,--but her hand was wise to turn it; - Thus will she glorify her skill, that it deftly caught thy kindness, - Thus will she scorn thy kindness, so pliable and easy to her skill. - And then, the flatterer will turn to be thy foe, the bitterest and - hottest, - Because he oweth thee much hate to pay off many humblings. - Thinkest thou now that he is high, he loveth the remembrance of his - lowliness, - The servile manner, the dependent smile, the conscience self-abased? - No, this hour is his own, and the flatterer will be found a busy mocker; - He that hath salved thee with his tongue, shall now gnash upon thee with - his teeth; - Yea, he will be leader in the laugh,--silly one, to listen to thy loss, - We scarce had hoped to lime and take another of the fools of flattery. - - At the last; have charity, young scholar,--yea, to the sycophant - convicted; - Be not a Brutus to thyself, nor stern in thine own cause. - Pardon exaggerated praise; for there is a natural impulse, - Spurring on the nobler mind, to colour facts by feelings: - Take an indulgent view of each man's interest in self, - Be large and liberal in excuses; is not that infirmity thine own? - Search thy soul and be humble; and mercy abideth with humility; - So that, yea, the insincere may find thee pitiful, and love thee. - Mildly put aside, without rudeness of repulse, the pampering hand of - flattery, - For courtesy and kindness have gone beneath its guise, and ill shouldst - thou rebuke them. - - Thou art incapable of theft: but flowers in the garden of a friend - Are thine to pluck with confidence, and it were unfriendliness to - hesitate: - Thou abhorrest flattery: but a generous excess in praise - Is thine to yield with honest heart, and false were the charity to doubt - it: - The difference lieth in thine aim; kindliness and good are of charity, - But selfish, harmful, vile, and bad, is Flattery's evil end. - - -[Illustration] - -OF NEGLECT. - - Generous and righteous is thy grief, slighted child of sensibility; - For kindliness enkindleth love, but the waters of indifference quench it: - Thy soul is athirst for sympathy, and hungereth to find affection, - The tender scions of thy heart yearn for the sunshine of good feeling; - And it is an evil thing and bitter, when the cheerful face of Charity, - Going forth gaily in the morning to woo the world with smiles, - Is met by those wayfaring men with coldness, suspicion, and repulse, - And turneth into hard dead stone at the Gorgon visage of Neglect. - O brother, warm and young, covetous of other's favour, - I see thee checked and chilled, sorrowing for censure or forgetfulness: - Let coarse and common minds despise--that wounding of thy vanity, - Alas, I note a sorer cause, the blighting of thy love; - Let the callous sensual deride thee,--disappointed of thy praise, - Alas, thou hast a juster grief, defrauded of their kindness: - It is a theme for tears to feel the soft heart hardening, - The frozen breath of apathy sealing up the fountain of affection; - It is a pang, keen only to the best, to be injured well-deserving, - And slumbering Neglect is injury,--Could ye not watch one hour? - When God Himself complained, it was that none regarded, - And indifference bowed to the rebuke, Thou gavest Me no kiss when I came - in. - - Moreover, praise is good; honour is a treasure to be hoarded; - A good man's praise foreshadoweth God's, and in His smile is heaven: - But men walk on in hardihood, steeling their sinfulness to censure, - And when rebuke is ridiculed, the love of praise were an infirmity; - The judge thou heedest not in fear, cannot have deep homage of thy hope, - And who then is the wise of this world, that will own he trembleth at his - fellows? - Calm, careless, and insensible, he mocketh blame or calumny, - Neither should his dignity be humbled to some pittance of their praise: - The rather, let false pride affect to trample on the treasure - Which evermore in secret strength unconquered Nature prizeth; - Rather, shall ye stifle now the rising bliss of triumph, - Lest after, in the world's Neglect, he must acknowledge bitterness. - - - For lo, that world is wide, a huge and crowded continent, - Its brazen sun is mammon, and its iron soil is care: - A world full of men, where each man clingeth to his idol; - A world full of men, where each man cherisheth his sorrow; - A world full of men, multitude shoaling upon multitude; - A surging sea, where every wave is burdened with an argosy of self; - A boundless beach, where every stone is a separate microscopic world: - A forest of innumerable trees, where every root is independent. - - What then is the marvel or the shame, if units be lost among the million? - Canst thou reasonably murmur, if a leaf drop off unnoticed? - Wondrous in architecture, intricate and beautiful, delicately tinged and - scented, - Exquisite of feeling and mysterious in life, none cared for its growth, - or its decay: - None? yea,--no one of its fellows,--nor cedar, palm, nor bramble,-- - None? its twin-born brother scarcely missed it from the spray: - None?--if none indeed, then man's neglect were bitterness; - And Life a land without a sun, a globe without a God! - Yea, flowers in the desert, there be that love your beauty; - Yea, jewels in the sea, there be that prize your brightness; - Children of unmerited oblivion, there be that watch and woo you, - And many tend your sweets, with gentle ministering care: - Thronging spirits of the happy, and the ever-present Good One - Yearning seek those precious things, man hath not heart to love, - Gems of the humblest or the highest, pure and patient in their kind, - The souls unhardened by ill usage, and uncorrupt by luxury. - - And ye, poor desolates unsunned, toilers in the dark damp mine, - Wearied daughters of oppression, crushed beneath the car of avarice, - There be that count your tears,--He hath numbered the hairs of thy head,-- - There be that can forgive your ill, with kind considerate pity: - Count ye this for comfort, Justice hath her balances, - And yet another world can compensate for all: - The daily martyrdom of patience shall not be wanting of reward; - Duty is a prickly shrub, but its flower will be happiness and glory. - - Ye too, the friendless, yet dependent, that find nor home nor lover, - Sad imprisoned hearts, captive to the net of circumstance,-- - And ye, too harshly judged, noble unappreciated intellects, - Who, capable of highest, lowlier fix your just ambition in content,-- - And chiefest, ye, famished infants of the poor, toiling for your parents' - bread, - Tired, and sore, and uncomforted the while, for want of love and learning, - Who struggle with the pitiless machine in dull continuous conflict, - Tasked by iron men, who care for nothing but your labour,-- - Be ye long-suffering and courageous: abide the will of Heaven; - God is on your side; all things are tenderly remembered: - His servants here shall help you; and where those fail you through - Neglect, - His kingdom still hath time and space for ample discriminative Justice: - Yea, though utterly on this bad earth ye lose both right and mercy, - The tears that we forgat to note, our God shall wipe away. - - Nevertheless, kind spirit, susceptible and guileless, - Meek uncherished dove, in a carrion flock of fowls, - Sensitive mimosa, shrinking from the winds that help to root the fir, - Fragile nautilus, shipwrecked in the gale whereat the conch is glad, - Thy sharp peculiar grief is uncomforted by hope of compensation, - For it is a delicate and spiritual wound, which the probe of pity - bruiseth: - Yet hear how many thoughts extenuate its pain; - Even while a kindred heart can sorrow for its presence. - For the sting of neglect is in this,--that such as we are all, forget us, - That men and women, kith and kin, so lightly heed of other: - Sympathy is lacking from the guilty such as we, even where angels - minister, - And souls of fine accord must prize a fellow-sinner's love; - For the worst love those who love them, and the best claim heart for - heart, - And it is a holy thirst to long for love's requital: - Hard it will be, hard and sad, to love and be unloved; - And many a thorn is thrust into the side of him that is forgotten. - The oppressive silence of reserve, the frost of failing friendship, - Affection blighted by repulse, or chilled by shallow courtesy, - The unaided struggle, the unconsidered grief, the unesteemed - self-sacrifice, - The gift, dear evidence of kindness, long due, but never offered, - The glance estranged, the letter flung aside, the greeting ill received, - The services of unobtrusive care unthanked, perchance unheeded, - These things, which hard men mock at, rend the feelings of the tender, - For the delicate tissue of a spiritual mind is torn by those sharp barbs; - The coldness of a trusted friend, a plenitude ending in vacuity, - Is as if the stable world had burst a hollow bubble. - - But consider, child of sensibility; the lot of men is labour, - Labour for the mouth, or labour in the spirit, labour stern and - individual. - Worldly cares and worldly hopes exact the thoughts of all, - And there is a necessary selfishness, rooted in each mortal breast. - The plans of prudence, or the whisperings of pride, or all-absorbing - reveries of love, - Ambition, grief, or fear, or joy, set each man for himself; - Therefore, the centre of a circle, whereunto all the universe convergeth, - Is seen in fallen solitude, the naked selfish heart: - Stripped of conventional deceptions, untrammelled from the harness of - society, - We all may read one little word engraved on all we do; - Other men, what are they unto us? the age, the mass, the million,-- - We segregate, distinct from generalities, that isolated particle, a self: - It is the very law of our life, a law for soul and body, - An earthly law for earthly men, toiling in responsible probation. - For each is the all unto himself, disguise it as we may, - Each infinite, each most precious; yet even as a nothing to his neighbour. - O consider, we be crowding up an avenue, trapped in the decoy of time, - Behind us the irrevocable past, before us the illimitable future: - What wonder is there, if the traveller, wayworn, hopeful, fearful, - Burdened himself, so lightly heed the burden of his brother? - How shouldst thou marvel and be sad, that the pilgrims trouble not to - learn thee, - When each hath to master for himself the lessons of life and immortality? - - Moreover, what art thou,--so vainly impatient of Neglect, - Where then is thy worthiness, that so thou claimest honour? - Let the true judgment of humility reckon up thine ill deserts, - How little is there to be loved, how much to stir up scorn! - The double heart, the bitter tongue, the rash and erring spirit, - Be these, ye purest among men, your passports unto favour? - It is mercy in the Merciful, and justice in the Just, to be jealous of - His creature's love, - But how should evil or duplicity arrogate affection to itself? - Where love is happiness and duty, to be jealous of that love is godlike, - But who can reverence the guilty? who findeth pleasure in the mean? - Check the presumption of thy hopes: thankfully take refuge in obscurity, - Or, if thou claimest merit, thy sin shall be proclaimed upon the - housetops. - - Yet again: consider them of old, the good, the great, the learned, - Who have blessed the world by wisdom, and glorified their God by purity. - Did those speed in favour? were they the loved and the admired? - Was every prophet had in honour? and every deserving one remembered to - his praise? - What shall I say of yonder band, a glorious cloud of witnesses, - The scorned, defamed, insulted,--but the excellent of earth? - It were weariness to count up noble names, neglected in their lives, - Whom none esteemed, nor cared to love, till death had sealed them his. - For good men are the health of the world, valued only when it perisheth, - Like water, light, and air, all precious in their absence. - Who hath considered the blessing of his breath, till the poison of an - asthma struck him? - Who hath regarded the just pulses of his heart, till spasm or paralysis - have stopped them? - Even thus, an unobserved routine of daily grace and wisdom, - When no more here, had worship of a world, whose penitence atoned for its - neglect. - And living genius is seen among infirmities, wherefrom the commoner are - free; - And other rival men of mind crowd this arena of contention; - And there be many cares; and a man knoweth little of his brother; - Feebly we appreciate a motive, and slowly keep pace with a feeling: - And social difference is much; and experience teacheth sadly, - How great the treachery of friends, how dangerous the courtesy of enemies. - So, the sum of all these things operateth largely upon all men, - Hedging us about with thorns, to cramp our yearning sympathies, - And we grow materialized in mind, forgetting what we see not, - But, immersed in perceptions of the present, keep things absent out of - thought: - Thus, where ingratitude, and guilt, and labour, and selfishness would - harden, - Humbly will the good man bow, unmurmuring, to Neglect. - - Yet once more, griever at Neglect, hear me to thy comfort, or rebuke: - For, after all thy just complaint, the world is full of love. - O heart of childhood, tender, trusting, and affectionate, - O youth, warm youth, full of generous attentions, - O woman, self-forgetting woman, poetry of human life, - And not less thou, O man, so often the disinterested brother, - Many a smile of love, many a tear of pity, - Many a word of comfort, many a deed of magnanimity, - Many a stream of milk and honey pour ye freely on the earth, - And many a rosebud of love rejoiceth in the dew of your affection. - Neglect? O liberal world, for thine are many prizes: - Neglect? O charitable world, where thousands feed on bounty; - Neglect? O just world, for thy judgments err not often; - Neglect? O libel on a world where half that world is woman! - Where is the afflicted, whose voice, once heard, stirreth not a host of - comforters? - Where is the sick untended, or in prison, and they visited him not? - The hungry is fed, and the thirsty satisfied, till ability set limits to - the will, - And those who did it unto them, have done it unto God! - For human benevolence is large, though many matters dwarf it, - Prudence, ignorance, imposture, and the straitenings of circumstance and - time. - And if to the body, so to the mind, the mass of men are generous; - Their estimate, who know us best, is seldom seen to err; - Be sure the fault is thine, as pride, or shallowness, or vanity, - If all around thee, good and bad, neglect thy seeming merit: - No man yet deserved, who found not some to love him; - And he, that never kept a friend, need only blame himself: - Many for unworthiness will droop and die, but all are not unworthy; - It must indeed be cold clay soil, that killeth every seed. - Therefore, examine thy state, O self-accounted martyr of Neglect, - It may be, thy merit is a cubit, and thy measure thereof a furlong; - But grant it greater than thy thoughts, and grant that men thy fellows, - For pleasure, business, or interest, misuse, forget, neglect thee,-- - Still be thou conqueror in this, the consciousness of high deservings; - Let it suffice thee to be worthy; faint not thou for praise; - For that thou art, be grateful; go humbly even in thy confidence; - And set thy foot upon the neck of an enemy so harmless as Neglect. - - -[Illustration] - -OF CONTENTMENT. - - Godliness with Contentment,--these be the pillars of felicity, - Jachin, wherewithal it is established, and Boaz, in the which is strength; - And upon their capitals is lily-work, the lotus fruit and flower, - Those fair and fragrant types of holiness, innocence, and beauty; - Great gain pertaineth to the pillars, nets and chains of wreathen gold, - And they stand up straight in the temple porch, the house where Glory - dwelleth. - - The body craveth meats, and the spirit is athirst for peacefulness, - He that hath these, hath enough; for all beyond is vanity. - Surfeit vaulteth over pleasure, to light upon the hither side of pain; - And great store is great care, the rather if it mightily increaseth. - Albeit too little is a trouble, yet too much shall swell into an evil, - If wisdom stand not nigh to moderate the wishes: - For covetousness never had enough, but moaneth at its wants for ever, - And rich men have commonly more need to be taught contentment than the - poor. - That hungry chasm in their market-place gapeth still unsatisfied, - Yea, fling in all the wealth of Rome,--it asketh higher victims; - So, when the miser's gold cannot fill the measure of his lust, - Curtius must leap into the pit, and avarice shall close upon his life. - - Behold Independence in his rags, all too easily contented, - Careful for nothing, thankful for much, and uncomplaining in his poverty: - Such an one have I somewhile seen earn his crust with gladness; - He is a gatherer of simples, culling wild herbs upon the hills; - And now, as he sitteth on the beach, with his motherless child beside him, - To rest them in the cheerful sun, and sort their mints and horehound,-- - Tell me, can ye find upon his forehead the cloud of covetous anxiety, - Or note the dull unkindled eyes of sated sons of pleasure?-- - For there is more joy of life with that poor picker of the ditches, - Than among the multitude of wealthy who wed their gains to discontent. - - I have seen many rich, burdened with the fear of poverty, - I have seen many poor, buoyed with all the carelessness of wealth: - For the rich had the spirit of a pauper, and the moneyless a liberal - heart; - The first enjoyeth not for having, and the latter hath nothing but - enjoyment. - None is poor but the mean in mind, the timorous, the weak, and - unbelieving; - None is wealthy but the affluent in soul, who is satisfied and floweth - over. - The poor-rich is attenuate for fears, the rich-poor is fattened upon - hopes; - Cheerfulness is one man's welcome, and the other warneth from him by his - gloom. - Many poor have the pleasures of the rich, even in their own possessions; - And many rich miss the poor man's comforts, and yet feel all his cares. - Liberty is affluence, and the Helots of anxiety never can be counted - wealthy; - But he that is disenthralled from fear, goeth for the time a king; - He is royal, great, and opulent, living free of fortune, - And looking on the world as owner of its good, the Maker's child and heir: - Whereas, the covetous is slavish, a very Midas in his avarice, - Full of dismal dreams, and starved amongst his treasures: - The ceaseless spur of discontent goaded him with instant apprehension, - And his thirst for gold could never be quenched, for he drank with the - throat of Crassus. - - Vanity, and dreary disappointment, care, and weariness, and envy; - Vanity is graven upon all things; wisely spake the preacher. - For ambition is a burning mountain, thrown up amid the turbid sea, - A Stromboli in sullen pride above the hissing waves; - And the statesman climbing there, forgetful of his patriot intentions, - Shall hate the strife of each rough step, or ever he hath toiled midway: - And every truant from his home, the happy home of duty, - Shall live to loathe his eminence of cares, that seething smoke and lava. - Contentment is the temperate repast, flowing with milk and honey: - Ambition is the drunken orgy, fed by liquid flames: - A black and bitter frown is stamped upon the forehead of Ambition, - But fair Contentment's angel-face is rayed with winning smiles. - - There was in Tyre a merchant, the favourite child of fortune, - An opulent man with many ships, to trade in many climes; - And he rose up early to his merchandize, after feverish dreaming, - And lay down late to his hot unrest, overwhelmed with calculated cares. - So, day by day, and month by month, and year by year, he gained; - And grew grey, and waxed great: for money brought him all things. - All things?--verily, not all; the kernel of the nut is lacking,-- - His mind was a stranger to content, and as for Peace, he knew her not: - Luxuries palled upon his palate, and his eyes were satiate with purple; - He could coin much gold, but buy no happiness with it. - And on a day, a day of dread, in the heat of inordinate ambition, - When he threw with a gambler's hand, to lose or to double his possessions, - The chance hit him,--he had speculated ill,--and men began to whisper;-- - Those he trusted, failed; and their usuries had bribed him deeply; - One ship foundered out at sea,--and another met the pirate,-- - And so, with broken fortunes, men discreetly shunned him. - He was a stricken stag, and went to hide away in solitude, - And there in humility, he thought,--he resolved, and promptly acted: - From the wreck of all his splendours, from the dregs of the goblet of - affluence, - He saved with management a morsel and a drop, for his daily cup and - platter: - And lo, that little was enough, and in enough was competence; - His cares were gone,--he slept by night, and lived at peace by day; - Cured of his guilty selfishness,--money's love, envy, competition,-- - He lived to be thankful in a cottage that he had lost a palace: - For he found in his abasement what he vainly had sought in high estate, - Both mind and body well at ease, though robed in the russet of the lowly. - - Once more; a certain priest, happy in his high vocation, - With faith, and hope, and charity, well served his village altar; - As men count riches, he was poor; but great were his treasures in heaven, - And great his joys on earth, for God's sake doing good: - He had few cares and many consolations, one of the welcome everywhere; - The labourer accounted him his friend, and magnates did him honour at - their table: - With a large heart and little means he still made many grateful, - And felt as the centre of a circle, of comfort, calmness, and content. - But, on a weaker sabbath,--for he preached both well and wisely,-- - Some casual hearer loudly praised his great neglected talents: - Why should he be buried in obscurity, and throw these pearls to swine? - Could he not still be doing good,--the whilst he pushed his fortunes? - Then came temptation, even on the spark of discontent; - The neighbouring town had a pulpit to be filled; hotly did he canvass, - and won it: - Now was he popular and courted, and listened to the spell of admiration, - And toiled to please the taste, rather than to pierce the conscience. - Greedily he sought, and seeking found, the patronizing notice of the - great; - He thirsted for emoluments and honours, and counted rich men happy: - So he flattered, so he preached; and gold and fame flowed in; - They flowed in,--he was reaping his reward, and felt himself a fool. - Alas, what a shadow was he following,--how precious was the substance he - had left! - Man for God, gold for good, this was his miserable bargain. - The village church, its humble flock, and humbler parish priest, - Zeal, devotion, and approving Heaven,--his books, and simple life, - His little farm and flower-beds,--his recreative rambles with a friend, - And haply, at eventide, the leaping trouts, to help their humble fare, - All these wretchedly exchanged for what the world called fortune, - With the harrowing conscience of a state relapsed to vain ambitions. - Then,--for God was gracious to his soul,--his better thoughts returned, - And better aims with better thoughts, his holy walk of old. - Sickened of style, and ostentation, and the dissipative fashions of - society, - He deserted from the ranks of Mammon, and renewed his allegiance to God: - For he found that the praises of men, and all that gold can give, - Are not worthy to be named, against godliness and calm contentment. - - -OF LIFE. - -[Illustration: "A"] - - A child was playing in a garden, a merry little child, - Bounding with triumphant health, and full of happy fancies; - His kite was floating in the sunshine,--but he tied the string to a twig - And ran among the roses to catch a new-born butterfly; - His horn-book lay upon a bank, but the pretty truant hid it, - Buried up in gathered grass, and moss, and sweet wild-thyme; - He launched a paper boat upon the fountain, then wayward turned aside, - To twine some fragrant jessamines about the dripping marble: - So, in various pastime shadowing the schemes of manhood, - That curly-headed boy consumed the golden hours: - And I blessed his glowing face, envying the merry little child, - As he shouted with the ecstasy of being, clapping his hands for - joyfulness: - For I said, Surely, O Life, thy name is happiness and hope, - Thy days are bright, thy flowers are sweet, and pleasure the condition of - thy gift. - - A youth was walking in the moonlight, walking not alone, - For a fair and gentle maid leant on his trembling arm: - Their whispering was still of beauty, and the light of love was in their - eyes, - Their twin young hearts had not a thought unvowed to love and beauty; - The stars and the sleeping world, and the guardian eye of God, - The murmur of the distant waterfall, and nightingales warbling in the - thicket, - Sweet speech of years to come, and promises of fondest hope, - And more, a present gladness in each other's trust, - All these fed their souls with the hidden manna of affection, - While their faces shone beatified in the radiance of reflected Eden: - I gazed on that fond youth, and coveted his heart, - Attuned to holiest symphonies, with music in its strings: - For I said, Surely, O Life, thy name is love and beauty, - Thy joys are full, thy looks most fair, thy feelings pure and sensitive. - - A man sat beside his merchandize, a careworn altered man, - His waking hope, his nightly fear, were money, and its losses: - Rarely was the laugh upon his cheek, except in bitter scorn - For his foolishness of heart, and the lie of its romance, counting Love a - treasure. - His talk is of stern Reality, chilling unimaginative facts, - The dull material accidents of this sensual body; - Lucreless honour were contemptible, impoverished affection but a pauper's - riches, - Duty, struggling unrewarded, the bargain of a cheated fool: - The market value of a fancy must be measured by the gain it bringeth, - No man is fed or clothed by fame, or love, or duty:-- - So toiled he day by day, that cold and joyless man, - I gazed upon his haggard face, and sorrowed for the change: - For I said, Surely, O Life, thy name is care and weariness, - Thy soil is parched, thy winds are fierce, and the suns above thee - hardening. - - A withered elder lay upon his bed, a desolate man and feeble: - His thoughts were of the past, the early past, the bygone days of youth: - Bitterly repented he the years stolen by the god of this world: - Remembering the maiden of his love, and the heart-stricken wife of his - selfishness. - For the sunshiny morning of life came again to him a vivid truth, - But the years of toil as a long dim dream, a cloudy blighted noon: - He saw the nutting schoolboy, but forgat the speculative merchant; - The callous calculating husband was shamed by the generous lover: - He knew that the weeds of worldliness, and the smoky breath of Mammon - Had choked and killed those tender shoots, his yearnings after honour and - affection; - So was he sick at heart, and my pity strove to cheer him, - But a deep and dismal gulf lay between comfort and his soul. - Then I said, Surely, O Life, thy name is vanity and sorrow, - Thy storms at noon are many, and thine eventide is clouded by remorse. - - Now, when I thought upon these things, my heart was grieved within me: - I wept, with bitterness of speech, and these were the words of my - complaining: - "Wherefore then must happiness and love wither into care and vanity,-- - Wherefore is the bud so beautiful, but flower and fruit so blighted? - Hard is the lot of man; to be lured by the meteor of romance, - Only to be snared, and to sink, in the turbid mudpool of reality." - - Suddenly, a light,--and a rushing presence,--and a consciousness of - Something near me,-- - I trembled, and listened, and prayed: then I knew the Angel of Life: - Vague, and dimly visible, mine eye could not behold Him, - As, calmly unimpassioned, He looked upon an erring creature; - Unseen, my spirit apprehended Him; though He spake not, yet I heard: - For a sympathetic communing with Him flashed upon my mind electric. - - Pensioner of God, be grateful; the gift of Life is good: - The life of heart, and life of soul, mingled with life for the body. - Gladness and beauty are its just inheritance,--the beauty thou hast - counted for romance: - And guardian spirits weep that selfishness and sorrow should destroy it. - Thou hast seen the natural blessing marred into a curse by man; - Come then, in favour will I show thee the proper excellence of life. - Keep thou purity, and watch against suspicion,--love shall never perish; - Guard thine innocency spotless, and the buoyancy of childhood shall - remain. - Sweet ideals feed the soul, thoughts of loveliness delight it, - The chivalrous affection of uncalculating youth lacketh not honourable - wisdom. - Charge not folly on invisibles, that render thee happier and purer, - The fair frail visions of Romance have a use beyond the maxims of the - Real. - - Behold a patriarch of years, who leaneth on the staff of religion; - His heart is fresh, quick to feel, a bursting fount of generosity: - He, playful in his wisdom, is gladdened in his children's gladness, - He, pure in his experience, loveth in his son's first love: - Lofty aspirations, deep affections, holy hopes are his delight; - His abhorrence is to strip from Life its charitable garment of Idea. - The cold and callous sneerer, who heedeth of the merely practical, - And mocketh at good uses in imaginary things, that man is his scorn: - The hard unsympathizing modern, filled with facts and figures, - Cautious, and coarse, and materialized in mind, that man is his pity. - Passionate thirst for gain never hath burnt within his bosom, - The leaden chains of that dull lust have not bound him prisoner: - The shrewd world laughed at him for honesty, the vain world mouthed at - him for honour, - The false world hated him for truth, the cold world despised him for - affection: - Still, he kept his treasure, the warm and noble heart, - And in that happy wise old man survive the child and lover. - For human Life is as Chian wine, flavoured unto him who drinketh it, - Delicate fragrance comforting the soul, as needful substance for the body: - Therefore, see thou art pure and guileless; so shall thy Realities of Life - Be sweetened, and tempered, and gladdened by the wholesome spirit of - Romance. - - Dost thou live, man, dost thou live,--or only breathe and labour? - Art thou free, or enslaved to a routine, the daily machinery of habit? - For, one man is quickened into life, where thousands exist as in a torpor, - Feeding, toiling, sleeping, an insensate weary round: - The plough, or the ledger, or the trade, with animal cares and indolence, - Make the mass of vital years a heavy lump unleavened. - Drowsily lie down in thy dulness, fettered with the irons of circumstance, - Thou wilt not wake to think and feel a minute in a month. - The epitome of common life is seen in the common epitaph, - Born on such a day, and dead on such another, with an interval of - threescore years. - For time hath been wasted on the senses, to the hourly diminishing of - spirit: - Lean is the soul and pineth, in the midst of abundance for the body: - He forgat the worlds to which he tended, and a creature's true nobility, - Nor wished that hope and wholesome fear should stir him from his hardened - satisfaction. - And this is death in life; to be sunk beneath the waters of the Actual, - Without one feebly-struggling sense of an airier spiritual realm: - Affection, fancy, feeling--dead; imagination, conscience, faith, - All wilfully expunged, till they leave the man mere carcase. - See thou livest, whiles thou art: for heart must live, and soul, - But care and sloth and sin and self, combine to kill that life. - A man will grow to an automaton, an appendage to the counter or the desk, - If mind and spirit be not roused, to raise the plodding groveller: - Then praise God for sabbaths, for books, and dreams, and pains, - For the recreative face of nature, and the kindling charities of home; - And remember, thou that labourest,--thy leisure is not loss, - If it help to expose and undermine that solid falsehood, the Material. - - Life is a strange avenue of various trees and flowers; - Lightsome at commencement, but darkening to its end, in a distant massy - portal. - It beginneth as a little path, edged with the violet and primrose, - A little path of lawny grass, and soft to tiny feet: - Soon, spring thistles in the way, those early griefs of school, - And fruit-trees ranged on either hand show holiday delights: - Anon, the rose and the mimosa hint at sensitive affection, - And vipers hide among the grass, and briars are woven in the hedges: - Shortly, staked along in order, stand the tender saplings, - While hollow hemlock and tall ferns fill the frequent interval: - So advancing, quaintly mixed, majestic line the way - Sturdy oaks, and vigorous elms, the beech and forest-pine: - And here the road is rough with rocks, wide, and scant of herbage, - The sun is hot in heaven, and the ground is cleft and parched: - And many-times a hollow trunk, decayed, or lightning-scathed, - Or in its deadly solitude, the melancholy upas: - But soon, with closer ranks, are set the sentinel trees, - And darker shadows hover amongst Autumn's mellow tints; - Ever and anon, a holly,--junipers, and cypresses, and yews; - The soil is damp; the air is chill; night cometh on apace: - Speed to the portal, traveller,--lo, there is a moon, - With smiling light to guide thee safely through the dreadful shade: - Hark,--that hollow knock,--behold, the warder openeth, - The gate is gaping, and for thee;--those are the jaws of Death! - - -[Illustration] - -OF DEATH. - -[Illustration: "K"] - - Keep silence, daughter of frivolity,--for Death is in that chamber! - Startle not with echoing sound the strangely solemn peace. - Death is here in spirit, watcher of a marble corpse,-- - That eye is fixed, that heart is still,--how dreadful in its stillness! - Death, new tenant of the house, pervadeth all the fabric; - He waiteth at the head, and he standeth at the feet, and hideth in the - caverns of the breast: - Death, subtle leech, hath anatomized soul from body, - Dissecting well in every nerve its spirit from its substance: - Death, rigid lord, hath claimed the heriot clay, - While joyously the youthful soul hath gone to take his heritage: - Death, cold usurer, hath seized his bonded debtor; - Death, savage despot, hath caught his forfeit serf; - Death, blind foe, wreaketh petty vengeance on the flesh; - Death, fell cannibal, gloateth on his victim, - And carrieth it with him to the grave, that dismal banquet-hall, - Where in foul state the Royal Goul holdeth secret orgies. - - Hide it up, hide it up, draw the decent curtain: - Hence! curious fool, and pry not on corruption: - For the fearful mysteries of change are being there enacted, - And many actors play their part on that small stage, the tomb. - Leave the clay, that leprous thing, touch not the fleshly garment: - Dust to dust, it mingleth well among the sacred soil: - It is scattered by the winds, it is wafted by the waves, it mixeth with - herbs and cattle, - But God hath watched those morsels, and hath guided them in care: - Each waiting soul must claim his own, when the archangel soundeth, - And all the fields, and all the hills, shall move a mass of life; - Bodies numberless crowding on the land, and covering the trampled sea, - Darkening the air precipitate, and gathered scatheless from the fire; - The Himalayan peaks shall yield their charge, and the desolate steppes of - Siberia, - The Maelström disengulph its spoil, and the iceberg manumit its captive: - All shall teem with life, the converging fragments of humanity, - Till every conscious essence greet his individual frame; - For in some dignified similitude, alike, yet different in glory, - This body shall be shaped anew, fit dwelling for the soul: - The hovel hath grown to a palace, the bulb hath burst into the flower, - Matter hath put on incorruption, and is at peace with spirit. - - Amen,--and so it shall be:--but now, the scene is drear,-- - Yea, though promises and hope strive to cheat its sadness; - Full of grief, though faith herself is strong to speed the soul, - For the partner of its toil is left behind to endure an ordeal of change. - Dear partner, dear and frail, my loved though humble home,-- - Should I cast thee off without a pang, as a garment flung aside? - Many years, for joy and sorrow, have I dwelt in thee, - How shall I be reckless of thy weal, nor hope for thy perfection?-- - This also, He that lent thee for my uses in mortality, - Shall well fulfil with boundless praise on that returning day: - Behold, thou shalt be glorified: thou, mine abject friend, - And should I meanly scorn thy state, until it rise to greatness? - Far be it, O my soul, from thine expectant essence, - To be heedless, if indignity or folly desecrate those thine ashes: - Keep them safe with careful love; and let the mound be holy; - And, thou that passest by, revere the waiting dead. - -[Illustration] - - Naples sitteth by the sea, key-stone of an arch of azure, - Crowned by consenting nations peerless queen of gaiety: - She laugheth at the wrath of Ocean, she mocketh the fury of Vesuvius, - She spurneth disease and misery and famine, that crowd her sunny streets: - The giddy dance, the merry song, the festal glad procession, - The noonday slumber and the midnight serenade,--all these make up her - Life: - Her Life?--and what her Death?--look we to the end of life,-- - Solon, and Tellus the Athenian, wisely have ye pointed to the grave. - For behold yon dreary precinct,--those hundreds of stone wells, - A pit for a day, a pit for a day,--a pit to be sealed for a year: - And in the gloom of night, they raise the year-closed lid,-- - Look in,--for gnawing lime hath half consumed the carcases; - Thus they hurl the daily dead into that horrible pit, - The dead that only died this day,--as unconsidered offal! - There, a stark white heap, unwept, unloved, uncared for, - Old men and maidens, young men and infants, mingle in hideous corruption; - Fling in the gnawing lime,--seal up the charnel for a year; - For lo, a morrow's dawn hath tinged the mountain summit. - O fair false city, thou gay and gilded harlot, - Woe, for thy wanton heart, woe, for thy wicked hardness: - Woe unto thee, that the lightsomeness of Life, beneath Italian suns, - Should meet the solemnity of Death, in a sepulchre so foul and fearful. - - For that, even to the best, the wise and pure and pious, - Death, repulsive king, thine iron rule is terrible: - Yea, and even at the best, in company of buried kindred, - With hallowing rites, and friendly tears, and the dear old country church, - Death, cold and lonely, thy frigid face is hateful, - The bravest look on thee with dread, the humblest curse thy coming. - Still, ye unwise among mankind, your foolishness hath added fears; - The crowded cemetery, the catacomb of bones, the pestilential vault, - With fancy's gliding ghost at eve, her moans and flaky footfalls, - And the gibbering train of terror to fright your coward hearts. - We speak not here of sin, nor the phantoms of a bloody conscience, - Nor of solaces, and merciful pardon: we heed but the inevitable grave; - The grave, that wage of guilt, that due return to dust, - The grave, that goal of earth, and starting-post for Heaven. - - Plant it with laurels, sprinkle it with lilies, set it upon yonder dewy - hill - Midst holy prayers, and generous griefs, and consecrating blessings: - Let Sophocles sleep among his ivy, green perennial garlands, - Let olives shade their Virgil, and roses bloom above Corinne; - To his foster-mother, Ocean, entrust the mariner in hope; - The warrior's spirit, let it rise on high from the flaming fragrant pyre. - But heap not coffins and corruption to infect the mass of living, - Nor steal from odious realities the charitable poetry of Death: - It is wise to gild uncomeliness, it is wise to mask necessity, - It is wise from cheerful sights and sounds to draw their gentle uses: - Hide the facts, the bitter facts, the foul, and fearful facts, - Tend the body well in hope, this were praise and wisdom: - But to plunge in gloom the parting soul, that hath loved its clay - tenement so long, - This were vanity and folly, the counsel of moroseness and despair. - Not thus, the Scythian of old time welcomed Death with songs; - Not thus, the shrewd Egyptian decorated Death with braveries; - Not thus, on his funeral tower sleepeth the sun-worshipping Parsee; - Not thus, the Moslem saint lieth in his arabesque mausoleum; - Not thus, the wild red Indian, hunter of the far Missouri, - In flowering trees hath nested up his forest-loving ancestry; - Not thus, the Switzer mountaineer scattereth ribboned garlands - About the rustic cross that halloweth the bed of his beloved; - Not thus, the village maiden wisheth she may die in spring, - With store of violets and cowslips to be sprinkled on her snow-white - shroud; - Not thus, the dying poet asketh a cheerful grave,-- - Lay him in the sunshine, friends, nor sorrow that a Christian hath - departed! - - Yea; it is the poetry of Death, an Orpheus gladdening Hadës, - To care with mindful love for all so dear--and dead; - To think of them in hope, to look for them in joy, and--but for its - simple vanity,-- - To pray with all the earnestness of nature for souls who cannot change. - For the tree is felled, and boughed, and bare, and the Measurer standeth - with His line; - The chance is gone for ever, and is past the reach of prayer: - For men and angels, good and ill, have rendered all their witness; - The trial is over, the jury are gone in, and none can now be heard; - Well are they agreed upon the verdict, just, and fixt, and final, - And the sentence showeth clear, before the Judge hath spoken: - Now,--while resting matter is at peace within the tomb, - The conscious spirit watcheth in unspeakable suspense; - Racked with a fearful looking-forward, or blissfully feeding on the - foretaste, - Waiting souls in eager expectation pass the solemn interval: - They slumber not at death, but awaken, quickened to the terrors of the - judgment; - They lie not insensate among darkness, but exult, looking forward to the - light: - Idiotcy, brightening on the instant, when that veil is torn, - Is grateful that his torpor here hath left him as an innocent: - The young child, stricken as he played, and guileless babes unborn, - Freed from fetters of the flesh, burst into mind immediate: - Madness judgeth wisely, and the visions of the lunatic are gone, - And each hasteneth to praise the mercy that made him irresponsible. - For the soul is one, though manifold in act, working the machinery of - brain, - Reason, fancy, conscience, passion, are but varying phases; - If, in God's wise purpose, the machine were shattered or confused, - Still is soul the same, though it exhibit with a difference: - Therefore, dissipate the brain, and set its inmate free, - Behold, the maniacs and embryos stand in their place intelligent. - That solvent eateth away all dross, leaving the gold intact: - Matter lingereth in the retort, spirit hath flown to the receiver: - And lo, that recipient of the spirits, it is some aerial world, - An oasis midway on the desert space, separating earth from heaven, - A prison-house for essences incorporate, a limbus vague and wide, - Tartarus for evil, and Paradise for good, that intermediate Hadës. - - O Death, what art thou? a Lawgiver that never altereth, - Fixing the consummating seal, whereby the deeds of life become - established: - O Death, what art thou? a stern and silent usher, - Leading to the judgment for Eternity, after the trial-scene of Time: - O Death, what art thou? an Husbandman, that reapeth always, - Out of season, as in season, with the sickle in his hand: - O Death, what art thou? the shadow unto every substance, - In the bower as in the battle, haunting night and day: - O Death, what art thou? Nurse of dreamless slumbers - Freshening the fevered flesh to a wakefulness eternal: - O Death, what art thou? strange and solemn Alchymist, - Elaborating life's elixir from these clayey crucibles: - O Death, what art thou? Antitype of Nature's marvels, - The seed and dormant chrysalis bursting into energy and glory. - Thou calm safe anchorage for the shattered hulls of men,-- - Thou spot of gelid shade, after the hot-breathed desert,-- - Thou silent waiting-hall, where Adam meeteth with his children,-- - How full of dread, how full of hope, loometh inevitable Death: - Of dread, for all have sinned; of hope, for One hath saved; - The dread is drowned in joy, the hope is filled with immortality! - --Pass along, pilgrim of life, go to thy grave unfearing, - The terrors are but shadows now, that haunt the vale of Death. - -[Illustration] - - -OF IMMORTALITY. - -[Illustration: "G"] - - Gird up thy mind to contemplation, trembling inhabitant of earth; - Tenant of a hovel for a day,--thou art heir of the universe for ever! - For, neither congealing of the grave, nor gulphing waters of the - firmament, - Nor expansive airs of heaven, nor dissipative fires of Gehenna, - Nor rust of rest, nor wear, nor waste, nor loss, nor chance, nor change, - Shall avail to quench or overwhelm the spark of soul within thee! - - Thou art an imperishable leaf on the evergreen bay-tree of Existence; - A word from Wisdom's mouth, that cannot be unspoken; - A ray of Love's own light; a drop in Mercy's sea; - A creature, marvellous and fearful, begotten by the fiat of Omnipotence. - I, that speak in weakness, and ye, that hear in charity, - Shall not cease to live and feel, though flesh must see corruption; - For the prison-gates of matter shall be broken, and the shackled soul go - free, - Free, for good or ill, to satisfy its appetence for ever: - For ever,--dreadful doom, to be hurried on eternally to evil,-- - For ever,--happy fate, to ripen into perfectness--for ever! - - And is there a thought within thy heart, O slave of sin and fear, - A black and harmful hope, that erring spirit dieth? - That primal disobedience hath ensured the death of soul, - And separate evil sealed it thine--thy curse, Annihilation? - Heed thou this; there is a Sacrifice; the Maker is Redeemer of His - creature; - Freely unto each, universally to all, is restored the privilege of - essence: - Whether unto grace or guilt, all must live through Him, - Live in vital joy, or live in dying woe: - Death in Adam, Life in Christ; the curse hung upon the cross: - Who art thou that heedest of redemption, as narrower than the fall? - All were dead,--He died for all; that living, they might love; - If living souls withhold their love,--still, He hath died for them. - Eve stole the knowledge; Christ gave the life: - Knowledge and life are the perquisites of soul, the privilege of Man: - Mercy stepped between, and stayed the double theft; - God gave; and giving, bought; and buying, asketh love: - And in such asking rendereth bliss, to all that hear and answer, - For love with life is heaven; and life unloving, hell. - - Creature of God, His will is for thy weal, eternally progressing; - Fear not to trust a Maker's love, nor a Saviour's ransom: - He drank for all,--for thee, and me,--the poison of our deeds; - We shall not die, but live,--and, of His grace, we love. - For, in the mysteries of Mercy, the One fore-knowing Spirit - Outstrippeth reason's halting choice, and winneth men to Him: - Who shall sound the depths? who shall reach the heights? - Freedom, in the gyves of fate; and sovereignty, reconciled with justice. - - If then, as annihilate by sin, the soul was ever forfeit, - Godhead paid the mighty price, the pledge hath been redeemed: - He from the waters of Oblivion raised the drowning race, - Lifting them even to Himself, the baseless Rock of Ages. - None can escape from Adam's guilt, or second Adam's guerdon: - Sin and death are thine; thine also is interminable being: - Let it be even as thou wilt, still are we ransomed from nonentity, - The worlds of bliss and woe are peopled with immortals: - And ruin is thy blame; for thou, the worst, art free - To take from Heaven the grace of love, as the gift of life: - Yet is not remedy thy praise; for thou, the best, art bound - In self, and sin, and darkling sloth, until He break the chain: - None can tell, without a struggle, if that chain be broken; - Strive to-day,--one effort more may prove that thou art free! - Here is faith and prayer, here is the Grace and the Atonement, - Here is the creature feeling for its God, and the prodigal returning to - his Father. - But, behold, His reasonable children, standing in just probation, - With ears to hear, neglect; with eyes to see, refuse: - They will not have the blessing with the life, the blessing that - enricheth Immortality; - And look for pleasures out of God, for heaven in life alone: - So, they snatch that awful prize, existence void of love, - And in their darkening exile make a needful hell of self. - - Therefore fear, thou sinner, lest the huge blessing, Immortality, - Be blighted in thine evil to a curse,--it were better he had not been - born: - Therefore hope, thou saint, for the gift of Immortality is free; - Take and live, and live in love; fear not, thou art redeemed! - The happy life, that height of hope, the knowledge of all good, - This is the blessing on obedience, obedience the child of faith: - The miserable life, that depth of all despair, the knowledge of all evil, - This is the curse upon impenitence, impenitence that sprung of unbelief. - God, from a beautiful necessity, is Love in all He doeth, - Love, a brilliant fire, to gladden or consume: - The wicked work their woe by looking upon love, and hating it: - The righteous find their joys in yearning on its loveliness for ever. - - Who shall imagine Immortality, or picture its illimitable prospect? - How feebly can a faltering tongue express the vast idea! - For consider the primæval woods that bristle over broad Australia, - And count their autumn leaves, millions multiplied by millions; - Thence look up to a moonless sky from a sleeping isle of the Ægæan, - And add to these leaves yon starry host, sparkling on the midnight - numberless; - Thence traverse an Arabia, some continent of eddying sand, - Gather each grain, let none escape, add them to the leaves and to the - stars; - Afterward gaze upon the sea, the thousand leagues of an Atlantic, - Take drop by drop, and add their sum, to the grains, and leaves, and - stars; - The drops of ocean, the desert sands, the leaves, and stars innumerable, - (Albeit, in that multitude of multitudes, each small unit were an age,) - All might reckon for an instant, a transient flash of Time, - Compared with this intolerable blaze, the measureless enduring of - Eternity! - - O grandest gift of the Creator,--O largess worthy of a God,-- - Who shall grasp that thrilling thought, life and joy for ever? - For the sun in heaven's heaven is Love that cannot change, - And the shining of that sun is life, to all beneath its beams: - Who shall arrest it in the firmament,--or drag it from its sphere? - Or bid its beauty smile no more, but be extinct for ever? - Yea, where God hath given, none shall take away, - Nor build up limits to His love, nor bid His bounty cease; - Wide, as space is peopled, endless as the empire of heaven, - The river of the water of life floweth on in majesty for ever! - - Why should it seem a thing impossible to thee, O man of many doubts, - That God shall wake the dead, and give this mortal immortality? - Is it that such riches are unsearchable, the bounty too profuse? - And yet, what gift, to cease or change, is worthy of the King Almighty? - For remember the moment thou art not, thou mightest as well not have been; - A millennium and an hour are equal in the gulph of that desolate abyss, - annihilation: - If Adam had existed till to-day, and to-day had perished utterly, - What were his gain in length of a life, that hath passed away for ever? - No tribute of thanks can exhale from the empty censer of nonentity; - The Giver, with His gift reclaimed, is mulcted of all praise. - - Tell me, ye that strive in vain to cramp and dwarf the soul, - Wherefore should it cease to be, and when shall essence die? - It is,--and therefore shall be, till just obstacle opposeth: - Show no cause for change, and reason leaneth to continuance. - The body verily shall change; this curious house we live in - Never had continuing stay, but changeth every instant: - But the spiritual tenant of the house abideth in unalterable - consciousness, - He may fly to many lands, but cannot flee himself. - The soil wherein ye drop the seed, by suns or rains may vary; - But the seed is the same; and soul is the seed; and flesh but its - anchorage to earth. - - The machine may be broken, and rust corrode the springs: but can rust - feed on motion? - Worms may batten on the brain: but can worms gnaw the mind? - Dynamics are, and dwell apart, though matter be not made; - Spirit is, and can be separate, though a body were not: - Power is one, be it lever, screw, or wedge; but it needeth these for - illustration: - Mind is one, be it casual or ideal; but it is shown in these. - The creature is constructed individual, for trial of his reasonable will, - Clay and soul, commingled wisely, mingled not confused: - As power is not in the spring, till somewhat give it action, - So, until spirit be infused, the organism lieth inergetic. - - Or shalt thou say that mind is the delicate offspring of matter, - The bright consummate flower that must perish with its leaf? - Go to: doth weight breed lightness? is freedom the atmosphere of prisons? - When did the body elevate, expand, and bud the mind? - Lo, a red-hot cinder flung from the furnaces of Ætna,-- - There is fire in that ash; but did the pumice make it? - Nay, cold clod, never canst thou generate a flame, - Nay, most exquisite machinery, nevermore elaborate a mind: - Rather do ye battle and contend, opposite the one to the other; - Till God shall stop the strife, and call the body colleague. - - Garment of flesh, and art thou then a vest, so tinged with subtle poison, - (Maddening tunic of the centaur,) as to kill the soul? - Not so: fruit of disobedience, rot in dissolution, as thou must,-- - The seed is in the core, its germ is safe, and life is in that germ: - Moreover, Marah shall be sweetened; and a Good Physician - Yet shall heal those gangrene wounds, the spotted plague of sin: - He, through worldly trials, and the separative cleansing of the grave, - Shall change its corruptible to glory, and wash that garment white. - - Still, is the whisper in thy heart, that oftenest the bed of death - Seemeth but a sluggish ebb, of sinking soul and body? - Mind dwelling, long-time, sensual in the chambers of the flesh, - May slumber on in conscious sloth, and wilfully be dulled: - But is it therefore nigh to dissolution, even as the body of this death? - Ask the stricken conscience, gasping out its terrors; - Ask the dying miser, loth to leave his gold; - Ask the widowed poor, confiding her fatherless to strangers; - Ask the martyr-maid, a broken reed so strong, - That weak and tortured frame, with triumph on its brow!-- - O thou gainsayer, the finger of disease may seem to reach the soul, - But it is a spiritual touch, sympathy with that which aileth: - Pain or fear may dislocate and shatter this delicate machinery of nerves; - But madness proveth mind: the fault is in the engine, not the impetus: - Dissipate the mists of matter, lo, the soul is clear: - Timour's cage bowed it in the dust; but now it goeth forth a freedman. - - Yet more, there is reason in moralities, that the soul must live; - If God be king in heaven, or have care for earth. - Can wickedness have triumphed with impunity, or virtue toiled unseen? - Shall cruelty torture unavenged, and the innocent complain unheard? - Is there no recompense for woe, must there be no other world for - justice,-- - No hope in setting suns of good, nor terror for the evil at its zenith? - How shall ye make answer unto this; a just God prospering iniquity, - Wisdom encouraging the foolish, and goodness abetting the depraved! - - Yet again; mine erring brother, pardon this abundance of my speech, - Yield me thy candour and thy charity, listening with a welcome: - For, even now, a thousand thoughts are trooping to my theme; - O mighty theme, O feeble thoughts! Alas! who is sufficient? - Judge not so high a cause by these poor words alone, - For lo, the advocate hath little skill: pardon and pass on: - Certify thyself with surer proofs; fledge thine own mind for flight; - Think, and pray; those better proofs shall follow on with holy aspiration. - Yet in my humbler grade to help thy weal and comfort, - Thy weal for this and higher worlds, and comfort in thy sickness, - Suffer the multitude of fancies, walking with me still in love; - But tread in fear, it is holy ground,--remember, Immortality! - - Wilt thou argue from infirmities, thine abject evil state, - As how should stricken wretched man indeed exist for ever: - The brutal and besotted, the savage and the slave, the sucking infant and - the idiot, - The mass of mean and common minds, and all to be immortal?-- - Consider every beginning, how small it is and feeble: - Ganges, and the rolling Mississippi sprung of brooks among the mountains; - The Yew-tree of a thousand years was once a little seed, - And Nero's marble Rome, a shepherd's mud-built hovel: - A speck is on the tropic sky, and it groweth to the terrible tornado; - An apple, all too fair to see, destroyed a world of souls: - A tender babe is born,--it is Attila, scourge of the nations! - A seeming malefactor dieth,--it is Jesus, the Saviour of men! - - And hive not in thy thoughts the vain and wordy notion - That nothing which was born in Time can tire out the footsteps of - Infinity: - Reckon up a sum in numbers; where shall progression stop? - The starting-post is definite and fixed, but what is the goal of - numeration? - So, begin upon a moment, and when shall being end? - Souls emanate from God, to travel with Him equally for ever. - Moreover, thou that objectest the unenterable circle of eternity, - That none but He from everlasting can endure, as to a future everlasting, - Consider, may it be impossible that creatures were counted in their Maker, - And so, that the confines of Eternity are filled by God alone? - Trust not thy soul upon a fancy: who would freight a bubble with a - diamond, - And launch that priceless gem on the boiling rapids of a cataract? - - If then we perish not at death, but walk in spirit through the darkness, - Waiting for a mansion incorruptible, whereof this body is the seed, - Tell me, when shall be the period? time and its ordeals are done: - The storms are passed, the night is at end, behold the Sabbath morning. - Is death to be conqueror again, and claim once more the victory,-- - Can the enemy's corpse awaken into life, and bruise the Champion's head? - Evil, terrible ensample, that foil to the attributes of Good, - Is banished to its own black world, weeded out of earth and heaven: - Shall that great gulf be passed, and sin be sown again?-- - We know but this, the book of truth proclaimeth gladly, Never! - - There remaineth the will of our God: when He repenteth of His creature, - Made by self-suggested mercy, ransomed by self-sacrificing justice,-- - When Truth, that swore unto his neighbour, disappointeth him, and - cleaveth to a lie,-- - When the counsels of Wisdom are confounded, and Love warreth with - itself,-- - When the Unchangeable is changed, and the arm of Omnipotence is broken,-- - Then,--thy quenchless soul shall have reached the goal of its existence. - - But it seemeth to thy notions of the merciful and just, a false and - fearful thing, - To lay such a burden upon time, that eternity be built on its foundation: - As if so casual good or ill should colour all the future, - And the vanity of accident, or sternness of necessity, save or wreck a - soul. - Were it casual, vain, or stern, this might pass for truth: - But all things are marshalled by Design, and carefully tended by - Benevolence. - O man, thy Judge is righteous,--noting, remembering, and weighing;-- - Want, ignorance, diversities of state, are cast into the balance of - advantage: - The poisonous example of a parent asketh for allowance in the child; - Care, diseases, toils, and frailties,--all things are considered. - And again, a mysterious Omniscience knoweth the spirits that are His, - While the delicate tissues of Event are woven by the fingers of Ubiquity. - Should Providence be taken by surprise from the possible impinging of an - accident, - One fortuitous grain might dislocate the banded universe: - The merest seeming trifle is ordered as the morning light; - And He, that rideth on the hurricane, is pilot of the bubble on the - breaker. - - Once more, consider Matter, how small a thing is father to the greatest; - Thou that lightly hast regarded the results of so-called accident. - A blade of grass took fire in the sun,--and the prairies are burnt to the - horizon: - A grain of sand may blind the eye, and madden the brain to murder: - A careful fly deposited its egg in the swelling bud of an acorn,-- - The sapling grew,--cankrous and gnarled,--it is yonder hollow oak: - A child touched a spring, and the spring closed a valve, and the - labouring engine burst,-- - A thousand lives were in that ship,--wrecked by an infant's finger! - Shall nature preach in vain? thy casualty, guided in its orbit, - Though less than a mote upon the sunbeam, saileth in a fleet of worlds; - That trivial cause, watered and observed of the Husbandman day by day,-- - In calm undeviating strength doth work its large effect. - Thus, in the pettiness of life note thou seeds of grandeur, - And watch the hour-glass of Time with the eyes of an heir of Immortality. - - There still be clouds of witnesses,--if thou art not weary of my speech,-- - Flocks of thoughts adding lustre to the light, and pointing on to Life. - For reflect how Truth and Goodness, well and wisely put, - Commend themselves to every mind with wondrous intuition: - What is this? the recognition of a standard, unwritten, natural, uniform; - Telling of one common source, the root of Good and True. - And if thus present soul can trace descent from Deity, - Being, as it standeth, individual, a separate reasonable thing, - What should hinder that its hope may not trace gladly forward, - And, in astounding parallel, like Enoch walk with God? - Yea, the genealogy of soul, that vivifying breath of a Creator, - Breath, no transient air, but essence, energy, and reason, - Is looming on the past, and shadowing the future, sublimely as - Melchisedek of old, - Having not beginning, nor end of days, but present in the majesty of - Peace! - - O false scholar, credulous in vanities, and only sceptical of truth, - Wherefore toil to cheat thy soul of its birthright, Immortality? - Is it for thy guilt? He pardoneth: Is it for thy frailty? He will help: - Though thou fearest, He is love; and Mercy shall be deeper than Despair: - Even for thy full-blown pride, is it much to be receiver of a God? - And lo, thy rights, He made thee; thy claims, He hath redeemed. - Hath the fair aspect of affection no beauty that thou shouldst desire it? - And are those sorrows nothing, to thee that passest by? - For it is Fact, immutable, that God hath dwelt in Man: - With gentle generous love ennobling while He bought us. - What, though thou art false, ignorant, weak and daring,-- - Can the sun be quenched in heaven--or only Belisarius be blind? - - But, even stooping to thy folly, grant all these hopes are vain; - Stultify reason, wrestle against conscience, and wither up the heart: - Where is thy vast advantage?--I have all that thou hast, - The buoyancy of life as strong, and term of days no shorter; - My cup is full with gladness, my griefs are not more galling: - And thus, we walk together, even to the gates of death: - There, (if not also on my journey, blessing every step, - Gladdening with light, and quickening with love, and killing all my - cares,) - There,--while thou art quailing, or sullenly expecting to be nothing,-- - There,--is found my gain; I triumph, where thou tremblest. - Grant all my solace is a lie, yet it is a fountain of delight, - A spice in every pleasure, and a balm for every pain: - O precious wise delusion, scattering both misery and sin,-- - O vile and silly truth, depraving while it curseth! - - Darkling child of knowledge, commune with Socrates and Cicero, - They had no prejudice of birth, no dull parental warpings; - See, those lustrous minds anticipate the dawning day,-- - Whilst thou, poor mole, art burrowing back to darkness from the light. - I will not urge a revelation, mercies, miracles, and martyrs, - But, after twice a thousand years, go, learn thou of the pagan: - It were happier and wiser even among fools, to cling to the shadow of a - hope, - Than, in the company of sages, to win the substance of despair; - But here, the sages hope; despair is with the fools, - The base bad hearts, the stolid heads, the sensual and the selfish. - - And wilt thou, sorry scorner, mock the phrase, despair? - Despair for those who die and live,--for me, I live and die: - What have I to do with dread?--my taper must go out;-- - I nurse no silly hopes, and therefore feel no fears: - I am hastening to an end.--O false and feeble answer: - For hope is in thee still, and fear, a racking deep anxiety. - Erring brother, listen: and take thine answer from the ancients: - Consider every end, that it is but the end of a beginning. - All things work in circles; weariness induceth unto rest, - Rest invigorateth labour, and labour causeth weariness: - War produceth peace, and peace is wanton unto war: - Light dieth into darkness, and night dawneth into day: - The rotting jungle reeds scatter fertility around; - The buffalo's dead carcase hath quickened life in millions: - The end of toil is gain, the end of gain is pleasure, - Pleasure tendeth unto waste, and waste commandeth toil. - - So, is death an end,--but it breedeth an infinite beginning; - Limits are for time, and death killed time: Eternity's beginning is for - ever. - Ambition, hath it any goal indeed? is not all fruition, disappointment? - A step upon the ladder, and another, and another,--we start from every - end? - Look to the eras of mortality, babe, student, man, - The husband, the father, the death-bed of a saint,--and is it then an end? - That common climax, Death, shall it lead to nothing? - How strong a root of causes flowering a consequence of vapour: - That solid chain of facts, is it to be snapped for ever? - How stout a show of figures, weakly summing to nonentity. - - Or haply, Death, in the doublings of thy thought, shall seem continuous - ending; - A dull eternal slumber, not an end abrupt. - O most futile chrysalis, wherefore dost thou sleep? - Dreamless, unconscious, never to awake,--what object in such slumber? - If thou art still to live, it may as well be wakefully as sleeping: - How grovelling must that spirit be, to need eternal sleep! - Or was indeed the toil of life so heavy and so long, - That nevermore can rest refresh thine overburdened soul?-- - Sleep is a recreance to body, but when was mind asleep? - Even in a swoon it dreameth, though all be forgotten afterward: - The muscles seek relaxing, and the irritable nerves ask peace; - But life is a constant force, spirit an unquietable impetus: - The eye may wear out as a telescope, and the brain work slow as a machine, - But soul unwearied, and for ever, is capable of effort unimpaired. - - I live, move, am conscious: what shall bar my being? - Where is the rude hand, to rend this tissue of existence? - Not thine, shadowy Death, what art thou but a phantom? - Not thine, foul Corruption, what art thou but a fear? - For death is merely absent life, as darkness absent light; - Not even a suspension, for the life hath sailed away, steering gladly - somewhere. - And corruption, closely noted, is but a dissolving of the parts, - The parts remain, and nothing lost, to build a better whole. - Moreover, mind is unity, however versatile and rapid; - Thou canst not entertain two coincident ideas, although they quickly - follow: - And Unity hath no parts, so that there is nothing to dissolve: - An element is still unchanged in every searching solvent. - Who then shall bid me be annulled,--He that gave me being? - Amen, if God so will; I know that will is love: - But love hath promised life, and therefore I shall live; - So long as He is God, I shall be His Creature! - - And here, shrewd reasoner, so eager to prove that thou must perish, - I note a sneer upon thy lip, and ridicule is haply on thy tongue: - How, said he,--creature of a God, and are not all His creatures,-- - The lion, and the gnat,--yea, the mushroom, and the crystal,--have all - these a soul? - Thy fancies tend to prove too much, and overshoot the mark: - If I die not with brutes, then brutes must live with me?-- - I dare not tell thee that they will, for the word is not in my commission; - But of the twain it is the likelier; continuance is the chance: - Men, dying in their sins, are likened unto beasts that perish; - They are dark, animal, insensate, but have they not a lurking soul? - The spirit of a man goeth upward, reasonable, apprehending God; - The spirit of a beast goeth downward, sensual, doting on the creature: - Who told thee they die at dissolution?--boldly think it out,-- - The multitude of flies, and the multitude of herbs, the world with all - its beings: - Is Infinity too narrow, Omnipotence too weak, and Love so anxious to - destroy, - Doth Wisdom change its plan, and a Maker cancel His created? - God's will may compass all things, to fashion and to nullify at pleasure: - Yet are there many thoughts of hope, that all which are shall live. - True, there is no conscience in the brute, beyond some educated habit, - They lay them down without a fear, and wake without a hope: - Hunger and pain is of the animal: but when did they reckon or compare? - They live, idealess, in instinct; and while they breathe they gain: - The master is an idol to his dog, who cannot rise beyond him; - And void of capability for God, there would seem small cause for an - infinity. - Therefore, caviller, my poor thoughts dare not grant they live: - But is it not a great thing to assume their annihilation--and thine own? - Would it be much if a speck on space, this globe with all its millions, - Verily, after its pollution, were suffered to exist in purity? - Or much, if guiltless creatures, that were cruelly entreated upon earth, - Found some commensurate reward in lower joys hereafter? - Or much, if a Creator, prodigal of life, and filled with the profundity - of love, - Rejoice in all creatures of His skill, and lead them to perfection in - their kind? - O man, there are many marvels; yet life is more a mystery than death: - For death may be some stagnant life,--but life is present God! - - Many are the lurking-holes of evil; who shall search them out? - Who so skilled to cut away the cancer with its fibres? - For wily minds with sinuous ease escape from lie to lie; - And cowards driven from the trench steal back to hide again. - Vain were the battle, if a warrior, having slain his foes, - Shall turn and find them vital still, unharmed, yea, unashamed: - For Error, dark magician, daily cast out killed, - Quickeneth animate anew beneath the midnight moon: - Once and again, once and again, hath reason answered wisely; - But not the less with brazen front doth folly urge her questions. - It were but unprofitable toil, a stand-up fight with unbelief: - When was there candour in a caviller, and who can satisfy the faithless? - Too long, O truant from the fold, have I tracked thy devious paths; - Too long, treacherous deserter, fought thee as a noble foeman: - Haply, my small art, and an arm too weakly for its weapon, - Hath failed to pierce thine iron coat, and reach thy stricken soul: - Haply, the fervour of my speech, and too patient sifting of thy fancies, - Shall tend to make thee prize them more, as worthier and wiser: - Go to: be mine the gain: we measure swords no more; - Go,--and a word go with thee,--Man, thou ART Immortal! - - Child of light, and student in the truth, too long have I forgotten thee: - Lo, after parley with an alien, let me hold sweet converse with a brother. - Glorious hopes and ineffable imaginings, crowd our holy theme, - Fear hath been slaughtered on the portal, and Doubt driven back to - darkness: - For Christ hath died, and we in Him; by faith His All is ours; - Cross and crown, and love, and life; and we shall reign in Him! - Yea, there is a fitness and a beauty in ascribing immortality to mind, - That its energies and lofty aspirations may have scope for indefinite - expansion. - To learn all things is privilege of reason, and that with a growing - capability, - But in this age of toil and time we scarce attain to alphabets: - How hardly in the midst of our hurry, and jostled by the cares of life, - Shall a man turn and stop to consider mighty secrets; - With barely hours, and barely powers, to fill up daily duties, - How small the glimpse of knowledge his wondering eye can catch! - And knowledge is a noting of the order wherein God's attributes evolve, - Therefore worthy of the creature, worthy of an angel's seeking; - Yea, and human knowledge, meagre though the harvest, - Hath its roots, both deep and strong; but the plants are exotic to the - climate; - All we seem to know demand a longer learning, - History and science, and prophecy and art, are workings all of God: - And there are galaxies of globes, millions of unimagined beings, - Other senses, wondrous sounds, and thoughts of thrilling fire, - Powers of strange might, quickening unknown elements, - And attributes and energies of God which man may never guess. - - Not in vain, O brother, hath soul the spurs of enterprize, - Nor aimlessly panteth for adventure, waiting at the cave of mystery: - Not in vain the cup of curiosity, sweet and richly spiced, - Is ruby to the sight, and ambrosia to the taste, and redolent with all - fragrance: - Thou shalt drink, and deeply, filling the mind with marvels; - Thou shalt watch no more, lingering, disappointed of thy hope; - Thou shalt roam where road is none, a traveller untrammelled, - Speeding at a wish, emancipate, to where the stars are suns! - - Count, count your hopes, heirs of immortality and love; - And hear my kindred faith, and turn again to bless me. - For lo, my trust is strong to dwell in many worlds, - And cull of many brethren there, sweet knowledge ever new: - I yearn for realms where fancy shall be filled, and the ecstasies of - freedom shall be felt, - And the soul reign gloriously, risen to its royal destinies: - I look to recognize again, through the beautiful mask of their perfection, - The dear familiar faces I have somewhile loved on earth: - I long to talk with grateful tongue of storms and perils past, - And praise the mighty Pilot that hath steered us through the rapids: - He shall be the focus of it all, the very heart of gladness,-- - My soul is athirst for God, the God who dwelt in Man! - Prophet, priest, and king, the sacrifice, the substitute, the Saviour, - Rapture of the blessed in the hunted One of earth, the Pardoner in the - victim; - How many centuries of joy concentrate in that theme, - How often a Methusalem might count his thousand years, and leave it - unexhausted! - And lo, the heavenly Jerusalem, with all its gates one pearl, - That pearl of countless price, the door by which we entered,-- - Come, tread the golden streets, and join that glorious throng, - The happy ones of heaven and earth, ten thousand times ten thousand; - Hark, they sing that song,--and cast their crowns before Him; - Their souls alight with love,--Glory, and Praise, and Immortality!-- - Veil thine eyes: no son of time may see that holy vision, - And even the seraph at thy side hath covered his face with wings. - - Doth he not speak parables?--each one goeth on his way, - Ye that hear, and I that counsel, go on our ways forgetful. - For the terrible realities whereto we tend, are hidden from our eyes, - We know, but heed them not, and walk as if the temporal were all things. - Vanities, buzzing on the ear, fill its drowsy chambers, - Slow to dread those coming fears, the thunder and the trumpet; - Motes, steaming on the sight, dim our purblind eyes, - Dark to see the ponderous orb of nearing Immortality: - Hemmed in by hostile foes, the trifler is busied on an epigram; - The dull ox, driven to slaughter, careth but for pasture by the way. - Alas, that the precious things of truth, and the everlasting hills, - The mighty hopes we spake of, and the consciousness we feel,-- - Alas, that all the future, and its adamantine facts, - Clouded by the present with intoxicating fumes,-- - Should seem even to us, the great expectant heirs, - To us, the responsible and free, fearful sons of reason, - Only as a lovely song, sweet sounds of solemn music, - A pleasant voice, and nothing more,--doth he not speak parables? - - Look to thy soul, O man, for none can be surety for his brother: - Behold, for heaven--or for hell,--thou canst not escape from Immortality! - - -OF IDEAS. - -[Illustration: "M"] - - Mind is like a volatile essence, flitting hither and thither, - A solitary sentinel of the fortress body, to show himself everywhere by - turns: - Mind is indivisible and instant, with neither parts nor organs, - That it doeth, it doth quickly, but the whole mind doth it: - An active versatile agent, untiring in the principle of energy, - Nor space, nor time, nor rest, nor toil, can affect the tenant of the - brain; - His dwelling may verily be shattered, and the furniture thereof be - disarranged, - But the particle of Deity in man slumbereth not, neither can be wearied: - However swift to change, even as the field of a kaleidoscope, - It taketh in but one idea at once, moulded for the moment to its likeness: - Mind is as the quicksilver, which, poured from vessel to vessel, - Instantly seizeth on a shape, and as instantly again discardeth it; - For it is an apprehensive power, closing on the properties of Matter, - Expanding to enwrap a world, collapsing to prison up an atom: - As, by night, thine irritable eyes may have seen strange changing figures, - Now a wheel, now suddenly a point, a line, a curve, a zigzag, - A maze ever altering, as the dance of gnats upon a sunbeam, - Swift, intricate, neither to be prophesied, nor to be remembered in - succession, - So, the mind of a man, single, and perpetually moving, - Flickereth about from thought to thought, changed with each idea; - For the passing second metamorphosed to the image of that within its ken, - And throwing its immediate perceptions into each cause of contemplation. - It shall regard a tree; and unconsciously, in separate review, - Embrace its colour, shape, and use, whole and individual conceptions; - It shall read or hear of crime, and cast itself into the commission; - It shall note a generous deed, and glow for a moment as the doer; - It shall imagine pride or pleasure, treading on the edges of temptation; - Or heed of God and of His Christ, and grow transformed to glory. - - Therefore, it is wise and well to guide the mind aright, - That its aptness may be sensitive to good, and shrink with antipathy from - evil: - For use will mould and mark it, or nonusage dull and blunt it;-- - So to talk of spirit by analogy with substance; - And analogy is a truer guide, than many teachers tell of, - Similitudes are scattered round, to help us, not to hurt us; - Moses, in his every type, and the Greater than Moses, in His parables, - Preach, in terms that all may learn, the philosophic lessons of analogy: - And here, in a topic immaterial, the likeness of analogy is just; - By habits, knit the nerves of mind, and train the gladiator shrewdly: - For thought shall strengthen thinking, and imagery speed imagination, - Until thy spiritual inmate shall have swelled to the giant of Otranto. - - Nevertheless, heed well, that this Athlete, growing in thy brain, - Be a wholesome Genius, not a cursed Afrite: - And see thou discipline his strength, and point his aim discreetly; - Feed him on humility and holy things, weaned from covetous desires; - Hour by hour and day by day, ply him with ideas of excellence, - Dragging forth the evil but to loathe, as a Spartan's drunken Helot: - And win, by gradual allurements, the still expanding soul, - To rise from a contemplated universe, even to the Hand that made it. - - A common mind perceiveth not beyond his eyes and ears: - The palings of the park of sense enthral this captured roebuck: - And still, though fettered in the flesh, he doth not feel his chains, - Externals are the world to him, and circumstance his atmosphere. - Therefore tangible pleasures are enough for the animal man; - He is swift to speak and slow to think, dreading his own dim conscience; - And solitude is terrible, and exile worse than death, - He cannot dwell apart, nor breathe at a distance from the crowd. - But minds of nobler stamp, and chiefest the mint-marked of heaven, - Walk independent, by themselves, freely manumitted of externals: - They carry viands with them, and need no refreshment by the way, - Nor drink of other wells than their own inner fountain. - Strange shall it seem how little such a man will lean upon the accidents - of life, - He is winged and needeth not a staff; if it break, he shall not fall: - And lightly perchance doth he remember the stale trivialities around him, - He liveth in the realm of thought, beyond the world of things; - These are but transient Matter, and himself enduring Spirit: - And worldliness will laugh to scorn that sublimated wisdom. - His eyes may open on a prison-cell, but the bare walls glow with imagery; - His ears may be filled with execration, but are listening to the music of - sweet thoughts; - He may dwell in a hovel with a hero's heart, and canopy his penury with - peace, - For mind is a kingdom to the man, who gathereth his pleasure from Ideas. - - -[Illustration] - -OF NAMES. - - Adam gave the name, when the Lord had made His creature, - For God led them in review, to see what man would call them. - As they struck his senses, he proclaimed their sounds, - A name for the distinguishing of each, a numeral by which it should be - known: - He specified the partridge by her cry, and the forest prowler by his - roaring, - The tree by its use, and the flower by its beauty, and everything - according to its truth. - - There is an arbitrary name; whereunto the idea attacheth; - And there is a reasonable name, linking its fitness to idea: - Yet shall these twain run in parallel courses, - Neither shall thou readily discern the habit from the nature. - For mind is apt and quick to wed ideas and names together, - Nor stoppeth its perception to be curious of priorities; - And there is but little in the sound, as some have vainly fancied, - The same tone in different tongues shall be suitable to opposite ideas: - Yea, take an ensample in thine own; consider similar words: - How various and contrary the thoughts those kindred names produce: - A house shall seem a fitting word to call a roomy dwelling, - Yet there is a like propriety in the small smooth sound, a mouse: - Mountain, as if of a necessity, is a word both mighty and majestic,-- - What heed ye then of Fountain?--flowing silver in the sun. - - Many a fair flower is burdened with preposterous appellatives, - Which the wiser simplicity of rustics entitled by its beauties; - And often the conceit of science, loving to be thought cosmopolite, - Shall mingle names of every clime, alike obscure to each. - There is wisdom in calling a thing fitly; name should note particulars - Through a character obvious to all men, and worthy of their instant - acceptation. - The herbalist had a simple cause for every word upon his catalogue, - But now the mouth of Botany is filled with empty sound; - And many a peasant hath an answer on his tongue, concerning some vexed - flower, - Shrewder than the centipede phrase, wherewithal philosophers invest it. - - For that, the foolishness of pride, and flatteries of cringing homage, - Strew with chaff the threshing-floors of science; names perplex them all: - The entomologist, who hath pried upon an insect, straightway shall endow - it with his name; - It had many qualities and marks of note,--but in chief, a vain observer: - The geographer shall journey to the pole, through biting frost and - desolation, - And, for some simple patron's sake, shall name that land, the happy: - The fossilist hath found a bone, the rib of some huge lizard, - And forthwith standeth to it sponsor, to tack himself on reptile - immortalities: - The sportsman, hunting at the Cape, found some strange-horned antelope, - The spots are new, the fame is cheap, and so his name is added. - Thus, obscurities encumber knowledge, even by the vanity of men - Who play into each other's hand the game of giving names. - - Various are the names of men, and drawn from different wells; - Aspects of body, or characters of mind, the creature's first idea: - And some have sprung of trades, and some of dignities or office; - Other some added to a father's, and yet more growing from a place: - Animal creation, with sciences, and things,--their composites, and near - associations, - Contributed their symbollings of old, wherewith to title men: - And heraldry set upon its cresture the figured attributes as ensigns - By which, as by a name concrete, its bearer should be known. - - Egypt opened on the theme, dressing up her gods in qualities; - Horns of power, feathers of the swift, mitres of catholic dominion, - The sovereign asp, the circle everlasting, the crook and thong of justice, - By many mystic shapes and sounds displayed the idol's name. - Thereafter, high-plumed warriors, the chieftains of Etruria and Troy, - And Xerxes, urging on his millions to the tomb of pride, Thermopylæ, - And Hiero with his bounding ships, all figured at the prow, - And Rome's Prætorian standards, piled with strange devices, - And stout crusaders pressing to the battle, clad in sable mail; - These all in their speaking symbols, earned, or wore, a name. - Eve; the mother of all living, and Abraham, father of a multitude, - Jacob, the supplanter, and David, the beloved, and all the worthies of - old time, - Noah, who came for consolation, and Benoni, son of sorrow, - Kings and prophets, children of the East, owned each his title of - significance. - - There be names of high descent, and thereby storied honours; - Names of fair renown, and therein characters of merit: - But to lend the lowborn noble names, is to shed upon them ridicule and - evil; - Yea, many weeds run rank in pride, if men have dubbed them cedars. - And to herald common mediocrity with the noisy notes of fame, - Tendeth to its deeper scorn; as if it were to call the mole a mammoth. - Yet shall ye find the trader's babe dignified with sounding titles, - And little hath the father guessed the harm he did his child: - For either may they breed him discontent, a peevish repining at his - station, - Or point the finger of despite at the mule in the trappings of an - elephant: - And it is a kind of theft to filch appellations from the famous, - A soiling of the shrines of praise with folly's vulgar herd. - Prudence hath often gone ashamed for the name they added to his father's, - If minds of mark and great achievements bore it well before; - For he walketh as the jay in the fable, though not by his own folly, - Another's fault hath compassed his misfortune, making him a martyr to his - name. - - Who would call the tench a whale, or style a torch, Orion? - Yet many a silly parent hath dealt likewise with his nurseling. - Give thy child a fit distinguishment, making him sole tenant of a name, - For it were a sore hindrance to hold it in common with a hundred: - In the Babel of confused identities fame is little feasible, - The felon shall detract from the philanthropist, and the sage share - honours with the simple: - Still, in thy title of distinguishment, fall not into arrogant assumption, - Steering from caprice and affectations; and for all thou doest, have a - reason. - He that is ambitious for his son, should give him untried names, - For those that have served other men, haply may injure by their evils; - Or otherwise may hinder by their glories; therefore, set him by himself, - To win for his individual name some clear specific praise. - There were nine Homers, all goodly sons of song, but where is any record - of the eight? - One grew to fame, an Aaron's rod, and swallowed up his brethren: - Who knoweth? more distinctly titled, those dead eight had lived; - But the censers were ranged in a circle to mingle their sweets without a - difference. - - Art thou named of a common crowd, and sensible of high aspirings? - It is hard for thee to rise,--yet strive: thou mayest be among them a - Musæus. - Art thou named of a family, the same in successive generations? - It is open to thee still to earn for epithets, such an one, the good or - great. - Art thou named foolishly? Show that thou art wiser than thy fathers; - Live to shame their vanity or sin by dutiful devotion to thy sphere. - Art thou named discreetly? It is well, the course is free; - No competitor shall claim thy colours, neither fix his faults upon thee: - Hasten to the goal of fame between the posts of duty, - And win a blessing from the world, that men may love thy name: - Yea, that the unction of its praise, in fragrance well deserving, - May float adown the stream of time, like ambergris at sea; - So thy sons may tell their sons, and those may teach their children, - He died in goodness, as he lived;--and left us his good name. - And more than these: there is a roll whereon thy name is written; - See that, in the Book of Doom, that name is fixed in light: - Then, safe within a better home, where time and its titles are not found, - God will give thee His new Name, and write it on thy heart: - A Name better than of sons, a Name dearer than of daughters, - A Name of union, peace, and praise, as numbered in thy God. - - -OF THINGS. - -[Illustration: "T"] - - Taken separately from all substance, and flying with the feathered flock - of thoughts, - The idea of a thing hath the nature of its Soul, a separate seeming - essence: - Intimately linked to the idea, suggesting many qualities, - The name of a thing hath the nature of its Mind, an intellectual recorder: - And the matter of a thing, concrete, is a Body to the perfect creature, - Compacted three in one, as all things else within the universe. - Nothing canst thou add to them, and nothing take away, for all have these - proportions, - The thought, the word, the form, combining in the Thing: - All separate, yet harmonizing well, and mingled each with other, - One whole in several parts, yet each part spreading to a whole: - The idea is a whole; and the meaning phrase that spake idea, a whole; - And the matter, as ye see it, is a whole; the mystery of true triunity: - Yea, there is even a deeper mystery,--which none, I wot, can fathom, - Matter, different from properties whereby the solid substance is - described; - For, size and weight, cohesion and the like, live distinct from matter, - Yet who can imagine matter, unendowed with size and weight? - As in the spiritual, so in the material, man must rest with patience, - And wait for other eyes wherewith to read the books of God. - - Men have talked learnedly of atoms, as if matter could be ever - indivisible; - They talk, but ill are skilled to teach, and darken truth by fancies: - An atom by our grosser sense was never yet conceived, - And nothing can be thought so small, as not to be divided: - For an atom runneth to infinity, and never shall be caught in space, - And a molecule is no more indivisible than Saturn's belted orb. - Things intangible, multiplied by multitudes, never will amass to - substance, - Neither can a thing which may be touched, be made of impalpable - proportions; - The sum of indivisibles must needs be indivisible, as adding many - nothings, - And the building up of atoms into matter is but a silly sophism; - Lucretius, and keen Anaximander, and many that have followed in their - thoughts, - (For error hath a long black shadow, dimming light for ages,) - In the foolishness of men without a God fancied to fashion Matter - Of intangibles, and therefore uncohering, indivisibles, and therefore - Spirit. - - Things breed thoughts; therefore at Thebes and Heliopolis, - In hieroglyphic sculptures are the priestly secrets written: - Things breed thoughts; therefore was the Athens of idolatry - Set with carved images, frequent as the trees of Academus: - Things breed thoughts; therefore the Brahmin and the Burman - With mythologic shapes adorn their coarse pantheon: - Things breed thoughts; therefore the statue and the picture, - Relics, rosaries, and miracles in act, quicken the Papist in his worship: - Things breed thoughts; therefore the lovers at their parting, - Interchanged with tearful smiles the dear reminding tokens: - Things breed thoughts; therefore when the clansman met his foe, - The bloodstained claymore in his hand revived the memories of vengeance. - - Things teach with double force; through the animal eye, and through the - mind, - And the eye catcheth in an instant, what the ear shall not learn within - an hour. - Thence is the potency of travel, the precious might of its advantages - To compensate its dissipative harm, its toil and cost and danger. - Ulysses, wandering to many shores, lived in many cities, - And thereby learnt the minds of men, and stored his own more richly: - Herodotus, the accurate and kindly, spake of that he saw, - And reaped his knowledge on the spot, in fertile fields of Egypt: - Lycurgus culled from every clime the golden fruits of justice; - And Plato roamed through foreign lands, to feed on truth in all. - For travel, conversant with Things, bringeth them in contact with the - mind; - We breathe the wholesome atmosphere about ungarbled truth: - Pictures of fact are painted on the eye, to decorate the house of - intellect, - Rather than visions of fancy, filling all the chambers with a vapour. - For, in Ideas, the great mind will exaggerate, and the lesser extenuate - truth; - But in Things the one is chastened, and the other quickened, to equality: - And in Names,--though a property be told, rather than some arbitrary - accident, - Still shall the thought be vague or false, if none have seen the Thing: - For in Things the property with accident standeth in a mass concrete, - These cannot cheat the sense, nor elude the vigilance of spirit. - Travel is a ceaseless fount of surface education, - But its wisdom will be simply superficial, if thou add not thoughts to - things: - Yet, aided by the varnish of society, things may serve for thoughts, - Till many dullards that have seen the world shall pass for scholars: - Because one single glance will conquer all descriptions, - Though graphic, these left some unsaid, though true, these tended to some - error; - And the most witless eye that saw, had a juster notion of its object, - Than the shrewdest mind that heard and shaped its gathered thoughts of - Things. - - -[Illustration: of faith] - -OF FAITH. - - Confidence was bearer of the palm; for it looked like conviction of - desert: - And where the strong is well assured, the weaker soon allow it. - Majesty and Beauty are commingled, in moving with immutable decision, - And well may charm the coward hearts that turn and hide for fear. - Faith, firmness, confidence, consistency,--these are well allied; - Yea, let a man press on in aught, he shall not lack of honour: - For such an one seemeth as superior to the native instability of - creatures; - That he doeth, he doeth as a god, and men will marvel at his courage. - Even in crimes, a partial praise cannot be denied to daring, - And many fearless chiefs have won the friendship of a foe. - - Confidence is conqueror of men; victorious both over them and in them; - The iron will of one stout heart shall make a thousand quail: - A feeble dwarf, dauntlessly resolved, will turn the tide of battle, - And rally to a nobler strife the giants that had fled; - The tenderest child, unconscious of a fear, will shame the man to danger, - And when he dared it, danger died, and faith had vanquished fear. - Boldness is akin to power: yea, because ignorance is weakness, - Knowledge with unshrinking might will nerve the vigorous hand: - Boldness hath a startling strength; the mouse may fright a lion, - And oftentimes the horned herd is scared by some brave cur. - Courage hath analogy with faith, for it standeth both in animal and moral; - The true is mindful of a God, the false is stout in self: - But true or false, the twain are faith; and faith worketh wonders: - Never was a marvel done upon the earth, but it had sprung of faith: - Nothing noble, generous, or great, but faith was the root of the - achievement; - Nothing comely, nothing famous, but its praise is faith. - Leonidas fought in human faith, as Joshua in divine: - Xenophon trusted to his skill, and the sons of Mattathias to their cause: - In faith Columbus found a path across those untried waters; - The heroines of Arc and Saragossa fought in earthly faith: - Tell was strong, and Alfred great, and Luther wise, by faith; - Margaret by faith was valiant for her son, and Wallace mighty for his - people: - Faith in his reason made Socrates sublime, as faith in his science, - Galileo: - Ambassadors in faith are bold, and unreproved for boldness: - Faith urged Fabius to delays, and sent forth Hannibal to Cannæ: - Cæsar at the Rubicon, Miltiades at Marathon; both were sped by faith. - I set not all in equal spheres: I number not the martyr with the patriot; - I class not the hero with his horse, because the twain have courage; - But only for ensample and instruction, that all things stand by faith; - Albeit faith of divers kinds, and varying in degree. - There is a faith towards men, and there is a faith towards God; - The latter is the gold and the former is the brass; but both are sturdy - metal: - And the brass mingled with the gold floweth into rich Corinthian; - A substance bright and hard and keen, to point Achilles' spear: - So shall thou stop the way against the foes that hem thee; - Trust in God to strengthen man;--be bold, for He doth help. - -[Illustration] - - Yet more: for confidence in man, even to the worst and meanest, - Hath power to overcome his ill, by charitable good. - Fling thine unreserving trust even on the conscience of a culprit, - Soon wilt thou shame him by thy faith, and he will melt and mend: - The nest of thieves will harm thee not, if thou dost bear thee boldly; - Boldly, yea and kindly, as relying on their honour: - For the hand so stout against aggression, is quite disarmed by charity; - And that warm sun will thaw the heart case-hardened by long frost. - Treat men gently, trust them strongly, if thou wish their weal; - Or cautious doubt and bitter thoughts will tempt the best to foil thee. - Believe the well in sanguine hope, and thou shall reap the better; - But if thou deal with men so ill, thy dealings make them worse; - Despair not of some gleams of good still lingering in the darkest, - And among veterans in crime, plead thou as with their children: - So, astonied at humanities, the bad heart long estranged, - Shall even weep to feel himself so little worth thy love; - In wholesome sorrow will he bless thee; yea, and in that spirit may - repent; - Thus wilt thou gain a soul, in mercy given to thy Faith. - - Look aside to lack of faith, the mass of ills it bringeth: - All things treacherous, base, and vile, dissolving the brotherhood of men. - Bonds break; the cement hath lost its hold; and each is separate from - other; - That which should be neighbourly and good, is cankered into bitterness - and evil. - O thou serpent, fell Suspicion, coiling coldly round the heart,-- - O thou asp of subtle Jealousy, stinging hotly to the soul,-- - O distrust, reserve, and doubt,--what reptile shapes are here, - Poisoning the garden of a world with death among its flowers! - No need of many words, the tale is easy to be told; - A point will touch the truth, a line suggest the picture. - For if, in thine own home, a cautious man and captious, - Thou hintest at suspicion of a servant, thou soon wilt make a thief; - Or if, too keen in care, thou dost evidently disbelieve thy child, - Thou hast injured the texture of his honour, and smoothed to him the way - of lying: - Or if thou observest upon friends, as seeking thee selfishly for interest, - Thou hast hurt their kindliness to thee, and shalt be paid with scorn; - Or if, O silly ones of marriage, your foul and foolish thoughts, - Harshly misinterpreting in each the levity of innocence for sin, - Shall pour upon the lap of home pain where once was pleasure, - And mix contentions in the cup, that mantled once with comforts, - Bitterly and justly shall ye rue the punishment due to unbelief; - Ye trust not each the other, nor the mutual vows of God; - Take heed, for the pit may now be near, a pit of your own digging,-- - Faith abused tempteth unto crime, and doubt may make its monster. - - Man verily is vile, but more in capability than action; - His sinfulness is deep, but his transgressions may be few, even from the - absence of temptation: - He is hanging in a gulf midway, but the air is breathable about him: - Thrust him not from that slight hold, to perish in the vapours underneath. - For, God pleadeth with the deaf, as having ears to hear, - Christ speaketh to the dead, as those that are capable of living; - And an evil teacher is that man, a tempter to much sin, - Who looketh on his hearers with distrust, and hath no confidence in - brethren. - All may mend; and sympathies are healing: and reason hath its influence - with the worst; - And in those worst is ample hope, if only thou hast charity, and faith. - - Somewhiles have I watched a man exchanging the sobriety of faith, - Old lamps for new,--even for fanatical excitements. - He gained surface, but lost solidity; heat, in lieu of health; - And still with swelling words and thoughts he scorned his ancient - coldness: - But, his strength was shorn as Samson's; he walked he knew not whither; - Doubt was on his daily path; and duties shewed not certain: - Until, in an hour of enthusiasm, stung with secret fears, - He pinned the safety of his soul on some false prophet's sleeve. - And then, that sure word failed; and with it, failed his faith; - It failed, and fell; O deep and dreadful was his fall in faith! - He could not stop, with reason's rein, his coursers on the slope, - And so they dashed him down the cliff of hardened unbelief. - With overreaching grasp he had strained for visionary treasures, - But a fiend had cheated his presumption, and hurled him to despair. - So he lay in his blood, the victim of a credulous false faith, - And many nights, and night-like days, he dwelt in outer darkness. - But, within a while, his variable mind caught a new impression, - A new impression of the good old stamp, that sealed him when a child: - He was softened, and abjured his infidelity; he was wiser, and despised - his credulity; - And turned again to simple faith more simply than before. - Experience had declared too well his mind was built of water, - And so, renouncing strength in self, he fixed his faith in God. - - It is not for me to stipulate for creeds; Bible, Church, and Reason, - These three shall lead the mind, if any can, to truth. - But I must stipulate for faith: both God and man demand it: - Trust is great in either world, if any would be well. - Verily, the sceptical propensity is an universal foe; - Sneering Pyrrho never found, nor cared to find, a friend: - How could he trust another? and himself, whom would he not deceive? - His proper gains were all his aim, and interests clash with kindness. - So, the Bedouin goeth armed, an enemy to all, - The spear is stuck beside his couch, the dagger hid beneath his pillow. - For society, void of mutual trust, of credit, and of faith, - Would fall asunder as a waterspout, snapped from the cloud's attraction. - - Faith may rise into miracles of might, as some few wise have shown: - Faith may sink into credulities of weakness, as the mass of fools have - witnessed. - Therefore, in the first, saints and martyrs have fulfilled their mission, - Conquering dangers, courting deaths, and triumphing in all. - Therefore, in the last, the magician and the witch, victims of their own - delusion, - Have gained the bitter wages of impracticable sins. - They believed in allegiance with Satan; they worked in that belief, - And thereby earned the loss and harm of guilt that might not be. - For, faith hath two hands; with the one it addeth virtue to indifferents; - Yea, it sanctified a Judith and a Jael, for what otherwise were treachery - and murder: - With the other hand it heapeth crime even on impossibles or simples, - And many a wizard well deserved the faggot for his faith: - He trusted in his intercourse with evil, he sacrificed heartily to fiends, - He withered up with curses to the limit of his will, and was vile, - because he thought himself a villain. - - A great mind is ready to believe, for he hungereth to feed on facts, - And the gnawing stomach of his ignorance craveth unceasing to be filled: - A little mind is boastful and incredulous, for he fancieth all knowledge - is his own, - So will he cavil at a truth; how should it be true, and he not know it?-- - There is an easy scheme, to solve all riddles by the sensual, - And thus, despising mysteries, to feel the more sufficient; - For it comforteth the foul hard heart, to reject the pure unseen, - And relieveth the dull soft head, to hinder one from gazing upon vacancy. - True wisdom, labouring to expound, heareth others readily; - False wisdom, sturdy to deny, closeth up her mind to argument. - The sum of certainties is found so small, their field so wide an universe, - That many things may truly be, which man hath not conceived: - The characters revealed of God are a strong mind's sole assurance - That any strangeness may not stand a sober theme for faith. - Ignorance being light denied, this ought to show the stronger in its view, - But ignorance is commonly a double negative, both of light and morals: - So, adding vanity to blindness, for ease, it taketh refuge in a doubt, - And aching soon with ceaseless doubt, it finisheth the strife by - misbelieving. - - Faith, by its very nature, shall embrace both credence and obedience: - Yea, the word for both is one, and cannot be divided. - For, work void of faith, wherein can it be counted for a duty; - And faith not seen in work,--whereby can the doctrine be discovered? - Faith in religion is an instrument; a handle, and the hand to turn it: - Less a condition than a mean, and more an operation than a virtue. - A moral sickness, like to sin, must have a moral cure; - And faith alone can heal the mind, whose malady is sense. - Ye are told of God's deep love: they that believe will love Him: - They that love Him, will obey: and obedience hath its blessing. - Ye are taught of the soul's great price; they that believe will prize it, - And, prizing soul, will cherish well the hopes that make it happy. - Effects spring from feelings; and feelings grow of faith: - If a man conceive himself insulted, will not his anger smite? - Thus, let a soul believe his state, his danger, destiny, redemption, - Will he not feel eager to be safe, like him that kept the prison at - Philippi? - - A mother had an only son, and sent him out to sea: - She was a widow, and in penury; and he must seek his fortunes. - How often in the wintry nights, when waves and winds were howling, - Her heart was torn with sickening dread, and bled to see her boy. - And on one sunny morn, when all around was comfort, - News came, that weeks agone, the vessel had been wrecked; - Yea, wrecked, and he was dead! they had seen him perish in his agony: - Oh then, what agony was like to her's,--for she believed the tale. - She was bowed and broken down with sorrow, and uncomforted in prayer; - Many nights she mourned, and pined, and had no hope but death. - But on a day, while sorely she was weeping, a stranger broke upon her - loneliness,-- - He had news to tell, that weather-beaten man, and must not be denied: - And what were the wonder-working words that made this mourner joyous, - That swept her heaviness away, and filled her world with praise? - Her son was saved,--is alive,--is near!--O did she stop to question? - No, rushing in the force of faith, she met him at the door! - - -OF HONESTY. - -[Illustration: "A"] - - All is vanity that is not honesty;--thus is it graven on the tomb: - And there is no wisdom but in piety;--so the dead man preacheth: - For, in a simple village church, among those classic shades - Which sylvan Evelyn loved to rear, (his praise, and my delight,) - These, the words of truth, are writ upon his sepulchre - Who learnt much lore, and knew all trees, from the cedar to the hyssop on - the wall. - A just conjunction, godliness and honesty; ministering to both worlds, - Well wed, and ill to be divided, a pair that God hath joined together. - I touch not now the vulgar thought, as of tricks and cheateries in trade; - I speak of honest purpose, character, speech and action. - For an honest man hath special need of charity, and prudence, - Of a deep and humbling self-acquaintance, and of blessed commerce with - his God, - So that the keennesses of truth may be freed from asperities of censure, - And the just but vacillating mind be not made the pendulum of arguments: - For a false reason, shrewdly put, can often not be answered on the - instant, - And prudence looketh unto faith, content to wait solutions; - Yea, it looketh, yea, it waiteth, still holding honesty in leash, - Lest, as a hot young hound, it track not game, but vermin. - Many a man of honest heart, but ignorant of self and God, - Hath followed the marsh-fires of pestilence, esteeming them the lights of - truth; - He heard a cause, which he had not skill to solve,--and so received it - gladly; - And that cause brought its consequence, of harm to an unstable soul. - Prudence, for a man's own sake, never should be separate from honesty; - And charity, for other's good, and his, must still be joined therewith: - For the harshly chiding tongue hath neither pleasuring nor profit, - And the cold unsympathizing heart never gained a good. - Sin is a sore, and folly is a fever; touch them tenderly for healing; - The bad chirurgeon's awkward knife harmeth, spite of honesty. - Still, a rough diamond is better than the polished paste,-- - That courteous flattering fool, who spake of vice as virtue: - And honesty, even by itself, though making many adversaries - Whom prudence might have set aside, or charity have softened, - Evermore will prosper at the last, and gain a man great honour - By giving others many goods, to his own cost and hindrance. - - Freedom is father of the honest, and sturdy Independence is his brother; - These three, with heart and hand, dwell together in unity. - The blunt yeoman, stout and true, will speak unto princes unabashed: - His mind is loyal, just and free, a crystal in its plain integrity; - What should make such an one ashamed? where courtiers kneel, he - standeth;-- - I will indeed bow before the king, but knees were knit for God. - And many such there be, of a high and noble conscience, - Honourable, generous, and kind, though blest with little light: - What should he barter for his Freedom? some petty gain of gold? - Free of speech, and free in act, magnates honour him for boldness: - Long may he flourish in his peace, and a stalwarth race around him, - Rooted in the soil like oaks, and hardy as the pine upon the mountains! - - Yet, there be others, that will truckle to a lie, selling honesty for - interest: - And do they gain?--they gain but loss; a little cash, with scorn. - Behold, the sorrowful change wrought upon a fallen nature: - He hath lost his own esteem, and other men's respect; - For the buoyancy of upright faith, he is clothed in the heaviness of - cringing; - For plain truth where none could err, he hath chosen tortuous paths; - In lieu of his majesty of countenance--the timorous glances of servility; - Instead of Freedom's honest pride,--the spirit of a slave. - - Nevertheless, there is something to be pleaded, even for a necessary - guile, - Whilst the world, and all that is therein, lieth deep in evil. - Who can be altogether honest,--a champion never out of mail, - Ready to break a lance for truth with every crowding error? - Who can be altogether honest,--dragging out the secresies of life, - And risking to be lashed and loathed for each unkind disclosure? - Who can be altogether honest,--living in perpetual contentions, - And prying out the petty cheats that swell the social scheme? - For he must speak his instant mind,--a mind corrupt and sinful, - Exhibiting to other men's disgust its undisguised deformities: - He must utter all the hatred of his heart, and add to it the venom of his - tongue; - Shall he feel, and hide his feelings? that were the meanness of a - hypocrite:-- - Still, O man, such hypocrisy is better, than this bold honesty to sin: - Kill the feeling, or conceal it: let shame at least do the work of - charity. - - O charity, thou livest not in warnings, meddling among men, - Rebuking every foolish word, and censuring small sins; - This is not thy secret,--rather wilt thou hide their multitude, - And silence the condemning tongue, and wearisome exhortation. - But for thee, thy strength and zeal shine in encouragement to good, - Lifting up the lantern of ensample, that wanderers may find the way: - That lantern is not lit to gaze on all the hatefulness of evil, - But set on high for life and light, the loveliness of good. - The hard censorious mind sitteth as a keen anatomist - Tracking up the fibres in corruption, and prying on a fearful corpse: - But the charitable soul is a young lover, enamoured little wisely, - That saw no fault in her he loved, and sought to see one less; - So, in his kind and genial light, she grew more worthy of his love; - Won to good by gentle suns, and not by frowning tempest. - - Verily, infirm thyself,--be slow to chide a brother's imperfections; - For many times the decent veil must hang on faults of nature: - And the rude hands, that rend it, offend against the modesty of right, - While seeming zeal, and its effort to do good, is only feigned - self-praise: - Often will the meannesses of life, hidden away in corners, - Prove wisdom; and the generous is glad to leave them unregarded in the - shade. - The follies none are found to praise, let them die unblamed; - Thine honest strife will only tend to make some think them wise: - And small conventional deceits, let them live uncensured: - Or if thou war with pigmies, thou shalt haply help the cranes. - Where to be blind was safety, Ovid had been wise for winking: - And when a tell-tale might do harm, be sure it is prudent to be dumb; - That which is just and fit is often found combating with honesty: - In the cause of good, be wise; and in a case indifferent, keep silence. - - Let honesty's unblushing face be shaded by the mantle of humility, - So shall it shine a lamp of love, and not the torch of strife: - Otherwise the lantern of Diogenes, presumptuously thrust before the face, - If it never find an honest man, shall often make an angered. - Let honesty be companied by charity of heart, lest it walk unwelcome; - Or the mouthing censor of others and himself, soon shall sink to scorn. - Let honesty be added unto innocence of life: then a man may only be its - martyr; - But if openness of speech be found with secresy of guilt, the martyr will - be seen a malefactor. - - There is a cunning scheme, to put on surface bluntness, - And cover still deep water, with the clamorous ripples of a shallow. - For a man, to gain his selfish ends, will make a stalking-horse of - honesty; - And hide his poaching limbs behind, that he may cheat the quicker. - Such an one is loud and ostentatious, full of oaths for argument, - Boastful of honour and sincerity, and not to be put down by facts: - He is obstinate, and sheweth it for firmness; he is rude, displaying it - for truth; - And glorieth in doggedness of temper, as if it were uncompromising - justice. - Be aware of such a man; his brawling covereth designs; - This specious show of honesty cometh as the herald of a thief: - His feint is made with awkward clashing on the buckler's boss, - But meanwhile doth his secret skill ensure its fatal aim. - This is the hypocrite of honesty; ye may know him by an overacted part; - Taking pains to turn and twist, where other men walk straight; - Or walking straight, he will not step aside to let another pass, - But roughly pusheth on, provoking opposition on the way; - He is full of disquietude for calmness, full of intriguing for simplicity, - Valorous with those who cannot fight, and humble to the brave: - Where brotherly advice were good, this man rudely blameth, - And on some small occasion, flattereth with coarse praise. - The craven in a lion's skin hath conquered by his character for courage; - Sheep's clothing helped the wolf, till he slew by his character for - kindness. - - For honesty hath many gains, and well the wise have known - This will prosper to the end, and fill their house with gold. - The phosphorus of cheatery will fade, and all its profits perish, - While honesty with growing light endureth as the moon. - Yea, it would be wise in a world of thieves, where cheating were a virtue, - To dare the vice of honesty, if any would be rich. - For that which by the laws of God is heightened into duty, - Ever, in the practice of a man, will be seen both policy and privilege. - Thank God, ye toilers for your bread, in that, daily labouring, - He hath suffered the bubbles of self-interest to float upon the stream of - duty: - For honesty, of every kind, approved by God and man, - Of wealth and better weal is found the richest cornucopia. - Tempered by humbleness and charity, honesty of speech hath honour; - And mingled well with prudence, honesty of purpose hath its praise: - Trust payeth homage unto truth, rewarding honesty of action: - And all men love to lean on him, who never failed nor fainted. - Freedom gloweth in his eyes, and Nobleness of nature at his heart, - And Independence took a crown and fixed it on his head: - So, he stood in his integrity, just and firm of purpose, - Aiding many, fearing none, a spectacle to angels, and to men: - Yea,--when the shattered globe shall rock in the throes of dissolution, - Still, will he stand in his integrity, sublime--an honest man. - - -OF SOCIETY. - -[Illustration: "B"] - - Better is the mass of men, Suspicion, than thy fears, - Kinder than thy thoughts, O chilling heart of Prudence, - Purer than thy judgments, ascetic tongue of Censure, - In all things worthier to love, if not also wiser to esteem. - Yea, let the moralist condemn, there be large extenuations of his verdict, - Let the misanthrope shun men and abjure, the most are rather loveable - than hateful. - How many pleasant faces shed their light on every side, - How many angels unawares have crossed thy casual way! - How often, in thy journeyings, hast thou made thee instant friends, - Found, to be loved a little while, and lost, to meet no more; - Friends of happy reminiscence, although so transient in their converse, - Liberal, cheerful, and sincere, a crowd of kindly traits. - I have sped by land and sea, and mingled with much people, - But never yet could find a spot, unsunned by human kindness; - Some more, and some less,--but truly all can claim a little; - And a man may travel through the world, and sow it thick with friendships. - - There be indeed, to say it in all sorrow, bad apostate souls, - Deserted of their ministering angels, and given up to liberty of sin,-- - And other some, the miserly and mean, whose eyes are keen and greedy, - With stony hearts, and iron fists, to filch and scrape and clutch,-- - And others yet again, the coarse in mind, selfish, sensual, brutish, - Seeming as incapable of softer thoughts, and dead to better deeds; - Such, no lover of the good, no follower of the generous and gentle, - Can nearer grow to love, than may consist with pity. - Few verily are these among the mass, and cast in fouler moulds, - Few and poor in friends, and well-deserving of their poverty: - Yet, or ever thou hast harshly judged, and linked their presence to - disgust, - Consider well the thousand things that made them all they are. - Thou hast not thought upon the causes, ranged in consecutive necessity, - Which tended long to these effects, with sure constraining power. - For each of those unlovely ones, if thou couldst hear his story, - Hath much to urge of just excuse, at least as men count justice: - Foolish education, thwarted opportunities, natural propensities - unchecked,-- - Thus were they discouraged from all good, and pampered in their evil; - And, if thou wilt apprehend them well, tenderly looking on temptations, - Bearing the base indulgently, and liberally dealing with the froward, - Thou shalt discern a few fair fruits even upon trees so withered, - Thou shalt understand how some may praise, and some be found to love them. - - Nevertheless for these, my counsel is, Avoid them if thou canst; - For the finer edges of thy virtues will be dulled by attrition with their - vice. - And there is an enemy within thee; either to palliate their sin, - Until, for surface-sweetness, thou too art drawn adown the vortex; - Or, even unto fatal pride, to glorify thy purity by contrast, - Until the publican and harlot stand nearer heaven than the Pharisee: - Or daily strife against their ill, in subtleness may irritate thy soul, - And in that struggle thou shall fail, even through infirmity of goodness; - Or, callous by continuance of injuries, thou wilt cease to pardon, - Cease to feel, and cease to care, a cold case-hardened man. - Beware of their example,--and thine own; beware the hazards of the battle; - But chiefly be thou ware of this, an unforgiving spirit. - Many are the dangers and temptations compassing a bad man's presence; - The upas hath a poisonous shade, and who would slumber there? - Wherefore, avoid them if thou canst; only, under providence and duty, - If thy lot be cast with Kedar, patiently and silently live to their - rebuke. - - How beautiful thy feet, and full of grace thy coming, - O better kind companion, that art well for either world! - There is an atmosphere of happiness floating round that man, - Love is throned upon his heart, and light is found within his dwelling: - His eyes are rayed with peacefulness, and wisdom waiteth on his tongue; - Seek him out, cherish him well, walking in the halo of his influence: - For he shall be fragrance to thy soul, as a garden of sweet lilies, - Hedged and apart from the outer world, an island of the blest among the - seas. - - There is an outer world, and there is an inner centre; - And many varying rings concentric round the self. - For, first, about a man,--after his communion with Heaven,-- - Is found the helpmate even as himself, the wife of his vows and his - affections: - See then that ye love in faith, scorning petty jealousies, - For Satan spoileth too much love, by souring it with doubts; - See that intimacy die not to indifference, nor anxiety sink into - moroseness, - And tend ye well the mutual minds bound in a copartnership for life. - - Next of those concentric circles, radiating widely in circumference, - Wheel in wheel, and world in world,--come the band of children: - A tender nest of soft young hearts, each to be separately studied, - A curious eager flock of minds, to be severally tamed and tutored. - And a man, blest with these, hath made his own society, - He is independent of the world, hanging on his friends more loosely: - For the little faces round his hearth are friends enow for him, - If he seek others, it is for sake of these, and less for his own pleasure. - What companionship so sweet, yea, who can teach so well - As these pure budding intellects, and bright unsullied hearts? - What voice so musical as theirs, what visions of elegance so comely, - What thoughts and hopes and holy prayers, can others cause like these? - If ye count society for pastime,--what happier recreation than a - nurseling, - Its winning ways, its prattling tongue, its innocence and mirth? - If ye count society for good,--how fair a field is here, - To guide these souls to God, and multiply thyself for heaven! - And this sweet social commerce with thy children groweth as their growth, - Unless thou fail of duty, or have weaned them by thine absence. - Keep them near thee, rear them well, guide, correct, instruct them; - And be the playmate of their games, the judge in their complainings. - So shall the maiden and the youth love thee as their sympathizing friend, - And bring their joys to share with thee, their sorrows for consoling: - Yea, their inmost hopes shall yearn to thee for counsel, - They will not hide their very loves, if thou hast won their trust; - But, even as man and woman, shall they gladly seek their father, - Feeling yet as children feel, though void of fear in honour: - And thou shall be a Nestor in the camp, the just and good old man, - Hearty still, though full of years, and held the friend of all; - No secret shall be kept from thee; for if ill, thy wisdom may repair it; - If well, thy praise is precious; and they would not miss that prize. - O the blessing of a home, where old and young mix kindly, - The young unawed, the old unchilled, in unreserved communion! - O that refuge from the world, when a stricken son or daughter - May seek, with confidence of love, a father's hearth and heart; - Sure of a welcome, though others cast them out; of kindness, though men - scorn them; - And finding there the last to blame, the earliest to commend. - Come unto me, my son, if sin shall have tempted thee astray, - I will not chide thee like the rest, but help thee to return; - Come unto me, my son, if men rebuke and mock thee, - There always shall be one to bless,--for I am on thy side! - -[Illustration] - - Alas,--and bitter is their loss, the parents, and the children, - Who, loving up and down the world, have missed each other's friendship. - Haply, it had grown of careless life, for years go swiftly by; - Or sprang of too much carefulness, that drank up all the streams: - Haply, sullen disappointment came and quenched the fire; - Haply, sternness, or misrule, crushed or warped the feelings. - Then, ill-combined in tempers, they learnt not each the other; - The growing child grew out of love, and drew the breath of fear; - The youth, ill-trained, renounced his fears, and made a league with - cunning; - And so those hardened men were foes, that should have been chief friends. - Where was the cause, the mutual cause? O hunt it out to kill it: - And what the cure, the simple cure?--A mutual flash of love. - For dull estrangement's daily air froze up those early sympathies - By cold continuance in apathy, or cutting winds of censure; - It was a slow process, which any fleeting hour could have melted; - But every hour duly came, and passed without the sun. - Caution, care, and dry distrust, obscured each other's minds, - Till both those gardens, rich to yield, were rank with many weeds: - And doubt, a hidden worm, gnawed at the root of their Society, - They lacked of mutual confidence, and lived in mutual dread. - Judge me, many fathers; and hearken to my counsel, many sons; - I come with good in either hand, to reconcile contentions; - For better friends can no man have, than those whom God hath given, - And he that hath despised the gift, thought ill of that he knew not. - Be ye wiser,--(I speak unto the sons,)--and win paternal friendships, - Cultivate their kindness, seek them out with honour, and be the screening - Japhet to their failings: - And be ye wiser,--(I speak unto the fathers)--gain those filial comrades, - Cherish their reasonable converse, and look not with coldness on your - children. - For the friendship of a child is the brightest gem set upon the circlet - of Society, - A jewel worth a world of pains--a jewel seldom seen. - - The third cycle on the waters, another of those rings upon the onyx, - A further definite broad zone, holdeth kith and kin: - A motley band of many tribes, and under various banners; - The intimate and strangers, the known and loved, or only seen for - loathing: - Some, dear for their deserts, shall honour and have honour of - relationship, - Some, despising duties, will add to it both burden and disgrace. - A man's nearest kin are oftentimes far other than his dearest, - Yet in the season of affliction those will haste to help him. - For, note thou this, the providence of God hath bound up families - together, - To mutual aid and patient trial; yea, those ties are strong. - Friends are ever dearer in thy wealth, but relations to be trusted in thy - need, - For these are God's appointed way, and those the choice of man: - There is lower warmth in kin, but smaller truth in friends, - The latter show more surface, and the first have more of depth: - Relations rally to the rescue, even in estrangement and neglect, - Where friends will have fled at thy defeat, even after promises and - kindness; - For friends come and go, the whim that bound may loose them, - But none can dissever a relationship, and Fate hath tied the knot. - - Wide, and edged with shadowy bounds, a distant boulevard to the city, - The common crowd of social life is buzzing round about: - That is as the outer court, with all defences levelled, - Ranged around a man's own fortress, and his father's house. - For many friends go in and out, and praise thee, finding pasture, - And some are honeycomb to-day, who turn to gall to-morrow: - And many a garrulous acquaintance with his frequent visit - Will spend his leisure to thy cost, selling dulness dearly: - For the idle call is a heavy tax, where time is counted gold, - And even in the day of relaxation, haply he may spare his presence,-- - He found himself alone, and came to talk,--till they that hear are tired; - Let the man bethink him of an errand, that his face be not unwelcome. - - But many friends there be, both well and wisely greeted, - Gladly are they hailed upon the hills, and are chidden that they come so - seldom. - Of such are the early recollections, school friendships that have thriven - to grey hairs, - And veteran men are young once more, and talk of boyish pranks: - And such, yet older on the list, are those who loved thy father, - Thy father's friend, and thine, who tendereth thee tried love: - Such also, many gentle hearts, whom thou hast known too lately, - Hastening now to learn their worth, and chary of those minutes: - And such, thy faithful pastor, coming to thy home with peace;-- - Greet the good man heartily,--and bid thy children bless him! - - Many thoughts, many thoughts,--who can catch them all? - The best are ever swiftest winged, the duller lag behind: - For, behold, in these vast themes, my mind is as a forest of the West, - And flocking pigeons come in clouds, and bend the groaning branches; - Here for a rest, then off and away,--they have sped to other climes, - And leave me to my peace once more, a holiday from thoughts. - I dare not lure them back, for the mighty subject of Society - Would tempt to many a hackneyed note in many a weary key: - Sage warnings, stout advice, experiences ever to be learned, - The foolish floatiness of vanity, and solemn trumperies of pride,-- - Economy, the poor man's mint,--extravagance, the rich man's pitfall, - Harmful copings with the better, and empty-headed apings of the worse, - Circumstance and custom, sympathies, antipathies, diverse kinds of - conversation, - Vapid pleasures, the weariness of gaiety, the strife and bustle of the - world, - Home comforts, the miseries of style, the cobweb lines of etiquette, - The hollowness of courtesies, and substance of deceits,--idleness, - business, and pastime,-- - The multitude of matters to be done, the when, and where, and how, - And varying shades of character, to do, undo, or miss them,-- - All these, and many more alike, thick converging fancies, - Flit in throngs about my theme, as honey-bees at even to their hive. - Find an end, or make one: these seeds are dragon's teeth: - Sown thoughts grow to things, and fill that field, the world: - Many wise have gone before, and used the sickle well; - Who can find a corner now, where none have bound the sheaves? - So, other some may reap: I do but glean and gather: - My sorry handful hath been culled after the ripe harvest of Society. - - -OF SOLITUDE. - -[Illustration: "W"] - - Who hath known his brother,--or found him in his freedom unrestrained? - Even he, whose hidden glance hath watched his deepest Solitude. - For we walk the world in domino, putting on characters and habits, - And wear a social Janus mask, while others stand around: - I speak not of the hypocrite, nor dream of meant deceptions, - But of that quick unconscious change, whereof the best know most. - - For mind hath its influence on mind; and no man is free but when alone; - Yea, let a dog be watching thee, its eye will tend to thy restraint: - Self-possession cannot be so perfect, with another intellect beside thee, - It is not as a natural result, but rather the educated produce: - The presence of a second spirit must control thine own, - And throw it off its equipoise of peace, to balance by an effort. - The common minds of common men know of this but little; - What then? they know nothing of themselves: I speak to those who know. - The consciousness that some are hearing, cometh as a care, - The sense that some are watching near, bindeth thee to caution; - And the tree of tender nerves shrinketh as a touched mimosa, - Drooping like a plant in drought, with half its strength decayed. - There are antipathies warning from the many, and sympathies drawing to - the few, - But merchant-minds have crushed the first, and cannot feel the latter: - Whereas to the quickened apprehension of a keen and spiritual intellect, - Antipathies are galling, and sympathies oppress, and solitude is quiet. - - He that dwelleth mainly by himself, heedeth most of others, - But they that live in crowds, think chiefly of themselves. - There is indeed a selfish seeming, where the anchorite liveth alone, - But probe his thoughts,--they travel far, dreaming for ever of the world: - And there is an apparent generosity, when a man mixeth freely with his - fellows; - But prove his mind, by day and night, his thoughts are all of self: - The world, inciting him to pleasures, or relentlessly provoking him to - toil, - Is full of anxious rivals, each with a difference of interest; - So must he plan and practise for himself, even as his own best friend; - And the gay soul of dissipation never had a thought unselfish. - The hermit standeth out of strife, abiding in a contemplative calmness; - What shall he contemplate,--himself? a meagre theme for musing: - He hath cast off follies, and kept aloof from cares; a man of simple - wants; - God and the soul, these are his excuse, a just excuse, for solitude: - But he carried with him to his cell the half-dead feelings of humanity; - There were they rested and refreshed; and he yearned once more on men. - -[Illustration] - - Where is the wise, or the learned, or the good, that sought not solitude - for thinking, - And from seclusion's secret vale brought forth his precious fruits? - Forests of Aricia, your deep shade mellowed Numa's wisdom, - Peaceful gardens of Vaucluse, ye nourished Petrarch's love; - Solitude made a Cincinnatus, ripening the hero and the patriot, - And taught De Staël self-knowledge, even in the damp Bastile; - It fostered the piety of Jerome, matured the labours of Augustine, - And gave imperial Charles religion for ambition: - That which Scipio praised, that which Alfred practised, - Which fired Demosthenes to eloquence, and fed the mind of Milton, - Which quickened zeal, nurtured genius, found out the secret things of - science, - Helped repentance, shamed folly, and comforted the good with peace,-- - By all men just and wise, by all things pure and perfect, - How truly, Solitude, art thou the fostering nurse of greatness! - - Enough;--the theme is vast; sear me these necks of Hydra: - What shall drive away the thoughts flocking to this carcase? - Yea,--that all which man may think, hath long been said of Solitude: - For many wise have proved and preached its evils and its good. - I cannot add,--I will not steal; enough, for all is spoken: - Yet heed thou these for practice, and discernment among men. - - There are pompous talkers, solemn, oracular, and dull: - Track them from society to solitude; and there ye find them fools. - There are light-hearted jesters, taking up with company for pastime; - How speed they when alone?--serious, wise, and thoughtful. - And wherefore? both are actors, saving when in solitude, - There they live their truest life, and all things show sincere: - But the fool by pomposity of speech striveth to be counted wise, - And the wise, for holiday and pleasance, playeth with the fool's best - bauble. - The solemn seemer, as a rule, will be found more ignorant and shallow - Than those who laugh both loud and long, content to hide their knowledge. - - For thee; seek thou Solitude, but neither in excess, nor morosely; - Seek her for her precious things, and not of thine own pride. - For there, separate from a crowd, the still small voice will talk with - thee, - Truth's whisper, heard and echoed by responding conscience; - There, shalt thou gather up the ravelled skeins of feeling, - And mend the nets of usefulness, and rest awhile for duties; - There, thou shalt hive thy lore, and eat the fruits of study, - For Solitude delighteth well to feed on many thoughts: - There, as thou sittest peaceful, communing with fancy, - The precious poetry of life shall gild its leaden cares: - There, as thou walkest by the sea, beneath the gentle stars, - Many kindling seeds of good will sprout within thy soul; - Thou shalt weep in Solitude,--thou shalt pray in Solitude, - Thou shalt sing for joy of heart, and praise the grace of Solitude. - Pass on, pass on!--for this is the path of wisdom: - God make thee prosper on the way; I leave thee well with Solitude. - - -RECAPITULATION. - -[Illustration: "E"] - - Every beginning is shrouded in a mist, those vague ideas beyond, - And the traveller setteth on his journey, oppressed with many thoughts, - Balancing his hopes and fears, and looking for some order in the chaos, - Some secret path between the cliffs, that seem to bar his way: - So, he commenceth at a clue, unravelling its tangled skein, - And boldly speedeth on to thread the labyrinth before him. - Then as he gropeth in the darkness, light is attendant on his steps, - He walketh straight in fervent faith, and difficulties vanish at his - presence; - The very flashing of his sword scattereth those shadowy foes; - Confident and sanguine of success, he goeth forth conquering and to - conquer. - - Every middle is burdened with a weariness,--to have to go as far again,-- - And Diligence is sick at heart, and Enterprise foot-sore: - That which began in zeal, bursting as a fresh-dug spring, - Goeth on doggedly in toil, and hath no help of nature: - Then, is need of moral might, to wrestle with the animal re-action, - Still to fight, with few men left, and still though faint pursuing. - The middle is a marshy flat, whereon the wheels go heavily, - With clouds of doubt above, and ruts of discouragement below: - Press on, sturdy traveller, yet a league, and yet a league! - While every step is binding wings on thy victorious feet. - - Every end is happiness, the glorious consummation of design, - The perils past, the fears annulled, the journey at its close: - And the traveller resteth in complacency, home-returned at last: - Work done may claim its wages, the goal gained hath won its prize: - While the labour lasted, while the race was running, - Many-times the sinews ached, and half refused the struggle: - But now, all is quietness, a pleasant hour given to repose; - Calmness in the retrospect of good, and calmness in the prospect of a - blessing. - Hope was glad in the beginning, and fear was sad midway, - But sweet fruition cometh in the end, a harvest safe and sure. - That which is, can never not have been: facts are solid as the pyramids: - A thing done is written in the rock, yea, with a pen of iron. - Uncertainty no more can scare, the proof is seen complete, - Nor accident render unaccomplished, for the deed is finished. - Thus the end shall crown the work, with grace, grace, unto the top-stone, - And the work shall triumph in its crown, with peace, peace, unto the - builder. - - I have written, as other some of old, in quaint and meaning phrase, - Of many things for either world, a crowd of facts and fancies: - And will ye judge me, men of mind?--judge in kindly calmness; - For bitter words of haste or hate have often been repented. - Deep dreaming upon surface reading; imagery crowded over argument; - Order less considered in the multitude of thoughts: this witnessing is - just. - Scripture gave the holier themes, the well-turned words and wisdom; - While Fancy on her swallow's wing skimmed those deeper waters. - And wilt thou say with shrewdness,--He hath burnished up old truths, - But where he seemed to fashion new, the novelty was false? - Alas, for us in these last days, our elders reaped the harvest: - Alas, for all men in all times, who glean so many tares! - That which is true, how should it be new? for time is old in years: - That which is new, how should it be true? for I am young in wisdom: - Nevertheless, I have spoken at my best, according to the mercies given me, - Of high, and deep, and famous things, of Evil, or of Good. - I have told of Errors near akin to Truth, and wholesomes linked with - poison; - Of subtle Uses in the humblest, and the deep laid plots of Pride: - I have praised Wisdom, comforted thy Hope, and proved to thee the folly - of Complainings; - Hinted at the hazard of an Influence, and turned thee from the terrors of - Ambition. - I have shown thee thy captivity to Law: yet bade thee hide Humilities; - I have lifted the curtains of Memory; and smoothed the soft pillow of - Rest. - Experience had his sober hour; and Character its keen appreciation; - And holy Anger stood sublime, where Hatred fell condemned. - Prayer spake the mind of God, even in His own good words: - And Zeal, with kindness warmly mixt, allied him to Discretion. - I taught thee that nothing is a Trifle, even to the laugh of Recreation; - I led thee with the Train of Religion, to be dazzled at the name of the - Triune. - Thought confessed his unseen fears; and Speech declared his triumphs; - I sang the blessedness of books; and commended the prudence of a letter: - Riches found their room, either unto honour--or despising: - Inventions took their lower place, for all things come of God. - I scorned Ridicule; nor would humble me for Praise; for I had gained - Self-knowledge; - And pleaded fervently for Brutes, who suffer for man's sin. - Then, I rose to Friendship; and bathed in all the tenderness of Love; - Knew the purity of Marriage; and blest the face of Children. - And whereas, by petulance or pride, I had haply said some evil, - Mine after-thought was Tolerance, to bear the faults of all: - Many faults, ill to bear, bred the theme of Sorrow; - Many virtues, dear to see, induced the gush of Joy. - - Thus, for awhile, as leaving thee in joy, was I loth to break that spell; - I roamed to other things and thoughts, and fashioned other books. - But in a season of reflection, after many days, - A thought stood before me in its garment of the past,--and lo, a legion - with it! - They came in thronging bands,--I could not fight nor fly them,-- - And so they took me to their tent, the prisoner of thoughts. - - Then, I bade thee greet me well, and heed my cheerful counsels; - For every day we have a Friend, who changeth not with time. - Gladly did I speak of my commission, for I felt it graven on my heart, - And could not hold my wiser peace, but magnified mine office. - Mystery had left her echoes in my mind, and I discoursed her secret: - And thence I turned aside to man, and judged him for his Gifts. - Beauty, noble thesis, had a world of sweets to sing of, - And dated all her praise from God, the birthday of the soul. - Thence grew Fame; and Flattery came like Agag; - But this was as the nauseous dregs, of that inspiring cup: - Forth from Flattery sprang in opposition harsh and dull Neglect; - And kind Contentment's gentle face to smile away the sadness. - Life, all buoyancy and light, and Death, that sullen silence, - Sped the soul to Immortality, the final home of man. - Then, in metaphysical review, passed a triple troop, - Swift Ideas, sounding Names, and heavily armed Things: - Faith spake of her achievements even among men her brethren; - And Honesty, with open mouth, would vindicate himself: - The retrospect of Social life had many truths to tell of, - And then I left thee to thy Solitude, learning there of Wisdom. - - Friend and scholar, lover of the right, mine equal kind companion,-- - I prize indeed thy favour, and these sympathies are dear: - Still, if thy heart be little with me, wot thou well, my brother, - I canvass not the smiles of praise, nor dread the frowns of censure. - Through many themes in many thoughts, have we held sweet converse; - But God alone be praised for mind! He only is sufficient, - And every thought in every theme by prayer had been established: - Who then should fear the face of man, when God hath answered prayer?-- - I speak it not in arrogance of heart, but humbly as of justice, - I think it not in vanity of soul, but tenderly, for gratitude,-- - God hath blest my mind, and taught it many truths: - And I have echoed some to thee, in weakness, yet sincerely: - Yea, though ignorance and error shall have marred those lessons of His - teaching, - I stand in mine own Master's praise, or fall to His reproof. - If thou lovest, help me with thy blessing; if otherwise, mine shall be - for thee; - If thou approvest, heed my words; if otherwise, in kindness be my teacher. - Many mingled thoughts for self have warped my better aim; - Many motives tempted still, to toil for pride or praise: - Alas, I have loved pride and praise, like others worse or worthier; - But hate and fear them now, as snakes that fastened on my hand: - Scævola burnt both hand and crime; but Paul flung the viper on the fire: - He shook it off, and felt no harm: so be it! I renounce them. - Rebuke then, if thou wilt rebuke,--but neither hastily nor harshly; - Or, if thou wilt commend, be it honestly, of right: I work for God and - good. - - -[Illustration: The End of the Second Series] - - - - -BRADBURY, EVANS, AND CO., PRINTERS, WHITEFRIARS. - - - - - * * * * * * - - - - -Transcriber's note: - -Apparent typographical errors have been corrected. - -Hyphenation has been made consistent. - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PROVERBIAL PHILOSOPHY*** - - -******* This file should be named 50064-0.txt or 50064-0.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/5/0/0/6/50064 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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