THE TWINS.

375

The Twins.

Date and Dabitur (Give, and it shall be given).

G

RAND rough old Martin Luther
Bloomed fables-flowers in furze,

The better the uncouther;

Do roses stick like burrs ?

"A beggar asked an alms

One day at an abbey-door,"

Said Luther-"but, seized with qualms
The Abbot replied, 'We are poor!'

"Poor who had plenty once,
When gifts fell thick as rain:

But they give us naught for the nonce,
And how should we give again?'

"Then the beggar, 'See your sins!
Of old, unless I err,

Ye had brothers for inmates, twins,
Date and Dabitur,

"While Date was in good case

Dabitur flourished too;

For Dabitur's lenten face

Ne wonder if Date rue.

"Would ye retrieve the one?

Try and make plump the other! When Date's penance is done, Dabitur helps his brother.

"Only beware relapse!'

The Abbot hung his head; The beggar might be, perhaps,

An angel," Luther said.

ROBERT BROWNING

O

Weariness.

LITTLE feet! that such long years

Must wander on through hopes and fears,
Must ache and bleed beneath your load;
I, nearer to the wayside Inn,

Where toil shall cease and rest begin,
Am weary, thinking of your road!

O little hands! that weak or strong
Have still to serve or rule so long,

Have still so long to give or ask ;
I, who so much with book and pen
Have toiled among my fellow-men,

Am weary thinking of your task.

O little hearts! that throb and beat
With such impatient feverish heat,
Such limitless and strong desires;
Mine that so long has glowed and burned,
With passions into ashes turned,

Now covers and conceals its fires.

O little souls! as pure and white
And crystalline as rays of light

Direct from heaven, their source divine;
Refracted through the mist of years,
How red my setting sun appears,

How lurid looks this soul of mine!

HENRY W. LONGFELLOW.

PER PACEM AD LUCEM.

377

I

Per Pacem ad Lucem.

DO not ask, O Lord, that life may be
A pleasant road;

I do not ask that thou wouldst take from me

Aught of its load :

I do not ask that flowers should always spring
Beneath my feet;

I know too well the poison and the sting
Of things too sweet.

For one thing only, Lord, dear Lord, I plead,
Lead me aright—

Though strength should falter and though heart should

bleed,

Through Peace to Light.

I do not ask, O Lord, that thou shouldst shed
Full radiance here;

Give but a ray of peace that I may tread
Without a fear.

I do not ask my cross to understand,
My way to see ;

Better in darkness just to feel thy hand,
And follow thee.

Joy is like restless day; but peace divine
Like quiet night;

Lead me O Lord—till perfect day shall shine—
Through Peace to Light.

ADELAIDE A. PROCTER.

"Follow Thou Me."

WHERE shall we follow thee, Saviour beloved?

To Kedron, where oft thou hast thoughtfully roved?
Each rill of enjoyment that winds through our care,
Is Kedron, if thou wilt but walk with us there.

O where shall we follow thee, Jesus our friend?
To Bethany, whither thy feet loved to tend?
Our fireside is Bethany, peaceful and blest;
And ne'er will we wander, with thee for a guest.

O where shall we follow thee, Master adored?
To the Beautiful City, that knew not her Lord?
Alas for our streets full of evil and pain!
Toil with us for cities wept over in vain !

O where shall we follow thee, Leader divine?
To Tabor, where thou in white glory didst shine?
Thy face in the sin-sick and weary we see,
When Love is the Tabor we stand on with thee.

O where shall we follow thee, tenderest Guide?
To the sweet mournful garden down Olivet's side?
Ah, here is Gethsemane-here where we mourn :
Here strengthen us, thou who our sorrow hast borne !

O where shall we follow thee, dear Lamb of God?

Up Golgotha's death-steep, for us meekly trod?

The thorns pierce our temples; the cross bears us down; Like thine make our Calvary garland our crown!

O where shall we follow thee, conquering Lord?
To Paradise, unto us outcasts restored?
'Tis Paradise, Lord, in thy presence to be:
And, living or dying, we're ever with thee!

LUCY LARCOM.

PRESUMPTION AND DESPAIR.

379

Presumption and Despair.

NE time I was allowed to steer

ON

Through realms of azure light:
Henceforth I said, I need not fear
A lower, meaner flight;
But here shall evermore abide
In light and splendor glorified.

My heart one time the rivers fed,
Large dews upon it lay;
A freshness it has won, I said,

Which shall not pass away;
But what it is, it shall remain,
Its freshness to the end retain.

But when I lay upon the shore,
Like some poor wounded thing,
I deemed I should not evermore
Refit my shattered wing;

Nailed to the ground and fastened there,
This was the thought of my despair.

And when my very heart seemed dried,
And parched as summer dust,
Such still I deemed it must abide,
No hope had I, no trust

That any power again could bless
With fountains that waste wilderness.

But if both hope and fear were vain,
And came alike to naught,
Two lessons we from this may gain,
If ught can teach us aught:-
One lesson rather to divide
Between our fearfulness and pride.

RICHARD CHEVENIX TRENCH.