Love or Fame; and Other Poems Part 12

Under the stars, when the shadows fall, Under the stars of night; What is so fair as the jeweled crown Of the azure skies, when the sun is down, Beautiful stars of light!

Under the stars, where the daisies lie Lifeless beneath the snow; Lovely and pure, they have lived a day, Silently pa.s.sing forever away, Lying so meek and low.

Under the stars in the long-ago-- Under the stars to-night; Life is the same, with its great unrest Wearily throbbing within each breast, Searching for truth and light.

Under the stars as they drift along, Far in the azure seas; Beautiful treasures of light and song, Glad'ning the earth as they glide along, What is so fair as these?

Under the stars in the quiet night, Under the stars above; Sweet is the breath of the evening air, Spirits of heaven unseen are there, Weaving a web of love.

Under the stars in the shadowy eve, Glittering stars of truth; Beautiful sprays of eternal light, Laid on the brow of the dusky night, Blossoms of fadeless youth.

Catching the Sunbeams.

Catching the sunbeams, oh, wee dimpled child, Gleefully laughing because they are bright; Knowing, ah! never, my beautiful pet, Ne'er can our fingers imprison the light.

Beautiful suns.h.i.+ne, oh! fair is the light Falling on earth from the heavens above; Beautiful childhood, oh! glad is the sight Filling the world with its measure of love.

Playing with sunbeams, oh, all of us, pet, Toy with the treasures, so s.h.i.+ning and bright; Catching the suns.h.i.+ne we never may hold, Trying like you, to imprison the light.

Sunbeams that glitter and sparkle and s.h.i.+ne-- Life is so full of the beautiful light; Gilding the wings of each fleet-footed day Only to fade in the shadows of night.

Playing with sunbeams, oh! all of us, pet, Long for the treasures so s.h.i.+ning and glad; Finding too late that they slip from our hands, Leaving us heart-sick and weary and sad.

Learning the lessons we never will heed-- Life is so full of the things that we crave; Catching the suns.h.i.+ne oh, darling, each heart Longs for the sunbeams till it reaches the grave.

The Soldier's Grave.

[To the memory of Lieut. Wm. W. Wardell, of the First Ma.s.sachusetts Cavalry, killed May 28, 1864.]

Above his head the cypress waves Its dark green drooping leaves; The sunlight through its branches wide Where bright birds linger side by side A golden net-work weaves.

Within the church-yard's silent gloom He lies in quiet rest; And never more to cold, pale brow, Or proud lips mute with silence now Will loving lips be pressed.

Perhaps even now in death's dark dream He sees the deadly strife; Where brothers fought with blinded eyes, Forgetting all the tender ties That bound them life to life.

Ah! n.o.bly there he proudly rode With honest, warm, true heart; And shrank not from the carnage red, But bravely thee, among the dead, He took a soldier's part.

Yet soon his hands fell helplessly, Low at his trembling side; For on his brow the death drops rose, While in his heart the life-blood froze And died his young life's pride.

The dark brown eyes, whose loving glance Gave happiness to all, Have closed their weary lids for aye Beneath the sunset of life's day, Where dark'ning shadows fall.

Oh, weary years that still creep on Adown the sands of Time, Give back the loving tones of yore, That haunt us here forever more As echoing church bell's chime.

And yet it cannot, cannot be That hearts must ever grieve; Above his head the shadows fall, Yet still the sunbeams s.h.i.+ne through all And mystic splendors weave.

And thus upon the grieving heart That ever weeps for him, The dark clouds fall, yet G.o.d's sweet light Of faith still onward takes its flight, Through shadows vast and grim.

Oh! faint heart, with thy clinging grief, Look upward to the sky; For there, beyond the weary strife, Where angels ever guard thy life, There's One who hears thy cry.

Within the "City of the Dead"

He only lies asleep; And soon his hand will clasp once more Thine own as oft he did of your, With love's pure feeling deep.

Beyond the Sunset are the Hills of G.o.d.

Gleaming folds of read and gold linger in the western sky; Fleecy clouds of purest tint, mingle with the purple dye.

Faintly to the dreamy mind comes the sound of earthly life; Far beyond the s.h.i.+ning banks, cometh rest from worldly strife.

Through the sunset's misty veil, now we look with longing eyes, To behold more beauteous sight than the evening's glor'ous skies.

Slowly now the red banks part, showing what is hidden there; Flus.h.i.+ng hills of shadowy light, piercing through the dark'ning air.

Like the rainbow's promise clear, G.o.d has placed His emblem there, Giving life and trust to all, love unbounded, rich and rare.

Glimpses of a life beyond come to each faint, weary heart, And we long for that bright sh.o.r.e where the loved ones ne'er shall part.

Strange, that souls should still live on, hopeless with their hidden pain; When, would they but read the skies, heaven and hope would come again.

Though the life be weary spent, evening brings the glory near; And beyond the sunset's glow, grand the hills of G.o.d appear.

Never.