Life and Literature Part 63

Rebel, because 'tis easy to obey; And scorn, for its own sake, the gracious way.

872

IS THAT ALSO THINE?

A beautiful reply is recorded of a peasant, whose master was displaying to him the grandeur of his estates. Farms, houses, and forests were pointed out in succession, on every hand, as the property of the rich proprietor, who summed up finally by saying, "In short, all that you can see, in every direction, belongs to me." The poor man looked thoughtful for a moment; then, pointing up to heaven, solemnly replied, "And is _that_, also, thine?"

873

THE BETTER LAND.

"I hear thee speak of the better land, Thou callest its children a happy band: Mother! oh where is that radiant sh.o.r.e?

Shall we not seek it and weep no more?

Is it where the flower of the orange blows, And the fire-flies glance through the myrtle boughs?"

"Not there, not there, my child!"

"Is it where the feathery palm trees rise, And the date grows ripe under sunny skies?

Or 'midst the green islands of glittering seas, Where fragrant forests perfume the breeze, And strange, bright birds, on their starry wings Bear the rich hues of all glorious things?"

"Not there, not there, my child!"

"Is it far away, in some region old, Where the rivers wander o'er sands of gold?-- Where the burning rays of the ruby s.h.i.+ne, And the diamond lights up the secret mine, And the pearl gleams forth from the coral strand?

Is it there, sweet mother, that better land?"

"Not there, not there, my child!"

"Eye hath not seen it, my gentle boy!

Ear hath not heard its deep songs of joy; Dreams cannot picture a world so fair-- Sorrow and death may not enter there; Time doth not breathe on its fadeless bloom, For beyond the clouds and beyond the tomb, It is there, it is there, my child!"

--_Mrs. Hemans._

874

Plants look up in heaven, from whence They have their nourishment.

875

Help, when we meet them, Lame dogs over stiles.

876

It is not enough to help an erring brother out of the mire,--we must help to get him upon a rock.

877

History is little more than the register of the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind.

--_Gibbon._

878

My precept to all who build is, that the owner should be an ornament to the house, and not the house to the owner.

--_Cicero._

879

HOME.

Cling to thy home! if there the meanest shed Yield thee a hearth and shelter for thy head, And some poor plot, with vegetables stored, Be all that Heaven allots thee for thy board,-- Unsavory bread, and herbs that scattered grow Wild on the river brink or mountain brow, Yet e'en this cheerless mansion shall provide More heart's repose than all the world beside.

--_From the Greek of Leonidas._

880

DEFINITIONS OF "HOME."

Having offered a prize for the best definition of "Home," London _t.i.t-Bits_ recently received more than five thousand answers. Among those which were adjudged the best were the definitions as follows:

A world of strife shut out, a world of love shut in.

Home is the blossom of which heaven is the fruit.

The best place for a married man after business hours.

Home is the coziest, kindliest, sweetest place in all the world; the scene of our purest earthly joys, and deepest sorrows.

The place where the great are sometimes small, and the small often great.

The father's kingdom, the children's paradise, the mother's world.

881

The ornaments of a home are the friends who frequent it.

--_Emerson._

882

G.o.d hath often a great share in a little house, and but a little share in a great one.