 | Rhymes with reason and without |  |
15
THE POOR MAN'S WEALTH.
I boast no broad ancestral lands,
No towers of lofty pride;
I have no niche where Mammon stands,
For worship deified;
Mine is no lofty sounding name,
Allied with deeds of note,
To draw the meed of loud acclaim
From many a brawling throat.
No towers of lofty pride;
I have no niche where Mammon stands,
For worship deified;
Mine is no lofty sounding name,
Allied with deeds of note,
To draw the meed of loud acclaim
From many a brawling throat.
What is the wealth that crowns the great,
To treasures of the soul!
Let me enjoy my poor estate,
Beyond the world's control,
The rich man's lot I'll envy not,
His life of downy ease;
They are not worth a passing thought,
Compared with scenes like these.
To treasures of the soul!
Let me enjoy my poor estate,
Beyond the world's control,
The rich man's lot I'll envy not,
His life of downy ease;
They are not worth a passing thought,
Compared with scenes like these.
There 's music in the gentle stream
That murmurs near my door;
There 's beauty in the sun's bright beam
That gilds the meadow o'er.
The insect sings upon the flower,
The bird upon the tree;
All mine—all mine—great Nature's dower—
They shine and sing for me!
That murmurs near my door;
There 's beauty in the sun's bright beam
That gilds the meadow o'er.
16
The bird upon the tree;
All mine—all mine—great Nature's dower—
They shine and sing for me!
See yon lake, flashing in the light,
O'er which the white sails glide!
Show me a scene more bravely bright,
Or one of richer pride:
I care not who the lake may own,—
If great or rich he be,—
Its market-worth is his alone,
Its beauty is for me!
O'er which the white sails glide!
Show me a scene more bravely bright,
Or one of richer pride:
I care not who the lake may own,—
If great or rich he be,—
Its market-worth is his alone,
Its beauty is for me!
See yonder hill its head uprear,
And frown upon the plain!
I bless the grandeur pictured there,
To endlessly remain;
The mountain breeze I love to feel—
This lesson it instils:
The town enslaves with bonds of steel,
There 's freedom on the hills.
And frown upon the plain!
I bless the grandeur pictured there,
To endlessly remain;
The mountain breeze I love to feel—
This lesson it instils:
The town enslaves with bonds of steel,
There 's freedom on the hills.
The rich, upon their beds of down,
Know not the joy I claim
When sunbeams first yon summit crown
With dyes of heavenly flame;
My soul soars upwards with the lay
That Nature's myriads raise,
And greets the newly wakened day
With thankfulness and praise.
Know not the joy I claim
When sunbeams first yon summit crown
With dyes of heavenly flame;
My soul soars upwards with the lay
That Nature's myriads raise,
And greets the newly wakened day
With thankfulness and praise.
17
Give me my cottage by the hill,
My life of humble fare,
My little plot of earth to till,
And love my home to share,
A heart to feel for others' pain,—
Content with this, and health,
My lips should never once complain,
Nor ask for more of wealth.
My life of humble fare,
My little plot of earth to till,
And love my home to share,
A heart to feel for others' pain,—
Content with this, and health,
My lips should never once complain,
Nor ask for more of wealth.
| Rhymes with reason and without | |