Father of Universal Man,Where’er in this wide world he roam,Not known to thee by kith or clan,Nor height, nor breadth of mental dome,Nor babbling tongue, nor sounding creed,But by his woe and common need. The pushing Anglo-Saxon race,The Celts with wealth of heart and mind,The Esquimaux of leaden face,The Arabs whom no chain can bind,With […]

Thy plan is best, though it may not agreeWith my conceptions of my needs and rights,And faith may fail to scale its azure heights;Yet still I trust, and leave my cause with Thee. With single eye I sought to do Thy will.I felt Thy smile and left results with Thee;If they have failed, then that […]

The fields lie bare before me now,The fruit is gathered in,Not even seen a grazing cow,Nor heard the blackbird’s din.The heath is brown, and ivy pale,The woodbine berries red,And withered leaves borne on the galeSink down on peaty bed. At morn the fence was covered o’erWith a pale sheet of rime;The earth was like a […]

In the courts of truth tread softly,Though your tread be firm and bold;Your steps may awaken echoes,Resounding through years untold.The trend of the age is onward,And you should not lag behind;If men’s minds are bound with fetters,Perchance you may some unbind. Our creed, say you, needs revising,In line with the growth of light;Be sure you […]

Some men there are who stand so straight,So equipoised, that others’ fateSeems to depend on their behest;And useless all our every questTo gain perfection or renown,Unless we touch the flowing gownOf these high-priests, whose shadows fallWithin themselves, if fall at all. Others are not as straight as these,But more like rough and gnarled trees;But little […]

The battleship its anchor weighs,And belches forth its thunder;Its commodore all classes praise,And at his victories wonder;And well they may–for braver manNe’er wielded sword or sabre;But tell me, brother, if you can,Who did the lowly labor. Below the deck in engine-room,As oilers and coal-heavers?Amidst the smut and ghastly gloom,Who worked the iron levers?And thus it […]

To Mr. Rudyard Kipling[1] True laureate of the Anglo-Saxon race,Whose words have won the hearts of young and old;So free from cant, and yet replete with grace,Or prose or verse it glows like burnished gold;Thy muse is ever loyal to the truth,And those who know thee best forget thy youth. Unbend thy bow and rest […]

“it Was My Fault”[1] Those men are deemed heroes who rush on the foeRegardless of danger, and seek not to knowWhat others may do;Stern duty demands it–why should they falterIf all they hold dear is laid on the altar,And conscience be true? The greatest of all is the man who can sayWhen battle is over […]

“Thank God, we have kept the flag floating.”–General White. Some men, like French, display much dash;They boldly rush upon the foe,Their sword-blades like the lightning flash,As they on helm or hauberk clash;Nor fear the foeman’s blow.We praise them for their gallant deeds;They are the men the Empire needs. But true as they are those who […]

This world is but the shadowOf the world that is to be,A ripple on the surfaceOf a deep, unfathomed sea.God’s plans are always perfect,But long ages interveneFrom the planning of the templeTo the glow upon its sheen;But we can be co-workersIn accomplishing his plan;For in God’s purpose is a placeFor every son of man. The […]

Upon the “table-rock” I stand,And gaze into the depths profound,In ecstacy at sights so grand,And deafened by the soundOf rushing waters, as they leapLike maddened steeds, down hillside steep. The falling spray my head bedews,As gently as a vernal shower;Or, as the Holy Ghost imbuesIn consecrated hour,The soul that inly yearns for love,And seeks it […]

My sweet primrose with thy open face,And with fringe-like leaves, without a traceOf coarseness, either in flower or stem,Among all my plants thou art the gem. My lovely lilies soon disappear;Thy bloom is constant through all the year;In summer’s heat and winter’s cold,Undimmed the light of thy floral gold. Or if thy color be pink, […]

My neighbor’s farm and mine lie side by side,And nothing should our mutual trust divide;But they who made th’ original surveyWere guided by the stars, the records say,So that the line that marks out our domainIs indistinct, and puzzling doubts remain. Our farms are large, and portions near the lineWith rocky soil and stunted spruce […]

A painter, high in worldy fame,Was sought to reproduce by artA likeness of the man whose nameSent darts of anguish through the heartOf mighty monarchs in his day;For he by arms subdued the world.Kingdoms and empires owned his swayAnd bowed beneath his flag unfurled. But Alexander bore a scar,Deep marked upon his royal brow;To paint […]

‘Tis well to have a goal in mind,A life-aim, high and true;Clear as the day, and well defined,And ever kept in view.But God has strewn along the wayBright flowers of every hue.Gather the brightest while you may,For they were meant for you. Heaven’s joy transcends the joys of earth,But if earth’s joys be pureThey must […]

We strolled down by the river side,My sister Nell and I,To watch the waters onward glide,And vessels passing by. On Nature’s floor of lovely green,Bedecked with flowers of gold,The purple sassafras as sheen,Which trumpet vines enfold. We played our youthful games for hours,And told our childish tales;Adorned each brow with fragrant flowers,And slept ‘neath cooling […]

O God, I am ashamed to die,But not the least afraid;Tho’ death’s dark shadow draweth nigh,Atonement has been made For every member of our race,And I on it rely,And hope immortal blooms thro’ grace;I’m not afraid to die. But Thou hast done great things for me,And I have nothing done.To set my sin-bound spirit free,Was […]

“Mamma, what noises do I hear?They keep me wide awake.”“The chirping crickets, little dear;What funny noise they make!” “Yes, ma, but touch their tongues with oil,To take the squeak away;For soon it will their voices spoil,To squeak thus night and day.” Well done, my little girl of three;‘Twould tune our speaking gearTo utter sweeter melodyFor […]

The armies met on Marston Moor,‘Midst lightning’s flash and thunder’s roar;As murky clouds sweep o’er the sky,God’s cannonade with man’s will vie.The Royalists in phalanx strong,By fiery Rupert led along,From Bolton’s cruel massacreTowards York, in hope to keep it freeFrom the Roundheads at any cost.“If York be lost, my crown is lost”–Wrote Charles to this […]

Up to Dunbar our Cromwell went,Not to invade was his intent;But they who first King Charles soldNow turn their backs on friends of old,And principles they then held dearWere sacrificed for self, I fear.Another Stuart they receive,Who knew too well how to deceive;The most perfidious of his race,Corrupt in life, and void of grace,The menial […]