POEMS FOR CHILDREN ROSSETTI B« Copyright N?. COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. GOLDEN HOUR SERIES POEMS FOR CHILDREN BY CHRISTINA G. ROSSETTI Selected and arranged by MELVIN HIX Principal of Public School No. 3 J, Bay side, New York City EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY New York Boston Chicago San Francisco 1 .Tl ssf LIBRARY of CONGRESS Two Copies Received } MAY 23 1907 v Copyright Entry CLASS 6 ' ^ XXc, No. COPY B. Copyrighted By EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY 1907 iu ifj '■ Its 71 CONTENTS Love Me — 1 Love You 21 My Baby 21 Angels 22 Holy Innocents . . .22 The Cold Days of the Year 22 Baby, Sleep . 23 Mix a Pancake 23 Against Quarreling 23 Lullaby „ 24 A House of Cards 24 The Bee 25 An Oak 25 The Rich and Poor Babies ....... 25 Letters 26 The Bells 26 Sing Me a Song 26 A Pocket Handkerchief 27 The Swallow and the Snail . . . . . . -27 Umbrellas and Parasols 27 The Poor Out in the Cold 28 Two Queer Dreams 28 A Baby . * . . -29 The Rainbow , 29 Daisies .29 Polly and Poll . 30 The Cherry Tree 30 K 31 If a Pig Wore a Wig ........ 31 Hopping Frog, Plodding Toad 32 Clouds and Rainbows • 3 2 Cherries 33 A Wish ^ If I were a Queen 34 A Poor Old Dog 34 The Horses of the Sea 35 3 4 CONTENTS The Caterpillar 35 Pussy and Doggy 36 To Mary 36 Currants, Figs and Cherries 37 A Frisky Lamb . 37 Babv Cry 37 The' Wind 38 What? 38 Kindness ........... 39 Bob Cherry ........... 39 Three Plum Buns ......... 40 Things to Remember . 40 Lady Moon .......... 40 An Alphabet 41 Two Mice 42 The Moon 43 Rosy Maiden Winifred ........ 43 If the Moon Came from Heaven 44 Flint ........... 44 The Lambkin . 44 Rushes in a Watery Place ....... 45 The Ferry 45 A Flower Bed .......... 46 Lilies and Roses .......... 46 The Wind 47 Golden Glories • , 47 Who has Seen the Wind ? . . . . . . 48 Roses . .48 What the Stars Do . . 49 My One Rose .49 Wrens and Robins ......... 49 Three White Eggs 50 Couple 50 Sea-Sand and Sorrow ......... 50 Rain in Season ......... 51 Lambkins at Plav . . . . . . . . 51 The Rose When She Blows 52 A Chill 52 Coral ........... 53 Three Little Children 53 Time Table Rhymes 54 Song 55 To My Mother 55 Minnie, Mattie and May • . 56 CONTENTS If the Sun Could Tell The Days are Clear One Swallow does not Mak Two Linnets The Dead Thrush . If Stars Dropped Out of Heaven The Months Withering Little One Weary All the Bells were Ringing Winter Rain May A Green Cornfield My Dolly Wife . The Peach Tree Boy Johnny A Crown of Wind Flow Merry Little Alice Bitter for Sweet J3ird Raptures Skylark and Nightingali Consider The Summer Nights Summer A Pin has a Head Cruel Boys . Consider the Lilies of the Field Love Minnie Tern pus Fugit Lady Isabella Sun and Moon Up-hill For Advent . Unselfishness Child's Talk in April Hope and Joy . An Alphabet Find the Answer Willie and Margery What do the Others Say Eleanor Margaret and Thomas A Year's Windfalls 57 58 58 59 59 60 60 61 62 62 63 64 64 65 66 66 67 68 68 69 70 70 7i 72 73 74 74 75 76 76 77 78 78 79 8o- 80 82 83 84 85 85 86 87 6 CONTENTS Christmastide 92 Johnny ... 93 The Flint 96 Summer . . ..... 97 Autumn 97 June . .98 September 99 Lines to My Grandfather 100 In the Meadow 101 An Easter Carol 102 Christmas Day 103 A Christmas Carol . . 104 A Valentine to My Mother 105 A Christmas Carol . 106 Wee Husband and Wee Wife 107 A Christmas Carol iog A Number Jingle .110 Sweet Daffadowndilly . . . . . . . .111 Out in the Fields 112 Winter . . .112 When the Cows Come Home 113 "There is a Budding Morrow in Midnight" . . . . 113 Sterling Money 114 Seasons . . . . . . . . .114 A Diamond or a Coal 115 Brownie Cow . . . . . . . 115 The Rose that Blushes 116 Books in the Running Brooks 116 Fairies . . 117 Dawn 118 Praying Always 118 Snow and Sand .119 On Names .120 My Least Little One 120 Hoping for Spring 121 Seasons 122 Winter Rain 123 The Holly . 123 Summer 124 Spring Quiet 125 Earth and Heaven 126 ToLalla 127 INTRODUCTION The greatest task which confronts the little child is the mastering of the mother tongue in its three phases — speech, reading, and writing. In the accomplishment of this task, nothing is so helpful as the hearing and reading of large quan- tities of suitable poetry. This fact was well known to the people of antiquity. Before the age of writing, the laws and traditions of each tribe were handed down through the medium of verse. Verse was chosen rather than prose, because its form facilitated memorizing and furnished a guarantee of accuracy. When the law or tradition had been once thrown into the poetic form it was difficult to change its meaning without destroying its form and this would at once furnish a test of correctness. It was in this manner that all the nations of antiquity trained the minds of their young and transmitted to posterity the memory of the deeds done by their heroes, and those laws and rules of conduct which experience had found it necessary to impart to the youthful members of the community. Thus it was that the Greeks preserved to posterity the poems of Homer and the laws of their legislators. After the invention of writing, the necessity for poetry as a medium for the preservation of fact and tradition, passed away. For purposes of mere utility, prose took its place; yet the poetic form did not fall into disuse. It was found that poetry contained in itself a cultural value which could not be 8 INTRODUCTION gained from prose. For many generations the Greek school boy learned by heart the poems of Homer or of Hesiod. In more recent times poetry has come to be comparatively neglected. Two or three generations ago there were many persons, some so-called educators, wmo entirely rejected or neglected poetry as a means of educating the young. This may have been owing in part to the fact that there was not in English literature any considerable body of poetry suitable for the use of very young children. Even in our day poetry of this class, printed in a form suitable for the home and the school, has not been generally available at a moderate price. It is to remedy this condition in part that this series of books is now offered to the public. At the present day poetry, as an educational force, is recover- ing its ancient place in the schools. There are, probably, few or no educators of any standing or reputation whatever, who deny its importance, and were these books intended solely for the use of schools, nothing more need be said. Since, however, it is hoped that they may find a place in many homes, it seems fitting to explain more fully the importance of poetry in the education of the young. Children should read poetry because they like it. Something within the child responds immediately to the rhythmical beat of the verse. So potent is this instinct, that children put rhythm into sounds which have it not. The tick of a clock is as evenly monotonous as mechanism can make it. Yet to the child it is not tick, tick, tick, tick, but tick, tock'; tick, rock'; with a stn,ng ictus upon the second syllable. This feeling for rhythm seems to be a physical, as well as mental, instinct, originating, probably, in the rhythmical beating of the heart. Thus the very physical life of the child is based upon rhythm. Quite naturally therefore, he responds most readily to the INTRODUCTION rhythmical forms of language. The length of the line of verse is also determined by the physical natu-e of man. A line of poetry is merely a certain number of syllables which can be pronounced comfortably between one breath and another. In most persons this number is eight or ten, and for this reason verse forms which exceed ten, or, at most, twelve syllables to the line have never been and never can become popular. To the child, of course, who breathes more rapidly than the adult, the shorter forms of verse are most suitable. Rhyme, also,— a kind of rhythm which comes at longer inter- vals and marks the end of the line, — furnishes a keen pleasure to the child. The gratification furnished by rhythm and rhyme is quite independent of the sense of the words read. It is for this reason that the very baby who knows scarce half a dozen words, is soothed and amused by "Nonsense Verses" and Mother Goose Rhymes. To the potency of such, the experi- ence of every mother will furnish ample testimony. It is a mistake to suppose that young children should not learn poetry which they cannot fully understand. Every child, not hopelessly dull, when he begins to attain a mastery of the mother tongue, delights in using words often entirely without meaning to him. He prattles on all day, repeating the words and sounds which he has learned, in an endless variety of com- binations. This apparently aimless exercise of the linguistic organs, is Mother Nature's method of training the child to the utterance of intelligible vocal sounds. For this reason, even nonsense rhymes and jingles give the child pleasure, and at the same time develop his power over the linguistic organs. To some matter-of-fact adults the child's intense love for rhymes and jingles may seem silly and useless: something to be repressed rather than gratified and encouraged. To such per- sons it may be worth while to state that modern pedagogy has io INTRODUCTION furnished an explanation of this childish love of verse; an explanation based upon the doctrine of evolution, which is now, in some form or other, accepted by all. Biologists have found that before birth the human embryo passes through various stages similar to those by which earthly life has evolved. In the beginning it resembles the lowest forms of invertebra from which it ascends to the highest, or vertebrate, forms of animal life. After birth, the child's mental and physical characteristics resemble those of the quadrumana, and later those of the lower races of humanity. The biologists further tell us that each stage is necessary to the fullest development of the individual. In short, the child does, and should, recapitulate the various stages through which the race has been evolved. This theory is known as the " Cul- ture Epoch Theory," and is generally accepted by modern educators. Now the child, up to the age of twelve or fourteen, passes through, or recapitulates, the savage and barbarous stages of race-evolution. In those stages the race universally preferred verse to prose, and the child while passing through the same stage exhibits the same preference. Children should read poetry also because it trains the ear and furnishes a guide to the pronunciation of many words. This is especially true of the more musical forms of verse. Such poetry, when well read, or recited, furnishes a valuable training of the sense for the beautiful in language, which is probably latent in the mind of every normal child. The training thus afforded is closely akin to that furnished by music, and is scarcely less valuable. Rhyme requiring an identity of sound at the ends of lines sometimes furnishes a valuable key to the pronunciation of words. Children should read and memorize poetry for the purpose INTRODUCTION " of training the memory and increasing their vocabulary. The use of poetry for these purposes has been approved of in all ages and by all schools of educators. Its value in the training of the verbal memory has been experienced by almost everyone. A poem once thoroughly learned, and afterwards almost for- gotten, can be recalled far more easily and completely than could be done in case of a prose selection of equal length. Besides, it is far more easily learned in the first place. The form of poetry, the measured beat of the rhythm, the regular length of the line, and the recurring harmony of the rhyme, all aid the memory in retaining the words. Thus, in the mind of the child who hears, reads, and learns much poetry, a large and varied stock of words will be accumulated. The importance of this enrichment of the vocabulary can scarcely be over- estimated. One who notices the talk of children will inevitably be astonished at the paucity of the words they are accustomed to use. The elementary school course brings the child into contact with several thousands of words; in their conversations the most of them employ but a few hundred. Beside the mere hearing, reading, and learning poetry, there is another way in which young persons increase their stock of words and improve their command over them; that is, by writing rhymes and verses of their own. This practice isfar more general than is sometimes supposed. As Hugh Miller says, "Almost every active intelligence during youth has a try at making verse." Conradi found that just fifty per cent of the cases he investigated had tried their hands at original poetry. Benjamin Franklin and many others have recorded their efforts in this direction, and their belief in the efficacy of the practice. This practice of verse-making should always be commended and encouraged. The effort to find words to fit the rhythm 12 INTRODUCTION and the rhyme will greatly broaden and enrich the child's stock of words. In this connection it is an interesting fact that almost every master of English prose has, at some time or other, served an apprenticeship as a verse-maker and recorded his belief that this practice is a valuable aid toward the mastering of a good prose style. Children should read poetry beta use it furnishes the mind with a store of valuable ideas. The importance of this enrich- ment of the child's mental content cannot be overrated. The child is bound to have something going on in his mind. Self- activity is an instinct of the mind as well as of the body, but self-activity demands something to work with. The mind cannot be active in vacuo any more than a baseball nine can play the game without the ball. It is the business of the parent and the teacher to put the child's mind into a condi- tion to use good and elevating ideas rather than those which are evil and debasing. These good ideas can be furnished by the reading of good poetry. While engaged in this the child will not learn to lie, to swear, to fight, to cheat, or to steal. The importance of implanting good ideas in the child's mind is emphasized by the theory of the human mind held by the philosopher Hume and many others. According to this theory, ideas create the mind. Hume says: "The ideas are, themselves, the actors, the stage, the theatre, the spectators, and the play." Professor James, while not accepting this theory in its entirety, says: "No truth, however abstract, is ever perceived, that will not probably, at some time or other, influence our earthly actions. . . . Every sort of con- sciousness, be it sensation, feeling, or idea, tends directly to discharge itself into some motor effect." In other words our actions are dependent upon our stock of ideas. How im- INTRODUCTION 13 portant, then, that the ideas with which a child's mind is stocked shall be good, and poetry is the most effective vehicle for the conveyance of good ideas to the mind of the young child. Children should read poetry because it stimulates and develops the imagination. The imaginative appeal of poetry is known and acknowledged by all. Indeed, it constitutes one of the essential elements of poetry. Now, children, whether we wish it or not, will exercise their imagination. It is during child- hood the dominant mental faculty. ''Of all people children are the most imaginative." The childish imagination, if left to itself, is quite as apt to run to the evil as to the good. In- deed, if we accept the doctrines of a certain school of theo- logians, it is far more apt to take the downward than the upward path. The only way to check and prevent this down- ward tendency is by furnishing the child's mind with a store of good ideas, as a basis for the imagination to work upon. If we till the mind with the good there will be no room for the evil, and in doing this, experience has shown that nothing is so effective as an abundance of good reading, especially the reading of poetry. To emphasize the importance of this stimulation and training of the imagination let me add the following definitions: "The imagination is the organ of the heart and opens up the way for reason." — /. Stanley Hall. "The imagination is that power of the mind which combines and arranges, with more or less symmetry and proportion, that which primarily comes into the mind through the senses." — Dr. Francis Parker. Children should read poetry because it stimulates the emotions and trains the will. The power of poetry over the emotions is i 4 INTRODUCTION due, in part, to its form. The same facts or ideas embodied in prose do not stimulate the emotions in the same manner or to an equal degree. For example, "Evangeline," in prose, would have quite another effect. Poetry in general does not perhaps excite the passions to the same degree of intensity as some works of fiction. The stimulation produced by good poetry is calmer and more even than that produced by the most vivid pieces of fiction. For this very reason poetry is better adapted to the training of the will and the character through the emotions, than the more exciting novels. For this reason, too, great care should be exercised in the choice of the prose fiction which a child is allowed to read. On the other hand, there is extant practically no English poetry suitable for children which can be, in the slightest degree, harmful; certainly none such is to be found in this series. Now the will, that power which transmutes character into act, is governed mainly by the emotions. The heart is a far more powerful and a readier responding instrument than the head. "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speak- eth," and "As a man thinketh in his Ti eart so is he." Children should read and memorize poetry because it is the best means of developing the religious nature. On this point I cannot do better than to quote from a speech of Dr. Charles W. Eliot, president of Harvard University.* He says: "Is there any universally applicable method through which we can insure in little children the unconscious reception of the leading ideas of the (Christian) faith? I believe there is, and I believe that this method should be used in all (Christian) families and all (Christian) churches. It is the method of com- mitting poetry to memory. I heard Dr. Crothers quoting ( *Dr. Eliot speaks from the standpoint of a particular church, but what he says is universally applicable.) INTRODUCTION 15 somebody last Sunday to the effect that religion is poetry; but somebody else amended that statement by saying that religion is poetry believed. The amendment is important. Can we put into the childish mind through poetry a religion it will believe? We may be perfectly certain that no child ever got any religion out of a catechism. It takes an adult with the tendency to metaphysics to get anything out of cate- chism. Will not a child unconsciously get religion out of poetry, if it be well selected? I have seen the experiment tried in a fair number of instances — not enough instances for a general conclusion, but in a fair number of instances — and never knew it to fail. In order to give you an impression of the actual working of the method, I must enter into a few particulars. Take such a poem as Longfellow's 'Village Blacksmith,' a very simple poem of universal sentiments, and let the child, at an appropriate age, commit the whole of it to memory, so that it can recite it whenever asked for. Some of the most fundamental conceptions of religion, some of the most fundamental conceptions of the new science of sociology, will enter the child's mind with that poem. Of course, as in all poetry, a great deal of what we may call information, or sug- gested knowledge, is conveyed in even a single verse. Take the verse: "'He hears his daughter's voice Singing in the village choir, And it makes his heart rejoice. "'It sounds to him like her mother's voice Singing in Paradise.' "Now the child eight or ten years old will take that all in, and will learn from it that the blacksmith had a daughter who 16 INTRODUCTION could sing, and she sang sweetly in the village choir; and the blacksmith had had a wife whom he loved tenderly and she was dead, and she sang when with him, and now she was singing in a happy next world, in Paradise; and the black- smith liked to go to church because he heard his daughter, who reminded him of her mother. All that is in that little verse; and it is a beautiful picture of some of the best parts of human experience. "Take another poem, very well known to us all, but seldom used, it seems to me, for children: Leigh Hunt's 'Abou Ben Adhem' ('May his tribe increase')! There is a poem that any child of ten years old will take in, and it presents a . eries of delightful pictures; and at the end comes a very compact statement of the whole (Christian) theory about character. "Another invaluable poem for religious education is Bryant's 'Waterfowl.' The whole (Christian) view of the Providence of God is presented to the child in that lovely poem — God is guiding the bird through the pathless air, and just as he guides the bird he will guide me. It is the simplest possible presenta- tion to a child's mind of the loving Fatherhood of God." The importance of what Dr. Eliot has said is emphasized by the fact that the use of the Bible is not permitted in our public schools. Teachers must therefore take advantage of every opportunity furnished by the literature read or otherwise to "point a moral." Hitherto our schools have not been suffi- ciently supplied with literature well fitted to form a basis for moral instruction. This deficiency, it is hoped, these little books will help diminish. The reading of poetry by the young not only nourishes the mind and develops the moral and religious nature, but it of- fers the most efficient means of creating a taste for good reading. The modern civilized man is bound to read some- INTRODUCTION 17 thing, and the field of literature is so broad that it offers mate- rial to satisfy the needs and tastes of every intelligence. But, unfortunately, the field of bad literature is equally extensive, and is apt to be preferred by those whose early literary training has been neglected. Unfortunately, too, a taste for good reading is generally formed early in life or not at all. Early, far too early, the harsh hand of stern necessity or the flattering caress of frivolous pleasure is laid upon youth to deflect it irom the laborious but profitable path which leads to true culture. Let parents and teachers, therefore, look to it that the feet of the young child are early set in the straight path which leads to the Elysian fields of good literature. Melvin Hix A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF CHRISTINA GEORGIANA ROSSETTI Christina Georgiana Rossetti, the author of the poems in this book, was born in London, England, Dec. 5, 1830, and died in that city Dec. 29, 1894. Her parents were Italian exiles. Though poor, they were persons of education and refinement. Her father supported his wife and four children — two boys and two girls — by teaching Italian. Of these children, Christina was the youngest. As a child she was noted for her kindness and politeness to others. Indeed, so polite was she, that her brother once jokingly remarked to her that "She would soon become so polite it would become impossible to live with her." She was never sent to school, being taught at home by her mother. She learned to write a beautiful hand and her note-books were always models of neatness. Though not a particularly studious 18 INTRODUCTION child, she was bright and thoughtful, and learned much from the talk of others. Before she was twelve years of age she began to write poetry, and continued to do so for more than fifty years. She was never married. Having no home of her own, she lived, during their life-time, with her parents; after their death, for the most part with her brother, William M'chael Rossetti. She was of an affectionate disposition, being especially fond of little children. Being without family of her own, she ex- pended her love upon her little nephews and nieces and the children of her friends, for whom most of the poems in this book were originally written. During the greater part of her quiet and uneventful life, she suffered extremely from ill-health, but her own suffering never made her sour, ill-tempered, or unkind to others. In- deed, she was never known to do an unkind act, or say an unkind word; and, though her means were always small, she was ever ready to give freely to others whose need was greater than her own. She was naturally of a deeply religious nature, and throughout her long life an earnest and consistent member of the Church of England. Though for fifty years a writer of poetry, and to a less extent, of prose, her income from her literary work was always small; happily toward the end of her life it became ample for her needs. Concerning the quality of Miss Rossetti's poetry, and its adaptation to the needs of young children, I append the follow- ing estimates by two competent American critics: "The increasing appreciation of her simple verse — not all of it flawless, by any means; too rough and broken often — is full of good augury. It is the inevitable, spontaneous quality of her verse, something like the sweet simplicity of Blake at INTRODUCTION 19 his best in the 'Songs of Innocence,' of Shakespeare in such drifts of thistle-down fancy as "Where the bee sucks' — it is this we want to know and feel when we see it, and fill the bird-like mouths of children with." — Prof. Percival Chubb, in the " Teaching oj English" page 52. "Miss Rossetti demands closer attention. She is a woman of genius, whose songs, hymns, ballads, and various lyrical pieces are studied and original. I do not greatly admire her longer poems, which are more fantastic than imaginative; but elsewhere she is a poet of profound and serious cast, whose lips part with the breathing of a fervid spirit within. She has no lack of matter to express; it is that expression w r herein others are so fluent and adroit which fails to serve her purpose quickly; but when, at last, she beats her music out, it has mysterious and soul-felt meaning." — Edmund Clarence Sted- man, in " Victorian Poets" page 280. Melvin Hix POEMS FOR CHILDREN LOVE ME-- 1 LOVE YOU, Love me — I love you, Love me, my baby; Sing it high, sing it low, Sing it as it may be. Mother's arms under you, Her eyes above you; Sing it high, sing it low, Love me — I love you. MY BABY. My baby has a mottled fist, My baby has a neck in creases; My baby kisses and is kissed, For he's the very thing for kisses. 21 POEMS FOR CHILDREN ANGELS. Angels at the foot, And angels at the head, And like a curly little lamb, My pretty babe in bed. HOLY INNOCENTS. Sleep, little Baby, sleep; The holy angels love thee, And guard thy bed, and keep A blessed watch above thee. No spirit can come near Nor evil beast to harm thee: Sleep, Sweet, devoid of fear Where nothing need alarm thee, THE COLD DAYS OF THE YEAR. Bread and milk for breakfast, And woolen frocks to wear, And a crumb for robin redbreast, On the cold days of the year. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 23 BABY, SLEEP. Lie a-bed, Sleepy head, Shut up eyes, bo-peep; Till day-break Never wake: — Baby, sleep. MIX A PANCAKE. Mix a pancake, Stir a pancake, Pop it in the pan; Fry the pancake, Toss the pancake, Catch it if you can. AGAINST QUARRELING. Hop-o'-my-thumb and little Jack Horner, What do you mean by tearing and fighting ? Sturdy dog Trot close round the corner, I never caught him growling and biting. 24 POEMS FOR CHILDREN LULLABY. Lullaby, oh, lullaby! Flowers are closed and lambs are sleeping; Lullaby, oh, lullaby! Stars are up, the moon is peeping; Lullaby, oh, lullaby! While the birds are silence keeping, Lullaby, oh, lullaby! Sleep, my baby, fall a-sleeping, Lullaby, oh, lullaby! A HOUSE OF CARDS A house of cards Is neat and small: Shake the table, It must fall. Find the face cards One by one; Raise it, roof it — Now it 's done : — Shake the table! That's the fun. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 25 THE BEE. What does the bee do ? Bring home honey. And what does Father do ? Bring home money. And what does Mother do? Lay out the money. And what does baby do ? Eat up the honey. AN OAK. A toadstool comes up in a night — Learn the lesson, little folk: — An oak grows on a hundred years, And then it is an oak. THE RICH AND POOR BABIES. My baby has a father and a mother, Rich little baby! Fatherless, motherless, I know another Forlorn as may be: Poor little baby! 26 POEMS FOR CHILDREN LETTERS. Eight o'clock; The postman's knock! Five letters for papa; One for Lou, And none for you, And three for dear mamma. THE BELLS. "Ding a ding," The sweet bells sing, And say, "Come, all be gay," For a holiday. SING ME A SONG. Sing me a song. — What shall I sing? — Three merry sisters Dancing in a ring, Light and fleet upon their feet As birds upon the wing. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 27 A POCKET HANDKERCHIEF. A pocket handkerchief to hem — Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear! How many stitches it will take Before it's done, I fear. Yet set a stitch and then a stitch, And stitch and stitch away, Till stitch by stitch the hem is done, And after work is play. THE SWALLOW AND THE SNAIL Swift and sure the swallow, Slow and sure the snail: Slow and sure may miss his way, Swift and sure may fail. UMBRELLAS AND PARASOLS. When fishes set umbrellas up, If the raindrops run, Lizards will want their parasols, To shade them from the sun. 28 POEMS FOR CHILDREN THE POOR OUT IN THE COLD, There's snow on the fields, And cold in the cottage, While I sit in the chimney nook Supping hot porridge. My clothes are soft and warm, Fold upon fold, But I 'm so sorry for the poor, Out in the cold. TWO QUEER DREAMS. "I dreamt I caught a little owl And the bird was blue" — 'But you may hunt for ever And not find such an one." 'I dreamt I set a sunflower, And red as blood it grew" - " But such a sunflower never Bloomed beneath the sun." POEMS FOR CHILDREN 29 A BABY. I know a baby, such a baby. — Round blue eyes and cheeks of pink, Such an elbow furrowed with dimples, Such a wrist where creases sink. 'Cuddle and love me, cuddle and love nic," Crows the mouth of coral pink: Oh, the bald head, and oh, the sweet lips, And oh, the sleepy eyes that wink! THE RAINBOW. If all were rain and never sun, No bow could span the hill; If all were sun and never rain, There 'd be no rainbow still. DAISIES. Where innocent, bright eyed daisies are, With blades of grass between, Each daisy stands up like a star, Out of a sky of green. 3 o POEMS FOR CHILDREN POLLY AND POLL. I have a Poll parrot, And Poll's my doll, And my nurse is Polly, And my sister Poll. "Polly!" cried Polly, "Don't tear Polly dolly" — While soft-hearted Poll Trembled for the doll. THE CHERRY TREE. Oh fair to see Bloom-laden cherry tree, Arrayed in sunny white, An April day's delight; Oh fair to see! Oh fair to see Fruit-laden cherry tree, With balls of shiny red Decking a leafy head; Oh fair to see! POEMS FOR CHILDREN 31 IF. If a mouse could fly, Or if a crow could swim, Or if a sprat could walk and talk, I'd like to be like him. If a mouse could fly, He might fly away; Or if a crow could swim, It might turn him gray; Or if a sprat could walk and talk, What would he find to say ? IF A PIG WORE A WIG. If a pig wore a wig, What could we say ? Treat him as a gentleman, And say, " Good-day." If his tail chanced to fail, What could we do ? — Send him to the tailoress, To get one new. 3 2 POEMS FOR CHILDREN HOPPING FROG, PLODDING TOAD. Hopping frog, hop here and be seen, I'll not pelt you with stick or stone: Your cap is laced, and your coat is green; Good-bye, we'll let each other alone. Plodding toad, plod here and be looked at, You the finger of scorn is crooked at, But though you're lumpish, you're harmless, too, You won't hurt me, and I won't hurt you. CLOUDS AND RAINBOWS. Boats sail on the rivers, And ships sail on the seas; But clouds that sail across the sky Are prettier far than these. There are bridges on the rivers, As pretty as you please; But the bow that bridges heaven, And overtops the trees, And builds a road from earth to sky, Is prettier far than these. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 33 CHERRIES. Mother shake the cherry tree, Susan catch a cherry; Oh, how funny that will be, Let's be merry! One for brother, one for sister, Two for mother more, Six for father, hot and tired, Knocking at the door. A WISH. I wish I were a little bird, That out of sight doth soar; I wish I were a song once heard But often pondered o'er, Or shadow of a lily stirred By wind upon the floor, Or echo of a loving word, Worth all that went before, Or memory of a hope deferred That springs again no more. 34 POEMS FOR CHILDREN IF I WERE A QUEEN. "If I were a queen, What would I do ? I'd make you a king, And I 'd wait on you." "If I were a king, What would I do ? I'd make you a queen, For I'd marry you." A POOR OLD DOG. Pity the sorrows of a poor old dog Who wags his tail a-begging in his need; Despise not even the sorrows of a frog, God's creature too, and that's enough to plead; Spare puss, who trusts us, purring on our hearth; Spare bunny, once so frisky and so free; Spare all the harmless creatures of the earth: Spare, and be spared — or who shall plead for thee? POEMS FOR CHILDREN 35 THE HORSES OE THE SEA. The horses of the sea Rear a foaming crest, But the horses of the land Serve us the best. The horses of the land Munch corn and clover, While the foaming sea-horsts Toss and turn over. THE CATERPILLAR. Brown and furry Caterpillar in a hurry, Take your walk To the shady leaf, or stalk, Or what not, Which may be the chosen spot. No toad spy you, Hovering bird of prey pass by you; Spin and die, To live again a butterfly. 36 POEMS FOR CHILDREN PUSSY AND DOGGIE. Pussy has a whiskered face, Kitty has such pretty ways, Doggie scampers when I call, And has a heart to love us all. The dog lies in his kennel, And puss purrs on the rug, And baby perches on my knee, For me to love and hug. Pat the dog and stroke the cat, Each in its own degree, And cuddle and kiss my baby, And baby kiss me. TO MARY. You were born in the Spring, When the pretty birds sing In sunbeamy bowers: Then dress like a Fairy, Dear dumpling, my Mary, In green and in flowers. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 37 CURRANTS, FIGS, AND CRERRIES. Currants on a bush, And figs upon a stem, And cherries on a bending bough And Ned to gather them. A FRISKY LAMB. A frisky lamb And a frisky child Playing their pranks In a cowslip meadow: The sky all blue And the air all mild And the fields all sun And the lanes half shadow. BABY CRY. Baby cry — Oh, fie!- At the physic in the cup Gulp it twice And gulp it thrice, Baby gulp it up. 3 S POEMS FOR CHILDREN THE WIND. O Wind, why do you never rest, Wandering, whistling to and fro, Bringing rain out of the west, From the dim north bringing snow ? WHAT ? What is pink ? a rose is pink By the fountain's brink. What is red ? a poppy's red In its barley bed. What is blue ? the sky is blue Where the clouds float thro'. What is white ? a swan is white. Sailing in the light. What is yellow ? pears are yellow, Rich and ripe and mellow. What is green ? the grass is green, With small flowers between. What is violet ? clouds are violet In the summer twilight. What is orange ? why, an orange, Just an orange! POEMS FOR CHILDREN 39 KINDNESS. Hurt no living thing: Ladybird, nor butterfly, Nor moth with dusty wing, Nor cricket chirping cheerily, Nor grasshopper so light of leap, Nor dancing gnat, nor beetle fat, Nor harmless worms that creep. BOB CHERRY. Playing at bob cherry Tom and Nell and Hugh: Cherry bob! cherry bob! There's a bob for you. Tom bobs a cherry For gaping, snapping Hugh, While curly-pated Nelly, Snaps at it too. Look, look, look — Oh, what a sight to see! The wind is playing cherry bob With the cherry tree. 4 o POEMS FOR CHILDREN THREE PLUM BUNS. Three plum buns To eat here at the stile In the clover meadow, For we have walked a mile. One for you, one for me, And one left over, Give it to the boy who shouts To scare sheep from the clover. THINGS TO REMEMBER. Seldom "can't," Seldom "don't"; Never "sha'n't," Never "won't." LADY MOON. O Lady Moon, your horns point toward the east; Shine, be increased: O Lady Moon, your horns point toward the west; Wane, be at rest. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 41 AN ALPHABET. A is the Alphabet, A at its head; B is the Baker Boy bringing the bread. C is for Cornflower come with the corn; D is a Dinner which dahlias adorn. E is an elegant eloquent Earl; F is a Falcon with feathers to furl. G is the Gander, the Gosling, the Goose; H is for Heartsease, harmonious of hues. I is an Idler who idles on ice; J is a Jacinth, a jewel of price. K is a King, or a Kaiser still higher: L is a Lute or a lovely-toned Lyre. M is a Meadow where Meadowsweet blows; N is a Nut — in a nutshell it grows. O is an Opal, with only one spark; P is a Pony, a pet in a park. 42 POEMS FOR CHILDREN Q is a Quail, quick-chirping at morn; R is a Rose, rosy-red on a thorn. S is a Snow-storm that sweeps o'er the sea; T is the Tea-table set out for tea. U, the Umbrella, went up in a shower; V is a Violet veined in the flower. W stands for the water-bred Whale — X, or XX, or XXX, is ale. Y is a yellow Yacht, yellow its boat, Z is a Zebra, zigzagged his coat. TWO MICE. The city mouse lives in a house; — The garden mouse lives in a bower, He's friendly with the frogs and toads, And sees the pretty plants in flower. The city mouse eats bread and cheese: The garden mouse eats what he can; We will not grudge him seeds and stalks, Poor little timid furry man. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 43 THE MOON. Is the moon tired ? she looks so pale Within her misty veil: She scales the sky from east to west, And takes no rest. Before the coming of the night The moon shows papery white; Before the dawning of the day She fades away. ROSY MAIDEN WINIFRED. Rosy maiden Winifred, With a milk pail on her head, Tripping through the corn, While the dew lies on the wheat In the sunny morn. Scarlet sheperd's-weatherglass Spreads wide open at her feet As they pass; Cornflowers give their almond smell While she brushes by, And a lark sings from the sky 'All is well." 44 POEMS FOR CHILDREN IF THE MOON CAME FROM HEAVEN. If the moon came from Heaven, Talking all the way, What could she have to tell us, And what could she say ? "I've seen a hundred pretty things, And seen a hundred gay; But only think: I peep by night And do not peep by day!" FLINT. Stroke a flint, and there is nothing to admire: Strike a flint, and forthwith flash out sparks of fire. THE LAMBKIN. A motherless, soft lambkin, Alone upon a hill; No mother's fleece to shelter him And wrap him from the cold: — I'll run to him, and comfort him, Until he's strong and bold. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 45 RUSHES IN A WATERY PLACE. Rushes in a watery place, And reeds in a hollow; A soaring skylark in the sky, A darting swallow; And where pale blossom used to hang Ripe fruit to follow. THE FERRY. "Ferry me across the water, Do, boatman, do." "If you've a penny in your purse I'll ferry you." "I have a penny in my purse, And my eyes are blue; So ferry me across the water, Do, boatman, do." "Step into my ferry-boat, Be they black or blue, And for the penny in your purse I'll ferry you." 46 POEMS FOR CHILDREN A FLOWER BED. Heartease in my garden bed, With sweet William white and red, Honeysuckle on my wall: — Heartease blooms in my heart When sweet William comes to call; But it withers when we part, And the honey-trumpets fall. LILIES AND ROSES. The lily has a smooth stalk, Will never hurt your hand; But the rose upon her briar Is lady of the land. There's sweetness in an apple tree, And profit in the corn; But lady of all beauty Is a rose upon a thorn. When with moss and honey She tips her bending briar, And half unfolds her glowing heart, She sets the world on fire. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 47 THE WIND. The wind has such a rainy sound Moaning through the town, The sea has such a windy sound — Will the ships go down ? The apples in the orchard Tumble from their tree. — Oh will the ships go down, go down, In the windy sea ? GOLDEN GLORIES. The buttercup is like a golden cup, The marigold is like a golden frill, The daisy with a golden eye looks up, And golden spreads the flag beside the rill, And gay and golden nods the daffodil; The gorsey common swells a golden sea, The cowslip hangs a head of golden tips, And golden drips the honey which the bee Sucks from sweet hearts of flowers and stores and sips. 4« POEMS FOR CHILDREN WHO HAS SEEN THE WIND? Who has seen the wind ? Neither I nor you: But when the leaves hang trembling The wind is passing thro'. Who has seen the wind ? Neither you nor I: But when the trees bow down their heads The wind is passing by. ROSES. Roses blushing red and white, For delight; Honeysuckle wreaths above, For love; Dim, sweet-scented heliotrope, For hope; Shining lilies tall and straight, For royal state; Dusky pansies, let them be For memory; With violets of fragrant breath, For death. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 49 WHAT THE STARS DO. What do the stars do, Up in the sky, Higher than the wind can blow, Or the clouds can fly ? Each star in its own glory Circles, circles still; As it was lit to shine and set, And do its Maker's will. MY ONE ROSE. I have but one rose in the world, And my one rose stands a-drooping: Oh, when my single rose is dead There'll be but thorns for stooping. WRENS AND ROBINS. Wrens and robins in the hedge, Wrens and robins here and there; Building, perching, pecking, fluttering, Everywhere! 50 POEMS FOR CHILDREN THREE WHITE EGGS. A white hen sitting On white eggs three: Next, three speckled chickens As plump as plump can be. An owl and a hawk And a bat come to see; But chicks beneath their mother's wing Squat safe as safe can be. COUPLET. "Come, cheer up, my lads, 'tis to glory we steer" — As the soldier remarked whose post lay in the rear. SEA-SAND AND SORROW. What are heavy? Sea-sand and sorrow: What are brief? To-day and to-morrow: What are frail ? Spring blossoms and youth: What are deep ? The ocean and truth. POEMS FOR CHILDREN RAIN IN SEASON. Lambs so woolly white, Sheep the sun-bright leas on, They could have no grass to bite But for rain in season. We should find no moss In the shadiest places, Find no waving meadow grass Pied with broad-eyed daisies: But miles of barren sand, With never a son or daughter; Not a lily on the land, Or lily on the water. LAMBKINS AT PLAY. On the grassy banks Lambkins at their pranks; Woolly sisters, woolly brothers, Jumping off their feet, While their woolly mothers Watch by them and bleat. 51 52 POEMS FOR CHILDREN THE ROSE WHEN SHE BLOWS, The lily has an air, And the snowdrop a grace, And the sweet pea a way, And the heartsease a face — Yet there's nothing like the rose When she blows. A CHILL. What can lambkins do All the keen night through? Nestle by their woolly mother, The careful ewe. What can nestlings do In the nightly dew ? Sleep beneath their mother's wing Till day breaks anew. If in field or tree There might only be Such a warm soft sleeping-place Found for me! POEMS FOR CHILDREN 53 CORAL. sailor, come ashore, What have you brought for me ? Red coral, white coral, Coral from the sea. 1 did not dig it from the ground, Nor pluck it from a tree; Feeble insects made it In the stormy sea. THREE LITTLE CHILDREN. Three little children, On the wide, wide earth, Motherless children — Cared for from their birth By tender angels. Three little children, On the wide, wide sea, Motherless children, Safe as safe can be With guardian angels. 54 POEMS FOR CHILDREN TIME TABLE RHYMES. How many seconds in a minute ? Sixty, and no more in it. How many minutes in an hour ? Sixty for sun and shower. How many hours in a day? Twenty-four for work and play. How many days in a week ? Seven both to hear and speak. How many weeks in a month ? Four, as the swift moon runn'th. How many months in a year ? Twelve the almanack makes clear. How many years in an age ? One hundred says the sage. How many ages in time ? No one knows the rhyme. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 55 SONG. Two doves upon the selfsame branch, Two lilies on a single stem, Two butterflies upon one flower: — Oh, happy they who look on them! Who look upon them hand in hand, Flushed in the rosy summer light; Who look upon them hand in hand, And never give a thought to night. TO MY MOTHER. On the Anniversary of Her Birth (Presented with a nosegay.) To-day's your natal day: Sweet flowers I bring: Mother, accept I pray My offering. And may you happy live, And long us bless; Receiving as you give Great happiness. POEMS FOR CHILDREN MINNIE, MATTIE, AND MAY. Minnie and Mattie And fat little May, Out in the country, Spending a day. Such a brief day. With the sun glowing, And the trees half in leaf, And the grass growing. Pinky white pigling Squeals through his snout, Woolly white lambkin Frisks all about. Cluck! cluck! the mother hen Summons her chickens To peck the dainty bits Found in her pickings. Minnie and Mattie And May carry posies, Half of sweet violets, Half of primroses. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 57 Give the sun time enough, Glowing and glowing, He'll rouse the roses And bring them blowing. Don't wait for roses Losing a day, O Minnie, Mattie, And wise little May. Violets and primroses Blossom to-day For Minnie and Mattie And fat little May. IF THE SUN COULD TELL. If the sun could tell us half That he hears and sees, Sometimes he would make us laugh. Sometimes make us cry: Think of all the birds that make Homes among the trees; Think of cruel boys who take Birds that cannot fly. 58 POEMS FOR CHILDREN THE DAYS ARE CLEAR. The days are clear, Day after day, When April's here, That leads to May, And June Must follow soon: Stay, June, stay! — If only we could stop the moon And June! ONE SWALLOW DOES NOT MAKE A SUMMER. A rose which spied one Swallow Made haste to blush and blow: " Others are sure to follow": Ah no, not so! The wandering clouds still owe A few fresh flakes of snow, Chill fog must fill the hollow, Before the bird-stream flow In flood across the main, And Winter's woe POEMS FOR CHILDREN 59 End in glad Summer come again. Then thousand flowers may blossom by the shore — But that Rose never more. TWO LINNETS. A linnet in a gilded cage — A linnet on a bough — In frosty winter one might doubt Which bird is luckier now. But let the trees burst out in leaf, And nest be on the bough — Which linnet is the luckier bird, Oh, who could doubt it now ? THE DEAD THRUSH. Dead in the cold, a song-singing thrush, Dead at the foot of a snowberry bush — Weave him a coffin of rush, Dig him a grave where the soft mosses grow, Raise him a tombstone of snow. 60 POEMS FOR CHILDREN IF STARS DROPPED OUT OF HEAVEN. If stars dropped out of Heaven, And if flowers took their place, The sky would still look very fair, And fair Earth's face. Winged angels might fly down to us To pluck the stars, But we could only long for flowers Beyond the cloudy bars. THE MONTHS. fanuary, cold, desolate; February, all dripping wet; March wind ranges; April changes; Birds sing in tune To flowers of May, And sunny June Brings longest day; In scorched July The storm clouds fly Lightning-torn; POEMS FOR CHILDREN 61 August bears corn, September fruit; In rough October Earth must disrobe her; Stars fall and shoot In keen November; And night is long And cold is strong In bleak December. WITHERING. Fade, tender lily, Fade, O crimson rose, Fade every flower, Sweetest flower that blows. Go, chilly autumn, Come, O winter cold; Let the green stalks die away Into common mould. Birth follows hard on death, Life on withering: Hasten, we will come the sooner Back to pleasant spring. 62 POEMS FOR CHILDREN LITTLE ONE WEARY. Crying, my little one, footsore and weary ? Fall asleep, pretty one* warm on my shoulder: I must tramp on through the winter night dreary, While the snow falls on me colder and colder. You are my one, and I have not another; Sleep soft, my darling, my trouble and treasure, Sleep warm and soft in the arms of your mother, Dreaming of pretty things, dreaming of pleas- ure. ALL THE BELLS WERE RINGING. All the bells were ringing, And all the birds were singing, When Molly sat down crying For her broken doll: O you silly Moll! Sobbing and sighing For a broken doll, When all the bells are ringing, And all the birds are singing. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 63 WINTER RAIN. Every valley drinks, Every dell and hollow; Where the kind rain sinks and sinks, Green of Spring will follow. Yet a lapse of weeks — Buds will burst their edges, Strip their wool-coats, glue-coats, In the woods and hedges; Weave a bower of love For birds to meet each other, Weave a canopy above Nest and egg and mother. But for fattening rain We should have no flowers, Never a bud or leaf again But for soaking showers; Never a mated bird In the rocking tree-tops, Never indeed a flock or herd To graze upon the lea-crops. 64 POEMS FOR CHILDREN MAY. There is but one May in the year, And sometimes May is wet and cold; There is but one May in the year, Before the year grows old. Yet though it be the chilliest May, With least of sun and most of showers, Its wind and dew, its night and day, Bring up the flowers. A GREEN CORNFIELD. "And singing still dost soar and soaring ever singest." The earth was green, the sky was blue: I saw and heard one sunny morn A skylark hang between the two, A singing speck above the corn; A stage below, in gay accord, White butterflies danced on the wing, And still the singing skylark soared, And silent sank and soared to sing. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 65 The cornfield stretched a tender green To right and left beside my walks; I knew he had a nest unseen Somewhere among the million stalks. And as I paused to hear his song While swift the sunny moments slid, Perhaps his mate sat listening long, And listened longer than I did. MY DOLLY WIFE. I caught a little ladybird That flies far away; I caught a little lady wife That is both staid and gay. Come back, my scarlet ladybird, Back from far away; I weary of my dolly wife, My wife that cannot play. She's such a senseless wooden thing She stares the livelong day; Her wig of gold is stiff and cold And cannot change to gray. 66 POEMS FOR CHILDREN THE PEACH TREE. The peach tree on the southern wall Has basked so long beneath the sun, Her score of peaches, great and small, Bloom rosy, every one. A peach for brothers, one for each, A peach for you and a peach for me; But the biggest, rosiest, downiest peach For Grandmamma with her tea. BOY JOHNNY. If you'll busk you as a bride And make ready, It's I will wed you with a ring, fair lady." Shall I busk me as a bride, 1 so bonny, For you to wed me with a ring, O boy Johnny?" When you Ve busked you as a bride And made ready, POEMS FOR CHILDREN 67 Who else is there to marry you, fair lady?" "I will find my lover out, 1 so bonny, And you shall bear my wedding-train, O boy Johnny." A CROWN OF WIND-FLOWERS. "Twist me a crown of wind-flowers; That I may fly away To hear the singers at their song, And players at their play." "Put on your crown of wind-flowers: But whither would you go?" " Beyond the surging of the sea And the storms that blow." a Alas! your crown of wind-flowers Can never make you fly: I twist them in a crown to-day, And to-night they die." 68 POEMS FOR CHILDREN MERRY LITTLE ALICE. Dancing on the hill-tops, Singing in the valleys, Laughing with the echoes, Merry little Alice. Playing games with lambkins In the flowering valleys, Gathering pretty posies, Helpful little Alice. If her father's cottage Turned into a palace, And he owned the hill-tops And the flowering valleys, She'd be none the happier, Happy little Alice. BITTER FOR SWEET. Summer is gone with all its roses, Its sun and perfumes and sweet flowers, Its warm air and refreshing showers; And even Autumn closes. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 69 Yea, Autumn's chilly self is going, And Winter comes which is yet colder; Each day the hoar-frost waxes bolder, And the last buds cease blowing. BIRD RAPTURES. The sunrise wakes the lark to sing, The moonshine wakes the nightingale. Come, darkness, moonshine, everything That is so silent, sweet, and pale, Come, so ye wake the nightingale. Make haste to mount, thou wistful moon, Make haste to wake the nightingale: Let silence set the world in tune To hearken to that wordless tale Which warbles from the nightingale. O herald skylark, stay thy flight One moment, for a nightingale Floods us with sorrow and delight. To-morrow thou shalt hoist the sail; Leave us to-night the nightingale. 70 POEMS FOR CHILDREN SKYLARK AND NIGHTINGALE. When a mounting skylark sings In the sunlit summer morn, I know that heaven is up on high, And on earth are fields of corn. But when a nightingale sings In the moonlit summer even, I know not if earth is merely earth, Only that heaven is heaven. CONSIDER. Consider The lilies of the field whose bloom is brief: We are as they; Like them we fade away As doth a leaf. Consider The sparrows of the air of small account; Our God doth view Whether they fall or mount — He guards us too. POEMS FOR CHILDREN Consider The lilies that do neither spin nor toil, Yet are most fair: — What profits all this care And all this coil ? Consider The birds that have no barn nor har- vest weeks ; God gives them food: Much more our Father seeks To do us good THE SUMMER NIGHTS The summer nights are short Where northern days are long: For hours and hours lark after lark Thrills out his song. The summer days are short Where southern nights are long; Yet short the night when nightingales Trill out their song. 71 72 POEMS FOR CHILDREN SUMMER. Before green apples blush, Before green nuts embrown, Why one day in the country Is worth a month in town; Is worth a day and a year Of the dusty, musty, lag-last fashion That days drone elsewhere. SUMMER. Winter is cold-hearted, Spring is yea and nay, Autumn is a weathercock Blown every way. Summer days for me When every leaf is on its tree; When Robin's not a beggar, And Jenny Wren's a bride, And larks hang singing, singing, singing Over the wheat-fields wide, And anchored lilies ride, And the pendulum spider Swings from side to side; POEMS FOR CHILDREN 73 And blue-black beetles transact busi- ness, And gnats fly in a host, And furry caterpillars hasten That no time be lost, And moths grow fat and thrive, And ladybirds arrive. A PIN HAS A HEAD. A pin has a head, but has no hair; A clock has a face but no mouth there; Needles have eyes, but they cannot see; A fly has a trunk without lock or key; A timepiece may lose, but cannot win; A cornfield dimples without a chin; A hill has no leg, but has a foot; A wine-glass a stem, but not a root; A watch has hands, but no thumb or finger; A boot has a tongue, but is no singer; Rivers run, though they have no feet; A saw has teeth, but it does not eat; Ash-trees have keys, yet never a lock; And baby crows, without being a cock. 74 POEMS FOR CHILDREN CRUEL BOYS. Hear what the mournful linnets say: "We built our nest compact and warm, But cruel boys came round our way And took our summer house by storm. "They crushed the eggs so neatly laid; So now we sit with drooping wings, And watch the ruins they have made, Too late to build, too sad to sing." CONSIDER THE LILIES OF THE FIELD, Flowers preach to us if we will hear: — The rose saith in the dewy morn: "I am most fair; Yet all my loveliness is born Upon a thorn." The poppy saith amid the corn: "Let but my scarlet head appear And I am held in scorn; Yet juice of subtle virtue lies Within my cup of curious dyes." POEMS FOR CHILDREN 75 The lilies say: "Behold how we Preach without words of purity." The violets whisper from the shade Which their own leaves have made: "Men scent our fragrance on the air, Yet take no heed Of humble lessons we would read." But not alone the fairest flowers: The merest grass Along the roadside where we pass, Lichen and moss and sturdy weed, Tell of His love who sends the dew, The rain and sunshine too, To nourish one small seed. LOVE. Love is all happiness, love is all beauty, Love is the crown of flaxen heads and hoary; Love is the only everlasting duty; And love is chronicled in endless story, And kindles endless glory. 76 POEMS FOR CHILDREN MINNIE. Minnie bakes the oaten cakes, Minnie brews ale, All because her Johnny's coming Home from sea. And she glows like a rose, Who was so pale, And "Are you sure the church clock goes ?' Says she. TEMPUS FUGIT. Lovely Spring, A brief sweet thing, Is swift on the wing; Gracious Summer, A slow sweet comer, Hastens past; Autumn while sweet Is all incomplete With a moaning blast. Nothing can last, Can be cleaved unto, Can be dwelt upon. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 77 It is hurried through, It is come and gone, Undone it cannot be done; It is ever to do, Ever old, ever new, Ever waxing old And lapsing to Winter cold. LADY ISABELLA. Heart warm as summer, fresh as spring, Gracious as autumn's harvesting, Pure as the winter's snows; as white A hand as lilies in sunlight; Eyes glorious as a midnight star; Hair shining as the chestnuts are; A step firm and majestical; A voice singing and musical; A soft expression, kind address; Tears for another's heaviness; Bright looks; an action full of grace; A perfect form, a perfect face; All these become a woman well, And these had Lady Isabell. 78 POEMS FOR CHILDREN SUN AND MOON. Fair the sun riseth, Bright as bright can be, Fair the sun shineth On a fair, fair sea. Fair the moon riseth On her heavenly way, Making the waters Fairer than by day. UP-HILL. Does the road wind up-hill all the way ? Yes, to the very end. Will the day's journey take the whole long day ? From morn to night, my friend. But is there for the night a resting-place ? A roof for when the slow dark hours begin. May not the darkness hide it from my face ? You cannot miss that inn. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 79 Shall I meet other wayfarers at night ? Those who have gone before. Then must I knock, or call when just in sight ? They will not keep you standing at the door. Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak ? Of labor you shall find the sum. Will there be beds for me and all who seek ? Yea, beds for all who come. FOR ADVENT. Sweet, sweet sound of distant waters, falling On a parched and thirsty plain: Sweet, sweet song of soaring skylark, calling On the sun to shine again: Perfume of the rose, only the fresher For past fertilizing rain: Pearls amid the sea, a hidden treasure For some daring hand to gain: — Better, dearer than all these Is the earth beneath the trees: Of a much more priceless worth Is the old brown common earth. 8o POEMS FOR CHILDREN UNSELFISHNESS. The dear old woman in the lane Is sick and sore with pains and aches, We'll go to her this afternoon, And take her tea and eggs and cakes. We'll stop to make the kettle boil, And brew some tea, and set the tray, And poach an egg, and toast a cake, And wheel her chair round, if we may. CHILD'S TALK IN APRIL. I wish you were a pleasant wren, And I your small accepted mate; How we'd look down on toilsome men! We'd rise and go to bed at eight, Or it may be not quite so late. Then you should see the nest I'd build, The wondrous nest for you and me; The outside rough perhaps, but filled With wool and down; ah, you should see The cosy nest that it would be. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 8t We'd be so happy by the day, So safe and happy through the night, We both should feel, and I should say, It's all one season of delight, And we'll make merry whilst we may. Perhaps some day there 'd be an egg When spring had blossomed from the snow: I'd stand triumphant on one leg; Like chanticleer I'd almost crow To let our little neighbors know. Next you should sit and I would sing Through lengthening days of sunny spring; Till, if you wearied of the task, I'd sit; and you should spread your wing From bough to bough; I'd sit and bask. Fancy the breaking of the shell, The chirp, the chickens wet and bare, The untried proud paternal swell; And you with housewife-matron air Enacting choicer bills of fare. 82 POEMS FOR CHILDREN Fancy the embryo coats of down, The gradual feathers soft and sleek; Till clothed and strong from tail to crown, With virgin warblings in their beak, They too go forth to soar and seek. So would it last an April through And early summer fresh with dew — Then should we part and live as twain Love-time would bring me back to you, And build our happy nest again. HOPE AND JOY. If hope grew on a bush, And joy grew on a tree, What a nosegay for the plucking, There would be! But oh, in windy autumn, When frail flowers wither, What should we do for hope and joy, Fading together? POEMS FOR CHILDREN 83 AN ALPHABET. A is an Antelope, agile to run; B is a black Bear and brown Bear, both beg- ging for bun. C is a Cat with a comic? 1 look; D is a Duchess who dines with a Duke. E is an Egg whence an eaglet emerges; F is a Fountain of full foaming surges. G is a Garnet in girdle of gold; H is a huge Hammer, heavy to hold. I am I — who will say I am not I ? J is a Jay, full of joy in July. K is a Kitten, or quaint Kangaroo; L is a Lily all laden with dew. M is a Mountain made dim by a mist; N is a nest full of Nightingales singing — oh list! 8 4 POEMS FOR CHILDREN O is an Olive, with oil on its skin; P is the Point of a Pen or a Pin. Q is a Quince quite ripe and near dropping ; R is a red-breasted Robin come hopping. S is the Song that the swift Swallows sing; T is a Tiger with terrible spring. U, or Unit, is useful with ten to unite; V is a Viper with venomous bite. W stands for the wonderful Wax-work so gay; X, or Policeman X, exercised day after day. Y is the Yacca, the Yam, or the Yew; Z is Zebu, or Zoophyte, seen at the Zoo. FIND THE ANSWER. There is one that has a head without an eye, And there 's one that has an eye without a head ; You may find the answer if you try; And when all is said, Half the answer hangs upon a thread. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 85 WILLIE AND MARGERY. Clever little Willie wee, Bright-eyed, blue-eyed little fellow; Merry little Margery With her hair all yellow. Little Willie in his heart Is a sailor on the sea, And he often cons a chart With sister Margery. WHAT DO THE OTHERS SAY? What does the donkey bray about ? What does the pig grunt through his snout ? What does the goose mean by a hiss ? Oh, Nurse, if you can tell me this, I'll give you such a kiss! The cockatoo calls "cockatoo," The magpie chatters "how d'ye do?'* The jackdaw bids me "go away," Cuckoo cries "cuckoo" half the day: What do the others say ? 86 POEMS FOR CHILDREN ELEANOR Cherry-red her mouth was, Morning-blue her eye, Lady-slim her little waist Rounded prettily; And her sweet smile of gladness Made every heart rejoice: But sweeter even than her smile The tones were of her voice. Sometimes she spoke, sometimes she sang; And evermore the sound Floated, a dreamy melody, Upon the air around; As though a wind were singing Far up beside the sun, Till sound and warmth and glory Were blended all in one. Her hair was long and golden, And clustered unconfined Over a forehead high and white That spoke a noble mind. POEMS FOR CHILDREN S7 Her little hand, her little foot, Were ready evermore To hurry forth to meet a friend; She smiling at the door. But if she sang or if she spoke, 'Twas music soft and grand, As though a distant singing sea Broke on a tuneful strand; As though a blessed Angel Were singing a glad song, Halfway between the earth and heaven Joyfully borne along. MARGARET AND THOMAS. Margaret has a milking-pail, And she rises early; Thomas has a threshing-flail, And he's up betimes. Sometimes crossing through the grass Where the dew lies pearly, They say "Good-morrow" as they pass By the leafy limes. 88 POEMS FOR CHILDREN A YEAR'S WINDFALLS. On the wind of January Down flits the snow, Traveling from the frozen North As cold as it can blow. Poor robin redbreast, Look where he comes; Let him in to feel your fire, And toss him of your crumbs. On the wind of February Snowflakes float still, Half inclined to turn to rain, Nipping, dripping, chill. Then the thaws swell the streams, And swollen rivers swell the sea If the winter ever ends, How pleasant it will be! In the wind of wintry March The catkins drop down, Curly, caterpillar-like, Curious green and brown. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 89 With concourse of nest-building birds And leaf-buds by the way, We begin to think of flowers And life and nuts some day. With the gusts of April Rich fruit-tree blossoms fall, On the hedged-in orchard-green, From the southern wall. Apple-trees and pear-trees Shed petals white or pink, Plum-trees and peach-trees; While sharp showers sink and sink. Little brings the May breeze Beside pure scent of flowers, While all things wax and nothing wanes In lengthening daylight hours. Across the hyacinth beds The wind lags warm and sweet, Across the hawthorn tops, Across the blades of wheat. In the month of sunny June Thrives the red rose crop, 9© POEMS FOR CHILDREN Every day fresh blossoms blow While the first leaves drop; White rose and yellow rose And moss rose choice to find, And the cottage cabbage rose Not one whit behind. On the blast of scorched July Drives the pelting hail From thunderous lightning-clouds that blot Blue heaven grown lurid-pale. Weedy waves are tossed ashore; Sea-things strange to sight Gasp upon the barren shore And fade away in light. In the parching August wind Cornfields bow the head, Sheltered in round valley depths, On low hills outspread. Early leaves drop loitering down Weightless on the breeze, First fruits of the year's decay From the withering trees. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 91 In the brisk wind of September The heavy-headed fruits Shake upon their bending boughs And drop from the shoots; Some glow golden in the sun. Some show green and streaked, Some set forth a purple bloom, Some blush rosy-cheeked. In the strong blast of October At the equinox, Stirred up in his hollow bed Broad ocean rocks; Plunge the ships on his bosom, Leaps and plunges the foam — It's oh for mother's sons at sea, That they were safe at home! In the slack wind of November The fog forms and shifts; And all the world comes out again When the fog lifts. Loosened from their sapless twigs, Leaves drop with every gust; Drifting, rustling, out of sight In the damp or dust. 92 POEMS FOR CHILDREN Last of all, December, The year's sands nearly run, Speeds on the shortest day, Curtails the sun; With its bleak raw wind Lays the last leaves low, Brings back the nightly frosts, Brings back the snow. CHRISTMASTIDE. Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, love divine; Love was born at Christmas, Stars and angels gave the sign. Worship we the Godhead, Love incarnate, love Divine; Worship we our Jesus: But wherewith for sacred sign ? Love shall be our token, Love be yours and love be mine, Love to God and all men, Love for plea and gift and sign. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 93 JOHNNY. Founded on an Anecdote of the First French Revolution. Johnny had a gilded head Like a golden mop in blow, Right and left his curls would spread In a glory and a glow, And they framed his honest face Like stray sunbeams out of place. Long and thick, they half could hide How threadbare his patched jacket hung; They used to be his mother's pride; She praised them with a tender tongue, And stroked them with a loving finger That smoothed and stroked and loved to linger^ On a doorstep Johnny sat, Up and down the street looked he; Johnny did not own a hat, Hot or cold tho' days might be; Johnny did not own a boot To cover up his muddy foot. 94 POEMS FOR CHILDREN Johnny's face was pale and thin, Pale with hunger and with crying; For his mother lay within, Talked and tossed and seemed a-dying, While Johnny racked his brains to think How to get her help and drink: Get her physic, get her tea, Get her bread and something nice; Not a penny piece had he, And scarce a shilling might suffice; No wonder that his soul was sad, When not one penny piece he had. As he sat there thinking, moping, Because his mother's wants were many, Wishing much but scarcely hoping To earn a shilling or a penny, A friendly neighbor passed him by, And questioned him, why did he cry. Alas! his trouble soon was told: He did not cry for cold or hunger, Though he was both hungry and cold; POEMS FOR CHILDREN 95 He only felt more weak and younger, Because he wished to be old And apt at earning pence or gold. Kindly that neighbor was, but poor, Scant coin had he to give or lend; And well he guessed there needed more Than pence or shillings to befriend The helpless woman in her strait, So much loved, yet so desolate. One way he saw, and only one: He would — he could — not give the advice, And yet he must: the widow's son Had curls of gold would fetch their price; Long curls which might be clipped, and sold For silver, or perhaps for gold. Our Johnny, when he understood Which shop it was that purchased hair, Ran off as briskly as he could, And in a trice stood chopped and bare, Too short of hair to fill a locket, But jingling money in his pocket. 9 6 POEMS FOR CHILDREN Precious money — tea and bread, Physic, ease, for mother dear, Better than a golden head: Yet our hero dropped one tear When he spied himself close shorn, Barer much than lamb new-born. His mother throve upon the money, Ate and revived and kissed her son: But oh, when she perceived her Johnny, And understood what he had done All and only for her sake, She sobbed as if her heart must break. THE FLINT. An emerald is as green as grass; A ruby red as blood; A sapphire as blue as heaven; A flint lies in the mud. A diamond is a brilliant stone, To catch the world's desire; An opal is a fiery spark; But a flint holds fire. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 97 SUMMER. Soft-named Summer, Most welcome comer, Brings almost everything Over which we dream or sing Or sigh; But then Summer wends its way, To-morrow — to-day — Good-bye ! AUTUMN. Care flieth, Hope and Fear together: Love dieth In the Autumn weather. For a friend Even Care is pleasant: When Fear doth end Hope is no more present: Autumn silences the turtle-dove: — In blank Autumn who could speak of love! 9 8 poems for children JUNE. Come, cuckoo, come: Come again, swift swallow: Come and welcome! when you come Summer's sure to follow; June the month of months Flowers and fruitage brings too, When green trees spread shadiest boughs, When each wild bird sings too. May is scant and crude, Generous June is riper: Birds fall silent in July, June has its woodland piper: Rocks upon the maple-tops Homely-hearted linnet, Full in hearing of his nest And the dear ones in it. If the year would stand Still at June forever, With no further growth on land Nor further flow of river, POEMS FOR CHILDREN 99 If all nights were shortest nights And longest days were all the seven, This might be a merrier world To my mind to live in. SEPTEMBER. I am a King, Or an Emperor rather, I wear a crown imperial And prince's-feather; Golden-rod is the sceptre I wield and wag, And a broad purple flag-flower Waves for my flag. Elder the pithy With old-man sage, These are my councillors Green in old age; Lords-and-ladies in silence Stand by me and wait, While gay ragged-robin Makes bows at my gate. LOfC. POEMS FOR CHILDREN" LINES TO MY GRANDFATHER. Dear Grandpapa — To be obedient, I'll try and write a letter; Which (as I hope you'll deem expedient) Must serve for lack of better. The apple-tree is showing Its blossoms of bright red, With a soft color glowing Upon its leafy bed. The pear-tree's pure white blossom Like stainless snow is seen; And all earth's genial bosom Is clothed with varied green. The fragrant may is blooming, The yellow cowslip blows; Among its leaves entombing Peeps forth the pale primrose. The king-cup flowers and daisies Are opening hard by; And many another raises Its head, to please and die. POEMS FOR CHILDREN I I love the gay wild flowers Waving in fresh Spring air: — Give me uncultured bowers Before the bright parterre. And now my letter is concluded; To do well I have striven; And, though news is well-nigh excluded, I hope to be forgiven. With love to all the beautiful And those who cannot slaughter, I sign myself — Your dutiful Affectionate grand-daughter. IN THE MEADOW. In the meadow — what in the meadow ? Bluebells, buttercups, meadowsweet, And fairy rings for the children's feet, In the meadow. In the garden — what in the garden ? Jacob's ladder and Solomon's seal, And Love-lies-bleeding beside the Allheal, In the garden. 102 POEMS FOR CHILDREN AN EASTER CAROL. Spring bursts to-day, For Christ is risen and all the earth's at play. Flash forth, thou sun, The rain is over and gone, its work is done. Winter is past, Sweet Spring is come at last, is come at last. Bud, Fig and Vine, Bud, Olive, fat with fruit and oil and wine. Break forth this morn In roses, thou but yesterday a thorn. Uplift thy head, O pure white Lily, through the Winter dead. Beside your dams, Leap and rejoice, you merry-making Lambs. All Herds and Flocks Rejoice, all beasts of thickets and of rocks. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 103 Sing, Creatures, sing, Angels and Men and Birds, and everything. All notes of Doves Fill all our world: this is the time of loves. CHRISTMAS DAY. A baby is a harmless thing And wins our hearts with one accord, And Flower of Babies was their King, Jesus Christ our Lord: Lily of lilies He Upon His Mother's knee; White and ruddy, soon to be Sacrificed for you and me. Nay, lamb is not so sweet a word, Nor lily half so pure a name; Another name our hearts hath stirred, Kindling them to flame: "Jesus" certainly Is music and melody — Heart with heart in harmony Carol we and worship we. io 4 POEMS FOR CHILDREN A CHRISTMAS CAROL. The Shepherds had an Angel, The Wise Men had a star, But what have I, a little child, To guide me home from far, Where glad stars sing together And singing angels are ? Those Shepherds through the lonely night Sat watching by their sheep, Until they saw the heavenly host Who neither tire nor sleep, All singing "Glory, glory," In festival they keep. The Wise Men left their country To journey morn by morn, With gold and frankincense and myrrh, Because the Lord was born: God sent a star to guide them And sent a dream to warn. My life is like their journey, Their star is like God's book; I must be like those good Wise Men POEMS 1-OR CHILDREN 105 With heavenward heart and look: But shall I give no gifts to God ? — What precious gifts they took! A VALENTINE TO MY MOTHER. All the Robin Redbreasts Have lived the winter through, Jenny Wrens have pecked their fill And found a work to do; Families of Sparrows Have weathered wind and storm With Rabbit on the stony hill And Hare upon her form. You and I, my Mother, Have lived the winter through, And still we play our daily parts And still find work to do: And still the cornfields flourish, The olive and the vine, And still you reign my Queen of Hearts And I'm your Valentine. io6 POEMS FOR CHILDREN A CHRISTMAS CAROL. Before the paling of the stars, Before the winter morn, Before the earliest cock-crow, Jesus Christ was born: Born in a stable, Cradled in a manger, In the world His hands had made Born a stranger. Priest and King lay fast asleep In Jerusalem, Young and old lay fast asleep In crowded Bethlehem: Saint and Angel, ox and ass, Kept a watch together, Before the Christmas daybreak In the winter weather. Jesus on His Mother's breast In the stable cold, Spotless Lamb of God was He, Shepherd of the fold: POEMS FOR CHILDREN ™* Let us kneel with Mary Maid, With Joseph bent and hoary, With Saint and Angel, ox and ass, To hail the King of Glory. WEE HUSBAND AND WEE WIFE. Wee, wee husband, Give me some money, I have no comfits, And I have no money. Wee, wee wife, I have no money, Milk, nor meat, nor bread to eat, Comfits, nor honey. I have a little husband And he is gone to sea; The winds that whistle round his ship Fly home to me. The winds that sigh about me, Return again to him; So I would fly, if only I Were light of limb. 108 POEMS FOR CHILDREN A CHRISTMAS CAROL. In the bleak mid-winter Frosty winds made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, Water like a stone; Snow had fallen, snow on snow, Snow on snow, In the bleak mid-winter Long ago. Our God, Heaven cannot hold him Nor earth sustain; Heaven and earth shall flee away When he comes to reign: In the bleak mid-winter A stable-place sufficed The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ. Enough for Him, whom cherubim Worship night and day, A breastful of milk And a mangerful of hay; POEMS FOR CHILDREN 109 Enough for Him, whom angels Fall down before, The ox and ass and camel Which adore. Angels and archangels May have gathered there, Cherubim and seraphim Thronged the air; But only His mother In her maiden bliss Worshipped the Beloved With a kiss. What can I give Him Poor as 1 am ? If I were a shepherd I would bring a lamb, If I were a Wise Man I would do my part — Yet what can I give Him ? Give my heart. no POEMS FOR CHILDREN A NUMBER JINGLE. i and i are 2 — That's for me and you. 2 and 2 are 4 — That's a couple more. 3 and 3 are 6 Sugar-candy sticks. 4 and 4 are 8 Beggars at the gate. 5 and 5 are 10 Sturdy sailor men. 6 and 6 are 12 Garden lads who delve. 7 and 7 are 14 Young men bent on sporting. 8 and 8 are 16 Pills the doctor's mixing. POEMS FOR CHILDREN in 9 and 9 are 18 Passengers kept waiting. 10 and 10 are 20 Roses — pleasant plenty. 11 and 11 are 22 Sums for little George to do. 12 and 12 are 24 Pretty pictures and no more. SWEET DAFFADOWNDILLY, Growing in the vale, By the uplands hilly, Growing straight and frail, Lady Daffadowndilly. In a golden crown, And a scant green gown, While the spring blows chilly Lady Daffadown, Sweet Daffadowndilly. POEMS FOR CHILDREN OUT IN THE FIELDS. Out in the fields Summer heat gloweth, Out in the fields Summer wind bloweth, Out in the fields Summer wheat groweth. WINTER. Swift swallows have left us alone in the lurch, But Robin sits whistling to us from his perch; If I were a red robin, I'd pipe you a tune, Would make you despise all the beauties of June. But since that cannot be, let us draw round the fire, Munch chestnuts, tell stories, and stir the blaze higher. We'll comfort pinched robin with crumbs, little man, Till he sings us the very best song that he can. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 113 WHEN THE COWS COME HOME. When the cows come home the milk is coming, Honey's made while the bees are humming; Duck and drake on the rushy lake, And the deer live safe in the breezy brake; And timid, funny, brisk little bunny Winks his nose and sits all sunny. "THERE IS A BUDDING MORROW IN MIDNIGHT." Wintry boughs against a wintry sky; Yet the sky is partly blue And the clouds are partly bright: — Who can tell but sap is mounting high Out of sight, Ready to burst through ? Winter is the mother-nurse of Spring, Lovely for her daughter's sake, Not unlovely for her own: For a future bud in everything; Grown, or blown, Or about to break. ii 4 POEMS FOR CHILDREN STERLING MONEY. What will you give me for my pound ? Full twenty shillings round. What will you give me for my shilling ? Twelve pence to give I'm willing. What will you give me for my penny ? Four farthings, just so many. SEASONS. Crocuses and snowdrops wither, Violets, primroses together, Fading with the fading Spring Before a fuller blossoming. O sweet Summer, pass not soon, Stay awhile the harvest-moon: O sweetest Summer, do not go, For Autumn's next and next the snow. When Autumn comes the days are drear, It is the downfall of the year: We heed the wind and falling leaf More than the golden harvest-sheaf. POEMS FOR CHILDREN n S Dreary Winter come at last: Come quickly, so be quickly past: Dusk and sluggish Winter, wane Till Spring and sunlight dawn again. A DIAMOND OR A COAL? A diamond or a coal ? A diamond, if you please: Who cares about a clumsy coal Beneath the summer trees ? A diamond, or a coal ? A coal, sir, if you please, One comes to care about the coal What time the waters freeze. BROWNIE COW. Brownie, Brownie, let down your milk, White as swansdown and smooth as silk, Fresh as dew and pure as snow: For I know where the cowslips blow, And you and I shall have a cowslip wreath No sweeter scented than your breath. n6 POEMS FOR CHILDREN THE ROSE THAT BLUSHES. The rose with such a bonny blush, What has the rose to blush about ? If it's the sun that makes her blush, What's in the sun to flush about ? The rose that blushes rosy red, She must hang her head; The lily that blows spotless white, She may stand upright. BOOKS IN THE RUNNING BROOKS. "It is enough, enough," one said, At play among the flowers: "I spy a rose upon a thorn, A rainbow in the showers; I hear a merry chime of bells Ring out the passing hours." Soft springs the fountain From the daisied ground, Softly falling on the moss Without a sound. POEMS FOR CHILDREN 117 "It is enough," she said, and fixed Calm eyes upon the sky: "I watch a flitting tender cloud Just like a dove go by; A lark is rising from the grass, A wren is building nigh." Softly the fountain Threads its silver way, Screened by the scented bloom Of whitest May. FAIRIES. I fancy the good fairies dressed in white, Glancing like moonbeams through the shad- ows black, Without much work to do for king or hack. Training perhaps some twisted branch aright; Or sweeping faded autumn-leaves from sight To foster embryo life; or binding back Stray tendrils; or in ample bean-pod sack Bringing wild honey from the rocky height; Or fishing for a fly lest it should drown; Or teaching water-lily heads to swim, u8 POEMS FOR CHILDREN Fearful that sudden rain might make them sink Or dyeing the pale rose a warmer pink; Or wrapping lilies in their leafy gown, Yet letting the white peep beyond the rim. DAWN. " Kookoorookoo ! kookoorookoo ! " Crows the cock before the morn; Kikirikee ! kikirikee ! " Roses in the east are born. Kookoorookoo ! kookoorookoo ! ' ' Early birds begin their singing; " Kikirikee! kikirikee!" The day, the day, the day is springing. PRAYING ALWAYS. After midnight, in the dark, The clock strikes one, New day has begun. Look up and hark! With singing heart forestall the carolling lark. POEMS FOR CHILDREN "9 After mid-day, in the light The clock strikes one, Day-fall has begun. Cast up, set right The day's account against the oncoming night. After noon and night, one day For ever one Ends not, once begun. Whither away, O brothers and O sisters? Pause and pray. SNOW AND SAND. I dug and dug amongst the snow, And thought the flowers would never grow; I dug and dug amongst the sand, And still no green thing came to hand. Melt, O snow! the warm winds blow To thaw the flowers and melt the snow; But all the winds from every land Will rear no blossom from the sand. POEMS FOR CHILDREN ON NAMES. The peacock has a score of eyes, With which he cannot see; The cod-fish has a silent sound, However that may be. No dandelions tell the time, Although they turn to clocks; Cat's-cradle does not hold the cat, Nor foxglove fit the fox. A city plum is not a plum; A dumb-bell is no bell, though dumb; A party rat is not a rat; A sailor's cat is not a cat; A soldier's frog is not a frog; A captain's log is not a log. MY LEAST LITTLE ONE, Your brother has a falcon, Your sister has a flower; But what is left for mannikin, Born within an hour ? POEMS FOR CHILDREN I '11 nurse you on my knee, my knee, My own little son; I'll rock you, rock you, in my arms, My least little one. HOPING FOR SPRING. I wonder if the sap is stirring yet, If wintry birds are dreaming of a mate, If frozen snowdrops feel as yet the sun And crocus fires are kindling one by one: Sing, robin, sing; I still am sore in doubt concerning Spring. I wonder if the Springtide of this year Will bring another Spring both lost and dear; If heart and spirit will find out their Spring, Or if the world alone will bud and sing: Sing, hope, to me; Sweet notes, my hope, soft notes for memory. The sap will surely quicken soon or late, The tardiest birds will twitter to a mate; 122 POEMS FOR CHILDREN So Spring must dawn again with warmth and bloom, Or in this world or in the world to come: Sing, voice of Spring, Till I too blossom and rejoice and sing. SEASONS. In Springtime when the leaves are young, Clear dewdrops gleam like jewels, hung On boughs the fair birds roost among. When Summer comes with sweet unrest, Birds weary of their mother's breast, And look abroad and leave the nest. In Autumn ere the waters freeze, The swallows fly across the seas: — If we could fly away with these! In Winter when the birds are gone, The sun himself looks starved and wan, And starved the snow he shines upon. POEMS FOR CHILDREN i$3 WINTER RAIN. Lambs so woolly white, Sheep the sun-bright leas on, They could have no grass to bite But for rain in season. We should find no moss In the shadiest places, Find no waving meadow grass Pied with broad-eyed daisies: But miles of barren sand, With never a son or daughter; Not a lily on the land, Or lily on the water. THE HOLLY. A Rose has thorns as well as honey, I'll not have her for love or money; An iris grows so straight and fine That she shall be no friend of mine; Snowdrops like the snow would chill me; Nightshade would caress and kill me; Crocus like a spear would fright me; i2 4 POEMS FOR CHILDREN Dragon' s-mouth might bark or bite me; Convolvulus but blooms to die; A wind-flower suggests a sigh; Love-lies-bleeding makes me sad; And poppy-juice would drive me mad:- But give me holly, bold and jolly, Honest, prickly, shining holly; Pluck me holly leaf and berry For the days when I make merry. SUMMER. Hark to the song of greeting! The tall trees Murmur their welcome in the southern breeze; Amid the thickest foliage many a bird Sits singing, their shrill matins scarcely heard One by one, but all together Welcoming the sunny weather; In every bower hums a bee Fluttering melodiously; Murmurs joy in every brook, Rippling with a pleasant look: What greet they with their guileless bliss ? What welcome with a song like this ? POEMS FOR CHILDREN 125 SPRING QUIET. Gone were but the Winter, Come were but the Spring, I would go to a covert Where the birds sing; Where in the whitethorn Singeth a thrush, And a robin sings In the holly-bush. Full of fresh scents Are the budding boughs Arching high over A cool green house; Full of sweet scents, And whispering air Which sayeth softly: "We spread no snare; "Here dwell in safety, Here dwell alone, With a clear stream And a mossy stone. i 2 6 POEMS FOR CHILDREN "Here the sun shineth Most shadily; Here is an echo heard Of the far sea, Though far off it be.' EARTH AND HEAVEN. Water calmly flowing, Sunlight deeply glowing, Swans some river riding That is gently gliding By the fresh green rushes, The sweet rose that blushes, Hyacinths whose dower Is both scent and flower, Skylark's soaring motion, Sunrise from the ocean, Jewels that lie sparkling 'Neath the waters darkling, Seaweed, coral, amber, Flowers that climb and clamber Or more lowly flourish Where the earth may nourish: POEMS FOR CHILDREN 127 All these are beautiful, Of beauty earth is full: Say, to our promised heaven Can greater charms be given ? TO LALLA. (reading my verses topsy-turvy.) Darling little Cousin, With your thoughtful look, Reading topsy-turvy From a printed book. English hieroglyphics, More mysterious To you than Egyptian Ones would be to us; — Leave off for a minute Studying, and say What is the impression That those marks convey. Only solemn silence And a wondering smile: 128 TOEMS FOR CHILDREN But your eyes are lifted Unto mine the while. In their gaze so steady I can surely trace That a happy spirit Lighteth up your face; Tender happy spirit, Innocent and pure, Teaching more than silence, And then learning more. How should I give answer To that asking look ? Darling little Cousin, Go back to your book. Read on : if you knew it, You have cause to boast: You are much the wiser, Though I know the most. x > x 0c Deacidified using the Bookkeeper proc Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide Treatment Date: April 2009 PreservationTechnologi A WORLD LEADER IN COLLECTIONS PRESERVA 111 Thomson Park Drive r~ I ,Tr,,.,nchin PA1R066 'O.