Canada and Other Poems | Page 9

all,
With pride and fondness,
speak his honor'd name,
And listen'd, while a nation's mighty call

Invited him to honor and to fame,
And crowds his praises shout, with
loud acclaim;
He saw in wealthy town his mansion wide,
And in
the country view'd his fields, the same,
Until, in rapture, he had
almost cried,
"In happiness and wealth all others are outvied."
He saw a lovely maiden by his side,
Who soon with him his favor'd
lot would share,
He saw her upward glance of joy and pride,
As to
his eyes she rais'd her face so fair,
So proudly glad that he, her lord,
was there.
And all unconscious of her own sweet grace,
But,
confident in his protecting care,
She gave him first within her mind
the place,
And raised him high above all others of his race.

And now, how joyful rings the marriage bell,
Upon the brightest
morn in his career.
He proudly hears the mighty organ swell,
While
orange buds, and bridal robes, appear,
And people stop, the merry
notes to hear.
And now the organ peals its parting strain,
And,
issuing forth, they hear a stirring cheer,
While, crowds surround the
stately marriage train,
To cheer him and his bride, and cheer them
once again.
These are the thoughts that fill his boyish mind,
And agitate and fire
his youthful breast,
Oh, why should fortune oft' be so unkind,
And
real life appear in sombre colors drest,
And dash to earth bright hopes,
and give so much unrest?
Oh, why should boyish hopes, and maiden's
dreams
Fail, sadly fail, to stand the crucial test?
Say, why should all
the brightness of man's schemes
Full often fade away, like earth's
forgotten themes?
Why do you ask, O sad inquirer? How
Can things like that be known
to mortal ken?
Suffice it, that it suits the mortal Now,
And leads our
thoughts to the eternal Then,
When darkness shall be light, to
ransom'd men,
When dreams of bliss, with glad fruition crown'd,

And happiness, untold by prophet's pen,
Shall fill the hearts of those
who sought and found
That peace, which lighted up, and cheer'd life's
weary
round.

HAPPINESS.
Fair Happiness, I've courted thee,
And used each cunning art and wile,

Which lovers use with maidens coy,
To win one tender glance or
smile.
Thou hast been coy as any maid,
So lofty, distant, stern and
cold,
And guarded from a touch of mine,
As miser guards his
precious gold.
To win a smile from thee, did seem
A painful, fruitless thing to try,


Thy scornful, thin and cruel lips,
No pity gave thy steely eye.
Thy countenance, so sternly set,
Did seem to say how vain to knock

At thy heart's door, for all within
Was hard, as adamantine rock.
Thus unto me thy visage seem'd,
But faces do not always tell
The
feelings of the heart within,
Or thoughts that underneath them dwell.
For e'en at times, I saw thy face
Relax, and look with pity down,
On
struggling, weary mortals here,
Without one scornful glance or frown.
At times I've seen thy steely eye,
Sheath'd with a look of tender love,

As if thou saw our mortal woes,
And fain would help, but dare not
move.
As if some higher power than thine,
Directed all things here below,

And for some wise and happy end,
Let struggling mortals suffer woe.
Except at times, when from thy face,
A cheerful light is shed on men,

And when, withdrawn within thyself,
We, hopeful, watch for it
again.
Such is the happiness of earth,--
A sudden light, a glancing beam,

Which cheers us in our lonely bark,
Upon times dark, relentless
stream.
The stormy waves roll darkling on,
And with the current we must go,

Perchance to meet some cheerful beams
Of happiness, amid our
woe.
But, if we guide our bark aright,
And guard the precious tenant there,

We soon shall reach a sea of light,
From this dark, troubl'd stream
of care.
Then, may we never let the shade
Of bitter trouble and despair,

Hide from our eyes the happy gleams,
Which even we, at times, may

share.

LOVE.
Thou source of bliss, thou cause of woe,
Disturber of the mind of
man,
Wilt thou still calmly onward go,
A sightless leader of the
van?
In court and camp wilt thou still rule,
And nation's destinies still sway;

Make wise men act as doth the fool,
And blindly follow thee,
away?
Thou siren nymph, ethereal sprite,
Thou skilful charmer of mankind,

Oh, when wilt thou lead man aright,
And when will they thy cords
unbind?
Thy potent spells have still their force,
And reason's dictates still are
scorn'd,
And reason runs a shackl'd course,
While life, with love, is
still adorn'd.
Thou fond inmate of maiden's breast,
Thou lighter up of manly heart;

Thou surely hast some high behest,
And we shall surely never part.
We'll never part, but oh, thou friend
And cheerer of life's dreary way.

May reason guide us to the end,
And may she ever with thee stay.

HATE.
While love inspires, and friendship warms
All hearts, in ev'ry state,

High over thee, grim hatred storms,
As pitiless as fate.
Remorseless, unrelenting, hard,
It holds its stubborn way,
Which
duty's claim cannot retard,
Nor righteous thoughts delay.

With steady look, it keeps its eye
Fixed firmly on its foe;
With
panting zeal it hurries by,
To make