"A mist envelops them; I cannot trace And all the stars grow dim. The morning breaks." I hope, but cannot tell. I hear a song, "What doth he say-oh, watcher on the tower? "He sings of Brotherhood, and joy and peace, "Well done! thou watcher on the lonely tower! "It breaks-it comes-the misty shadows fly:- THE GOOD TIME COMING. There's a good time coming, boys, But thought's a weapon stronger; There's a good time coming, boys, The pen shall supersede the sword, Worth, not Birth, shall rule mankind, The proper impulse has been given ;— There's a good time coming, boys, A good time coming: War in all men's eyes shall be In the good time coming. To prove which is the stronger; There's a good time coming, boys, Shall not make their martyrs bleed There's a good time coming, boys, There's a good time coming, boys, A good time coming: Let us aid it all we can, Every woman, every man, The good time coming. Smallest helps, if rightly given, Make the impulse stronger; 'Twill be strong enough one day;— Wait a little longer. THE THREE PREACHERS. There are three preachers, ever preaching, Fill'd with eloquence and power. One is old, with locks of white, Skinny as an anchorite; And he preaches every hour With a shrill fanatic voice, And a bigot's fiery scorn:"BACKWARD! ye presumptuous nations; Man to misery is born! Born to drudge, and sweat, and suffer- The second is a milder preacher; High he lifts his fair white hands: Mightier is the younger preacher; While his stirring accents fall;— "Standing still is childish folly, Going backward is a crime; None should patiently endure Any ill that he can cure: ONWARD! keep the march of Time. Onward! while a wrong remains To be conquer'd by the right; While oppression lifts a finger To affront us by his might: While an error clouds the reason Of the universal heart, Or a slave awaits his freedom, Action is the wise man's part. "Lo! the world is rich in blessingsEarth and Ocean, Flame and Wind Have unnumber'd secrets still, To be ransack'd when you will, For the service of mankind; Science is a child as yet, And her power and scope shall grow, And her triumphs in the future Shall diminish toil and woe; Shall extend the bounds of pleasure "ONWARD!-there are ills to conquer, Error intertwined with Thought, Evil was not made to last:- THE BROTHERS HARE. FEW books contain more gems of instructive and suggestive thought, than the <wo volumes of "Guesses at Truth," first and second series, by the two brothers, Charles Julius and Augustus Hare, clergymen of the Church of England. The latter died a few years ago, and the duty of editing their joint productions devolved on the present archdeacon, Charles Julius Hare, whose contributions are marked by the letter U., while those with other marks are written either by his brother or by some congenial friends. In the original preface, the editor says,"If I am addressing one of that numerous class who need to be told what to think, let me advise you to meddle with the book no further. You wish to buy a house ready furnisht: do not come to look for it in a stone-quarry. But, if you are building up your own opinions for yourself, and only want to be provided with materials, you may meet with many things in these pages to suit you." WHAT YOUTH SHOULD LEARN. The teachers of youth, in a free country, should select those books for their chief study-so far, I mean, as this world is concerned which are best adapted to foster a spirit of manly freedom. The duty of preserving the liberty which our ancestors, through God's blessing, won, establisht, and handed down to us, is no less imperative than any commandment in the second table, if it be not the concentration of the whole. And is this duty to be learnt from the investigations of science? Is it to be pickt up in the crucible? or extracted from the properties of lines and numbers? I fear there is a moment of broken lights in the intellectual day of civilized countries, when, among the manifold refractions of Knowledge, Wisdom is almost lost sight of. FREE TRADE. A statesman may do much for commerce, most by leaving it alone. A river never flows so smoothly as when it follows its own course, without either aid or check. Let it make its own bed: it will do so better than you can. MILTON. Of Milton's mind, the leading characteristic is its unity. He has the thoughts of all ages at his command; but he has made them his own. He sits "high on a throne of royal state, adorned With all the wealth of Ormus and of Ind, And where the gorgeous East with richest hand Has showered barbaric pearl and gold." There are no false gems in him, no tinsel. It seems as if nothing could dwell in his mind but what was grand and sterling. |