 | [Sonnets, in] The Christian keepsake, and missionary annual, for MDCCCXLIX |  |
I. Traveller, lay off thy burden, and bend low
Traveller, lay off thy burden, and bend low,Where rural faith uplifts this emblem dear;
Think to this symbol what all beings owe;
Though not a saint, yet still the Cross revere,
And thoughtful tribute on its power bestow.
Small souls have hedged its graces with vague fear,
And threats of vengeance; but all blessings flow
Where'er on earth this simple mark we rear.
Through this alone the primal purity,
Which erst on earth made God-like all our kind,
Shall come again. From this shall Error flee;
And modest Truth, the torch-maid of the mind,
Relume her lamp, puffed out by Bigotry,
To blaze serene, though Falsehood stir the wind.
| [Sonnets, in] The Christian keepsake, and missionary annual, for MDCCCXLIX | |