REAS'NING at ev'ry step he treads,
Man yet mistakes his way,
While meaner things, whom instinct leads,
Are rarely known to stray.
One silent eve I wander'd late,
And heard the voice of love;
The turtle thus address'd her mate,
And sooth'd the list'ning dove:
'Our mutual bond of faith and truth,
No time shall disengage;
Those blessings of our early youth
Shall cheer our latest age:
While innocense without disguise,
And constancy sincere,
Shall fill the circles of those eyes,
And mine can read them there :
Those ills that wait on all below
Shall ne'er be felt by me,
Or, gently felt, and only so,
As being shar'd with thee.
When lightnings flash among the trees,
Or kites are hov'ring near,
I fear lest thee alone they seize,
And know no other fear.
'Tis then I feel myself a wife,
And press thy wedded side,
Resolv'd a union form'd for life
Death never shall divide.
But, oh! if fickle and unchaste,
(Forgive a transient thought,)
Thou couldst become unkind at last,
And scorn thy present lot,
No need of lightnings from on high,
Or kites with cruel beak;
Denied th' endearments of thine eye,
This widow'd heart would break."
Thus sang the sweet sequester'd bird,
Soft as the passing wind;
And I recorded what I heard,
A lesson for mankind.
Heavenly Wisdom.
How happy is the man who hears
Instruction's warning voice ;
And who celestial wisdom makes
His early, only choice.
For she has treasures greater far
Than east or west unfold;
And her reward is more secure
Than is the gain of gold.
In her right hand she holds to view
A length of happy years;
And in her left, the prize of fame =
And honour bright appears.
She guides the young, with innocence,
In pleasure's path to tread :
A crown of glory she bestows
Upon the hoary head.
According as her labours rise,
So her rewards increase : Her ways are ways of pleasantness, And all her paths are peace.
A Morning in Spring.
Lo! the bright, the rosy morning,
Calls me forth to take the air;
Cheerful spring, with smiles returning,
Ushers in the new-born year.
Nature now in all her beauty,
With her gently-moving tongue,
Prompts me to the pleasing duty,
Of a grateful morning song.
See the early blossoms springing,
See the jocund lambkins play!
Hear the lark and linnet singing,
Welcome to the new-born day.
Vernal music, softly sounding,
Echoes through the verdant grove;
Nature now with life abounding,
Swells with harmony and love.
Now the kind refreshing showers,
Water all the plains around :
An Evening Hymn.
AND now another day is gone,
I'll sing my Maker's praise;
My comforts ev'ry hour make known
His providence and grace.
But how my childhood runs to waste!
My sins, how great their sum!
Lord, give me pardon for the past,
And strength for days to come.
I lay my body down to sleep;
Let angels guard my head,
And through the hours of darkness keep
Their watch around my bed.
With cheerful heart I close my eyes,
Since God will not remove;
And in the morning let me rise,
Rejoicing in his love.
When poverty in vile attire,
Shrinks from the biting blast, Or hovers o'er the pigmy fire, And fears it will not last;
When the fond mother hugs her child
Still closer to her breast;
And the poor infant, frost beguil'd,
Scarce feels that it is prest ;-
Then let your bounteous hand extend
Its blessings to the poor;
Nor spurn the wretched while they bend
All suppliant at your door.
Acknowledgment of Divine Favours.
WHENE'ER I take my walks abroad,
How many poor I see!
What shall I render to my God,
For all his gifts to me!
Not more than others I deserve,
Yet God has given me more;
For I have food while others starve,
Or beg from door to door.
How many children in the street,
Half naked, I behold!
While I am cloth'd from head to feet,
And cover'd from the cold!
While some poor creatures scarce can tell
Where they may lay their head,
I have a home wherein to dwell,
And rest upon my bed.
While others early learn to swear,
And curse, and lie, and steal,
Lord! I am taught thy name to fear,
And do thy holy will.
Are these thy favours, day by day,
To me above the rest?
Then let me love thee more than they,
And try to serve thee best.
Gratitude to the Supreme Being. How cheerful along the gay mead, The daisy and cowslip appear! The flocks, as they carelessly feed Rojoice in the spring of the year. The myrtles that shade the gay bowers, The herbage that springs from the sod,
Trees, plants, cooling fruits, and sweet flowers,
All rise to the praise of my God.
Shall man, the great master of all,
The only insensible prove?
Forbid it, fair Gratitude's call!
Forbid it, Devotion and Love!
The Lord, who such wonders could raise,
And still can destroy with a nod,
My lips shall incessantly praise;
My heart shall rejoice in my God.
FRIENDSHIP, peculiar boon of heav'n,
The noble mind's delight and pride,
To men and angels only giv'n,
To all the lower world deny'd.
While love, unknown among the blest,
Parent of thousand wild desires,
The savage and the human breast
Torments alike, with raging fires.
With bright, but oft destructive gleam,
Alike o'er all his lightnings fly,
The lambent glories only beam
Around the fav'rites of the sky.
Thy gentle flows of guiltless joys,
On fools and villains ne'er descend,
In vain for thee the tyrant sighs,
And hugs a flatt'rer for a friend.
Directress of the brave and just,
O guide us through life's darksome way! And let the tortures of mistrust
On selfish bosoms only prey.
Nor shall thine ardours cease to glow,
When souls to peaceful climes remove:
What rais'd our virtue here below,
Shall aid our happiness above.
Compassion and Foregiveness.
I HEAR the voice of wo;
A brother mortal mourns:
My eyes with tears, for tears o'erflow;
My heart his sighs returns.
I hear the thirsty cry,
The famish'd beg for bread:
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