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MEMORIAL LINES
INSCRIBED TO BEREAVED PARENTS.
I.
What precious balm can song impartTo lessen woe that parents bear,
When throbs no more the gentle heart
Of one so gifted, good and fair!
The feathered harbingers of May
Revisit northern haunts again,
While school mates listen to their lay,
But, ah! for her they chant in vain.
II.
We know that breaking is the lightRound her, of Heaven's eternal dawn,
And that unknown are death and night
Where one so pure as she hath gone;
That better is a land of bliss
For spirits of celestial mould;
But, full of agony, we miss
The face that cheered us to behold.
III.
Long lashes shaded eyes of blueFrom which looked forth a soul of love,
Deep as midsummer skies in hue
When not a cloud is seen above;
Soft hair, as with a halo, crowned
Her head and gleamed like golden ore;
Those wond'rous locks, in song renowned,
Less bright that Petrarch's Laura wore.
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IV.
Ah! what hath been no more can be,For early was her requiem sung;
The youngest of our flock was she,
And favorite of old and young.
We miss her footfall on the stair,
Her kiss of welcome at the door,
And tells a tale, yon vacant chair,
Of beauty flown forevermore.
V.
Our darling of the radiant curlsDwells where Omniscience claims his own,
For caskets that enclose such pearls
Are wedded to the dust alone.
Lost lamb! with life's brief conflict tired,
On the Good Shepherd's tender breast
Sleep, while we breathe those words inspired,
“He giveth his beloved rest.”
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