Rejoice not in thy wealth of house and fields,
Nor build your hopes and bliss on earthly fame;
Earth but a momentary glory yields,
...
Oh, tell me no more of the blisses prevailing
In the tapestried halls of the noble and great,
Oh, tell me no more of the joys never failing,
...
A Little bird I am,
Shut from the fields of air;
And in my cage I sit and sing
To Him, who placed me there;
...
Dark is the watery way
Of life's tempestuous sea:
And none, Oh Christ, are safe, but they
Who put their trust in Thee.
...
Alas, how ceaseless is life's silent tide!
How rapidly onward waters glide!
Not meads nor flowers, that crown its liquid way,
...
I.
Sadly and slow the mourners came
Through Charleston's streets, with bleeding heart;
And breathed their hate on Rawdon's name,
...
Long did the clouds and darkness roll
Around my troubled breast;
No starlight shone upon my soul,
My footsteps found no rest.
...
My heart is in a land afar,
Unseen by mortal eyes;
A clime, that needs nor moon nor star
A land of cloudless skies.
...
Say not, 'tis all a dreary way,
With rocks beset, with briars growing,
Where never beams of sunlight stray,
And ne'er a gentle stream is flowing.
...
If there is sunshine in the face,
And joy upon the brow,
Do not suppose, that there's a trace
Of answering joy below.
...