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STRAY POEMS 
 
 EARLY HISTOKT 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Albany and Susquehanna 
 
 RAILROAD 
 
 H. T. DANA 
 
 YORK, PA. 
 
 p. ANSTAUT At SONS 
 
 lOO.'l 
 
.^•^ 
 
 
 THE LIBRARY OF 
 CONGRESS, 
 
 Two Copies Received 
 
 MAY 28 1903 
 
 Cepyright Entry 
 
 \v^(^ V ' ^ ^ ^ 
 
 CLASS'^ CL- XXo. N«. 
 
 S"^ ^ ^ / 
 copy a. 
 
 COPYRIGHT BY 
 
 H. T. DANA 
 
 1903 
 
Dedication 
 
 To my wife, without whose patient care in the pres- 
 ervation of these poems, I would have been unable 
 to compile the work, this book is affectionately 
 DE;DiCAT:eD. 
 
 That it may confer some pleasure upon those who 
 purchase it, is the wish of 
 
 The Authur. 
 C0BI.ESKII.L, N. Y., January 4th, 1903. 
 
Preface 
 
 To My Readers: 
 
 In presenting this book to you I desire 
 to say that I am conscious of its defects, yet I trust it 
 is not devoid of merit. 
 
 Whilst not a work of superior excellence, I believe 
 the poems are not inferior to the average of such pio- 
 ductions, and to express only elevating sentiments. 
 
 The appendix contains a brief history of the Albany 
 ard Susquehanna Railroad, and its early trials and 
 struggles, which has been carefully compiled by the 
 author. To the local reader, this alone will be found 
 to be worth the cost of this book. 
 
 To my friends who by their subscriptions greatly 
 encouraged me in getting out the work, I return my 
 sincere thanks, and with heartfelt good wishes remain 
 
 Their Friend, 
 
 H. T. Dana. 
 
Contents 
 
 The Present Age, - - - - - - 9 
 
 A Christmas Poem, . _ . . - 28 
 
 Golden Wedding Lines, - - - - - 34 
 
 Broken Links, ------ 39 
 
 Sabbath School Room Re-dedicatioD, - - - 42 
 
 The Rumseller's Vision, _ . - . 48 
 
 A Wreck on the Road, - - - - - 54 
 
 Above the Rapids, - - - - - 56 
 
 Lines on the Death of President McKinley, - - 60 
 
 Passing Away, ------ 62 
 
 The Land of the West, - . . - - 65 
 
 Resurrection, ------ 67 
 
 The Love of Life, ------ 70 
 
 The Brotherhood of Man, - - . - 72 
 
 The Beautiful, - - - - - - 76 
 
 Railroad Reminiscences, - - - - - 79 
 
 The Country Railroad Agent'^ Trials, - - - 83 
 
 An Acrostic, - - - - - - 88 
 
 Greenwood Cemetery, - - - - - 89 
 
 Be Cheerful, ------ 94 
 
 The Charm That Bids Me Stay, - - - - 98 
 
 Thy Own Right Hand, - - - - - 102 
 
 The Farmer's Prayer, ----- 106 
 
 Thanksgiving, - - - - - - loS 
 
Vlll. CONTENTS. 
 
 Ivines in Favor of Building the Albany and Susquehanna 
 
 Railroad, - - - - - - iii 
 
 Today and Tomorrow, - - - - - 115 
 
 What the Stars of Our Flag Tell Us, - - - 119 
 
 The New Year, ---... 122 
 
 An Appeal for Freedom, - - - - - 128 
 
 Responsiveness, - - - - - - 131 
 
 Klondike's Gold, - - - - - - I35 
 
 The Storm at St. Louis, - - - - - 140 
 
 The Political Situation, - - - - - 145 
 
 Retrospect, __---. 149 
 
 F'reedom's Spirit, ------ 153 
 
 Labor, - - - - - - - 155 
 
 Discernment, ------- 158 
 
 The Coming of the Cars, ----- 161 
 
 Our Christmas Story, - - - - - 163 
 
 Dedication Poem, ------ 169 
 
 Lines to a Friend on Her Departure for California in 1855 173 
 
 The Waves of Time, ----- 177 
 
 An Acrostic - - - - - -,-183 
 
 A Knight of Labor - - - -. - 184 
 
 The Hop Grower's Song, - * - - - - 185 
 
 Our Country, ------ 189 
 
 The Changing of the Seasons, - - . . 194 
 
 Children's Day, - - - - - - 197 
 
 Where's the Spirit, ------ 201 
 
 Our Loved Ones' Graves, - - . - 206 
 
 Early History of the Albany and Susquehanna Railroad, 208 
 
Tile Present ^gc 
 
 'Tis very seldom that I raise 
 
 My voice to gain or lose the praise 
 
 Of those whose life has led them o'er 
 
 The path which leads to solid lore; 
 
 And now perchance I'm out of place, 
 
 And take a stand I poorly grace, 
 
 When I would gain the reader's ear, 
 
 And write what wiser men will hear: 
 
 More fitting far for me to wield 
 
 The scythe and spade in some rough field, 
 
 Or guide the plough with steady hand, 
 
 In furrows deep across the land; 
 
 For at such work I've spent my time, 
 
 Not writing books or making rhyme; 
 
 Yet still I feel a little power 
 
 Come forth to help me in this hour. 
 
 And like a bird which cannot fly, 
 
 I'm not resigned but still must try. 
 
lO THE PRESEKT age. 
 
 The theme I bring upon the stage 
 
 Is this important, present age — 
 
 This present age — a noble theme, 
 
 Fit for the poet's pen, I ween; 
 
 Behold how science soars on high 
 
 To yonder blue expansive sky, 
 
 And by its penetrating light 
 
 Brings forth new orbs to mortal sight; 
 
 See, now the comets as they roll 
 
 Throughout the sky, from pole to pole, 
 
 And tread with lightning speed their round 
 
 Where other worlds may yet be found. 
 
 Are understood — their movements timed, 
 
 And every part is well defined; 
 
 The sun and moon, each twinkling star 
 
 That glimmers in those realms afar, 
 
 Yield up their secrets to the power 
 
 Which science sways this present hour; 
 
 The glorious truths the ancients sought 
 
 For ages, and were yet untaught, 
 
 Are now to men of lore revealed, 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 1 1 
 
 And to the masses are unsealed, 
 'Till now on wings which learning lends, 
 Man soars away where space extends. 
 And with a keen researching eye, 
 Reads out the mysteries of the sky; 
 Sees how the planets in their spheres 
 Roll on and on through countless years — 
 Notes every change which they display, 
 And treads along the milky way. 
 And as we leave the azure skies, 
 And turn to earth our eager eyes, 
 What wondrous scenes this age displays 
 To please our minds, and charm our gaze; 
 Now, far beneath the ocean's waves, 
 Where thousands find their lonely graves, 
 The sky-born lightning threads its way 
 To carry news from day to day; 
 Though Franklin caught it from the cloud. 
 Where thunder tones were pealing loud, 
 'Twas left for Morse himself to teach. 
 And make it write each part of speech ; 
 
1 2 . THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 And now, although with flashes bright, 
 It stamps the clouds with lurid light. 
 When storm capped clouds in wrath appear 
 And heaven's artillery strikes the ear, 
 Yet men its powers with safety use, 
 And send it wheresoe'er they choose; 
 'Till now on land and neath the seas, 
 It goes the will of man to please. 
 And on its blazing wings conveys 
 The tidings of these mighty days; 
 Now with its thin and fleeting breath 
 It breathes the word of sudden death — 
 Now o'er the telegraphic wires 
 It bears some soul's heartfelt desires — 
 Now, in its tones we hear the voice 
 Of him who is the nation's choice. 
 And word of armies, thrones and kings 
 Along its lines it quickly brings. 
 While answering thoughts along its track 
 With lightning speed are hurried back, 
 'Till all the lands at last are one, 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 1 3 
 
 And time and space are both outdone. 
 And*yet more wonders meet the eye, 
 Which with the telegraph will vie: 
 The diving bell, these latter days 
 Bring forth to claim our earnest praise; 
 And now beneath the foaming waves 
 Mid ocean sands, and ocean caves, 
 Man walks in safety on the deck 
 Of some ill fated, sunken wreck, 
 Sees what the work of death has done. 
 Where rich and poor alike are one, 
 And then secures some golden prize 
 With which he can in safety rise. 
 Of all machines, the present day 
 Brings forth a useful, grand array. 
 The speedy reaper, jvith a power 
 That cuts an acre in an hour, 
 Has now usurped the place of scythes, 
 Which we have handled half our lives; 
 And threshers now with power sublime. 
 Shell out our grain in little time, 
 
14 THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 Whilst on some old and rusty nail, 
 
 Has long been hung the well worn flail; 
 
 Instead of weaving now by hand, 
 
 We have an agent strong and grand. 
 
 By which the loom we can propel. 
 
 And make it weave both fast and well; 
 
 And spinning, too, is done by steam; 
 
 This is the agent which I mean; 
 
 Why, now where'er a river lies, 
 
 A steamboat sweeps before our eyes; 
 
 High roll the waves upon its sides. 
 
 As swiftly on its course it glides. 
 
 And bears unto some distant mart 
 
 The earth's produce and works of art; 
 
 Throughout the world their use is known, 
 
 And men their power confess and own; 
 
 Behold they tread where balmy skies 
 
 And placid lakes attract our eyes. 
 
 Or brave the storms that yearly sweep 
 
 With fury o'er the rolling deep — 
 
 Ply round and round the British Isle, 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. I 5 
 
 And wake the echoes long the Nile; 
 Seek every port in every zone, 
 Where men are wise and art is known. 
 And yet the works of man display 
 Still greater things in this, our day. 
 The locomotive next we'll view, 
 And see what praise to it is due; 
 See, where rolls Atlantic's tide, 
 It curls its steam and puffs with pride. 
 And leaving thence our eastern strand, 
 Comes thundering westward o'er our land; 
 Climbs up the bold Sieria's steep, 
 Where wintry winds with fury sweep, 
 Then strides away in regal state, 
 To reach Francisco's golden gate. 
 And bears the tide of progress on. 
 Far westward toward the setting sun; 
 'Till now, where late the beasts of prey 
 Were rulers of both night and day. 
 Some thriving village meets our eyes. 
 Which to a city soon will rise. 
 
1 6 THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 Our prairies once so lone and wild , 
 
 Where lately roamed the indian child, 
 
 Are now made vocal with the sound 
 
 Of men who till the fertile ground, 
 
 And by the engine's aid today, 
 
 Send forth their produce far away, 
 
 Where commerce rears its busy mart, 
 
 To be exchanged for works of art; 
 
 Ah yes ! the engine truly sways 
 
 A country's fate these active days; 
 
 And now the tracks o'er which, they fly, 
 
 On every side salute the eye. 
 
 Behold where France in beauty smiles, 
 
 Or Britain rules her busy isles, 
 
 Or where the Czar his power maintains, 
 
 Or where the Pope in splendor reigns, 
 
 Are railroads laid, and o'er each course 
 
 Comes thundering on the iron horse; 
 
 Whilst here in our progressive land 
 
 They reach out now from strand to strand; 
 
 Their lines are drawn throughout the west, 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 1 7 
 
 Across the prairie's fertile breast, 
 
 And o'er New England's hills they go, 
 
 And traverse lands both high and low; 
 
 They span our rivers — cross our plains, 
 
 Where frost and snow or summer reigns, 
 
 'Till by their vast extending round. 
 
 States unto states are firmly bound; 
 
 And O, to see an engine fly, 
 
 With powers which with the earthquake vie. 
 
 And see it sweep along the track 
 
 As though its speed would never slack; 
 
 And hear the wild, resounding scream 
 
 It echoes forth by aid of steam, 
 
 Is startling, grand, in truth sublime, 
 
 A marvel of this wondrous time. 
 
 So, too, the printing press I claim. 
 
 Belongs upon the scroll of fame; 
 
 Now sheet on sheet, and ream on ream 
 
 Are printed by the power of steam ; 
 
 The thoughts which spring fiom out the brain 
 
 Are stamped in letters bright and plain, 
 
1 8 THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 And when the press once gives them birth 
 They soon are known through all the earth. 
 And thus the printing press and pen 
 Reign o'er the hearts and minds of men, 
 And form the lever which can shake 
 The citadels, which errors make. 
 The futile doctrines of the past 
 Are brought to yield to truth at last, 
 And learning now moves on apace, 
 I/ike some swift courser on a race. 
 The news of far off, foreign lands 
 Is now presented to our hands, 
 And all who have the will to read, 
 Can their own minds with knowledge feed. 
 The Bible — precious word of truth! 
 Sweet counsellor of age or youth, 
 Is now in many tongues portrayed, 
 And to the heathen is displayed; 
 And thus we see the press proclaim 
 Salvation in a Savior's name. 
 But there are other things to view, 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 1 9 
 
 Which claim a passing tribute too: 
 Behold where wild Niagara roars, 
 And down the rocks its water pours, 
 Are bridges built, and crossing o'er 
 Its foaming surf from shore to shore. 
 Nature's realm has been outdone, 
 And art a lasting victory won. 
 And Suez now no more divides 
 TheRed Sea and European tides; 
 Its sands are moved, and in their stead 
 The oceans now their waters spread. 
 And on their bosom is unfurled 
 The commerce of this busy world : 
 Arabia, Persia, Hindoostan, 
 Borneo, China, and Siam; 
 Now in the lap of nations pour 
 The products of their sunny shore. 
 No longer now need English sails 
 Be rent in twain by torrid gales 
 When rounding Africa's stormy coast, 
 Or dashed upon its cape and lost; 
 
20 THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 For with the power this era wields 
 We drive our ships across the fields — 
 Map out new tracks around the earth, 
 And give gigantic projects birth. 
 And ere ten years their race have run, 
 And sets their last departing sun. 
 The neck of land which lies between • 
 The two Americas, I ween, 
 Will be removed, and through the gate 
 The oceans rush at rapid rate; 
 Atlantic claim, with manly pride, 
 The mild Pacific for a bride; 
 And thus united, onward flow, 
 Whilst countless seasons come and go; 
 A watery highway thus we'll boast, 
 Between our east and western coast. 
 Hail, happy marriage of East and West, 
 And be thy union doubly blest. 
 But let us leave this busy theme 
 For one where peace and love are seen: 
 Behold religion — priceless gem. 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 21 
 
 Exerts its power o'er many men, 
 And with a strength born from above 
 It surely on its course must move. 
 The gospel now is sent abroad 
 To teach men of their sovereign God; 
 Till now where Africa's deserts lie 
 Or India glows 'neath summer sky, 
 Or North where ice and snow abound, 
 The messengers of Christ are foundj 
 And thus they labor, trust and pray, 
 And hasten on Millenium's day. 
 Of all the ills with which we're cursed 
 Intemperance is by far the worst; 
 Ah, yes, my friends, how many minds, 
 Within whose power true genius shines. 
 Upon rum's waves are tempest tossed 
 Till wrecked — and then forever lost! 
 How many men have lived and died, 
 And done but little else beside. 
 Who might have filled with fitting grace 
 The hero's or the statesman's place, 
 
22 THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 Had rum not lured them far away 
 Where deep disgrace and dangers lay. 
 As clouds o'ercast the jeweled sky, 
 And hide its beauties from our eye, 
 Till all its gems, so pure and bright. 
 Are veiled and hidden from our sight; 
 So rum, with all its powers combined 
 Draws forth its curtain o'er the mind, 
 Till soon we see its lustrous ray 
 Grow less and less, then fade away. 
 And darkness gather round the throne, 
 Where love of fame and learning shone. 
 With its sharp fangs and serpent tooth 
 It stings and bites the blooming youth. 
 And 'neath its crushing, iron wheel 
 The greatest men and minds must kneel. 
 So, too, with nations, o'er their fame 
 This curse erects its cloud of shame; 
 Till now, through all the world around 
 Are drunken men and youths, too, found. 
 We see them reeling from the doors. 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 23 
 
 Where rum its tempting current pours, 
 And hear their curses, loud and long. 
 Commingled with some ribald song, 
 Break on the air almost each day, 
 That rolls life's fleeting hours away; 
 Till parents now must daily see, 
 Their fondest hopes forever flee; 
 And feel the woes, that rum imparts 
 Bind fast their shadows on their hearts. 
 Sisters o'er brothers lost must mourn. 
 With grief that scarcely can be borne; 
 And every social tie which binds 
 In blissful union human minds, 
 Must fall asunder 'neath the power 
 That liquor sways this present hour. 
 O what an untold flood of tears — 
 Of soul-felt sighs, and aching fears, 
 This fiend of death and deep dismay 
 Wrings out from those who feel its sway. 
 Could all their groans in concert rise 
 The wail would echo 'long the skies! 
 
24 THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 Could all the stricken forms appear, 
 That rum has laid upon the bier, . 
 How vast an army we would see 
 Clothed in the garb of misery ! 
 O what a frightful, horrid close 
 To earthly cares and earthly woes ! 
 
 what a death, Great God, I crave 
 A bettei* life — a brighter grave. 
 
 Of ** strikes" alas, what shall I say ? 
 They come quite oft in this our day; 
 lyabor and cash with hand in hand 
 No longer walk in this fair land. 
 Are either right, or both in wrong ? 
 Shall be the burden of my song; 
 
 1 think the gulf which now divides 
 These forces, truly has two sides; 
 Mercy and justice — honest pay 
 
 For work well done from day to day — 
 Are workmen's due — a rightful claim. 
 And none should e'er withold the same: 
 But lo, behold in various ways 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 25 
 
 The working men in these late days, 
 
 Assume to order who shall be 
 
 Employed — are we then free, 
 
 Or slaves unto some tyrant band, 
 
 Whose cabal fain would rule our land ? 
 
 Out with such claims — let it be said, 
 
 That every man who'll work for bread. 
 
 Is free to do so — and no clan 
 
 Shall intercept, or harm the man. 
 
 But from all fear and menace freed, 
 
 Go to his work, a king indeed! 
 
 Some men say the*right to " shirk," 
 
 Is equal with the right to work. 
 
 Not so — to labor is God's plan — 
 
 His edict given to every man; 
 
 Here duty points and leads the way. 
 
 Here all is clear and light as day; 
 
 We owe it to our homes and state 
 
 That we should work and make them great. 
 
 No duty waits on idle hours, 
 
 Man's duty is to use his powers — 
 
26 THE PRESENT AGE. 
 
 Build up his home — protect his brood- — 
 Relieve their wants — provide their food; 
 And thus with loyal hand and heart, 
 In life's great play act well his part. 
 Of war we have enough at least, 
 And may it never be increased; 
 Behold the turf on sacred tombs, 
 Where still the fair magnolia blooms: 
 At Gettysburg our thousands sleep. 
 And loving spirits vigil keep 
 Around the graves of martyrs slain. 
 Throughout the South on every plain 
 They died, that we might live to see 
 Our union saved — our nation free. 
 Hail! Men of noble thought and mien, 
 No nobler band the world has seen. 
 But let us turn with anxious gaze 
 Where Cuba basks, 'neath Summer rays, 
 Our hearts fill up with hopes and fears — 
 Our eyes grow dull and dim with tears: 
 Hopes that since the fearful fray 
 With all its clouds has passed away. 
 
THE PRESENT AGE. 2/ 
 
 Beneath her blue and balmy skies 
 A nation, freed, will always rise; 
 Fears, that again some despot hand 
 May gain control and curse her land. 
 Hail! Cuba free, in verdure dressed, 
 Thrice welcome to thy mother's breast; 
 We'll take thy hand, and bless our child, 
 And strive to keep thee undefiled: 
 This the tocsin — this the word 
 We gave the world when first the sword 
 We drew with all our might and main, 
 To free thee from the rule of Spain. 
 O Age, which seems to me the best — 
 Outstripping far all of the rest. 
 We style thee great — of fair renown, 
 And crown thee with a laurel crown, 
 'Though there are ills which slowly steal, 
 And trespass on our country's weal; 
 Great God! 'tis thlis I feebly pray, 
 Drive all our nation's clouds away: 
 Let wisdom, truth, and honor be 
 The watchwords of the bold and free; 
 Let temperance o'er the world preside, 
 And virtue be the people's guide. 
 
A ftristmas Poen^ 
 
 [Written for and read before the M. K. Church Sabbath School 
 in Cobleskill, Dec. 25th, i88:^, byMRS. Ci^ii^ford France.] 
 
 Let US stop for a moment, shut the present from gaze, 
 And turn with our vision to the wonderful days. 
 When angels all fresh from the portals of of glory, 
 Were sent from the skies to tell the sweet story, 
 That a child should be born, and a Savior be given, 
 To bridge over the chasm 'twixt this world and heaven. 
 Behold on the plains are the shepherds and sheep, 
 And the stars in the sky their bright vigils keep, 
 While the Jordan rolls on in that valley of old, 
 Like the drift of a romance, which has often been told; 
 When an angel from Heaven sweeps down on the scene. 
 And the shepherds are frightened by the glory and 
 
 gleam. 
 Let us list to the song of that heavenly host 
 Whose echo has swept on from coast unto coast. 
 With a cadence of love and a rythm sublime, 
 Which shall flow on forever 'long the arches of time: 
 
 28 
 
When an angel from Heaven sweeps down on the scene, 
 And the shepherds are frightened by the glory and gleam. 
 
30 A CHRISTMAS POEM. 
 
 Peace on earth, and forever good will unto men 
 Was the song of the seraphs, which burst on us then; 
 And to-night let us all catch up the refrain, 
 And echo it forth to the world once again; 
 Peace on earth, and forever good will unto men. 
 Be our motto through life; as the seraphs sang then. 
 With the Magi let's follow the star of the East, 
 Not to palace or castle — not banquet or feast, 
 But away to the manger where the Savior once lay. 
 Wrapped in coarse clothing, and pillowed on hay, 
 And learn to be humble, and to never despise 
 Some sister, or brother, wrapt in poverty's guise. 
 I^et us go with that child to the home of his youth, 
 lyearning lessons of duty, obedience and truth; 
 And as Christ the dear Savior to his parents was true, 
 Let me ask, my dear children, is it not proper that you 
 Should strive to be truthful, obedient and mild. 
 As Jesus our Savior was, when He was a child ? 
 In fancy let's tread on the shores of Galilee, 
 And note what we hear, and the sights which we see. 
 See! the Storm King is raging, and the billows are 
 tossed, 
 
A CHRISIMAS POEM. 3 1 
 
 And the men in the boat cry aloud, " We are lost!" 
 When the Master, arising, bids the wild winds to cease, 
 And hushed is the storm, and lulled unto peace: 
 See the multitude hungered, as they sit on the shore, 
 And are taught by the Savior, as never before; 
 Then the banquet of heaven is luxuriously spread, 
 For the dear Savior blesses, and breaks up the bread, 
 And the thousands who hungered are fully supplied. 
 And fragments are gathered from the feast yet beside ! 
 See, the lepers are cleansed — the deaf ones do hear. 
 The blind again see the landscape so dear. 
 The palsied grow strong — the lame ones do leap. 
 And death now no longer its victims doth keep. 
 For the Savior commands, and he bids them ' * come 
 
 forth," 
 Restored unto life, and to dwell on the earth. 
 
 O turn the page where e'er we may, 
 
 Of our sweet Christmas story, 
 'Tis decked with rays of breaking day. 
 
 And filled with love and glory; 
 The world has been the brighter since, 
 
'O 
 
 3 3 
 
 ^ .2 
 
 ^ O 
 
A CHRISTMAS POEM. 33 
 
 At Bethlehem in the manger, 
 In swaddling clothes, unlike a prince, 
 
 There lay the heavenly stranger. 
 And greater love, has well been said, 
 
 Has no man for another 
 Than. that he'll lay his own life down, 
 
 And suffer for his brother. 
 The manger bade the world rejoice — 
 
 The cross brought tears and sorrows; 
 But through the gloom a heavenly voice 
 
 Bespoke a bright to-morrow; 
 For Christ the Lord would rise again — 
 
 His glory shine forever: 
 His form be seen and known of men, 
 
 His spirit bind their hearts together. 
 And now, to-night, let's hail the day 
 
 Which ushered in the glory. 
 And bless the morn whose blissful ray 
 
 Bedecks our Christmas story; 
 Well may the earth's wide welkin ring. 
 
 With loud and sweet hosannas; 
 All glory to the lyord and King, 
 
 Whose name is on our banners. 
 
Qoldei^ bedding Lines 
 
 [Read at the 50th wedding anniversary of the Rev. D. P. 
 Warner, by his sister, Mrs. Kate: Lbak, of Oakland, Cal.] 
 
 Hail friends and greeting, I bid you good cheer 
 In behalf of the friend who invited us here. 
 How dear to our hearts, when the season is run, 
 When the harvest is gathered and the hard work is 
 
 done, 
 Is Thanksgiving day, with its God given praise 
 For the bounties of earth and the length of our days: 
 But here, at this time whatever betides; 
 We've a thanksgiving day, and a wedding besides. 
 Yes, let us give thanks for the privilege today. 
 Of meeting our friends in this pleasant way. 
 And coming together in heart and in hand — 
 A happy reunion of our family band. 
 Though the springtime of youth with many has sped. 
 And our hair is turned gray, yet love is not dead: 
 For the love which is true is not for a day, 
 But endureth forever, and knows no decay; 
 
 34 
 
GOLDEN WEDDING LINES. 35 
 
 And grows stronger and purer throughout all the years 
 Which are filled up with bliss, or hallowed by tears. 
 And now, my dear friends, if I must preside, 
 I present to you all, my brother and bride; 
 Fifty years, with their cycles and trials untold, 
 O'er the highway of Time their measure have rolled, 
 Since their love was first plighted, in honor and truth, « 
 'Way back in the halcyon days of their youth; 
 Yet we turn in our gaze to a newly-wed pair. 
 Whose forms are yet straight, and features yet fair. 
 From the depths of our hearts, without any alloy. 
 We bid them good cheer — we wish them ** much joy;" 
 And we pray that the Being who all blessing extends 
 Will continue to guide and protect these dear friends. 
 And to you, the dear children, and grand-children, too, 
 I've but a word more, and then I am through: 
 May the traits of these parents, their labor for right. 
 Hereafter be constantly kept in your sight. 
 As your guide and your mentor, wherever you go 
 On your journey through life in the world here below; 
 And when life with its trials has come to an end, 
 And the days of this world with eternity blend, 
 
36 * GOLDEN WEDDING LINES. 
 
 May you meet in the city, of which we are told, 
 The Lamb is the light, and the streets are of gold; 
 Where age is unknown, and the angels shall sing. 
 And the air is surcharged with an evergreen Spring, 
 
 [lyines written for the Golden Wedding Anniversary of John 
 
 F. Briggs, Esq., of White Rock, South Dakota, and read 
 
 January ist, 1898, by MiSS Mabei, BEESON.] 
 
 We greet you, kind friends, we are glad you are here, 
 
 Our hearts bid you welcome, to us you are dear. 
 
 For friendship has grown with the flight of the years, 
 
 And love becomes stronger through trials and tears. 
 
 This life has its shadows which steal o'er the sun. 
 
 And we all have our cares till the journey is done. 
 
 And now as we turn and in memory gaze 
 
 On the scenes of our youth and earlier days, 
 
 We miss the dear forms of the loved ones of yore, 
 
 Who crossed o'er the river and passed on before 
 
 To that heaven of love and haven of rest, 
 
 We all love to think of as the home of the blest. 
 
 Sweet memory, linger — we ask thee to stay 
 
 As one of the guests on this festal day. 
 
GOLDEN WEDDING LINES. 3/ 
 
 Yet we turn to the living, and this is our prayer: 
 May God bless our friends wherever they are. 
 Hail comrade and bridegroom, with her by your side 
 You chose in your youth as sweetheart and bride; 
 lyong years have rolled by since the day you were wed, 
 Yet the flowers of love are not withered and dead, 
 But grow in your hearts, and are blooming as gay. 
 As they did on the morn of your first wedding day. 
 O the love of our youth, may its powers unfold; 
 O the love of our manhood, may it never grow cold, 
 But grow stronger, and purer, with trials and tears 
 Which come to us all with the flow of the years. 
 Fifty years with their cycles have rolled on their way. 
 Fifty years — fifty years, yet we gather today 
 To honor these friends, who then in their youth 
 Clasped hands for this life, and plighted their truth. 
 And now let us thank our Father above. 
 Who has led us along by the hand of his love, 
 And brought us together in health to extend 
 Kind wishes and greeting to our mutual friend. 
 Hail! husband of years; hail! bride of the past. 
 
38 GOLDEN WEDDING LINES. 
 
 May your love aud happiness continue to last 
 
 Through years yet to come — through days yet to be 
 
 Whilst you're spared unto him and he unto thee; 
 
 Hail! bride of today — and bridegroom anew, 
 
 The love of our hearts says, *' Joy unto you." 
 
 And may the Kind Ruler continue to guide, 
 
 And over your home still watch and preside. 
 
 Whilst the river of Time flows on to the sea. 
 
 And this world to you as nothing shall be. 
 
 Hail! children and friends, we bid you " good cheer," 
 
 Our hearts give you welcome, we are glad you are here. 
 
 Hail! memory sweet, of the loved ones of yore, 
 
 Gome back unto us and bless us once more 
 
 With the charm of thy presence, we ask thee to stay 
 
 As the honored of guests at our table today. 
 
Broken Linl^s 
 
 ' Round our lives are tendrils vining 
 lyike the woodbine 'round the tree; 
 
 Kindred souls are intertwining 
 Coils of love 'round you and me. 
 
 Earthly ties we dread to sever, 
 Earthly hopes are slow to die; 
 
 And to loved ones we would never 
 Say the sad farewell, " Good bye." 
 
 But the links are 'round us breaking. 
 And my heart is growing sore; 
 
 Dearest friends their leave are taking, 
 And return to us no more. 
 
 Tried and true ones pass the portal. 
 Earth grows dull and heaven bright; 
 
 Earthly ties become immortal 
 
 When our loved ones pass from sight. 
 
 39 
 
40 BROKEN LINKS. 
 
 As the earthly chain unclasping, 
 lyets our dearest treasures fall, 
 
 Are we more of heaven grasping ? 
 Do we heed the warning call ? 
 
 God of love and power abiding, 
 lyead us toward the heavenly light; 
 
 Over all our thoughts presiding, 
 Guide our every footstep right. 
 
 Day by day the links are breaking, 
 Earthly friends are dying fast: 
 
 But in Heaven a chain is making, 
 Where the links shall ever last. 
 
 Spirit hands the chain extending 
 From the battlements on high. 
 
 Angel voices sweetly blending. 
 Beckon to us from the sky. 
 
 O by faith's enraptured vision, 
 May we see the gates ajar, 
 
BROKEN LINKS. 4 1 
 
 And behold the fields elysian, 
 
 Where our missing loved ones are. 
 
 God in Heaven, the links all gather 
 
 In unbroken chains above — 
 There with Thee to dwell forever, 
 
 Rescued by Thy wondrous love. 
 
8abbath School Room fe-dedication 
 
 M. B. Church of Cobleskill 
 
 Once more we come with willing feet 
 
 Within this room we love, 
 To join in praise and offerings meet 
 
 To God in Heaven above. 
 And as we backward turn our gaze 
 
 To hours long passed away, 
 How sweet and sacred seem the days — 
 
 How transient seems their stay. 
 Spring came and with it came the bees, 
 
 The birds, the buds and flowers, 
 The crimson sky, the leafy trees. 
 
 The sunshine and the showers. 
 The robin piped his sweetest note, 
 
 The blue bird joined the tune; 
 Soon, through the windows there did float 
 
 The mellow air of June, 
 To waft bird voices and our song 
 
 42 
 
spring came and with it came the bees, 
 The birds, the buds and flowers; 
 
 The crimson sky, the leafy trees, 
 The sunshine and the showers. 
 
44 SABBATH SCHOOL ROOM RE-DEDICATION. 
 
 Where angel choirs unite 
 To swell the praises loud and long, 
 
 Through realms of endless light. 
 Then rays of golden sunlight lay 
 
 O'er meadow, farm and field, 
 And kissed the flowers, and dried the hay. 
 
 And made the harvests yield. 
 And oft when gathered here as now, 
 
 This summer glory came 
 To warm each heart, to light each brow. 
 
 And feed the feeble flame 
 Of thankfulness to Him who spread 
 
 His bounties all around; 
 Who gave us life — who gives us bread, 
 
 And homes with beauty crowned. 
 Soon Autumn came unto us here. 
 
 With train of royal brood; 
 With purpled grape and ripened ear, 
 
 And all we need for food. 
 The maple glowed with burnished gold, 
 
 The sumach seemed on fire, 
 
SABBATH SCHOOL ROOM RE-DEDICATION. 45 
 
 And o'er the earth a charm unrolled 
 
 To raise our thoughts up higher 
 To Him who paints the autumn leaves 
 
 With gold and crimson dyes, 
 Till field and forest fairly breathe 
 
 The beauty of the skies ; 
 Then wintry winds which fiercely blow, 
 
 O'er mountain, vale and plain, 
 With silvery stars, and pearly snow, 
 
 Came back to us again ; 
 And then each white, unspotted field, 
 
 A lesson to us taught. 
 And to each mind I trust revealed 
 
 This true, and sacred thought : 
 As God is pure, so we should be 
 
 Unspotted as the-snow, 
 With hearts all clean, from sin kept free 
 
 Whilst through the world we go ; 
 And thus the years have rolled along 
 
 Whilst we have gathered here, 
 And joined in praise and sacred song 
 
46 SABBATH SCHOOL ROOM RE-DEDICATIOL. 
 
 With those we hold most dear. 
 No wonder, then, we love these walls — 
 
 These benches long and wide. 
 As men revere their school-day halls 
 
 And speak of them with pride. 
 But now, behold how great the change ! 
 
 Old things have passed away — 
 These rooms seem new, and passing strange, 
 
 And beauteous here to-day ! 
 A brighter color seems to rest 
 
 On sides and ceiling too; 
 And in their suits so neatly dressed. 
 
 These rooms are fair to view. 
 These frescoed walls — these burnished pews, 
 
 These flowers fresh and fair, 
 A gentle halo here diffuse 
 
 Ivike sunlight on the air. 
 Now, whilst we turn with thankful gaze 
 
 To all these colors bright. 
 May mind and heart ascend in praise 
 
 To realms beyond our sight. 
 
SABBATH SCHOOL ROOM RE-DEDICATION. 4/ 
 
 To Him who paints the whole of earth, 
 
 And frescoes all the sky 
 With dyes which show celestial birth, 
 
 And jewels from on high. 
 And as we gather here as now, 
 
 Each sacred Sabbath day. 
 With willing mind and solemn vow, 
 
 To learn God's word and pray, 
 As time rolls on and seasons bring 
 
 Of winter and of fall — 
 Of glorious summer, bursting spring. 
 
 May each of them and all, 
 Although we love what's good below. 
 
 Yet draw our thoughts above, 
 With earnest zeal and fervent glow, 
 
 To Him whose name is love. 
 
 Read by the author at the rededication of the 
 M. B. Church Sabbath School room in Cobleskill. 
 
%e Kiin\seller's Vision 
 
 O'er earth the veil of night had closed, 
 
 With all its quiet power, 
 And upright men in peace reposed 
 
 Throughout each silent hour. 
 To minds of pure and holy frames, 
 
 Bright fancies came to bless, 
 For conscience by its power proclaims 
 
 To such a sweet caress. 
 But on a couch there restless lay 
 
 A man who sold the curse 
 Which kills its victims day by day. 
 
 And leaves their souls still worse. 
 To him a vision too appeared, 
 
 A dream of awful dread, 
 For fancy, by its power upreared 
 
 The ghosts of those long dead. 
 First passed before his startled sight 
 
 A little blue eyed child. 
 
 48 
 
THE RUMSELLER S VISION. 49 
 
 Arrayed in robes of purest white 
 
 With looks as sweet and mild. 
 " Sir," said the child, " did you but know 
 
 How my young heart has bled, 
 When in this wicked world below. 
 
 Hot tears of woe I shed. 
 And all because you gave my sire 
 
 The" liquor that he craved, 
 And fostered on his base desire. 
 
 When he might yet been saved, 
 I think you would no longer sell 
 
 The cup which Satan fills, 
 To lure his victims down to hell. 
 
 And give to earth its ills." 
 While yet she spoke another form 
 
 Broke in upon his rest, 
 The tears upon her cheeks still warm — 
 
 A babe upon her breast. 
 " See here," she cried, " thou monster foe. 
 
 Thou stain upon mankind, 
 You cause more anguish, pain and woe 
 
50 THE RUMSELLER's VISION. 
 
 Than well can be defined. 
 I had a husband once, whose soul 
 
 Affection truly warmed, 
 Till by your winning base control, 
 
 He was in time transformed. 
 The heart which beat in tune with mine, 
 
 Grew pulseless, harsh and cold; 
 The smile I dreaded to resign, 
 
 At last he did withhold. 
 Then O, the anguish that I felt — 
 
 You see the tear drops now. 
 You see the babe upon my breast — 
 
 The furrows on my brow. 
 But for the cups you daily fill, 
 
 A life of bliss was ours; 
 Myself and babe were living still, 
 
 Had grief not crushed my powers.'' - 
 And then another joined the band. 
 
 Whose form was stooped and low; 
 A staff he held within his hand — 
 
 His step was weak and slow. 
 
THE RUMSELLER's VISION. 5 1 
 
 And as he raised his whitened head, 
 
 He spoke with earnest voice, 
 " Monster, 'twas you to ruin led 
 
 My son, alas ! my choice. 
 He who I hoped would gently lead 
 
 Me downward to the grave. 
 Has only caused my heart to bleed, 
 
 ^oryou the poison gave. 
 You dealt the damning drug, which killed 
 
 All goodness in his soul, 
 To him, in cups which still are filled 
 
 By you, for love of gold." 
 '* O yes," more voices still replied, 
 
 '* 'Tis so, God knows 'tis true 
 You deal out death on every side, 
 
 We all attest it too." 
 Then more and more of forms there came. 
 
 And stood around his bed. 
 And many called him by his name. 
 
 Though long since they were dead. 
 " O God," he cried, " can it be so, 
 
52 THE RUMSELLER's VISION. 
 
 Have I then done this deed, 
 Have I then wrought this scene of woe, 
 
 And caused these hearts to bleed ? ' ' 
 "O yes," the voices all replied, 
 
 " Yourself has caused this ill, 
 You deal out death's destructive tide, 
 
 Whene'er your cups you fill." 
 Ah, then he felt the scorching smart 
 
 Of conscience in his breast. 
 And breathed from out his aching heart, 
 
 The thoughts which broke his rest. 
 ''And is there no relief from this — 
 
 No peace for men like me — 
 Can I not have on earth some bliss — 
 
 Can I no comfort see? " 
 *' O yes," each voice with one accord, 
 
 Broke on his dreaming ear, 
 '* Be just to man, and true to God, 
 
 While yet you're dwelling here. 
 Go cease your traffic from this day — 
 
 Do good where e'er you can. 
 
THE RUMSELLERS VISION. 53 
 
 Thus on the right and honest way, 
 
 You may become a man.'' 
 The morn had come — the man awoke, 
 
 And through that vision's power, 
 His casks of rum he quickly broke. 
 
 Nor sold it from that hour. 
 
A Vrtck or\ ik ^oad 
 
 There's a wreck on the road ! A wreck did you say? 
 
 And do you remember that awful, sad day 
 
 When the ' * lyightning Express ' ' swept down from 
 
 the ridge, 
 And plunged from the track when crossing the bridge ? 
 There was crashing of timbers — there was breaking of 
 
 bones. 
 There were shrieks of the dying — there was blood on 
 
 the stones; 
 And the hurried command, '' Send the wrecking train 
 
 quick, 
 Five coaches are wrecked and down in the creek." 
 Send doctors for dying — send cofl&ns for dead; 
 Great God ! how quickly the horrid news spread. 
 There was rushing of children — there was shouting of 
 
 men, 
 As they swept to the rescue, there down in the glen. 
 
 54 
 
A WRECK ON THE ROAD. 55 
 
 Draw a veil o'er the scene, and no longer unroll 
 To the view of the people the terrible scroll. 
 The cars have been lifted — the tracks are repaired, 
 The dead are all buried — the injured are spared. 
 But what of the wrecks of the rumseller's bowl, 
 Which wrecks both in body and ruins in soul ? 
 Do we rush to the rescue and labor to save 
 Our fellows from filling the drunkard's sad grave? 
 
 O brothers and comrades, I pray you beware 
 
 Of the serpent that stings, and the rumseller's snare. 
 
 There is death in the cup — turn the wine goblet down; 
 
 Meet offers to drink with manhood's bold frown. 
 
 " Yield not to temptation " — keep on the right track. 
 
 For once you are off, it is hard to " snatch back," 
 
 And the demon of rum will bind you and goad 
 
 'Till the cry goeth forth, '^There's a wreck on the road.'' 
 
Above fk Rapids 
 
 There's a fellow out fishing, my brother, 
 And he sits like a man in a dream, 
 
 Whilst his boat without anchor or rudder. 
 Is drifting away down the stream. 
 
 Around him the sunlight is playing, 
 
 And the waves dance bright on their way. 
 
 Whilst the bee and the butterfly straying, 
 Are abroad o'er the river today. 
 
 Unconscious of danger he's gliding, 
 
 'Though his boat moves gently and slow. 
 
 Surely down where the abyss is hiding 
 And the waters are seething below. 
 
 Just before him the rapids are gleaming, 
 And the rocks lie rugged beneath, 
 
 But the man in the boat keeps dreaming, 
 As if touched by the torpor of death. 
 
 56 
 
Surely down where the abyss is hiding 
 And the waters are seething below. 
 
58 ABOVE THE RAPIDS. 
 
 Shout aloud, all ye who are human, 
 Ring the sound of alarm in his ears; 
 
 Send a cry like the wailing of woman 
 O'er the water to awaken his fears. 
 
 lyaunch a boat and row out in the river. 
 Throw a rope to rescue and save. 
 
 Ere he reaches the rapids and never 
 Can be kept from a watery grave. 
 
 O my brothers, too many are fishing 
 'Bove the rapids of Rum everyday; 
 
 And what is the good of our wishing 
 Them well, and have nothing to say. 
 
 lyet us warn and entreat them with kindness 
 Of the rocks and the whirlpool below; 
 
 Perhaps they will listen and mind us 
 And be saved from shipwreck and woe. 
 
 Shout aloud, all ye who are human. 
 Ring the sound of alarm in their ears; 
 
ABOVE THE RAPIDS. 59 
 
 Send a cry like the wailing of woman, 
 O'er the water to awaken their fears. 
 
 Launch a boat and row out in the river, 
 
 Throw a rope to rescue and save, 
 Ere they're drawn in the rapids and never 
 
 Are kept from the drunkard's sad grave. 
 
Lines on M Death of President ncKinley 
 
 Toll the bells — a nation weepeth 
 
 For the son it loved so well; 
 lyO, the noble hero sleepeth, 
 
 And our hearts with anguish swell. 
 
 lyook, a tear is on the willow; 
 
 List, a sigh is on the breeze, 
 And the ocean's stormy billow 
 
 Bears a wail across the seas. 
 
 God in heaven, our hearts are bleeding 
 From the wound that he received; 
 
 Precious Savior, interceding. 
 
 Soothe thou her this blow hath grieved. 
 
 Guide our rulers — guard our nation. 
 
 May it still its mission fill, 
 And in every true relation. 
 
 Rule according to thy will. 
 
 60 
 
LINES ON THE DEATH OF PRES. MCKINLEY. 
 
 Freemen, closer clasp each other 
 In the bonds of love and peace, 
 
 Man to man, and for our brother, 
 May our friendship still increase. 
 
 But for those who raise a finger 
 To uproot our rignteous laws. 
 
 May our anger never linger. 
 
 Swift to guard our country's cause. 
 
 " Law and order ! " be our war cry, 
 Down with anarchists of red; 
 Let us swear it, ** live or die," 
 As we view our honored dead. 
 
Passing dway 
 
 I turn away from the noisy cares 
 
 Of this busy world of strife, 
 With its anxious thoughts and tempting snares 
 
 To the morning of my life. 
 
 Then a mother watched my infant feet, 
 And she marked my steps with care, 
 
 With a mother's heart and love complete. 
 With a mother's soul and prayer. 
 
 But sickness came and she suffered hard, 
 
 'Till death relieved the pain; 
 And she passed the gates which are all unbarred 
 
 And ne'er came back again. 
 
 Then an infant came one happy day. 
 And blessed our hearth three years; 
 
 'Till a shadow fell, and he passed away, 
 And our hearts were bathed with tears. 
 
 62 
 
PASSING AWAY. 63 
 
 Then a father passed through the portals too, 
 
 And a brother followed soon, 
 Then a sister passed away from view, 
 
 In the cold and silent tomb. 
 
 I look again o'er the track of Time, 
 
 Some flowers along it spread, 
 But hosts of friends who once were mine, 
 
 Are numbered with the dead. 
 
 Ah, yes, I plainly see today. 
 
 Though my step be firm and strong, 
 
 That like my friends I must pass away, 
 Along with the moving throng. 
 
 Along with the throng which is moving fast, 
 lyike a fleet toward a foreign shore. 
 
 The friends we loved too soon have passed. 
 And come back unto us no more. 
 
 And the thought conies up, O can it be. 
 That the grave is the end of Time ? 
 
64 PASSING AWAY. 
 
 That they're lost to us in an unknown sea, 
 These friends of yours and mine ? 
 
 Forbid this thought — let the Bible guide 
 Our hearts and minds aright; 
 
 Our friends still live, and will abide, 
 Though out of our mortal sight. 
 
 For the closing scene which we call death, 
 When our loved ones pass away, 
 
 Is but the morn with its rosy breath, 
 As it ushers in the day. 
 
^e Land of fk ¥est 
 
 Our country is broad and famed are our hills, 
 
 Our rivers are mighty and sparkling our rills; 
 
 On the peaks of the Rockies, the snow caps are seen — 
 
 In the laps of our valleys the meadows are green, 
 
 The orange and palm are exceedingly fair, 
 
 Where Florida lies in the tropical air. 
 
 But the land which I love, and seemeth the best, 
 
 Is the home of the prairie, 'tis the land of the West. 
 
 Go see it at sunrise, when fresh o'er the land. 
 
 The burst of the sunlight spreads out on each hand; 
 
 When the tears of the night, all aglow with the blaze. 
 
 Are changed into gems by the sun's brilliant rays; 
 
 And out from the breast of the unbroken sod. 
 
 Come springing the flowers first planted by God: 
 
 'Tis a scene of rare beauty, and one to impart 
 
 A charm to the eye, and give joy to the heart. 
 
 Or view it at noonday, when wide o'er the plain 
 
 Are waving in billows the harvests of grain, 
 
 6s 
 
66 THE LAND OF THE WEST. 
 
 Which swayed by the breeze roll 'way from the eye 
 Iflke the roll of the ocean ' till touched by the sky. 
 And the broad fields of corn, in luxury dressed, 
 lyoom up on the sight from the prairies' rich breast: 
 O the picture is grand — a sight to behold, 
 The beauties of which can scarcely be told. 
 But O when the West its curtain unrolls. 
 And its sky line of purple and crimson unfolds, 
 And the rays of the sun fall broadcast and free, 
 lyike the glow of the moon on the silvery sea; 
 And the clouds are aglow with the radiant dyes 
 Which are not of this world, but born in the skies, 
 'Tis a picture divine, indeed by its birth, 
 The gallery of heaven is transferred to the earth. 
 
Resurrection 
 
 I looked abroad o'er wintry lands, 
 
 The trees stood stark with empty hands, 
 
 With frozen trunks and branches bare 
 
 They tossed and swayed in icy air. 
 
 No carol now from blue bird's throat, 
 
 No robin piped its cheery note; 
 
 No flowers bloomed — the mountain rill 
 
 In winter's clasp was cold and still. 
 
 All, all was drear, I sadly said, 
 
 The earth is cold, and dumb and dead. 
 
 I looked again, the hour of Spring, 
 
 The world appeared a new born thing — 
 
 The south wind kissed the sleeping earth 
 
 And lo it woke — a^nagic birth ! 
 
 The brooklet laughed — in living green 
 
 The budding trees were quickly seen; 
 
 The fields grew fresh — the meadows fair — 
 
 The song of birds now filled the air, 
 
 67 
 
6S RESURRECTION. 
 
 And flowers sprang from waking sod 
 Responsive to the call from God. 
 I looked upon a friend who died, 
 My heart was sore, I wildly cried, 
 Will winter now forever stay. 
 Or will there come a warm spring day 
 When voice of God with loving breath 
 Shall break and loose the bands of death ? 
 Our friends go 'way and evermore 
 Remain upon some distant shore; 
 Or, it may be, on nearby coast. 
 Their barques no longer tempest tossed, 
 Are anchored safe in harbor fair 
 Where heavenly hosts and angels are. 
 O sacred theme — O wondrous day — 
 When sky and earth shall melt away 
 And trump of God with loud proclaim, 
 Bids us come forth to live again ! 
 Yes, live again, as flowers bloom. 
 And spring to life from winter's tomb, 
 And not to die as flowers fall, 
 
RESURRECTION. - 69 
 
 When winter comes with icy pall, 
 But Vive forever on heavenly plains 
 Where lasting summer always reigns; 
 And funeral rites are never said, 
 Nor graves are dug for sleeping dead, 
 O happy land — O land sublime! 
 O world of life — O heavenly clime — 
 How fair thy fields — how fresh the flowers' 
 Which bloom within eternal bowers. 
 Our Heavenly Father, thus we pray 
 May now our feet all cease to stray — 
 Ivcad us, O God, by thine own hand. 
 And bring lis to that blissful land. 
 
The Love of Life 
 
 I fain would catch time's wings tonight, 
 
 And bid it cease its eager flight. 
 
 The world is bright and friends are dear, 
 
 I love to live and linger here; 
 
 For earth-born ties are warm and strong, 
 
 Heavenly Father, is this wrong ? 
 
 The frost bound hills grow white with snow, 
 But spring soon comes and soft winds blow. 
 And clothed in royal robes of green 
 The naked trees are quickly seen; 
 And robins come and build their nests, 
 And pick and plume their crimson breasts. 
 
 Ah, yes, this world is fair to me, 
 The blooming flower and budding tree; 
 The rising moon and setting sun. 
 And starry sky my heart have won; 
 
 1 fain would live and linger here. 
 For earth-born ties to me are dear. 
 
 70 
 
THE LOVE OF LIFE. /I 
 
 Behold the laughing little rills 
 Behold the sunshine on the hills; 
 See yonder fields of waving green, 
 See yonder sea with silver sheen; 
 And note the fields of golden grain, 
 And tasseled corn upon the plain. 
 
 Then tell me, cynic am I right 
 
 Or not to claim this world is bright ? 
 
 Ah, yes, to me this world is fair. 
 
 The lark is soaring high in air; 
 
 And swift winged swallows in their flight 
 
 And singing birds give me delight. 
 
 Yet Heavenly Father, thus I pray : 
 Teach me the true and perfect way; 
 My thoughts direct, and ever draw 
 My heart in concord with thy law; 
 Still loving as I loved before, 
 I wish to live and love thee more. 
 
The Brotherhood of (Ian 
 
 The railway and the telegraph, 
 
 The telephone and steam, 
 At time and space exulting laugh 
 
 For what was but a dream. 
 Has now become a living truth, 
 
 Engraved upon the age, 
 In lines of fire with flashes bright 
 
 Across its title page. 
 No more do seas mankind divide — 
 
 No more does mountain range — 
 But brought together side by side. 
 
 They thoughts and words exchange. 
 Pacific greets Atlantic's morn — 
 
 Spain calls unto Japan — 
 And words of love in Heaven born, 
 
 Proclaim the brotherhood of man. 
 
 No more should war with havoc wild. 
 With shriek and groan and tear, 
 
 72 
 
THE BROTHERHOOD OF MAN. 73 
 
 With mourning mother, wailing child, 
 
 Have any standing here. 
 But bound in peace as bound by steel. 
 
 The world be joined in one. 
 In bands of love which all should feel 
 
 'Till time's last day is done. 
 Then bid our wicked hearts be still, 
 
 And selfish actions cease, 
 Whilst friendly thoughts our bosoms fill. 
 
 And keep us all in peace. 
 Make temperance our rule for life — 
 
 From alcohol abstain, 
 Then freed from anger and from strife, 
 
 With clear unclouded brain. 
 Tread boldly in the path which leads 
 
 Where duty points the way, 
 And forge a link to form a chain, 
 
 To fetter creed and clan. 
 And firmer bind and help maintain 
 
 The brotherhood of man. 
 
74 THE BROTHERHOOD OF MAN. 
 
 Do wicked hearts and ruthless hands 
 
 Conspire to deal a blow, 
 At tyrant lives in foreign lands 
 
 How swift^the tidings go ! 
 As lightning from a stormy sky — 
 
 As flashes from the sun — 
 As speeds the wind when storms go by, 
 
 They o'er the earth do run; 
 For Norway whispers to the palms — 
 
 The tropics to the poles — 
 And human thought in mighty psalms 
 
 O'er all the world enrolls. 
 
 And O when fiend in human form 
 
 At Garfield raised his hand, 
 And sought to do him mortal harm, 
 
 And wound our glorious land. 
 How like the meteors from the sky 
 
 Swift sped the news abroad, 
 As borne by angels from on high. 
 
 Sent from the throne of God. 
 
THE BROTHERHOOD OF MAN. 75 
 
 'Till every heart at once stood still, 
 
 Mankind all held their breath, 
 And prayed, ** O God, be it thy will 
 
 To hold him back from death." 
 
 For notwithstanding sin and strife, 
 
 Harsh words and ruthless deed 
 Their poison drop, and mar this life 
 
 And cause our hearts to bleed. 
 Yet underneath these seething waves, 
 
 Like cables 'neath the sea, 
 Ivie coils of love from heart to heart 
 
 And bonds of sympathy. 
 One common Father for our race — 
 
 One Savior for us all — 
 One earth to be our burial place 
 
 One Heaven, or none at all. 
 Let's forge a link to form a chain 
 
 To fetter creed and clan, 
 And firmer bind and help maintain 
 
 The brotherhood of man. 
 
Tke Beautiful 
 
 How beautiful the opening day 
 
 When mountain top and tower 
 Are gilded with the morning ray, 
 
 Which paints each tiny flower. 
 Athwart the sky the golden beams 
 
 Of sunlight softly steal, 
 'Til woodland glows and valley gleams 
 
 From gladness which they feel. 
 How lovely then the world appears. 
 
 How beautiful the earth. 
 As though the night's baptismal tears 
 
 Had blessed anew its birth. 
 O'er forest, stream and meadow fields 
 
 The silvery sunlight spreads, 
 And all ablaze with golden rays 
 
 The lake its lustre sheds. 
 How sweet the hour of eventide, 
 
 When nature seeks repose, 
 
 76 
 
THE BEAUTIFUL. 77 
 
 And down the west the shadows glide 
 
 And shuts the blooming rose. 
 The air seems hushed — the shadows creep 
 
 O'er hillside, vale and plain, 
 And stars come forth and vigil keep 
 
 'Till day returns again. 
 And O, those jeweled gems of light. 
 
 How lovely to the eye ! 
 How beautiful in myriads bright 
 
 They cluster in the sky; 
 And they perchance are worlds like ours. 
 
 With hills and lakes and trees, 
 Where maple leaves and blooming flowers 
 
 Are kissed by every breeze. 
 The little birds how blithe and free. 
 
 With brown or golden wing. 
 They skim the air right merrily, 
 
 Or sit and sweetly sing. 
 The apple blooms of blushing May, 
 
 The fruits of autumn time, 
 With lovely tints to me display 
 
 The artist hand divine. 
 
78 THE BEAUTIFUL. 
 
 The violet springing from the ground — 
 
 The grass and growing grain — 
 The pearly shells in ocean found, 
 
 The snowflakes and the rain, 
 Are clothed with beauty, and their birth 
 
 Bespeaks a master hand, 
 Which gilds the sky, and decks the earth 
 
 And blesses all the land. 
 And yet we read of brighter fields. 
 
 Of fairer fruits and flowers. 
 Where heavenly sunshine softly steals 
 
 'Mong ever blooming bowers. 
 Our Heavenly Father, thus we pray, 
 
 Guide all our steps aright; 
 Keep us within the narrow way 
 
 Which leads to endless light. 
 Then when earth's beauties slowly fade, 
 
 And faint and slow our breath, 
 And on our eyelids gently laid. 
 
 We feel the touch of death, 
 Our vision freed from earthly ties, 
 
 Shall with new strength expand, 
 And peering upward through the skies 
 
 Behold the '* Promised Land." 
 
Railroad Reminiscences 
 
 With the trains on our road, forty cars for a load 
 
 Rolling by the station each day, 
 My mind turns back, over memory's track, 
 
 To the years which are far away; 
 And I cannot but smile, and laugh for the while 
 When I think of " Green Erin's " sons 
 As they shoveled the earth, and gave vent to their mirth 
 
 In mischievous pranks and puns: 
 There was Patrick Muldoon and Dennis Gossoon 
 
 And Jimmy Mahar with a scar, 
 Which he got one night in a scrimmage and fight 
 
 When he felt the soft side of a bar. 
 O those were the days when in various ways 
 
 The " bhoys " on the yard had their fun. 
 When their spirits arose and they went for their foes 
 
 And swung the " shilalah " and gun. 
 But what shall I say of the men of that day 
 
 Who served as our bold engineers ? 
 With their eyes on the track and miles to their back 
 
 79 
 
80 RAILROAD REMINISCENCES. 
 
 Their hands never trembled with fears: 
 Delaney and Blake no " back seats " did take, 
 
 For indeed they were stalwart and true; 
 Whatever the grade, their time they well made, 
 
 And pulled their heavy trains through. 
 But they left us for aye, in the years far away, 
 
 And we think of them now in our tears; 
 And we truly can say, we mourned on the day 
 
 When they signed up the ** pay roll " of years. 
 O men of good cheer, to me you were dear. 
 
 And I think of you often and long: 
 'Though humble of name, your deeds and your fame 
 
 I celebrate now in my song: 
 McCormick was brusque, tut we always could trust 
 
 And rely on the words which he said; 
 'Though his spirits were light, his heart was all right 
 
 And we mourned when we heard he was dead; 
 And Gardner so fair that few could compare 
 
 With ' ' Billy ' ' in form or in face. 
 With gentlemanly air and the greatest of care 
 
 His train he ruled over with grace; 
 But there came a sad day in the usual way 
 
RAILROAD REMINISCENCES. 8 I 
 
 When Death ran a train to his door 
 And with sceptre and sword, called out, " All aboard," 
 
 For the land of the Ever Green Shore. 
 And Mayo so true, with his eyes of sky blue 
 
 And a heart that was loving and kind, 
 'Though gone to his rest in the land of the blest, 
 
 Still lives in the depths of my mind. 
 O robber, old Time, of the friends who were mine 
 
 You've taken full many a score, 
 And I feel I'm bereft, so few are there left 
 
 Of the friendships and comrades of yore; 
 And I turn in my gaze to the halcyon days 
 
 When the men were truer than steel. 
 And in all of their ways deserving the praise 
 
 Of seeking the company's weal; 
 When the fealty we owed we gave to the road 
 
 Which gave us our daily bread, 
 And went to our work with no spirit to shirk 
 
 No matter what any one said. 
 Ah! that is the test, and the one which is best. 
 
 To decide the worth of a man: 
 So workmen prove true, and whatever you do. 
 
82 RAILROAD REMINISCENCES. 
 
 Perform it the best which you can; 
 And millionaires learn it is folly to spurn 
 
 The claims of the worker for hire, 
 But give him your ear and patiently hear 
 
 Of reforms which he may desire. 
 Then labor and cash no longer may clash, 
 
 But shoulder to shoulder may stand, 
 And " strikes " with their crash, knocking business to 
 ** smash " 
 
 No longer may injure our land. 
 
Tiie .Country I(ailroad ^ge^t's Trials 
 
 Ho friends from the country, where the sweet robins 
 
 sing, 
 Where the crocus and cowslip add charms to the spring, 
 Where the lambs on the hillside in gambol and play. 
 Are seen from the house each sunny spring day; 
 And the fruits of the summer and autumn unfold 
 Their cheeks of bright crimson and colors of gold; 
 Where the great Master Artist His powers disclose 
 In the paint of the lily and blush of the rose. 
 And the hours are encircled with a halo of peace, 
 As the flocks in your fields and your harvests increase. 
 If you come to the station where the hissing hot steam, 
 And smoke of the engines in sunlight do gleam, 
 And find the old agent in the midst of the din, 
 Just bid him " good mornmg," speak kindly to him; 
 For the tone of his speech and the frown which he wears 
 Don't index his heart, but betoken his cares. 
 A car has been wrecked just up in the " sag," 
 A wheel has been broken so it scarcely will drag, 
 
 83 
 
84 THE COUNTRY RAILROAD AGENT's TRIALS. 
 
 And the load — well now, don't breathe a * ' cuss ' ' word, 
 But the whole of that freight must be quickly trans- 
 ferred, 
 That case of dressed turkey admits no delay. 
 But be landed in Boston before Christmas day. 
 For that is no time to be feeding on greens, 
 Or confine the good people to a diet of beans! 
 There's a horse to be shipped, and a pig in a cage, 
 And a package to Brighton, * * then forward by stage. ' ' 
 There's a '* short " and an " over " and three " dam- 
 age claims, ' ' 
 A lot of " strayed freight " and cares without names; 
 Mr. Smith wants his lumber put on the side track, 
 And the cars which are there must be ' * crowded back, ' ' 
 Peter Scott says his coal must quickly * * be switched ' ' 
 Or his work for the day will surely be ditched. 
 Mr. Jones wants two cars to be loaded with hay, 
 Mr. Blank wants the cars the very same day ; 
 Richard Moore wants to know " why his freight is de- 
 layed." 
 Mr. Mann cannot see " where his has been strayed," 
 When in comes a mac all frenzied and wild. 
 
THE COUNTRY RAILROAD AGENTS TRIALS. 85 
 
 And says with an oath, " See here, my dear child! 
 The train has been standing across the main street 
 And kept me there waiting 'till I've frozen my feet." 
 Then the telephone rings and he wonders who's there, 
 It is Bronson, and says, *' How much is the fare 
 From Cbeapside to Klondike with a dog and a gun, 
 A couple of fish poles and a keg of good rum ?" 
 Then the auditor comes to look after the " debit," 
 And says, " By the bills you are giving some credit. 
 Don't you know, my dear sir, that this is all wrong; 
 The company's rules were not made for a song." 
 Then the agent replies, " I know that is true, 
 But say, my kind sir, what shall a man do, 
 When a freighter has come through the wind and the 
 
 snow, 
 Five miles through the drffts with his cash little low? 
 Or perhaps in his hurry been looking askance 
 And left his cash back when changing his pants ?" 
 Then the "way freight" comes with a rush and a 
 
 roar — 
 The conductor alights as often before — 
 
86 THE COUNTRY RAILROAD AGENT's TRIALS. 
 
 And declares, *' For this day I'll not make a switch, 
 Or I'll dump all the cars right down in the ditch." 
 Then the bold engineer, with a smile that is bland. 
 Says, ** For once our conductor is certainly grand, 
 That miserable agent — if he had his way 
 Would keep us here switching the whole of the day." 
 Then the agent replies, '* Your talk isn't nice. 
 And besides, sirs, with me, it don't cut any ice, 
 That switching you'll do or surely will rue it, 
 So get down to your work, and quickly get through it." 
 Then next on the scene comes old Mrs. Brown, 
 The sweetest old lady there is in the town ; 
 She comes to inspect a car load of freight. 
 Which arrived in the night, from the end of the state. 
 A chair has been broken, and a jar of sweet jam, 
 Has dumped all its contents o'er a box of salt ham! 
 The smile which she wore upon her sweet face, 
 To a cloud and a frown now quickly gives place; 
 For the chair which is broken she quickly espies, 
 And " See here, Mr. Agent," she despairingly cries, 
 " That chair was my mother's — of mahogany made, 
 
THE COUNTRY RAILROAD AGENT's TRIALS. 8/ 
 
 By the finest of workmen there was in the trade; 
 'Twas worth fifty dollars! Come this is no fun, 
 Let me know right away what is going to be done ?" 
 Then the agent hangs his head, and has little to say. 
 For he knows very well that "the deuce is to pay." 
 Now these little trials are but part of the strife. 
 Which comes to perplex a railroader's life; 
 But say, my dear boys, we've no right to complain; 
 We are paid for our work — we labor for gain; 
 And the public, too, pays for all which it asks, 
 So let us be loyal and true to our tasks: 
 Remember, we're servants — keep this well in mind. 
 Treat every one squarely — speak mildly and kind, 
 And if we can't do this we'd better '' retire," 
 Step back from the ranks, out the range of the fire, 
 And let men of sense and superior graces, 
 Step up to the front and fill up our places. 
 
^n Acrostic. 
 
 May health with its blessings all others excelling, 
 And friendship as pure as the pearl or the dew, 
 
 Return with their joys, and all sadness dispelling, 
 Yet give the sweet pleasures of youth unto you. 
 
 Entwined with the rose is the thorn and the willow, 
 
 Life has its sunshine, its shadows and woe; 
 In vain may we hope that over its billow, 
 
 Zephyrs balmy and mild will unceasingly blow: 
 And yet in the future I trust that there lingers, 
 
 Beams of sunshine unchanging for you. 
 Ever lending thy page unstamped by time's fingers 
 
 Those colors that make it all bright to our view: 
 Have hope gentle friend, thy day spring is beaming, 
 
 Life's roses still bud, and will bloom yet for thee; 
 O'er thy pathway hereafter bright sunbeams be stream- 
 ing 
 While affection, and friendship from semblance all free 
 Ever faithful and lasting shall gather 'round thee. 
 
 88 
 
Greenwood Cemetery. 
 
 Beyond the cities' worldly din, 
 Beyond the scenes of wrong and sin, 
 Where Nature breathes its sweet perfume, 
 From roses in their early bloom, 
 Where zephyrs sigh 'mong vernal bowers 
 Throughout night's calm and silent hours, 
 And willows droop and cedars rise, 
 The sacred place called Greenwood lies; 
 O Greenwood, holy place of earth! 
 Both Art and Nature gave thee birth; 
 With zealous care both hand in hand, 
 Have beautified this spot of land. 
 O who can walk beneath its shades, 
 Or tread along its sacred glades, 
 And hear it's soft melodious air, 
 Sigh like the sound of infant prayer. 
 Except to feel a softening power. 
 Come stealing o'er him in that hour. 
 
 89 
 
90 GREENWOOD CEMETERY. 
 
 That bids him act a Christian's part, 
 
 And worship God with all his heart ? 
 
 Here flowery hills and sombre dales, 
 
 And crystal lakes, and silent vales, 
 
 Burst on the view with magic power, 
 
 lyike some elysian shaded bower; 
 
 And O how sweet the Sharon rose, 
 
 When Summer's breeze so gently blows. 
 
 Buds 'round the tombs where mourners kneel, 
 
 And tell sweet Heaven the woes they feel: 
 
 The flowers that each season rears. 
 
 Well watered by affections tears, 
 
 Here bloom with holy beauty crowned, 
 
 And cast their fragrance all around. 
 
 'Tis here that Nature tributes bring. 
 
 And spreads them with a lavish wing; 
 
 Here weeping friends in silence go, 
 
 And shed the tears of bitter woe. 
 
 And press the myrtle, 'round the grave 
 
 Of friends they loved, but could not save. 
 
 For Death's sure work is not delayed. 
 
GREENWOOD CEMETERY. 9I 
 
 His ruthless hand is never stayed: 
 But what is death, with all its strife? 
 The soul exults in lasting life; 
 The marble pillars towering high, 
 Point up with meaning to the sky. 
 And silently they seem to say, 
 *' The spirit's home is far away;" 
 Yes, far away, where Angels roam, 
 In realms beyond the heavenly dome; 
 O go when glows the sun's first ray 
 That streaks the East with coming day 
 And view the charms which gather 'round 
 This very lovely burial ground. 
 The crystal tears the night hath shed 
 Glow brightly o'er the silent dead — 
 The gentle breath of morning hours 
 Is sighing 'mong the shady bowers — 
 The blushing leaves of roses spread — 
 The lily rears its drooping head — 
 The marble gives a brighter glow, 
 lyike flashing gleams from pearly snow, 
 
92 GREENWOOD CEMETERY. 
 
 And dewy boughs in sunlight wave 
 
 In quiet vigil o'er each grave; 
 
 Or go, when sunlight steals away, 
 
 And night comes treading on the day; 
 
 When 'long these lakes there steals a shade, 
 
 And silence reigns in every glade. 
 
 It seems that Fairies here might dwell, 
 
 Within each all enchanting dell, 
 
 Content throughout the bowers to roam, 
 
 Nor wish a more celestial home; 
 
 And when the stars the heavens spread. 
 
 Come forth to vigil o'er the dead. 
 
 How sweet the moon's pale light comes down, 
 
 Upon this hallowed spot of ground; 
 
 Yes! hallowed ground we well may say. 
 
 For here how many dear ones lay — 
 
 How many souls here humbly bend, 
 
 And weep o'er some departed friend ? 
 
 Some friend who lived within the heart, 
 
 From whom it seemed 'twere death to part. 
 
 Here mothers weep o'er some loved child. 
 
GREENWOOD CEMETERY. 93 
 
 Who all their daily cares beguiled, 
 And children mourn a parent's care — 
 A father's aid, or mother's prayer! 
 Yes! thousands sleep within these tombs 
 Who were the joy of earthly homes; 
 Rest on, ye dead, in sweet repose, 
 Beneath life's splendor, joy and woes, 
 'Till God at judgment shall decree. 
 That Death shall have no power o'er thee. 
 
Be Clieerfd, 
 
 Be cheerful, all ye humble poor, 
 
 And envy not your neighbors. 
 For 'though some ills you must endure, 
 
 And sweat beneath your labors; 
 You fare not half as hard as those. 
 
 Who eat unwholesome dinners; 
 And strut about in princely clothes, 
 
 Like royal, stall-fed sinners; 
 For toil will bring its sure reward. 
 
 And may be make you stronger; 
 And 'though you deem your fortune hard. 
 
 Your life will be the longer; 
 For high fed men at last will feel. 
 
 The gout has surely found them, 
 And wish they'd lived on plainer meal 
 
 I/ike poorer men around them. 
 
 Be cheerful, all ye vulgar crowd, 
 Nor sigh for rank or station, 
 
 94 
 
BE CHEERFUL. 95 
 
 I^et Other voices trumpet loud ; 
 
 Win homage from the nation; 
 For politics is but a trade — 
 
 An every day profession — 
 And statesmen oft are ' ' ready made ' ' 
 
 And put up in succession. 
 So be content, ye working men, 
 
 And honor well your calling, 
 For if you stand quite low, why then, 
 
 The less the fear of falling. 
 But those who stand above us all. 
 
 And have no cause to grumble, 
 Will sometimes take a sudden fall, 
 
 And then, how far they tumble! 
 
 Be cheerful, all ye humble youths. 
 
 Who' re trying to be noted, 
 And be not to the fickle muse 
 
 Your time too much devoted; 
 For making rhymes will surely tend, 
 
 To keep your mind in clatter, 
 
96 BE CHEERFUL. 
 
 And all your work at last may end, 
 
 In total waste of matter. 
 For public praise gives up the palm, 
 
 To those alone who win it, 
 And since the race is hard to run. 
 
 We'd better not begin it; 
 For glory's won by losing legs, 
 
 And fame is but a bubble. 
 And wealth — sometimes the worldly dregs, 
 
 Brings only care and trouble. 
 
 Be cheerful, all ye ladies' dear, 
 
 Who have not handsome faces, 
 For there are those, you need not fear, 
 
 Who prize superior graces; 
 And beauty oft is but a sham — 
 
 A whitewash o'er the features, 
 That poorly gives a transient charm, 
 
 To some ill-looking creatures. 
 So you who are not quite so fair, 
 
 If virtue but adorn thee. 
 
BE CHEERFUL. 9/ 
 
 Of worthy beaus will have your share, 
 
 Now mind, of this I warn thee: 
 For paint, ard lace, and all such trash, 
 
 That ladies sport so gayly. 
 When stepping out to cut a dash 
 
 And promenading daily, 
 Will never charm a man of sense, 
 
 Or one who's worth the winning, 
 But sooner far this weak pretense. 
 
 Will only set him grinning. 
 
The C¥rnj tkt Bids |1e Stay. 
 
 When gazing oft upon the sky, 
 That seems to fringe the hills, 
 
 A sudden impulse fires my eye, 
 And through my bosom thrills. 
 
 I long to roam beyond the bound 
 
 My vision can survey, 
 But then in love there's always found 
 
 A charm that bids me stay. 
 
 I fancy spread upon the breeze. 
 
 The snowy sail untied, 
 To flap away o'er distant seas. 
 
 And 'bove their billows ride. 
 
 And then beneath its spreading fold 
 
 I see the water glow. 
 And glisten neath the sunset gold 
 
 As on the vessels go. 
 
 98 
 
I fancy spread upon the breeze, 
 The snowy sail untied, 
 
 To flap away p'er distant seas, 
 And 'bove their billows ride. 
 
 LofC. 
 
lOO THE CHARM THAT BIDS ME SIAY. 
 
 Yes, fancy paints in colors clear, 
 Much fairer scenes than home, 
 
 But then my soul is fastened here 
 By ties I'll ne'er disown. 
 
 The look that beams from loving eyes 
 Throws 'round my life a spell 
 
 That none save me can fully prize, 
 Or half its pleasure tell. 
 
 I fain would roam some future time 
 
 Beneath Italia's sky. 
 And dwell within its sunny clime. 
 
 While life was rolling by. 
 
 For long ago when I was young, 
 I dreamed of sunny bowers, 
 
 Where plants in beauty always sprung 
 With fairer tints than ours. 
 
 And if no gentle spirit's power 
 Would soothe my aching breast, 
 
THE CHARM THAT BIDS ME STAY. 101 
 
 A transient unproductive hour 
 Would number all my rest. 
 
 But now when fancy spreads her plumes, 
 
 And bears my thoughts away, 
 The love that all my life illumes 
 
 In wisdom bids me stay. 
 
 For though it would be joy to me 
 
 To roam in distant lands, 
 And wander far beside the sea 
 
 That washes foreign sands, 
 
 The earnest, solemn, second thought 
 
 Unto my mind reveals 
 That distant pleasures fiercely sought 
 
 The truest comfort steals. 
 
 For not a scene this earth can lend, 
 
 Can half the bliss impart. 
 That one true loving, gentle friend 
 
 Can give a feeling heart. 
 
Thy Own im Hand. 
 
 Thy own right hand must clear the way 
 
 That leads thee on to fame, 
 If e'er the light of glory's ray 
 
 Sheds lustre on thy name. 
 If e'er thou soar on upward wings 
 
 And 'mong thy fellows rise, 
 Or share the love that merit brings 
 
 To those who win the prize. 
 'Though friends for thee may feel a care. 
 
 And help thy mind to see, 
 Yet some there are who'd blot the star 
 That lights the path for thee. 
 
 Thy own right hand should guide the plough 
 
 And dig the stubborn soil, 
 And wipe from off thy sweating brow 
 
 The evidence of toil. 
 And make the earth its harvests yield. 
 
 To smile upon thy pains, 
 
 I02 
 
THY OWN RIGHT HAND. IO3 
 
 And nature deck the cultured field 
 
 For thee, with waving grains. 
 For God has spoke the stern decree, 
 And none should it withstand; 
 The sphere for thee henceforth shall be 
 
 To crush and till the land. 
 
 Thy own right hand must wield the sword 
 
 That glistens in the fight, 
 When loud resounds the stirring word, 
 
 To arms ! to arms ! for Right; 
 If e'er you win the victory, 
 
 Or in the glory share 
 With those who are the brave and free, 
 
 And who for freedom dare.- 
 For those who shrink from danger's face. 
 
 And from their duty flee, 
 The pen shall trace, with deep disgrace, 
 
 As men of low degree. 
 
 Thy own right hand must deal the blow, 
 If wisdom you would gain, 
 
:04 THY OWN RIGHT HAND 
 
 If mucli of science you would know 
 
 And nature's works explain. 
 If e'er you win a laurel crown, 
 
 And be of real worth, 
 Thy acts must win thy own renown 
 
 Instead of wealth or birth. 
 For virtuous deeds and upright ways 
 
 Are jewels clear and bright, 
 Whose glittering rays will win the praise 
 
 Of those who love the right. 
 
 Thy own right hand must wield the pen. 
 
 And mark each earnest thought, 
 If thou wouldst share with other men 
 
 The fame their works have wrought. 
 Thy own right hand must roll away 
 
 The vStone from out the gate, 
 That leads where wealth and honor lay, 
 
 If thou wouldst conquer fate. 
 For few for thee will e'er essay 
 
 To deal one stalwart blow, 
 
THY OWN RIGHT HAND. IO5 
 
 To carve thy way where fortunes lay, 
 And all delight to go. 
 
 Then strike, ye youths — then strike, I say, 
 
 The work is thine to do; 
 Yourselves alone must carve the way 
 
 Which leads to wealth for you. 
 Then strike with spirits proud and free, 
 
 And hearts as bold and strong, 
 And fate will cast its smiles on thee, 
 
 And right will conquer wrong. 
 But strive to feel within thy souls 
 
 Dependence on the power 
 Whose hand enrolls and will controls 
 
 The works of every hour. 
 
%e Parmer's Prayer 
 
 O give us the light, O blissful sight, 
 
 Of the blazing sun again, 
 lyet the farmer smite with the whole of his might 
 
 The stalks of the golden grain. 
 
 For I fancy now, on his sunburnt brow, 
 
 There rests a shade of fear; 
 And the men who bow to the scythe and plough. 
 
 Have need of a blissful year. 
 
 lyct the westwind blow with a quickening flow 
 
 And the clouds be cleared away; 
 Let the heavens show a bright blue glow 
 
 That speaks of a shining day. 
 
 That speaks of the hope that the ripened crop 
 
 Grew not for man in vain. 
 But his empty cup shall be filled up 
 
 With the gifts of God again. 
 
 io6 
 
THE FARMERS PRAYER. lOy 
 
 May the workman sing and the cradle swing 
 
 With a force that shows a will, 
 That tells as they fling, that they'll surely bring 
 
 The harvest home from the hill. 
 
 O give us, lyord, with thy full accord, 
 
 The blessing that we crave. 
 And a murmuring word will not be heard. 
 
 Nor the harvests longer wave. 
 
 Written in August, 1855, at time "of constant 
 rain when the author was a farmer. 
 
^anl^sgiving 
 
 November skies are cold and gray, 
 The fields are bare and dreary; 
 
 No perfume now of new-made hay, 
 No robin's notes so cheery. 
 
 The maple trees their leaves have shed 
 And autumn winds are sighing; 
 
 The lovely flowers are dry and dead, 
 The glad old year is dying. 
 
 But, gracious God, we come again, 
 And thank Thee for the giving 
 
 Of ripened fruit and golden grain, 
 And all which makes our living. . 
 
 The opening Spring gave promise fair 
 Of crops in good condition. 
 
 And summer showers and summer air 
 Brought forth the full fruition. 
 
 io8 
 
THANKSGIVING. IO9 
 
 'Till all the barns and cribs appear 
 Filled with the harvest's treasure, 
 
 To mark this as the golden year 
 Which brought the farmer pleasure. 
 
 For all these gifts we give Thee praise, 
 
 With heartfelt, pure devotion; 
 Upon this day of festal days. 
 
 From ocean unto ocean. 
 
 We render thanks for singing birds, 
 
 For growing grass and flowers; 
 For kindly acts and gentle words 
 
 From loving friends of ours. 
 
 We bless Thee that no bloody hand 
 Has touched our glorious nation — 
 
 That peace has reigned throughout our land 
 With all its sweet oblation. 
 
 We thank Thee for the rising sun. 
 And for the moon in splendor; 
 
no THANKSGIVING. 
 
 For Starry skies when day is done, 
 For friendship true and tender. 
 
 And now, O God, we humbly pray 
 . Still richer gifts be given; 
 Lead us into Thy perfect way, 
 And fit us all for Heaven. 
 
 Then when our souls from earth set free, 
 In heavenly homes are living, 
 
 We'll render thanks again to Thee, 
 And keep anew, Thanksgiving. 
 
Lines in Favor of Building fki Albai^y and 
 Sasauehanna Railroad. 
 
 Written in 1856. 
 
 Men and brethren list I pray, 
 
 This is an important day; 
 
 Rising up in thinking minds, 
 
 Truth with brilliant lustre shines. 
 
 Yet through error's darkened screen 
 
 Dreadful ills by some are seen. 
 
 The cobwebs that the spiders strung. 
 
 While Rip Van Winkle yet was young, 
 
 Still cling around the hazy brows 
 
 Of some who should our cause espouse. 
 
 Men with vision closely shrouded, 
 
 And with reason sadly clouded. 
 
 Now would raise the mist of ages. 
 
 And yet claim to be our sages. 
 
 'Tis this that bids me raise my voice 
 
 In token of my settled choice. 
 
 m 
 
112 ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 
 
 Behold the good which has been done, 
 By railroads, and by them alone. 
 See yonder west in verdure dressed, 
 Speaks volumes in their praise; 
 It was but rich to say the best, 
 Before its railroad days. 
 
 Where wild the beasts roamed o'er the land. 
 
 The cabin and the farm-house stand; 
 
 Where once the cabin, now instead 
 
 A mansion rears its stately head; 
 
 Cities as if by magic raised 
 
 Where once the deer in quiet grazed, 
 
 Now stand to show the speedy change. 
 
 Of all within a railroad's range. 
 
 Where e'er these roads were ever built. 
 
 Their power for good is seen and felt. 
 
 Behold, beyond the seas afar. 
 
 Beneath the sway of Russia's Czar, 
 
 Or yonder where the English Isle, 
 
 Is blessed by Queen Victoria's smile. 
 
 They bring progression on its way, 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 113 
 
 And usher in a brighter day. 
 Then why should we not have one too ? 
 It would for us the same thing do; 
 Here where nature has done much, 
 But art scarce felt us with its touch; 
 Our lands are rich — our crops are fair — 
 Our herds are fat — yet here we are. 
 Within our old and rusty shell, 
 In blissful nothingness we dwell. 
 But build the railroad, and we'll claim 
 A better fate — a brighter name. 
 
 Close at our backs we'll have the west, 
 With all its verdure richly dressed; 
 New York and Boston at our feet, 
 And Albany we'll hourly greet. 
 Thus joined unto the business world. 
 Progression's flag will be unfurled; 
 And men will prize the railroad's sway 
 That now upbraid its cause today. 
 How shall we do it ? some may ask, 
 And 'tis indeed a heavy task. 
 
1 14 ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 
 
 Go, sirs, and sign the railroad bill, 
 It will not cause you any ill; 
 But then some say it is not just 
 That they be taxed to raise the '* dust," 
 While yet they are in truth confessing 
 The road would be to them a blessing. 
 Why then not pay your honest part, 
 And do it with a cheerful heart ? 
 But if there is a single soul 
 So lost to reason's right control. 
 As not to prize a railroad's sway. 
 To him I would most humbly say. 
 Go seek some dark sequestered glade, 
 Beneath some lonely mountain's shade, 
 And with some moss beneath your head, 
 Make beech leaves answer for your bed. 
 Rest on, ye sloths ! in quiet sleep, 
 While tree toads 'round you vigil keep ! 
 
Today and Tomoffow. 
 
 [Written during the War of the Rebellion.] 
 
 Where now are the halcyon days of our pride, 
 
 When we thought tha*t no power could our union divide? 
 
 When our flag all untarnished, was honored and blest. 
 
 Alike in the South, the Bast and the West ? 
 
 Gone ! Gone ! are those days and another appears. 
 
 Clad in garments of mourning and wading through tears 
 
 For rebellion has spread through the South like a flood, 
 
 And deluged our land with rivers of blood ! 
 
 In the hillside cottage a widow now weeps. 
 
 For the choice of her heart on the battle-field sleeps, 
 
 And his sunny-haired boy. since he cometh no more, 
 
 lyists in vain for his voice, or his step on the floor. 
 
 The furrows grow deeper on the old man's brow, 
 
 For the son who went forth from the spade and the plow 
 
 To fight for his country, ^though urged to remain, 
 
 Has fought his last fight, and comes not again; 
 
 While the voice of the mother in tones of despair. 
 
 Is borne on the wailing, dirge-laden air. 
 
 i»5 
 
Il6 TODAY AND TOMORROW. 
 
 O say, will today with its clouds and its sorrow, 
 Give way to a sunny, and a joyous tomorrow? 
 Will the stars of our Union, now severed in twain, 
 Be ever united into one banner again ? ^ 
 
 God grant there will come to our country a day, 
 When the battleing hosts of the Blue and the Gray, 
 Will cease from their conflict, and sheathing the sword. 
 Join hands over the chasm, with our Union restored! 
 Where the mansion and lawn with its carpet of green, 
 A ruin and heath in their place is now seen; 
 Where temples of learning, hospitals stand, 
 With barracks and breastworks close at each hand, 
 And the march of our nation, yet only begun. 
 Seems checked for long years or ages to come. 
 War! War! with its scourge, its carnage and strife, 
 Seems sapping most surely our nation's best life. 
 O say, will today with its clouds and its sorrow, 
 Give way to a peaceful and sunny tomorrow ? 
 Will our long-loved Union by the struggle be saved 
 And soon o'er our laud the olive branch waved ? 
 From the far sunny South, but loudly and clear, 
 
TODAY AND TOMORROW. II/ 
 
 The noise of the conflict now strikes on the ear; 
 
 The death-dealing cannon with peal upon peal — 
 
 The deep rolling drum, the clashing of steel — 
 
 The shrieks of the dying — the bursting of shell 
 
 Bring horrors to earth, like offsprings of Hell! 
 
 O say, will today with its clouds and its sorrow. 
 
 Give way to a joyous and peaceful tomorrow? 
 
 Great God! may tomorrow most speedily come, 
 
 When the boom of the cannon — the roll of the drum — 
 
 The shrieks of the dying — the wail of despair, 
 
 No longer rise up to o'erladen the air; 
 
 When Reason once more assumes its loved sway 
 
 And the spirit of warfare cowers away; 
 
 When the stars of our flag now severed in twain. 
 
 Unite and bespangle one banner again. 
 
 May the men of the South, as they gaze o'er their land. 
 
 Now blackened and marred, by war on each hand, 
 
 And behold on their fields once waving with grain, 
 
 The traces of conflict and tombs of the slain. 
 
 Be led to cry out, " I^et us sheathe now the sword, 
 
 Let this warfare be ended — the Union restored — 
 
Il8 TODAY AND TOMORROW. 
 
 For once we were happy, ere the stripes and the stars 
 Were displaced by the traitorous secession bars. ' ' 
 May we of the North, as we gaze on the scene 
 'Though our land is unscathed — our fields are yet green, 
 Behold how the widows and fatherless weep. 
 For thousands now sleeping their last and long sleep, 
 Far away from their homes, with no marble to tell 
 The spot where they lie, or the place where they fell, 
 And be led to bid vengeance and anger be still, 
 While our hearts with the spirit of friendship shall fill. 
 And our hands be stretched forth, from shore unto shore 
 To welcome the South to the Union once more. 
 Then! then! will today with its clouds and its sorrow, 
 Give way to a joyous and lasting tomorrow! 
 Great God! may tomorrow most speedily come, 
 When the boom of the cannon — the roll of the drum — 
 The shrieks of the dying — the wail of despair — 
 No longer rise up to o'erladen the air; 
 When Reason once more assumes its loved sway, 
 And the spirit of warfare cowers away; 
 When the stars of our Union, now severed in twain 
 Unite and bespangle one banner again. 
 
Vhat the Stars of Our flag Tell Os. 
 
 [Written during the war to free Cuba from the rule of Spain.] 
 
 There'vS a flag which is floating on the still summer air, 
 
 Its stripes are unspotted — its fabric is fair, 
 
 And the stars in its folds seem as bright to the eye 
 
 As the sun in the heaven or stars in the sky. 
 
 Hail, flag of the free! Hail, flag of the brave! 
 
 O'er our glorious country this banner doth wave; 
 
 And the stars speak a language to the listening ear. 
 
 To the patriots' heart, most sacred and dear; 
 
 They tell of a country widespreading and grand — 
 
 With the richest of mines and the fairest of land; 
 
 Broad lakes and high mountains rising skyward and free 
 
 And bold rushing rivers flowing on to the sea; 
 
 They speak of a country where no edict or clan 
 
 Can fetter or stifle the conscience of man, 
 
 But free as the wind or the air which he breathes 
 
 He worships his God in the way he believes. 
 
 O flag of my country, forever and aye 
 
 119 
 
120 WHAT THE STARS OF OUR FLAG TELL US. 
 
 May the stars in thy folds shine bright as today. 
 
 They speak of a place where merit and worth, 
 
 Are the test of true manhood — not title or birth; 
 
 Where the rich and the poor on equality stand, 
 
 In political rights, in a glorious land. 
 
 O land of magnolia, O land of the pine. 
 
 May the stars in thy banner continue to shine 
 
 As brightly as now — with as luminous rays 
 
 'Till the angel proclaims the ending of days! 
 
 For the tale which they tell as they speak unto me, 
 
 Is the tale of a people as valiant as free; 
 
 Behold how a Dewey with his ships on the main 
 
 In the bay of Manila crushed the power of Spain; 
 
 Behold how a Sampson and a Schley with their breath 
 
 Swept the waters of Cuba with the besom of death, 
 
 'Till the ships of old Spain went down in the fight, 
 
 And the world stood in awe at the wonderful sight. 
 
 O banner uplifted — O banner unfurled 
 
 In behalf of the down-trodden sons of the world, 
 
 May God rule our army in Cuba's fair fields, 
 
 'Till the pride of the Spaniard submissively yields, 
 
WHAT THE STARS OF OUR FLAG TELL US. 121 
 
 And the white dove of peace spreads its wings on the 
 
 breeze, 
 'Till it covers all lands and encircles the seas: 
 O flag of my country, the stars in thy fold 
 Are dear to my heart and fair to behold; 
 They speak of a people enlightened and free 
 Who cringe not to tyrants, and bend not the knee, 
 And tell of a nation united as one 
 From the shore of Atlantic to the set of the sun. 
 O stars of our flag, unto me you proclaim 
 A story of suffering and legend of fame; 
 How our forefathers fought — how they suffered and 
 
 died. 
 To bequeath unto us this land of our pride, 
 With its treasures of freedom — O land of my birth. 
 To me thou art dearest of any on earth; 
 May the stars in our banner continue to shine. 
 And blaze with their light 'long the highway of Time; 
 Guide the nations, O banner — go forward today 
 Where the spirit of freedom is pointing the way; 
 And, O heavenly Father, may thy guiding hand 
 Continue to lead and prosper our land. 
 
%e New Tear. 
 
 O'er the highway of Time we are marching and tread- 
 ing, 
 Toward the end of earth's journey from day unto 
 
 day; 
 The sand grains of life the dial is shedding, 
 
 And ere long the last grain will have wasted away: 
 We stand on a hill at New Year, and our vision 
 
 Turns back o'er the road we already have passed, 
 Beholding some scenes all bright and elysian, 
 
 And others o'er which a dark shadow is cast; 
 Then turn, with new hopes and hearts all emotion 
 
 To the road yet untraveled, the days yet to come, 
 As the mariner scans with his eye glass the ocean. 
 
 To discern what's ahead till his voyaging is done; 
 But in vain are our efforts, unto us 'tis forbidden 
 
 To know what our fate in the future will be; 
 The joys yet reserved, and the sorrows lie hidden 
 
 In the hands of Jehovah by a changeless decree; 
 
 122 
 
THE NEW YEAR. 123 
 
 And that hand so altnighty from the ages yet folden 
 
 In the blank book of Time, plucks the leaves one by 
 one, 
 So we know that each day with its moments so golden 
 
 May prove the last page dealt to us 'neath the sun. 
 How soon has the year from out of Time's ocean, 
 
 Rolled back one more wave on the shore of the past 
 Since the birth of last year with its joyous commotion 
 
 Seems but a few days, yester morn was its last! 
 Wintry blasts swept the fields and sighed on the moun- 
 tains, 
 
 Soon the kisses of Spring were borne on the breeze; 
 Then the singing of birds — the murmur of fountains, 
 
 The blooming of flowers and the budding of trees: 
 Then summer was crowned, and the forests were glow- 
 ing, 
 
 Full dressed with their beautiful garments of leaves, 
 Whilst down in the fields the farmer was mowing 
 
 The grain with his sickle and gathering the sheaves; 
 When lo, stately Autumn, with its shadows returning 
 
 Brought its mornings of frost and evenings of cheer, 
 
T24 THE NEW YEAR. 
 
 To quickly give place, notwithstanding our j^earning, 
 
 To the winds of the Winter and another New Year. 
 As we stand on this summit, our journey reviewing, 
 
 Ivet us gather new strength for the labors undone; 
 The wrong all forsaking and the right still pursuing, 
 
 Press on in the conflict till the victory is won. 
 Has the hearth-stone been shrouded — the home circle 
 broken, 
 
 Some true one and loved one been summoned away, 
 So the heart has been bleeding from sorrows unspoken 
 
 And grief been its burden by night and by day ? 
 LfOok up from the grave to the mansions of glory. 
 
 Where the good and the holy in safety shall rest, 
 With a prayer that your loved one has gone on before 
 thee. 
 
 To live on forever in the home of the blest. 
 Whilst we mourn for the dead let us turn to the living 
 
 With increasing affection and tenderer care; 
 To the loved who are left let us ever be giving 
 
 Our hands, faithful service, and hearts, purest 
 prayer. 
 
THE NEW YEAR, 125 
 
 Has rum held dominion and its votaries 'round us 
 
 Crushed the good from our lives in the days which 
 are past ? 
 Let us break from our limbs the chains which have 
 bound us, 
 
 Stepping out in the world in full manhood at last; 
 Have our acts been oppressive and scanty the measure 
 
 We have dealt to our brother as the year has gone by? 
 Remember, it is God who hath given the treasure, 
 
 And beholds all our acts from his throne in the sky: 
 Let us strive to deal justly, gently and kindly — 
 
 Hear the wail of the stricken — see the wants of the 
 poor — 
 Not rushing on madly, unheeding and blindly, 
 
 But beholding the suffering, and bestowing the cure. 
 Have we walked all the while with footsteps all steady 
 
 Throughout the past year as virtue would guide. 
 With our hearts ever open and hands ever ready. 
 
 To do a good deed with pleasure and pride; 
 Have our children and parents and friends been receiv- 
 ing 
 
126 THE NEW YEAR. 
 
 The devotion from us that to them has been due ? 
 Have those who have loved us, our firmness believing, 
 
 Found our acts always faithful, and words ever true? 
 Have we strove to rise higher in the scale of our being 
 
 Subduing all the evil and upbuilding the good, 
 From the pathway of vice have our footsteps been flee- 
 ing, 
 
 By the side of the right have we manfully stood ? 
 Let us move right along through the year just begin- 
 ning, 
 
 In the path which we wisely and safely have trod; 
 Thus joy for ourselves we will ever be winning, 
 
 Doing good unto others and our duty to God. 
 We are told of a land where the day is eternal — 
 
 No changing of seasons, no months or New Years, 
 But Spring is unending, and everything vernal 
 
 The sight of the traveler unceasingly cheers: 
 As the New Year rolls 'round and the road yet before 
 us 
 
 Draws nearer, and nearer, still nearer the end. 
 May the blessings of life and the clouds passing o'er us 
 
THE NEW YEAR. 12/ 
 
 So chasten our hearts and such influence lend, 
 That we walk all uprightly with purpose unbended 
 
 And our gaze ever fixed on the prize to be won, 
 'Till our days all are numbered — our journey is ended — 
 
 Our life book is written — our life work is done. 
 Then death will but open the gateway to glory. 
 
 And the soul disenthralled from everything here, 
 Rise up from the earth to learn the sweet story 
 
 Of a home in the skies and a heavenly New Year. 
 
•fi]\ Appeal for Freedom 
 
 (Written at the time of the invasion of Kansas by 
 armed bands from Missouri, ) 
 
 Wide awake, O Freedom's lovers, 
 
 Thick and fast the foemen rise, 
 Danger 'round our idol hovers, 
 
 Clouds o'ercast our nation's skies; 
 Looming up far o'er the prairies, 
 
 Vapors black with discord roll, 
 And from right the strong arm varies, 
 
 He, who could, gives no control; 
 Men baptized at Freedom's altar. 
 
 Should defend its sacred cause; 
 God forbid that one should falter — 
 
 Kneel to slavery's base applause; 
 Yet it is the mournful case; 
 
 Truth and justice both are spurned — 
 Rulers yield for power and place, 
 
 Rights their sires so nobly earned; 
 
 128 
 
AN APPEAL FOR FREEDOM. I 29 
 
 Fierce the conflict soon must rage, 
 
 I<est the power of slavery cowers, 
 Right must soon with wrong engage 
 
 Freedom only should be ours. 
 May its friends in phalanx rally, 
 
 Fling its standard to the breeze. 
 Heaven itself will be our ally. 
 
 If we mind its just decrees; 
 lyook to Kansas! read its story. 
 
 Fraught with tales of awful wrong; 
 Crime and guilt seem counted glory, 
 
 Power upholds the wicked throng; 
 There beneath our eagle's pinions, 
 
 Freedom's bliss should find a home. 
 But behold how slavery's minions 
 
 Strive to seize upon the throne. 
 Who can bear such dealings longer? 
 
 Freemen now are mobbed and killed! 
 'Though they're right, the foe is stronger, 
 
 Kansas now with war is filled ! 
 Now 'tis time for Freedom's lovers 
 
130 AN APPEAL FOR FREEDOM. 
 
 To unite the tide to stay; 
 Close the cloud of slavery hovers, 
 
 Let us brush the cloud away : 
 Long enough we've bent and yielded, 
 
 Ah, too long, I firmly say; 
 Northern votes, if rightly wielded. 
 
 Might have kept the foe at bay. 
 Men should feel that Freedom's dearer — 
 
 Holier than most other things, 
 Nought on earth should e'er seem nearer, 
 
 Nought to man more blessing brings. 
 
Responsiveiiess 
 
 When brooklets lie 'neath icy bands, 
 
 All hushed and still in death, 
 And winters cold and icy hands. 
 
 And blasting, freezing breath. 
 Have touched with fatal touch each flower. 
 
 And withered bud and leaf. 
 It seems as if there was no power 
 
 Could bring to earth relief. 
 But He who said, " Let there be light!" 
 
 And lo, a flood of gold 
 Burst through the gloomy walls of night 
 
 And o'er the earth unrolled. 
 Hath so arranged the changeless laws 
 
 Which govern earth and air, 
 That all respond to one great cause 
 
 And loyal 'legiance bear: 
 The smaller orbs within their spheres 
 
 Responsive to the sun, 
 
 131 
 
132 RESPONSIVENESS. 
 
 In changeless tracks through endless years, 
 
 Their heavenly courses run. 
 The magnet turns unto the pole; 
 
 The ocean ebbs and flows, 
 Responsive to the great control 
 
 The law of nature shows; 
 And so when Spring with magic wand. 
 
 The ice bound landscape feels. 
 And gently whispers o'er the land 
 
 Its call to woods and fields, 
 The brooklets burst their icy bands, 
 
 No longer hushed in death. 
 But laugh, and leap o'er rocks and sands, 
 
 Responsive to the balmy breath, 
 That's wooing gently o'er the earth. 
 
 And waking up the flowers. 
 With kiss of love to deck once more 
 
 This sinful world of ours. 
 The violet springs from out the sod, 
 
 The snow drop bursts to view — 
 Fresh offerings from the hand of God, 
 
RESPONSIVENESS. 1 33 
 
 Ivove gifts to me and you. 
 The lark soars forth to meet the morn — 
 
 Its mate the robin calls — 
 The swallow seeks the farmer's barn, 
 
 And builds beneath its walls; 
 Eye looks to eye — heart beats to heart, 
 
 And hands with hands unite; 
 Responsive thrills will quickly start 
 
 Of sorrow or delight; 
 For souls to souls are all allied, 
 
 lyove calls unto another; 
 The husband answers to his bride — 
 
 The maiden, to her lover. 
 The mists rise up to meet the sun, 
 
 But when the earth is calling, 
 With heated breath and parching tongue, 
 
 For rain drops to be falling. 
 Some friendly cloud the sky o'erspreads. 
 
 As if the call was heeded, \ 
 
 And on the earth responsive sheds 
 
 The rain drops which were needed; 
 
1 34 RESPONSIVENESS. 
 
 Then bursting bud and blooming flower 
 
 Their petals open wide, 
 Responsive to the fresh' ning shower 
 
 Which all their wants supplied; 
 The violet shows a brighter hue — 
 
 The grass a richer green, 
 As if the earth baptized anew, 
 
 In festal robes was seen. 
 O gracious Father — Power Divine, 
 
 Responsive to Thy will, 
 Wake up this drowsy heart of mine — 
 
 My soul with rapture fill; 
 From henceforth lead me by Thy hand, 
 
 Obedient as a child, 
 To walk uprightly, and to stand 
 
 Before Thee, undefiled. 
 
Ivlondike's Qold 
 
 Where nature all her bounty yields, 
 A farmer dwelt among his fields; 
 A fruitful garden showed his care, 
 And flowers perfumed the summer air, 
 So sweetly ! 
 
 Within, the house was neat and clean. 
 The snow-white loaf and cloth were seen — 
 Fit tokens of a mother's care, 
 For mother' s hands had placed them there, 
 So lovingly ! 
 
 The crops were never known to fail. 
 And breath of clover filled the gale; 
 The graceful elms their branches spread. 
 So travelers stopped to gaze and said. 
 How beautiful! 
 
 135 
 
136 Klondike's gold. 
 
 The lowing kine in pastures strayed, 
 And on the hillside lambkins played; 
 The swallow twittered in its nest, 
 The robin pecked and plumed its breast, 
 Exultingly ! 
 
 How fair the scene, how sweet the home 
 Where only love and joy are known; 
 But " times were hard " and little gold 
 Into the farmer's chest was rolled. 
 
 To jingle merrily. 
 
 This farmer had one stalwart boy, 
 His father's pride, and mother's joy; 
 As 'round the farm it oft was said. 
 With sturdy limb and manly tread, 
 
 He stepped majestically ! 
 
 So when from cold Alaska's strand. 
 The news of gold swept o'er the land, 
 Up sprang the stalwart son and said, 
 
Klondike's gold. 137 
 
 The biting cold I do not dread, 
 
 Disdainfully ! 
 
 I'll brave the storms of Chilkoot pass, 
 And cross the plains of frozen glass ; 
 On Yukon's banks I'll stake my claim 
 And dig for gold, and work for fame 
 Exceedingly ! 
 
 He went, but oh, what woe untold, 
 He suffered in his search for gold ; 
 No downy couch was now his bed, 
 No pillow now to rest his head. 
 
 So soothingly ! 
 
 But wretched, cold and starved was he, 
 A stricken soul in misery ; 
 And sickness came, and wildly raved 
 He who the Chilkool pass had braved 
 Disdainfully ! 
 
 Then all the stories which were told 
 Of Klondike's fields of glittering gold 
 
138 Klondike's gold. 
 
 Swept through his racked and crazy brain, 
 Aod came and went, and came again. 
 So mournfully ! 
 
 And dreams of home would sweetly creep, 
 And break upon his troubled sleep ; 
 The graceful elms again were spread. 
 And tralers stopped to gaze and said. 
 How beautiful ! 
 
 The snow-white cloth again was seen, 
 His schoolmates played upon the green. 
 And mother's hand now smoothed his bed. 
 And mother's hand now bathed his head, 
 So tenderly ! 
 
 But oh, sweet dreams are quickly past ; 
 They come, they go, too bright to last ; 
 And there on Klondike's fields, away. 
 He died one dark and dismal day. 
 So wretchedly ! 
 
139 
 
 Say, stalwart youths, 'tis best to stay 
 Where loving kine in pastures stray ; 
 Where robins peck and plume their breasts, 
 And swallows flit and build their nests, 
 So cosily ! 
 
 Here, homes their sacted joys unfold ; 
 Here, lies unearthed the purest gold ; 
 A brother's love — a father's care — 
 A sister's kiss — a mother's prayer 
 So pleadingly ! 
 
 Ah, these are gold no Klondike field 
 To human hearts can ever yield ; 
 Stay, stalwart sons, don't dare the pass, 
 Or tread the plains of frozen glass, 
 Disdainfully ! 
 
 But stay, where toil and care combined 
 With flowers of love are intertwined. 
 And make the spot we fondly own — 
 That sacred place we call "our home," 
 A heaven on earth ! 
 
%e Storiq at St. Louis 
 
 Where Mississippi rolls its tide, 
 
 A regal city stands, 
 With happy homes and commerce vast 
 
 Within its ready hands; 
 Its streets are thronged with busy feet 
 
 And men with active brain, 
 
 And loving hearts at firesides meet 
 
 When night steals o'er the plain. 
 These homes are filled with wealth and art, 
 
 High rise their domes and fair, 
 And childish glee its charms impart 
 
 And flowers perfume the air; 
 Along its wharf the merchant ship 
 
 And floating palace lie, 
 And laden trains of earthly goods 
 
 Go steaming swiftly by : 
 Peace reigns and nature sweetly smiles 
 
 Upon this summer day, 
 140 
 
THE STORM AT ST. LOUIS. I4I 
 
 And lovers' words and lovers' wiles 
 
 Drive sombre care away: 
 But look, the sky grows overcast 
 
 A storm is hovering near! 
 From out the west the darkening crest 
 
 Of thunder clouds appear; 
 They darker grow — they twist and curl, 
 
 And crouching toward the earth, 
 They sweep across the prairie lands, 
 
 A cyclone at its birth ! 
 But look again, it grows in strength 
 
 And angers for the fight. 
 And nearer comes with deathly tread, 
 
 A giant in its might! 
 A city lies within its path 
 
 Why not its progress check ? 
 Why let it move with fearful wrath 
 
 And strew its wake with wreck ? 
 But hear the thunder's crashing peal 
 
 And hear the whirlwind scream ! 
 With blinding flash and fiery zeal 
 
142 THE STORM AT ST. LOUIS. 
 
 The cloud born lightnings gleam; 
 And onward comes the fearful storm, 
 
 No human power can stay, 
 And God withholds his guiding hand, 
 
 And gives it right of way : 
 It comes — it comes with fearful roar — 
 
 Black roll the clouds and swell, 
 A seething mass of wind and flame. 
 
 An avalanche of Hell. 
 It strikes St. lyouis in its face — 
 
 It smites it hip and thigh. 
 And humah hopes, and human homes 
 
 Go whirling toward the sky ! 
 Crash go the walls — down falls the spire. 
 
 And church, and mart, and hall. 
 And colonnade and works of art 
 
 In one dread ruin fall: 
 Down sink the boats — we hold our breath 
 ' While gurgling water rolls. 
 And sings the requiem of death 
 
 O'er forms the river holds. 
 
THE STORM AT ST. LOUIS, 1 43 
 
 Alas the day when on its way 
 
 This home-fed cyclone came, 
 With hungry maw and grasping paw, 
 
 With thunder bolt and flame. 
 
 The storm has passed, and azure skies 
 
 lyook down on hill and plain. 
 And untouched fields with verdure laugh 
 
 And smiles the growing grain; 
 But O, within the city's bound 
 
 What wreck and dismal sway. 
 Have ruled the hour, with direful power. 
 
 This melancholy day: 
 Homes wrecked — men killed — 
 
 Nor age nor sex been spared; 
 The high, the low, the rich, the poor. 
 
 Death's harvest here have shared. 
 Oh God! our puny hands lie limp 
 
 And helpless by our side; 
 We breathe no ire, but lisp a prayer 
 
 For those who wept and died: 
 
144 THE STORM AT ST. LOUIS. 
 
 Yet, with this weight of human woe 
 Upon our hearts oppressed, 
 
 We humbly ask Why was it so ? 
 And Was it for the best f 
 
The Political Sitaation 
 
 Written during the Presidential Campaign of 1896. 
 
 Ho, voters throughout the whole nation, 
 The smoke of the skirmish has passed; 
 
 Each freeman whatever his station. 
 Can see the great leaders at last. 
 
 McKinley with banner uplifted, 
 
 At Canton, of tariff declaims. 
 And shows where the country has drifted 
 
 In the hands of the party he blames. 
 
 He tells us quite oft of " sound money," 
 
 But never in accents is bold. 
 To proclaim if the sound shall be silver. 
 
 Or our coins be otily of gold. 
 
 Not a word of the reptile that's creeping 
 Through valley, o'er mountain and hill, 
 
 145 
 
146 THE POLITICAL SITUATION. 
 
 Not a note of the sorrow and weeping, 
 
 Which is caused by ** the worm of the still." 
 
 Mark Hanna now swingeth the baton, 
 And he rules the Republican ring; 
 
 The order comes, '' march ;" and they move on. 
 The signal comes, ' ' sing ;" and they sing. 
 
 Who ever saw millions of freemen 
 
 So ingloriously led by the nose ? 
 Come this way, cries the millionaire leader, 
 
 And they follow wherever he goes. 
 
 The tariff was to be the prime factor. 
 To capture the ballots this year; 
 ' With McKinley the principal actor. 
 But tariff has been sent to the rear. 
 
 New idols have been reared for worship, 
 
 Unto one of which we are told, 
 The Israelites turned in their journey, 
 
 As they worshiped the image of gold. 
 
THE POLITICAL SITUATION. I47 
 
 Of the measure and value of silver, 
 
 Of the '* standard " and merits of gold, 
 
 I wonder sometimes if we ever 
 
 Of the whole of the truth will be told. 
 
 ** Protection " for wool and for iron, 
 " Protection " for shop and for mill, 
 
 But ' ' license ' ' for selling and buying 
 The cup which the rumsellers fill. 
 
 The silver tongued son of Nebraska, 
 Bringeth never a word of good cheer; 
 
 But his heart seems cold as Alaska, 
 
 Toward the cause we are holding so dear. 
 
 Great God who ruleth in heaven. 
 
 How long shall this agony be ? 
 Ere the curse fromour land shall be driven. 
 
 And our people indeed shall be free ? 
 
 Ho, look, there's a light in the horizon. 
 Which is shedding a luminous ray; 
 
148 THE POLITICAL SITUATION. 
 
 'Tis the star we name " Prohibition," 
 And betokens a happier day. 
 
 At its shrine few gather to worship, 
 But their hearts are stalwart and true; 
 
 And with God.and the home for our mission. 
 We will see liow much we can do. 
 
 Our creed is the good of the nation, 
 Our motto, * * protection ' ' from rum — 
 
 Our hope, the final salvation 
 
 From the ruin we're fearful will come. 
 
 Then, brothers, come close by the altar. 
 For God and the home take a stand; 
 
 In the path of your duty don't falter, 
 But help to redeem our fair land. 
 
Retrospect 
 
 I sit to-day in my easy chair 
 
 Where the summer shadows lay, 
 Where the flowers of June perfume the air, 
 
 And the birds sing sweet and gay ; 
 The woods are dressed in their olden style. 
 
 But their garb is fresh and new, 
 And the bees are busy all the while. 
 
 And the fields are fair to view, 
 Yet my mind turns back o'er a beaten track. 
 
 To the hours of long ago, * 
 When the world was bright to my youthful sight. 
 
 And bereft of all its woe. 
 A kindly voice salutes my ear, 
 
 And a cherished form I see. 
 For a mother comes in the shadows here 
 
 And sweetly talks to me ; 
 And a father takes me by the hand, 
 
 And we roam across the fields. 
 Where the ripening grain of the cultured land, 
 
 149 
 
ISO RETROSPECT. 
 
 Its waving harvest yields ; 
 And I sit again in the school house door, 
 
 Where playmates all are seen, 
 And we join in sport as oft before 
 
 And skip o'er the village green ; 
 The hours roll by with a quickening pace, 
 
 And youth too soon has passed, 
 Like the golden hours of suriimer flowers. 
 
 Or dreams too bright to last. 
 Then a maiden comes with a modest grace, 
 
 And lays her hand in mine. 
 With a throbbing heart and an earnest face. 
 
 And says, ** I will be thine." 
 We will walk together, side by side. 
 
 Through the busy world as one. 
 And together bide and stem life's tide, 
 
 'Till its last day's work is done. 
 O sweet were the hours which rolled away 
 
 Like the gentle streamlets flow. 
 And calm as the earth at the close of day, 
 
 When the lengthening shadows grow; 
 
RETROSPECT. 1 5 I 
 
 But sweeter still were the hours which came 
 
 When an infant's sky blue eyes 
 Ivooked up to mine with a love-lit flame, 
 
 That was born in Paradise; 
 And the infant grew in form and grace, 
 
 With a forehead passing fair, 
 And became a boy with a pleasant face, 
 
 And a wealth of golden hair. 
 O, I see him now as he frisked about 
 
 In the dooryard 'neath the trees. 
 And I hear his laugh and merry shout 
 
 Come ringing on the breeze. 
 A brighter glory seems to rest 
 
 On the face of earth the while, 
 And my parent heart seems sweetly blest 
 
 By the glow of his cherub smile. 
 -But soon the sky grows overcast. 
 
 And a cloud is lowering nigh, 
 For the purest joys are the soonest past, 
 
 And the fairest flowers die. 
 lyike a rose bud broken ere its bloom, 
 
152 RETROSPECT. 
 
 He faded soon away, 
 And the world seemed wrapped in a pall of gloom, 
 
 And deprived of the light of day. 
 Oh, I see the little sufferer now, 
 
 With his wealth of golden hair. 
 With the stamp of sickness on his brow, 
 
 And its warning traces there; 
 Aiid I mark his footprints in the sand, 
 
 Where he strayed along the shore, 
 Till he crossed the stream to the better land 
 
 And returned to us no more. 
 O, dearest Father, Heavenly One, 
 
 Are these earthly treasures given 
 And withdrawn from us ere the morning sun 
 
 Has reached the early heaven. 
 To draw us upward toward the goal 
 
 Where thy richest glories rest. 
 Where the good of years, and the infant soul 
 
 In a home with Thee are blest ? 
 Then let us cease at once to weep 
 
 For the cherub gone before. 
 Where the angel bands their watches keep 
 
 And beckon across the shore. 
 
Freedom's Spirit 
 
 When o'er earth's primeval features 
 
 Shone the youthful orb of day, 
 And among all living creatures, 
 
 Man was called to hold the sway; 
 Freedom's spirit — gift from heaven, 
 
 God bestowed upon mankind, 
 And this gift, divinely given, 
 
 Dwells within the human mind. 
 Persecutions, fierce and lasting, 
 
 Stained with crime and cruel death, 
 lyike Sirocco breezes blasting, 
 
 All before their poisonous breath, 
 Oft have claimed complete dominion, 
 
 O'er the hearts and minds of men; 
 But behold how free opinion 
 
 Rent the fetters loose again ! 
 See, the martyrs firm and daring 
 
 Stood unyielding at the stake — 
 
 153 
 
I 54 FREEDOM S SPIRIT. 
 
 Fiery pains and torment bearing 
 
 Boldly for their freedom's sake; 
 And though wrong and force combining 
 
 May attempt to rule the free, 
 Their incessant undermining 
 
 Will not wreck sweet liberty. 
 For the hand that freely sent it, 
 
 From the eternal throne on high, 
 With its sacred blessings lent it 
 
 Powers of life that never die. 
 
Labor 
 
 To work and break the earth's green sod 
 
 Is yielding to the will of God; 
 
 To labor will no man disgrace — 
 
 The hardened hand and sunburnt face 
 
 Are real honors nobly won, 
 
 By toiling neath the summer's sun. 
 
 The man who ploughs the stubborn soil, 
 
 Or earns his bread by daily toil, 
 
 Is worthier far than those who play, 
 
 Or lounge life's precious hours away. 
 
 For such, indeed, are drones no earth, 
 
 Scarce worthy of a name or birth. 
 
 'Tis labor both on sea and land — 
 
 'Tis labor ^by the mind or hand 
 
 That should, at all times, truly be 
 
 The ensign of nobility. 
 
 'Tis work, indeed, when well applied. 
 
 155 
 
156 LABOR. 
 
 Turns mountain streams far out, aside, 
 
 And makes their rocky beds unfold 
 
 Their valued ores and grains of gold. 
 
 It levels mountains, rocks and hills, 
 
 And valleys deep and wide it fills, 
 
 Sends news upon the lightning's wings. 
 
 And iron chains o'er rivers flings. 
 
 Cities by its power arise. 
 
 With domes which stretch to meet the skies, 
 
 And columns reared in ancient days 
 
 Proclaim its power and sound its praise. 
 
 Since time's swift waves began to roll, 
 
 'Till heaven's expanse is but a scroll, 
 
 There has not been, nor will there be 
 
 A glorious deed from labor free. 
 
 It woos sweet sleep, it gives us health — 
 
 It opens wide the gate to wealth. 
 
 And wins full many a precious prize 
 
 That never meets the sluggard's eyes. 
 
 Then work, ye youths of ardent mind, 
 
 With scythe and spade, and thought combined; 
 
LABOR. 157 
 
 And if you would in lifetime be 
 Enlisted with the great and free, 
 Seek for that wisdom letters yield, 
 Nor scorn the labors of the field. 
 
Discernment 
 
 Man walks in his regal pride today, 
 
 He counts the stars in the Milky Way 
 
 And tells how the planets their courses run, 
 
 As they circle round the glorious sun. 
 
 He studies the ocean, rocks and air. 
 
 And would gladly have science lay everything bare; 
 
 But strive as he may, he surely will find. 
 
 There are things which are sealed to the finite mind. 
 
 Today, the woods, with a glow untold. 
 
 Wear a crimson garment flecked with gold; 
 
 And we say, 'tis the work of the Master's hand 
 
 That spreads this glory o'er the autumn land; 
 
 But O, I ask, do we know the way 
 
 How He formed the orb which gives us day ? 
 
 How He paints this lovely world of ours, 
 
 And decks the fields with the grass and flowers ? 
 
 A tiny seed is dropped in the ground, 
 
 The rain drops fall, the days go 'round — 
 
 IS8 
 
DISCERNMENT. 1 59 
 
 The sunshine makes the seed bulb swell, 
 
 It springs from the earth, but who can tell. 
 
 All there is to know of the magic birth 
 
 Of the grass and the grain, and the flowers of earth ? 
 
 Ah, who can make one seed 'twill grow 
 
 Or form one flake of the pearly snow ? 
 
 Can we tell all there is of a human tear 
 
 Which drops from the eye on a loved ones bier ? 
 
 Do we know how the throb of a human heart 
 
 Makes a sigh to rise or a tear to start ? 
 
 We gaze on a man in his lusty pride. 
 
 And tomorrow we say the man has died; 
 
 For his heart is still — he breathes no breath — 
 
 The change seems strange — we call it death; 
 
 But O, I ask for a seer so wise. 
 
 As to show unto me where the mystery lies: 
 
 Do we know what it was which gave control ? 
 
 Can we measure the po^^fer of the human soul ? 
 
 Ah me, when the balmy south wind blows. 
 
 Do we know whence it came, can we tell where it goes? 
 
 Do we know all there is of the faintest note 
 
l6o DISCERNMENT. 
 
 Which trills from the tiny blue birds throat ? 
 We gaze on the moon when it rises high 
 And mark the dome of the vaulted sky, 
 But say, is this arch of the azure blue 
 An open book unto me and you ? 
 When the storm has passed, before our eyes 
 On the clouds are stamped the rainbow dyes; 
 Can we tell all there is of the promised bow ? 
 O, our finite minds, how little we know ! 
 Do we know all there Is of the evening stars, 
 Can we pierce the gates of the heavenly bars ? 
 O, our heavenly Father, thus we pray, 
 May the eye of faith make clear the way; 
 'Mid all these clouds of doubts and gloom, 
 Our ignorant hearts and minds illume; 
 Grant to us all, Thy spiritual light. 
 And guide our wayward thoughts aright. 
 
The Coniin^ of the &rs 
 
 Written in 1852 when the building of the 
 Albany and Susquehanna railroad was being 
 agitated. 
 
 Hail ! all hail the glorious time, 
 When the rail-car's welcome chime 
 Shall resound from hill to hill, 
 Throughout the vale of Cobleskill. 
 
 May Green Erin's sons come forth. 
 Break the rock and dig the earth, 
 And stamp the power of skill and toil 
 Plainly on our fertile soil. 
 
 May the steam's propelling aid 
 Soon be here indeed displayed; 
 May the vapors soon be curled, 
 And we be ushered to the world. 
 
 Hasten, O thou glorious time. 
 When the East and Western clime. 
 Shall be joined by one more chain 
 Which forever shall remain. 
 
 161 
 
1 62 THE COMING OF THE CARS. 
 
 Then long buried powers shall be 
 Aroused into their energy — 
 Then, althoug'h a little late, 
 We will honor New York State. 
 
 Hasten, O thou welcome day. 
 When the engine's mighty sway 
 Shall be felt and seen indeed, 
 Here where sure its aid we need. 
 
 Here, where nature has done much, 
 But art scarce felt us with its touch; 
 Here, where silence ne'er is broke, 
 By the gliding rail-car's stroke. 
 
 Where that sound would quickly start 
 A thrill of joy in every heart, 
 And there would most surely be 
 A general day of jubilee. 
 
 When hats would wave and 'kerchiefs fly, 
 And shouts be echoed to the sky. 
 If we could hear a mystic humming. 
 And know the cars, in fact, were coming. 
 
Oar Cl\ristmas Stor^ 
 
 Each age has its martyrs and men of renown, 
 Each country its heroes with laurels to crown; 
 And the stories we read set our bosoms aglow, 
 With the thought of their valor, or tale of their woe; 
 We read of the time of the holy crusades, 
 When lances were lifted and glistened the blades, 
 To wrest from the grasp of Mohammedan sway 
 The tomb of the Savior we worship today; 
 Then the hosts of all Europe arose to the work, 
 And the war cry was raised of "Death to the Turk;" 
 Then, cohorts were booted and spurred for the fight, 
 And the tocsin resounded, **To arms for the right;" 
 Ah! those were the days when the noble of name. 
 In the shock of the battle sought glory and fame; 
 And who can forget the field of Waterloo, 
 Where the soldiers of France stood valiant and true ? 
 Ah! the world stood aghast — the world held its breath. 
 As the gallant "Old Guard" charged down to their 
 death; 
 
 163 
 
164 OUR CHRISTMAS STORY. 
 
 They died in the battle, their leader to save 
 
 From defeat by the foemen, as perish the brave; 
 
 And our land and country abundantly yields 
 
 Rich stories of valor from its battle fields: 
 
 Valley Forge has its tale of sadness and woe, 
 
 Where the blood of our soldiers becrimsoned the snow. 
 
 As they suffered from hunger and cold winter sleet, 
 
 Half clad on their backs, and no shoes on their feet! 
 
 O patriot hearts — O bravest of sires, 
 
 You gave up your blood to light lyiberty's fires; 
 
 We hail you, we greet you, we call you our own. 
 
 The grandest of men the world has yet known; 
 
 The light of your deeds and valor sublime 
 
 Forever shall glow down the arches of Time. 
 
 You died for your country, our blessings to give, 
 
 You died that the spirit of Freedom might live. 
 
 But the story we tell is more ^/onderful far 
 
 Than the tales of the brave and valiant in war; 
 
 We tell of a world which was ruined and lost — 
 
 Of a world to be saved, whatever the cost! 
 
 So the Savior came down from mansions on high. 
 
OUR CHRISTMAS STORY. 1 65 
 
 To live on the earth — then suffer and die, 
 
 To restore a lost race to the favor of God 
 
 By the path of the Cross, which He willingly trod; 
 
 So we shout "All Hosanna" to the Savior and King, 
 
 Who came to the earth, such blessings to bring. 
 
 O, the story we tell of the sweet Christmas-tide, 
 
 Is holier far than all others beside; 
 
 How the angels sang anthems of joy and delight, 
 
 'Neath Palestine's sky that clear Christmas night, 
 
 And the star of the East kept pointing the way, 
 
 'Til it came to the spot where the dear infant lay; 
 
 And there it stood still, as if it would speak, 
 
 "Come worship this child — the Savior you seek." 
 
 O well might the angels with melody sing, 
 
 And the wise of the East their offerings bring. 
 
 For there in the manger with no banner unfurled 
 
 lyay the infantile Hero and King of the world. 
 
 O bells, sound your chimes, on the day of His birth, 
 
 'Til the joyful acclaim encircles the earth; 
 
 Peace on earth — Peace on earth, good will unto men, 
 
 I^et this be our motto as the seraphs sang then: 
 
*' O well might the Angels with melody sing, 
 And the wise of the East their offerings bring. 
 
OUR CHRISTMAS STORY. l6y 
 
 But our story leads on to the shore of Gallilee, 
 
 Where Christ taught the people by the side of the sea, 
 
 To the doors of the temple — to the homes of the poor 
 
 He journeyed to heal, and the lame ones to cure. 
 
 And away to the tomb where I^azarus lay, 
 
 In the slumber of death — inanimate clay; 
 
 O, hark all ye nations, hear the Savior proclaim, 
 
 "Lazarus come forth and be living again;" 
 
 He hears the sweet voice the Savior extends, 
 
 And rises to life — restored to his friends ! 
 
 O, immaculate Savior — of unlimited power, 
 
 Who could doubt your divinity after this hour ? 
 
 O, this is the hero we worship today. 
 
 May our hearts all respond to His merciful sway. 
 
 In the midst of rejoicing and Christmas delight, 
 
 lyct us turn in our gaze to Calvary's height; 
 
 See the Savior uplifted to ransom our race! 
 
 O, the climax of love — to die in our place! 
 
 Blessed Christ, may we place our affections on Thee, 
 
 Who died on the cross that we might be free. 
 
 And today let this story of devotion untold. 
 
l68 OUR CHRISTMAS STORY. 
 
 Over all of the Earth in chorus be rolled. 
 O, martyr sublime — O, Savior and King, 
 This day unto Thee our homage we bring; 
 Hark! the angels are singing their anthems again, 
 And the shepherds are watching on Bethlehem's plain; 
 And the star moves on and is pointing the way 
 To the Savior — the Savior on this Christmas day; 
 O God, may we follow — keep close to the light, 
 Like the men of the East on the first Christmas night; 
 'Til the Savior we find, on whom we depend, 
 Our Hero, our Martyr, Defender and Friend. 
 
Dedication Poem 
 
 [Read at the dedication of the Sabbath School room in the 
 
 new M. B. Church in Cobleskill, July 8th, 1894, by 
 
 Miss Susan Armstrong.] 
 
 We come in Thy courts this day with rejoicing, 
 
 And give thanks, heavenly Father, alone unto Thee, 
 And with lips, and with organ our praises are voicing, 
 
 For the joy which we feel, and the things which we 
 see. 
 Abroad in the meadows the larks are now singing. 
 
 In the blush of the morn of these beautiful days, 
 And the groves, and the woodland are merrily ringing 
 
 With the carols of birds giving anthems of praise; 
 For the winter has passed, and the summer arising 
 
 With its noontide of glory, new pleasure imparts. 
 And decks the whole land with a beauty surprising, 
 
 And stirs up the fountain of love in our hearts; 
 And now, heavenly Father, with Thy blessings unceas- 
 ing, 
 
 And Thy hand guiding us all of these days, 
 
 169 
 
1^0 DEDICATION POEM. 
 
 May our love and our faith be ever increasing — 
 
 More earnest and greater be growing our praise. 
 One year has but passed since in roughness were lying 
 
 Piles of timber and stone uncouth to the eye, 
 But workmen soon came, the tools were soon flying; 
 
 And a church was upbuilding with others to vie; 
 Summer merged into Autumn, Winter came with its 
 sadness. 
 Frost bound the rivers, and cold grew the air, 
 But the workmen toiled on with devotion and gladness 
 This house to erect, and this room to prepare: 
 'Til turn our eyes which way we may, 
 
 The scene is fair before us, 
 For beauty rests where'er they stray. 
 
 And frescoed walls are o'er us. 
 lyook up, look out, behold the scene; 
 
 These things are not a vision. 
 These gilded domes are not a dream, 
 
 'Though decked with shades elysian; 
 For loyal men and women too. 
 Forsaking worldly pleasure, 
 
DEDICATION POEM. I7I 
 
 Have labored long, and labored true 
 
 And given of their' treasure; 
 And youthful hearts, and little hands 
 
 Have clasped with those of older, 
 And marched along in solid bands, 
 
 With shoulder unto shoulder, 
 To rear these walls knd swing in air 
 
 The bell now hanging o'er us, 
 Whose mellow cadence calls to prayer 
 
 With loud and pleading chorus. 
 O heavenly Father, hear us now, 
 
 And grant us our petition; 
 Before Thy throne we humbly bow 
 
 In meek and deep contrition; 
 The errors of the past forgive, 
 
 And in the future guide us; 
 Enable us to rightly live, 
 
 And with Thy grace provide us; 
 So lead us, I^ord, that we may lead 
 
 According to Thy will. 
 And closely watch, and kindly feed. 
 
1/2 DEDICATION POEM. 
 
 And keep from worldly ill 
 The little ones whose wayward feet 
 
 Shall tread within this room, 
 Now decked with garlands rare and sweet 
 
 And robed with summer bloom ; 
 For unto Thee and them this day, 
 
 This room we dedicate; 
 Bless them, bless us, bless all we pray 
 
 Who come within its gate. 
 
Lir\es to a Friend on Per Departure for California 
 in 1555 
 
 Farewell to thee lady! farewell unto thee! 
 May fortune attend thee to lands o'er the sea; 
 May the sail flow gently that bears thee away, 
 And the waters beneath it but tranquilly play; 
 And oft when the moon, like a queen in the sky, 
 Bedecks with its silver the oceans green dye, 
 And the stars that smile sweetly from heaven on thee, 
 Seem setting like diamonds in the waves of the sea. 
 May you gaze on the scene in the fullness of health. 
 And long share this blessing which is greater than 
 wealth. 
 
 Farewell to thee, lady! we never can know, 
 
 What's before us in life of joy or of woe: 
 
 We know not the changes a year may bring forth, 
 
 So fleeting and fickle are things of the earth, 
 
 But we trust that the guardian Power above 
 
 Will give thee sweet friendship, enjoyment and love; 
 
 173 
 
1/4 LINES TO A FRIEND. 
 
 May thy pathway in life be strewed with gay flowers, 
 That are culled from the shade of pleasures green 
 
 bowers, 
 And O, may contentment its influence lend 
 To crown the pure joy of our highly prized friend. 
 
 Farewell to thee, lady! farewell for a while; 
 How sad it now seems to lose thy gay smile; 
 Now soon we must miss the sweet tone of thy voice- — 
 'Though fate has decreed it, it is not our choice; 
 For an accent of kindness is hung on each word. 
 And thy music flows gently, like the song of a bird. 
 The feeling that friendship instills in the heart. 
 Makes us sad when we think thou wilt quickly depart. 
 But since thou must go, we wish thee * ' good bye, ' ' 
 Though that sorrowful word awakens a sigh. 
 
 Farewell to thee, lady! farewell we all say, 
 We only can wish thee good luck on the way;] 
 May each sun as it sinks in the ocean's broad breast, 
 And bedecks with its gold the sky in the west. 
 But rise in the morn with a glittering ray. 
 
LINES TO A FRIEND. 175 
 
 And roll on in its splendor the whole of the day: 
 For we crave for thee pleasure by land and by sea, 
 And we trust that no ill will happen to thee; 
 For we feel in our hearts what we earnestly tell, 
 When we say to thee, lady, we wish thee farewell. 
 
 Farewell to thee, lady! kind lady, adieu! 
 We cannot but feel a friendship for you; 
 And when the wide ocean between us doth roll, 
 This feeling will live in the depths of the soul; 
 And oft when the steamers sweep over the sea. 
 We trust we shall hear good tidings from thee; 
 And may we all claim a thought of thy mind. 
 When in fancy you gaze on the scenes left behind; 
 For we prize the good wishes of the gentle and true, 
 We value, fair lady, such beings as you. 
 
 Farewell to thee, lady I farewell unto thee. 
 Thy husband is calling from far o'er the sea; 
 Go lighten his heart with the charm of thy smile. 
 Which cannot but serve all care to beguile. 
 Go tell him the wishes that friendship imparts, 
 
176 LINES TO A FRIEND. 
 
 Are enshrined for you both in the depths of our hearts; 
 And we crave that each blessing that from heaven de- 
 scends 
 Will be shared in full measure, by both of our friends. 
 Farewell to thee, lady! farewell unto thee! 
 May fortune attend thee to lands o'er the sea. 
 
%e ¥aves of Time 
 
 Well the wind is blowing fierce tonight, 
 
 And the snow is falling fast, 
 But the gale will stop with the morning light 
 
 And the storm be quickly past; 
 For the waves of time keep rolling by, 
 
 And breaking along the shore, 
 So the barques they bear and the days of care 
 
 Come back unto us no more. 
 Now up on the mountain's towering crest. 
 
 And down in the plain below. 
 The snow lies thick on the earth's cold breast 
 
 And the violets cease to grow. 
 But spring will come with its balmy daj^s. 
 
 And its mornings blushing red, 
 And the snow will melt 'neath the mellow rays 
 
 That wide o'er the earth will spread. 
 And the violets, then, will grow again, 
 
 And the trees on the mountain j^ide, 
 
 177 
 
1/8 THE WAVES OF TIMe! 
 
 Put forth their leaves in the gentle rain, 
 
 And their naked branches hide. 
 And the robins come with the thrush and sing 
 
 The same as they did last year, 
 'Till the copse and the woodland fairly ring 
 
 With the notes we love to hear. 
 For the waves of time are rolling by, 
 
 And bearing us toward the hours 
 When the sun goes down in a golden sky, 
 
 And the earth is decked with flowers. 
 Then summer soon will be wafted 'round 
 
 With its harvests rich and rare, 
 When the new made hay will press the ground 
 
 And its odors rest on the air. 
 And the farmer reap from the teeming soil 
 
 The crops which a heavenly hand 
 Has reared from the earth to reward his toil, 
 
 And bless the whole of the land. 
 Then the autumn, too, will come again. 
 
 With its ripened corn and sheaves, 
 When the chilly winds will sweep the plain 
 
" And the robins come with the thrush and sing 
 The same as they ^id last year, 
 'Till the copse and the woodland fairly ring 
 With the notes we love to hear." 
 
l80 THE WAVES OF TIME. 
 
 And rustle the withered leaves; 
 For the waves of time keep rolling by 
 
 With a a surging, stately tread, 
 'Till we gaze on the past, and breathe a sigh 
 
 That the years so soon are dead. 
 Now a little infant lies today 
 
 On its mother's breast asleep. 
 And tomorrow a child we see at play 
 
 With its fast and flying feet. 
 One ripple more on the sea of time, 
 
 Then a youth with a sparkling eye, 
 And soon a man in his lusty prime 
 
 Is stepping with vigor by. 
 One ripple more, so slight, 'twould seem 
 
 But the dip of a swallow's wing, 
 Or the passing light of a flitting gleam. 
 
 When the clouds their shgdows fling. 
 And the man is wafted hence, away 
 
 On the gliding stream of time, 
 And his barque lies anchored in the bay 
 
 Of a new and changeless clime. 
 
One ripple more on the sea of time, 
 Then a youth with a sparkling eye.' 
 
1 82 THE WAVES OF TIME. 
 
 'Tis ever thus on the sea of hfe 
 
 The fleets come hurrying by, 
 Though they breast the storm of the billows' strife 
 
 Or sail 'neath a placid sky. 
 When we look around we think we stand 
 
 With our feet on the solid shore, 
 And we watch the boats which are out from land 
 
 And list to the ocean's roar; ' 
 
 And we do not think that we are afloat 
 
 On the rolling ocean too, 
 Whose restless waves are rocking our boat. 
 
 And bearing us out of view. 
 O, Power Supreme, whose almighty will 
 
 Bade the raging winds to cease, 
 And the shrieking blasts grew soft and still, 
 
 And the billows sank in peace; 
 We ask Thy aid, and we crave Thy hand, 
 
 To guide our crafts aright. 
 So we sail along t'ward the beauteous land, 
 
 Where the shores are always bright; 
 Where a heavenly springtime always reigns 
 
 And the violets always grow. 
 For a lasting sunshine gilds the plains. 
 
 And no seasons come or go. 
 
dn i\crostic 
 
 Composing rhymes is not for me, 
 
 Life's busy work my care; 
 And yet, kind friend, I bring to thee 
 
 Right thoughts of what our duties are. 
 A voice to soothe, a heart to love, 
 
 O these are gifts divine; 
 Heaven will their lasting goodness prove. 
 
 And may these gifts be thine. 
 Devoted to the cause you love, 
 
 Long may your life be spared; 
 Ennobling all with thoughts which prove 
 
 Your love and labor, they have shared. 
 
 183 
 
^ Knight of Labor 
 
 Ho, the steady worker is the man for me, 
 And a valiant knight indeed is he: 
 Ho, the worker keeps his armor bright-- 
 Ho, the worker guides the shuttle right; 
 And this real knight unto you I bring, 
 I grant him honor and crown him king. 
 
 The man who works with his willing hands 
 
 And on his merit squarely stands, 
 
 Ho, he's the knight for me. 
 
 No midnight conclave binds his will. 
 
 Nor holds the voice of his manhood still; 
 
 But firm and honest, bold and true. 
 
 He's free to speak and free to do. 
 
 Ho, the worker moves with a steady tread. 
 He pays for his home and wins his bread, 
 As he moves the wheels of the business world, 
 And the engine pants and its smoke is curled: 
 With conscience free and his armor bright, 
 He's a freeman bold — indeed a knight. 
 
 184 
 
%e Pop Grower's Soi)g 
 
 [When hops were a dollar a pound.] 
 
 •'Come Betsy, my darling, the night is far sped 
 
 Come hurry, I say, get out of the bed, 
 
 And hasten the breakfast — the boys, the dear souls, 
 
 Must go to the station, and draw our hop poles." 
 
 "O Jacob, my husband," the wife piteously pleads, 
 
 "I am tired and sleepy, and what is the need. 
 
 Of calling me up in the darkness of night, 
 
 To get a warm meal before it is light ? ' ' 
 
 " Why Betsy, dear Betsy," the husband replies, 
 
 " The time is all wasting — how quickly it flies! 
 
 Come, shake off your slumber, spring up with a bound; 
 
 When hops are commanding a dollar a pound, 
 
 'Tis no time to be sleepy and dull in your head. 
 
 Or lie late in the morning snoozing in bed. 
 
 We must plow up the meadow — the wheat field the 
 
 same. 
 And the raising of hops must now be our game, 
 For the wealth of the Indies will become our reward, 
 
 185 
 
i86 
 
 And we'll praise our good luck, and give thanks to 
 
 the lyord 
 For the hops we shall raise, when the hop poles are set. 
 And you shall be dressed in your satins, you bet. 
 The bedsteads and chairs, now dull to our view, 
 Shall be broken for wood, and replaced all by new ; 
 A piano that is costly and ever so nice 
 Shall be purchased and placed in the house in a trice — 
 The horses be decked with new harness and bells, — 
 Three robes in the cutter like all of the swells. 
 And the simple old ways, once our ancestors pride, 
 We shall quit, and forever put entirely aside." 
 Then Betsy springs up with a chirp and a smile — 
 The horses are harnessed by the boys in the while — 
 The breakfast is ready and swallowed in fun. 
 And thus with great glee the work is begun ; 
 Away for the station speed the swift flying steeds ; 
 No Storm King or Krost King the farmer now heeds. 
 But with whiskers all whitened, and eye brows all ice, 
 He declares, "it is pleasant" and the weather "so 
 
 nice." 
 
THE HOP grower's song. 1 8/ 
 
 'Tis surprising what solace and magic is found, 
 In hops, when commanding a dollar a pound L 
 Arrived at the station, half frozen with cold, 
 And anxious to learn if the poles are all sold, 
 The agent is sought for and found on the ground ; 
 Forty car loads of cedars are standing around ! 
 And the question is asked, "Has ?;^)/ car load yet come? 
 And if not, my dear sir, what on earth will be done? 
 It was shipped from the Junction some two weeks ago ; 
 Has the road, sir, been blocked with ice or with snow ? 
 Will you write, will you telegraph ? Now hark what 
 
 I say, 
 I'll know what's the reason of all this delay. 
 Or the company will suffer — I'll cause them to sweat. 
 For I'm not to be fooled in this way, you bet, 
 When hops are going up— still up with a bound. 
 And last week were fetching a dollar a pomid ! ' ' 
 Then another man comes, *' Well, how is it today, 
 Have the hop poles yet come for Johnny Gilday ? 
 Are they going to Seward ? will Hyndsville get cars? 
 If not, my dear sir, why bless all my stars — 
 
iB8 THE HOP grower's song. 
 
 My teams are all waiting, and have been a week, 
 
 And I aoi so disappointed, I scarcely can speak ; 
 
 But hurry them forward — the Lightning Express, 
 
 Will do for my poles for this time I guess, 
 
 But the next ones which come, must move along faster, 
 
 Or perchance I will meet with financial disaster. 
 
 For hops, as you know, and many have found. 
 
 Are not always commanding a dollar a pound ! 
 
 Well, my friends, that's a point worth laying to heart; 
 
 And if rightly considered 'twill a lesson impart ; 
 
 Shall the meadow be broken — shall the wheat field be 
 
 spared. 
 Or both for the culture of hop roots be bared ? 
 Remember that he who makes haste to be rich, 
 Quite often goes down into poverty's ditch ; 
 It is better, far better to drive slowly or wait, 
 Than to steam right ahead at a two-forty gait. 
 And run off the track, and break the machine, 
 E're the race is half run, and the mile post is seen. 
 
Our Country 
 
 Here is the home of the brave and the free 
 Reaching out from river and lake unto sea; 
 Here, lyiberty sits enthroned on each hill 
 For our country is ruled by the people's own will, 
 And through the extent of our beautiful land 
 Has Providence strewn with a liberal hand : 
 Where Atlantic's blue waves in sunlight do glow — 
 At the South where the flowers unceasingly blow 
 To Oregon's wilds far away in the West, 
 Where earth with rich forests still darkly is dressed , 
 Are privileges, joys and comforts untold 
 Inlaid with rich mines of silver and gold. 
 Then sound the glad echo o'er river and sea. 
 Our country is rich and we are the free: 
 The American's heart for freedom beats fast. 
 And leaps at the thought of scenes which are past 
 For the blood of the heroes, who our liberty won. 
 Has passed unsullied from father to son; 
 Still brave are our soldiers — still true to the sword 
 
 189 
 
190 OUR COUNTRY. 
 
 And the voice of devotion is everywhere heard. 
 Though Washington's frame now slumbers in death 
 His precepts diffuse a life-giving breath; 
 And though sages have died, and heroes have fell 
 In the hearts of our people they ever will dwell r 
 Then shout all ye freemen — ye noble by birth, 
 America's star sheds light o'er the earth; 
 For here in this country, all dotted with farms. 
 Is the cradle of freedom protected by arms: 
 Here is a shelter for all the distressed — 
 A home for the poor, or greatly oppressed. 
 And the stars of our flag now sparkle as bright 
 As meteors which flash in the darkness of night, 
 And the motto it heralds to nations afar 
 Is union, and strength and triumph in war. 
 Wherever an ocean its billows doth roll, 
 From the point of the south, away to the pole, 
 Our pennon is streaming away on the breeze 
 That blows over deserts, and sweeps o'er the seas, 
 Upheld to the world by a resolute band 
 
OUR COUNTRY. I9I 
 
 On river and lake, on sea and on land. 
 
 O long may its stripes in beauty display 
 
 The power and virtue of I^iberty's sway, 
 
 And long may its folds be proudly unfurled 
 
 As the hope of mankind all over the world. 
 
 Where Hungary's sons with bravery fought, 
 
 In vain for the prize they eagerly sought. 
 
 To the isle of Green Brin that springs from the sea, 
 
 Our people are counted the noble and free; 
 
 For the light of our land shines ever afar 
 
 As a guide to the nations and beckoning star, 
 
 To those who would fain in reality be 
 
 From monarchs and tyrants eternally free. 
 
 O well may we say our country is great 
 
 And noble each portion — each section and state; 
 
 Our rivers that flow with' swift running tide 
 
 And seek the broad ocean, or sandy sea side, 
 
 Bear millions of bushels of produce away, 
 
 That ever our husbandman's toil doth repay; 
 
 Pennsylvania's mountains send forth their dark coal, 
 
192 OUR COUNTRY. 
 
 California yields its treasures of gold, 
 And forests of oak and pine may be seen, 
 By the side of our harvests and meadows so green; 
 Railroads traverse the most of our union, 
 And telegraphs furnish electric communion; 
 The fluid which Franklin corked up in a bottle. 
 Our people control without even a stopple. 
 Yes, the lightning of heaven they make as a toy. 
 And compel it to serve as the nation's postboy. 
 O make the glad welkin ring loud o'er the land, 
 "From forest to city, from city to strand; 
 When oppression and war drove 'way from its throne, 
 The noble gray eagle, the pride of old Rome, 
 It scanned all Europe, and quickly it found. 
 Bach country was dark, each monarch was crowned; 
 Then boldly its pinions to the westward it bore. 
 And alighted upon our own noble shore; 
 Through scenes of carnage and bloodshed it passed. 
 But came off the victor, in triumph at last. 
 And though years have gone by since the glorious day 
 When tyrany cowered 'neath liberty's sway, • 
 
OUR COUNTRY. 
 
 When the lion of England was wrapt in its fold 
 And freedom rejoiced the sight to behold, 
 Its pinions still spread, and its eye is as bright 
 As the sun in the sky — the fountain of light. 
 
 193 
 
 O, noble gray eagle — O flag of the brave — 
 
 May thy pinions still spread — our banner still wave. 
 
 O'er a people united, valiant and free 
 
 From the gulf to the lakes — from sea unto sea. 
 
^e Changing of tk 8casoi^s 
 
 Prepared for the harvest home festival held 
 in the M. B. Church, of Cobleskill, Nov 25, 1900, 
 and read by Miss Christobel Abbott. 
 
 Once more we come with willing feet 
 
 Within this room we love, 
 To join in praise and offerings meet 
 
 To God in Heaven above; 
 And as we backward turn our gaze 
 
 To hours now passed away, 
 How fleet and fleeing seem the days, 
 
 How transient seems their stay. 
 In wintry shroud the earth lay dead 
 
 And dumb beneath the sky, 
 As time its rushing courses sped. 
 
 And months went rolling by. 
 Spring came, and with it came the bees. 
 
 The birds, the buds and flowers, 
 
 194 
 
THE CHANGING OF THE SEASONS. I95 
 
 The crimson sky, the leafy trees, 
 
 The sunshine and the showers. 
 Soon rays of summer sunlight lay 
 
 O'er meadow, farm and field, 
 And kissed the flowers, and dried the hay, 
 
 And made the harvests yield. 
 Now autumn comes unto us here. 
 
 With train of royal brood, 
 With purpled grape, and ripened ear. 
 
 And all we need for food. 
 Behold the lovely autumn leaves ! 
 
 Behold the golden fruit ! 
 Behold the glowing harvest sheaves — 
 
 Repast for man and brute: 
 Our hands are full, our hearts should be, 
 
 Great God, of thankfulness to Thee, 
 To Thee who paints the whole of earth, 
 
 And frescoes all the sky, 
 With dyes which show celestial birth 
 
 And jewels from on high — 
 To Thee, who drops from out Thy hand 
 
196 THE CHANGING OF THE SEASONS. 
 
 All blessings we have here, 
 Who gives us homes in this fair land, 
 
 And guards them year by 3'ear. 
 Our hands are full, our hearts should be. 
 
 Of thankfulness, Great God, to Thee. 
 And now the day has come again, 
 
 This festal time of year, 
 When harvest's home — when golden graiUj 
 
 And ripened fruit and ear 
 Have filled our barns, and shall our hearts 
 
 Not fill with love and praise, 
 To Him who all this good imparts, 
 
 And blesses all our days ? 
 God of the harvest, hear us now; 
 
 With open hand and heart. 
 Of these rich gifts we humbly vow 
 
 To give to Thee a part: 
 Our hands are full, our hearts should be. 
 
 Great God, of thankfulness to Thee. 
 
Cliildrcn's Day 
 
 Written for Children's Day exercises in the 
 M n. Church of Cobleskill. 
 
 The world is now gay and rejoicing, 
 
 And clothed in its brighest array; 
 The birds and the bees are now voicing 
 
 Their sweetest of praises today. 
 In gardens the flowers are all blooming — 
 
 In meadows the grass is all green, 
 And the beauty of Heaven seems illuming 
 
 The land with its glory and gleam. 
 How good and how many the reasons. 
 
 This loveliest time of the year^- 
 This halcyon hour of the seasons. 
 
 Should remind us of those we hold dear; 
 Of our children — the dearest of treasures — 
 
 The men and the women to be, 
 The source of the sweetest of pleasures, 
 
 Or the keenest of sorrow we see. 
 
 197 
 
19^ CHILDREN*S DAY. 
 
 How important we keep them from straying 
 
 From the path the noble have trod. 
 The warnings of conscience obeying, 
 
 And the sacred commandments of God. 
 In the world through which we are passing, 
 
 Notwithstanding its beauty and bloom, 
 There are sorrows which are keen and lasting 
 
 There are vices and sighing and gloom; 
 There are pitfalls dug deep in the roadway, 
 
 There are whirlpools of sin they must shun 
 Or their vessels will be wrecked ere the noonday 
 
 Or perchance when the voyage is begun. 
 And now when from ocean to ocean. 
 
 Throughout the whole breadth of our land, 
 The anthems of praise and devotion, 
 
 Roll onward from strand unto strand; 
 L<et us vow to be faithful and fervent, 
 
 And watch with a tenderer care — 
 And plead with the children more urgent. 
 
 And bear them still closer in prayer 
 To the breast of the Savior who loves them. 
 
children's day. 199 
 
 And said as He taught by the sea, 
 ** Of such is the kingdom of Heaven, 
 
 Let the little ones come unto me." 
 And children, you too have a duty — 
 
 A task that you must perform; 
 Heart culture will give you true beauty — 
 
 Pure actions preserve you from harm. 
 As I think of your faces so smiling. 
 
 And bedecked with the roses of youth, 
 I ask, will sin be beguiling 
 
 Your steps from goodness and truth ? 
 O may the the good angels all guide you. 
 
 And the Bible be ever your light; 
 May God with His spirit provide you, 
 
 And lead all your footsteps aright. 
 There is merit and joy in true living — 
 
 In goodness ther^ is comfort and peace, 
 And by helping each other, and giving 
 
 Good gifts, we our pleasure increase. 
 The world is now gay and rejoicing, 
 
 And clothed in its brightest array; 
 
200 CHILDREN S DAY. 
 
 The birds and the bees are now voicing 
 
 Their sweetest of praises today. 
 In gardens the flowers are all blooming, 
 
 In meadows the grass is all green, 
 And the beauty of Heaven seems illuming 
 
 The land with its glory and gleam ; 
 But the flowers will wither and perish — 
 
 The meadows grow barren and drear, 
 And the glorious summer we cherish 
 
 Give way to the frosts of each year. 
 But only a shadow there is to divide 
 
 This day from unending tomorrow; 
 And living aright, this side of the tide. 
 
 We much out of Heaven can borrow. 
 We see not the gates nor the fields yet beyond 
 
 Where the meadows forever are vernal. 
 But thin are the walls and flimsy the veil, 
 
 'Twixt this life and one that's eternal. 
 O God, make us children — Thy children for aye 
 
 Unto us may Thy spirit be given, 
 And when from the earth we are summoned away 
 
 Bid us welcome — all welcome in Heaven. 
 
there's fk Spirit 
 
 Where's the spirit of affection 
 
 When the heart is bought and sold ? 
 When mankind with due reflection, 
 
 Trade their love for paltry gold ? 
 Black the soul and base the feeling — 
 
 Wrong the act and mean the cause 
 Which submits to such low dealing 
 
 In defiance of God's laws — 
 Which will lay the gift divine 
 
 Humbly down on Mammon's shrine. 
 
 Where's the spirit of religion 
 
 Demonstrated by the life 
 Of a church that's half perdition, 
 
 Mixed up with consuming strife? 
 lyike a play of mimic features, 
 
 Semblance is the ruling part; 
 Seeming pure, devoted creatures 
 
 201 
 
^02 Where's the spirit ^ 
 
 Sometimes prove but false at heart: 
 But there are the meek and lowly, 
 Loving souls, both pure and holy. 
 
 Where's the spirit of redemption 
 
 Save in Christ's own precious blood, 
 Which affords a sure exemption 
 
 From our sins' destructive flood ? 
 Pope and priesthood boldly claim 
 
 That to them the power is given 
 To forgive the sins of men. 
 
 But 'tis blasphemy of Heaven; 
 Christ alone affords the way, 
 
 lycading to eternal day. 
 
 Where's the spirit love engenders, 
 Where the Bast is red with war. 
 
 There where Turkey's joint defenders 
 Crowd to strife from lands afar ? 
 
 Carnage ! Carnage ! is the word 
 That awakes the fiery will. 
 
Where's the spirit? 203 
 
 Oh, how far the cry is heard, 
 
 Bursting forth from vale and hill: 
 Human blood must yet be shed — 
 
 Fields must still be strewn with dead. 
 
 Where's the spirit born of freedom, 
 
 In a part of our own land, 
 Where men bow to those who lead them, 
 
 In a tame submissive band ? 
 Oh, our eagle's spreading pinions 
 
 Bear the seal by bondage set. 
 And our fairest, loved dominions 
 
 Sadly dim our coronet : 
 Yes, upon our nation's crest 
 
 Slavery's blot in safety rests. 
 
 Come, ye men who worship riches, 
 
 Bid the syren soon depart; 
 There is not in earth's possessions, 
 
 Treasures worth a loving heart. 
 And ye fighting hosts of Europe, 
 
 May your conflicts soon be done; 
 
204 Where's the spirit? 
 
 You in future will not rue It, ' 
 
 lyive like brethren 'npath the sun: 
 Peace ! yes, peace alone imparts 
 
 Sacred joy to human hearts. 
 
 Come, O Pope, and Roman priesthood. 
 
 Mend your sacrilegious ways; 
 God alone can work out good — 
 
 His the glory, power and praise. 
 And ye curtained sons of evil, 
 
 L^ay aside your glossy mask; 
 Cease to serve and please the devil, 
 
 And commence a nobler task: 
 Strive, O strive, to win a gem 
 
 lyike unto Christ's diadem. 
 
 And my country — priceless home. 
 My soul exults o'er all of thee, 
 
 Though here beneath our mildest zone, 
 Mankind are not all wise and free; 
 
 Sons of freemen, come, restrain 
 Slavery's progress from the west: 
 
Where's the spirit? 205 
 
 Wipe the dark, disgraceful stain 
 
 Sometime from our nation's breast: 
 Freedom here should have its throne, 
 
 Freedom ! freedom ! that alone. 
 
 Written before the abolition of slavery and 
 during the Turkish war. 
 
Our Loved Ones' Graves 
 
 O, where shall the graves of our loved ones be? 
 Where is heard the sound of the deep-toned sea ; 
 Where the grass of the valley and wild flowers grow, 
 O'er the forms of the friends who are sleeping below ; 
 Where affection shall drop a heartfelt tear, 
 In remembrance of those our bosoms held dear ; 
 Where we shall pour forth our feelings in prayer, 
 And weep o'er our friends so lovely and fair. 
 
 O, where shall the graves of our loved ones be? 
 Where the wild winds sweep in deep melody ; 
 Where the dark shades of evening shall silently throw 
 A shadow of sadness — an emblem of woe ; 
 Where the sweet forest stream as it murmurs along, 
 Sings a sorrowful dirge for the loved who are gone ; 
 Where soft notes of mourning may never be heard 
 And the air in low music is constantly stirred. 
 O, where shall the graves of our loved ones be? 
 'Neath the shades of the elm and green willow tree ; 
 
 206 
 
OUR LOVED ONES GRAVES 20/ 
 
 Where our tears shall bedew the lily that grows 
 O'er their forms, along with the myrtle and rose ; 
 Where at closing of day we may silently kneel, 
 And tell to sweet Heaven the sorrow we feel. 
 And nought shall disturb the peace of their rest, 
 'Til their spirits shall come from the land of the blest. 
 
 O, where shall the graves of our loved ones be ? 
 Where all that surrounds is from mirthfulness free ; 
 Where the sun beams softly, and the cypress waves, 
 In tokens of mourning over their graves ; 
 Where we shall sweet flowers and offerings bring. 
 And over their graves with reverence fling ; 
 Where all of the emblems which by nature are given, 
 Remind us of them, and point us to Heaven. 
 
Early HistorY of fk dlbany and 
 Sasqachanna I(ailroad 
 
 ITS KARI,Y FINANCIAI, STRUGGI^KS, FIRST BOARD OF 
 
 DIRECTORS , AND FIRST OFFICERS. SOME OF THE 
 
 EARI,Y D. & H. company's MEN. 
 
 BY THE AUTHOR. 
 
 Looking out over the valley today, watching the 
 ponderous engines of the D. & H. Co. pulling the 
 heavy trains eastward and westward, my mind has 
 been carried back to the days of my youth, and the 
 unpleasant experiences attendant upon a journey from 
 Cobleskill to Albany, prior to the building of the Al- 
 bany and Susquehanna Railroad have been the sub- 
 ject of my thought. 
 
 Then a journey to Albany with a load of farm pro- 
 duce, was an event of as much importance, and re- 
 quired more elaborate preparation than a journey to 
 Omaha, Nebraska, does now. The good farmers' wives 
 of those days went bustling about the house the day 
 before the journey was to be made, frying doughnuts, 
 cooking sausages, and baking bread, whilst the farmer 
 and his sons were putting up the grain or apples for 
 
 208 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 2O9 
 
 market. In the evening the food prepared for lunch- 
 eon for the three days' trip to Albany and back, was 
 packed by the good wife into the dinner box, whilst 
 *' the man of the house " was busy at the barn pack- 
 ing a huge bundle of hay, and binding it with strong 
 bands made by twisting rye straw into coils for rope. 
 This done, and secured upon the load to avoid the 
 purchase of feed for the horses whilst upon the trip, 
 the wagon greased, and the dinner box placed safely 
 on board, all was ready for a start in the morning be- 
 fore daylight. I will not recount the horrible details 
 of a three days' pilgrimage to Albany and back, 
 through mud and rain, slush and snow, trudging part 
 way on foot or seated upon the soft side of a barrel of 
 apples. There are those living yet, to whom this al- 
 lusion will bring unpleasant recollections of their 
 youth and young manhood. But the time was ap- 
 proaching when all this was to be changed. For 
 years, the iron horse, steam-fed and harnessed, had 
 been hauling long trains of cars eastward through the 
 Mohawk valley, laden with the produce of the fertile 
 prairies, and bearing the merchandise and manufac- 
 tures of the east westward. 
 
 Farm lands which had ranged from $25.00 to $40.00 
 per acre prior to the building of the New York Cen- 
 tral railroad, had increased in value to $75.00 and 
 $100 00 per acre, and there was not lacking in the 
 valley of the Susquehanna men with the vigilance to 
 
2IO EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 note the change, and the business sagacity to see that 
 what had been done in the Mohawk, could afso be 
 done in the Susquehanna valley. With the trains of 
 the Erie railroad sweeping past Binghamton on the 
 west, and those of the New York Central gliding 
 through Albany on the east, with the shrill blasts of 
 the Jocomotives resounding up the valley at each end, 
 the years for the sway of the lumbering farm wagon 
 and slow stage coach in this part of the state were be- 
 ing numbered. Yet long years of unappreciated toil, 
 persevering energy and tireless work were to be per- 
 formed by some men, before the battle was fought and 
 victory won. Prominent among the men of that day 
 with the necessary brain to appreciate the importance 
 of constructing a railroad from Albany to Binghamton, 
 were Kdward C. Delevan and Robert H. Pruyn, of Al- 
 bany, Geo. W. Chase, of Maryland, Elakim R. Ford, 
 of Oneonta, Arnold B. Watson, of Unadilla, Edward 
 Thompson and Senator Dominick, of Binghamton, 
 Jared Goodyear, of Colliersville, John Cook, of Wor- 
 cester, John Westover, of Richmondville, Minard 
 Harder, Charles Courter and Joseph H. Ramsey, of 
 Cobleskill. Doubtless there are other names which 
 should be inserted upon this roll of honor, but they do 
 not occur to me now. All of these early railroad 
 pioneers have gone from this world to the next, but 
 the most of them lived to see the creation of their faith 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 211 
 
 and brain a reality, and to receive the praise and bless- 
 ing of some who opposed them in their labors. 
 
 The company was first organized in the year 1852, 
 at a meeting held in Oneonta, and Edward C. Delevan 
 chosen president. From this time may be dated the 
 birth of the Albany and Susquehanna Railroad Com- 
 pany. With a board of directors chosen, ofiicers se- 
 lected and subscription books opened, the company 
 was in position to send its representatives among the 
 people soliciting subscriptions to the stock. This 
 work was vigorously prosecuted by the holding of 
 public meetings at which the merits of the enterprise 
 were discussed, and by personal application and appeal 
 at the homes of the people, by the directors and agents 
 of the company, and fair progress made, but the mag- 
 nitude and cost of the work was to be so great, that it 
 soon became apparent that sufficient money to build 
 and equip the road could not be raised by individual 
 subscription. Accordingly the friends of the enter- 
 prise formulated a bill and presented it to the Assem- 
 bly of the State at the session of 1855 authorizing the 
 towus along the line of the proposed road to subscribe 
 to tiie stock of the company. This bill passed the 
 Assembly but was defeated in the Senate. The next 
 year a bill passed both branches of the legislature, re- 
 quiring as a condition to the subscription, the consent 
 in writing of two-thirds of the taxpayers of the town. 
 The next year, 1857, the bill was amended, requiring 
 
212 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 the consent of a majority of the taxpayers, represent- 
 ing a majority of the taxable property of the towns, 
 as the bill had been at first drafted. This bill was 
 signed by Governor John A. King. By thorough 
 canvassing and earnest work by the friends of the 
 road, the necessary consent was obtained, and the 
 towns became subscribers to the stock of the company. 
 After the subscription of the towns, and that of the 
 city of Binghamton to the stock of the company to the 
 extent of one million dollars was obtained, the con- 
 struction of the road was commenced, and an applica- 
 tion made to the legislature of the State for aid, and a 
 bill authorizing it passed by both branches. This bill 
 was vetoed by Governor Morgan in 1859, but the 
 friends of the road were not disheartened and at the 
 session of 1863 a bill making an appropriation from 
 the State of a half million dollars to complete the road 
 to Oneonta was passed, and approved by that friend of 
 the farmer and internal improvements. Governor 
 Horatio Seymour. 
 
 Ivet the present and all future generations, who en- 
 joy the pleasures and advantages of a well equipped 
 and managed railroad, revere his memory. 
 
 Subsequently another appropriation was made by 
 the State of $250,000 to complete the road to Broome 
 county, and the bill authorizing it signed by Governor 
 Reuben K. Fenton. My recollection is that in addi- 
 tion to these great financial aids the company secured 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 213 
 
 a loan of one million dollars frotij the city of Albany. 
 It is impossible for me to trace the company through 
 all its financial embarrassments, but one thing I must 
 say to the young men of this day, that the struggle 
 made by the pioneers of this enterprise in overcoming 
 individual and organized opposition, in obtaining the 
 right of way, the consent of the taxpayers to the 
 bonding of the towns, and state aid, was a work which 
 required all the energy, the perseverence and the pa- 
 tience of a Courter, a Harder and a Ramsey on this 
 part of the line, and their compeers and equals along 
 the route. 
 
 In the obtaining of aid from the State, Joseph H. 
 Ramsey as a member of the legislature, likely contrib- 
 uted more than any other man, but to those champions 
 and co-workers in a noble cause, let equal honor be 
 given : 
 
 Hail, men of noble thought and deed, 
 Your work supplied our greatest need ; 
 Accept the homage which we bring. 
 Not thoughtless, light, or trifling. 
 But sincere praise which swells and starts. 
 From the deep reeess of thankful hearts. 
 
 The road was completed to Central Bridge, and the 
 first passenger train run to that place, on the 12th day 
 of September, 1863. Engineer Thomas Harden was 
 in charge of the locomotive pulling the train, broad 
 shouldered, brusque McCormick baggageman, the 
 
214 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 lively little Johnny Clow, express messenger, and 
 that prince of conductors, ** Billy " Gardner, the con- 
 ductor in charge of the train. 
 
 The author of this article commenced his service 
 with the company in the month of October succeeding, 
 and from that time forward will speak from personal 
 recollection. Matters relating to the organization of 
 the company and financial projects in its aid have 
 been stated upon the authority of one of the pioneers 
 of the road, now dead, but one who when living stood 
 at the helm of affairs, and entirely reliable. Among 
 the prominent characters connected with the track de- 
 partment of the road at that time, rises up before me 
 Chief Engineer C. W. Wentz, who had been the en- 
 gineer in charge of the work from its inception. Who, 
 that ever looked upon his massive head and powerful 
 physique, would have dreamed that his intellect would 
 ever become clouded and weak ? Yet such was the 
 case at the close of his career, until death, or rather 
 birth into the world eternal, gave him clear intellect 
 and mental vision. Next in this department loom up 
 the stalwart figures of Mike Dorsey and R. H. Lane. 
 
 The first with his mild gray eyes, stolid but freindly 
 countenance still swaying the rod of authority over 
 the northern division of the Delaware & Hudson 
 with headquarters at Saratoga. The latter for a long 
 time a resident of Cobleskill, died in the hospital at 
 Albany a few years ago. True, time and exposure to 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAlLROAt). 2l^ 
 
 Storm and wind during his long years of service, had 
 wrinkled his face and dimmed his eye, but always true 
 to the company he served, he ranked in life among its 
 most efficient and trusted track men. 
 
 With them come visions of Col. N. Coryell, at one 
 time paymaster on the Albany & Susquehanna and 
 bridge superintendent ; a strict disciplinarian, but al- 
 ways the courtly gentleman, and of huge H. Patter- 
 son, who still lives in Albany and has charge of the 
 D. & H. company's track material. Only a few days 
 ago I had the pleasure of grasping the hand of this 
 ' * old timer ' ' and its warm pressure took me back in 
 memory to 1863. 
 
 W. ly. M. Phelps, Esq., was the first treasurer of 
 the company and still remains so. Indeed, I believe 
 he has been their secretary and treasurer continuously 
 from the organization of the company, with the ex- 
 ception of a brief period during which the road was in 
 the hands of Robt. L,. Banks, of Albany, as receiver. 
 Among my early friends on the road, one who cheered 
 me on in my way, and always spoke kind words tome, 
 comes the thought of Geo. W. Church, our first Gen- 
 eral Freight Agent. A poor boy himself, he had 
 worked his way from ordinary freight clerk, up to the 
 head of the freight department of this new road, and 
 he looked down in sympathy to the toilers below who 
 would faithfully work and strive to win. S. K. Mayo 
 was appointed the first General Passenger Agent of 
 
2l6 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 the road, and superintendent of telegraph. Blessed be 
 his memory, and dear to every employe's heart who 
 worked under him. For several seasons he spent his 
 evenings in summer in Cobleskill. 
 
 The friendly grasp of his hand and beaming light of 
 his eye will be rememtered by some of our residents 
 and others who see these lines. He, too, for many 
 years has been gone to the home " beyond the river." 
 Gone but not forgotten. 
 
 James M. Foster was the first station agent at Cen- 
 tral Bridge, and a more genial and capable man than 
 he is rarely if ever found. He retained his position 
 until the spring of 1865, when the road having been 
 completed to Richmond ville, he was transferred to that 
 station, and the writer of this article made his succes- 
 sor. I think I am paying him only a deserved com- 
 pliment, when I say, that notwithstanding all the per- 
 plexities of his position at the terminal station of the 
 road, during the year and a half I labored under him, 
 he only gave me one cross word. He subsequently en- 
 gaged in banking business at Richmondville, and after 
 an honorable and successful career as a banker, died at 
 that place. Cobleskill Station was opened for business 
 on the first day of January, 1865, and our respected 
 fellow townsman. Colonel Alonzo Ferguson, appointed 
 the agent. This gentleman retained the place until the 
 succeeding October,' when he resigned, and the author 
 of this article was sent on from Central Bridge to take 
 charge, and remained in charge until the ist day of 
 April, 190 1, a period of nearly 36 years. For his as- 
 sistant in the office Col. Ferguson had Allison Kibbee. 
 For his helpers in the freight house, German Boyce 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 21/ 
 
 and Asa W. Phelps. My readers will remember, Mr. 
 Boyce died from sickness while a resident of this vil- 
 lage, and poor Phelps fell a victim to his own careless- 
 ness, being crushed by the cars whilst attempting to 
 cross the track underneath the train. 
 
 Allison Kibbee went to New York City. He died in 
 Brooklyn, and his remains were brought to Cobleskill, 
 and laid to rest in the village cemetery. 
 
 Among the superintendents of the Albany and Sus- 
 quehanna Railroad, I recall, first, Jonathan R. Her- 
 rick, at one time a merchant at lyawyersville. Subse- 
 quently he removed to Albany, where he died. I hold 
 his memory sacred and gratefully remember, that as a 
 member of the executive committee of the board of di- 
 rectors, he gave the casting ballot which secured my 
 promotion to the position of station agent at Central 
 Bridge. Next in order came Geo. R. Skinner, of Os- 
 wego, who granted my request to be transferred to 
 Cobleskill upon the resignation of Col. Ferguson. 
 Well do I remember Supterintendent Skinner's salu- 
 tation to me one morning at Central Bridge. I had 
 thoughtlessly dumped a pan of coal ashes upon the 
 track in front of the station, at the time the eastward 
 and westward bound passenger trains passed there, 
 and a lady dressed in black silk, having occasion to 
 pass from one train to another swept her magnificent 
 robe right through that pile of ashes. Skinner stood 
 upon the platform of one of the coaches and saw it all. 
 "Who dumped that pile of ashes there?" was the 
 morning salute which rang in my ears. " I did, sir," 
 was my reply. "It is a confounded slovenly trick, 
 sir, and don't you do it again," was his warning an- 
 swer, and I never did. The next superintendent was 
 
21 8 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 J. W. Vanvalkenburgh. Heavy eye-browed, with 
 piercing eyes and massive, overhanging forehead, short 
 neck, deep chest, broad shoulders, and limbs as supple 
 and wiry as those of an athlete, he looked the very 
 man who could run a railroad, ride a wild mustang, or 
 throw Jim Fisk over the railing and down stairs, and 
 rumor says he did it during the Brie war. 
 
 His successor was H. A. Fonda, the ** Mohawk 
 Dutchman," as he was called, with long, lank, lean 
 body, and sallow countenance, looking more like a 
 sickly Methodist clergyman than a railroad superin- 
 tendent, but a man with a warmer heart, a truer friend, 
 or more economical manager of a railroad, I never 
 knew. With him came the friendly, honorable, Julien 
 Clark as his assistant, and the genial and magnetic H. 
 S. Morse, as superintendent of telegragh and train de- 
 spatctier. This gentleman became our next superin- 
 tendent, and continued in the position until succeeded 
 by C. D. Hammond, the present superintendent of the 
 D. & H. Company's Susquehanna and Northern divi- 
 sions of road. Of H. S. Morse let me say he was kind 
 to his employes, and courteous to the public; in short, 
 a gentleman. After leaving the road he went South 
 and became interested in the construction and manage- 
 ment of railroads in Georgia for several years, and 
 then came North and retired upon his farm near 
 Westfield in Chautauqua county, N. Y. Here he 
 died. Blessed be his memory. A nobler man, or 
 truer friend never lived. Julien Clark, after battling 
 for years with that fatal disease, consumption, died 
 almost at his post and passed '' over the river." 
 
 The successors to Mr. Mayo in the paSvSenger de- 
 partment of the road have been, I think in order: H. 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 2l9 
 
 M. Watson, Joseph Angell, the late D. M. Kendrick 
 and the present incumbent, J. W. Burdick. 
 
 In the freight department Geo. W. Church was suc- 
 ceeded by Mr. H. S. Marcey, of the Rensselear and 
 Saratoga division, with Dudley Farlin as his assistant. 
 Mr. Marcey was subsequently made general traffic 
 manager of the company, and Mr. Farlin the general 
 freight agent. Both of these men have passed on to 
 join the great majority in the world eternal. 
 
 Mr. Farlin was succeeded by James Colhoun, with 
 Paul Wadsworth, the present efficient general freight 
 agent of the D. & H., as his assistant. 
 
 Looking back to 1863, I see a galaxy of stalwart, 
 alert and energetic men, as the directors and officers of 
 the Albany & Susquehanna Railroad Company. Look- 
 ing about me today, I see only a quartette of those 
 I then knew. 
 
 W. L. M. Phelps, R. C. Blackall, Mike Dorsey and 
 H. Patterson are only left of the men prominently 
 identified with the mangement of the road at that time. 
 
 O robber, old time, of the friends who were mine, 
 
 You've taken full many a score, 
 And I feel I'm bereft so few are there left, 
 
 Of the friends and comrades of yore. 
 
 But I must hasten. - Let us turn to the year 1869. 
 This was an important era in the history of the road. 
 The road had been completed to Oneonta in the sum- 
 mer of 1865, and was vigorously carried forward. The 
 tunnel of 2.260 feet at Coles Hill, near|Harpersville, was 
 being bored, and the month of January, 1869, found 
 the road completed and trains running from Albany to 
 Bingham ton. 
 
220 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Thus after a period of nearly sixteen years of con- 
 stant toil and struggle, hampered by financial embar- 
 rassment, and opposed by some who should have been 
 ready to aid, the heroic men who led in the enterprise 
 saw the realization of their faith and hopes. The Al- 
 bany and Susquehanna railroad was completed. 
 
 With the shrill blasts of the locomotive whistle re- 
 verberating from mountain side to mountain side, 
 throughout the whole valley of the Susquehanna, the 
 Rip Van Winkle spell which had bound the ' ' seques- 
 tered region" had long been broken, and it needed not 
 the eye of a railroad seer to perceive, that the Albany 
 and Susquehanna railroad formed the missing link in 
 the Erie chain, necessary to unite it with the New 
 England roads, New England seaboards, and the great 
 hub of the country, Boston. What wonder then that 
 the sagacious Jay Gould, the great railroad magnate 
 of that day, and James Fisk, Jr., the genial, dashing, 
 audacious spirit of Wall street and the Erie railway, 
 should have looked with longing and wistful eyes over 
 into our valley, at the young railroad lamb and de- 
 sired to bring it into their fold. Such was the case, 
 and so in 1869 we find them quietly securing the stock 
 of the Albany and Susquehanna railroad, with the in- 
 tent of securing the control of the road at the ap- 
 proaching election. The different steps, legal and 
 otherwise, taken by them to secure this object, and 
 meaus employed by those opposed to them to prevent 
 it, are too voluminous and minute to be recited in this 
 article, and the reader is referred to Roscoe's History 
 of Schoharie County, page 439, for a succint account 
 of the preliminary steps taken by the two parties. 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 221 
 
 The year 1869 was fraught with important events, 
 and a season of conflict and turmoil within the board 
 of Directors. Indeed, it was a house divided against 
 itself, and the faction known as the Erie party com- 
 menced an action to remove Mr. Ramsey from the 
 presidency of the road, and obtained an order from 
 Judge Barnard, of New York, restraining him from 
 the discharge of his official duties. Then Judge Rufus 
 W. Peckham, of Albany, vacated, or so modified this 
 order as to allow him to appear, and show cause why 
 this should not be done. During the pendency of 
 these proceedings, and the legal skirmishing growing 
 out of them, the rival factions, with their rival Su- 
 preme Court Judges, succeeded in having the road 
 placed in the hands of rival receivers, and as the mili- 
 tary phrase is, there was skirmishing * ' all along the 
 line." As a result counter orders were being con- 
 stantly sent out over the telegraph wires, and con- 
 veyed by trains to the employes of the road. 
 
 One now before me reads: 
 
 *' To the Officers and Employes of the Albany 
 and Susquehanna Railroad, 
 
 " Take Notice. — By an order of the Supreme Court, 
 made August 6th, 1869, we are duly appointed re- 
 ceivers of the property^ franchises and effects of said 
 road, and by the same are authorized to take posses- 
 sion of, and run the said road. On and after this date 
 you will make all reports and remittances to James 
 Fisk, Jr., and Charles Courter, Office of the Albany 
 and Susquehanna Railroad. 
 
 "James Fisk, Jr., 1 R^eivers " 
 "Charles Courter, j receivers. 
 
 Albany, August 6th, 1869. 
 
222 EARLY HISTORY. OF THE 
 
 Another without date but received August 7th, 
 1869, reads: 
 
 " To the Officers and Employes of the Albany 
 and Susquehanna Railroad Company. 
 ' '* Take Notice. — Robert H. Pruynwas first appoined 
 receiver by Judge Peckham and has posseSvSion of the 
 office, books and property of the Company. He has 
 continued me as superintendent, and all transactions 
 of the company must be with him, and my orders 
 
 obeyed. 
 
 J. W. Van Valkenburgh, 
 
 " Superintendent. 
 
 A message received from the treasurer's office at the 
 time reads: 
 
 "Albany, August 9th, 1869. 
 "To all Agents of the A. & S. Railroad, 
 
 "Make your money remittances and continue all 
 your business transactions with me as usual. 
 
 "W. L. M. Phelps, Treasurer." 
 
 Copies of these documents are not given in any 
 sense as personal reminiscences, but as showing the 
 conflict of authority on the road at the time. Of 
 course such a state of things could not long exist, 
 without breeding bad blood and culminated in the 
 Erie war. Baffled if not beaten in their legal maneuv- 
 ering, the Erie party sought by force to get possession 
 of the road, and with true military tact, chose Bingham- 
 ton as the base of their operations. Here they were 
 not only removed from the fiery J. W. Van Valken- 
 burgh, and invulnerable R. C. Blackall, but were near 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 223 
 
 their source of supplies, and in close communication 
 with Judge Bernard, of New York. 
 
 Thus under show of legal authority, not like Ethan 
 Allen at Ticonderoga, "In the name of the Great Je- 
 hovah and the Continental Congress," but in the 
 name of Judge Bernard, of New York, in the month 
 of August, in the year of our Ivord 1869, the Erie 
 hosts swept down the western end of the line, intent 
 upon taking possession of the road. O, then there 
 was hurrying to and fro in the office at Albany. The 
 eagle eye of Van Valkenburgh blazed with indigna- 
 tion. Blackall, with short speech and quick command, 
 ordered the engines fired up and forces aboard, and 
 away flew the fiery iron horses for the point of attack. 
 The writer of this history was one of the ''home 
 guard" on this occasion, and so cannot speak of the 
 military incidents from personal observation. The 
 general nature of the times, can be judged by the 
 communications given herewith. One directed to all 
 agents under date of August loth, 1869, is as follows: 
 
 "Have all the men you can find to the station, so as 
 to defend your station and the road. 
 
 "J. W. Van Valkenburgh, 
 
 ' 'Superintendent. ' ' 
 
 Another under the same date reads: 
 
 " Superintendent's Office, August 10, 1869. 
 Train No. 7 will go through to the front. Have all 
 the men you can get to go with it. Drum them up. 
 J. W. Vanvalkenberg, Superintendent." 
 
 From documents now in my possession I conclude 
 that the " Erie war " reached its zenith on the nth 
 day of August, 1869. I know that the proclamation 
 
224 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 of Governor Hoofman, commanding the belligerent 
 forces to lay down their arms and retire peacefully to 
 their homes, was flashed over the wires about that 
 time, and messages now before me lead me to believe 
 it was on the evening of that day. The desperate 
 condition of things that evening can be judged by 
 message of R. C. Blackall commanding the forces of 
 the Ramsey party. It is as follows : 
 
 " Harpersville, August ii, 1869. 
 To J. W. VanValkenberg, Supt. 
 
 The Erie folks are preparing to move upon us. 
 They have the militia with them encouraged by the 
 sheriff. Our retreat is cut off. We must resort to 
 desperation if they attack us today or tonight. What 
 are we to do ? We must have reinforcements. Their 
 force is estimated at 1500. Our forces are about 300. 
 Send reinforcements immediately. I will burn the 
 high bridge if they move on us tonight. We have 
 scouting parties now watching them. J. M. Bailey 
 will return soon. He is now out reconnoitering. 
 
 R. C. B." 
 
 This shows determination and desperation, but soon 
 the scene changes, for under date of August nth, 
 1869, 8:30 P. M., I hold a message which does not 
 show to whom it was addressed, but it is one I took 
 from the wires that night and my recollection is, it 
 was addressed to R. C. Blackall and reads: "Gen'l 
 James McQuade will leave here tonight to stop further 
 disturbances. The governor has charge of the road, 
 and orders from James McQuade must be obeyed and 
 regarded. 
 
 J. W. Van Valkenburgh, Sup't." 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 22 5 
 
 Another reads: "Albany, August nth, 1869, 11:30 
 P. M. Gen'l McQuade is superintendent of the A. 
 & S. R. R., appointed by the governor of the State of 
 New York. All orders by him will be obeyed until 
 further orders. 
 
 McQuade. vSuperintendent. 
 J. W. Van, Acting Sup' t." 
 
 With the road in the control of the State, the ques- 
 tion of rival receiverships was settled, and shortly 
 thereafter Robert ly. Banks, of Albany was appointed 
 sole receiver by the governor, and I believe held that 
 position until the decision of the courts in favor of the 
 election of the Ramsey directors, and the re-instate- 
 ment of Mr. Ramsey as president of the company. 
 Robert 1,. Banks and General James McQuade were 
 both courtly gentlemen, and I gratefully remember 
 their kindness to me as their agent. One of the most 
 pleasing episodes of the Erie war to the Ramsey party, 
 was the capture at Bainbridge by R. C. Blackall and 
 his men, of the Erie engine, which was moving down 
 over the line with a force on board, turning out our 
 operators, and installing theirs. 
 
 Blackall had warning of their approach, and side 
 tracking his engine, with the lights all turned out, he 
 placed a pair of patent frogs, such as are used for re- 
 placing cars on the track, reversed upon the rails over 
 which the Erie engine had to pass. Then placing his 
 men in ambush he patiently awaited the coming of 
 the Erie party. Everything appearing secure, on they 
 came, until they reached the frogs, when lo, and be- 
 hold, their engine was soon on '* terra firma " instead 
 of the iron rails, and became an easy prey to Mr. 
 Blackall and party, and was confiscated as the " spoils 
 
226 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 of war ' ' and for a time was run upon the road as 
 such. Thirty-three years have passed since that 
 night, but well do I remember the morning when that 
 engine was run into Albany. By orders of the com- 
 pany, I had been on duty all night, supported by John 
 Dunn, then section foreman, and his men, with in- 
 structions to ' ' hold the fort ' ' against the Erie raiders. 
 About 5 A. M. I was awakened from my reverie, by 
 the shrill blasts of a locomotive whistle near Rich- 
 mondville station. Onward it came, *' nearer, clearer, 
 deadlier than before," making the welkin ring, until 
 the engine was stopped in the Cobleskill yard. Tired 
 and sleepy from the night's vigils, I rubbed my eyes, 
 and peering out of the window of the freight office 
 beheld "Brie Engine," *' The Roswell McNeil." 
 Surely, I said the enemy are upon us, but the second 
 look revealed the form of burly " Abe" Ottman, one 
 of the A. & S. conductors, and of Royal Cornwall, 
 one of our early locomotive engineers. Royal Corn- 
 wall has been dead many years. Ottman died but a 
 few years ago, at the home of his son in New Jersey. 
 John Dunn still lives at Green Island, N. Y., serving 
 in the track department under Mike Dorsey. Among 
 the " old timers " I have thus far failed to mention in 
 the clerical department are ** Billy" Robinson in the 
 return ticket department and E. R Willerton in the 
 general passenger office. These persons have held 
 their positions for very many years, and are among 
 the company's most trusted servants. "Jimmy" 
 Loughren, head clerk under Geo. W. Church, our first 
 general freight agent, I have lost track of. 
 
 Among the early freight handlers, I recall at Cen- 
 tral Bridge, Charles Eldredge, Esq., now living at 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 22^ 
 
 Sharon; Philip Dietz now in retirement at Central 
 Bridge, and Geo. S. Lynes at that time a resident of 
 Middleburgh, nor must I forget to mention * ' Yankee *' 
 Sullivan who for a long time guided the freight truck 
 at Richmondville, nor at Central Bridge, John F. 
 Bradt, the father of *' Billy" Bradt, our popular pas- 
 senger train conductor. 
 
 With the road in the hands of the State, and the 
 Erie warriors disbanded, neither party rested quietly 
 on their oars, but were active in the purchase of the 
 company's stock, preparatory to the holding of the 
 annual election, on the yth day of September, 1869. 
 By this time the strife to gain the ascendancy in the 
 board of directors to be elected, had waxed to blood 
 heat. 
 
 Fisk with his army of heelers prepared with proxies 
 to vote, came up the river from New York in a boat 
 chartered for the purpose, and landing took posession 
 of the room where the election was to be held. R. C. 
 Blackall, then our master mechanic, with John ly. 
 Cory his assistant, with men of ** broth and brawn " 
 from the shops were on hand to see that there was 
 "fair play " if any scrimmage occured. Superinten- 
 dent J. W. Van Valkenburgh with flashing eyes and 
 knit blow strode through the hall, a very king among 
 men, ready for any honorable strategy, or even to fight 
 for the good of the road if necessary. J. H. Ramsey, 
 with his legal knowledge and tact, with the Hon. 
 Henry Smith as counsellor, were thereto secure if pos- 
 sible an honest election and a *' fair count." It is 
 proper to say to the present generation, that one of 
 the contending parties at this election was known as the 
 Ramsey party; the other as the Gould and Fisk, or 
 
228 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Brie party. Now between them there was no more 
 affinity than between oil and water, and the result 
 was, that at this meeting each party organized, and 
 elected a board of directors, each claiming to be duly 
 and lawfully elected, and each claiming to be entitled 
 to the control of the road, and out of this controversy 
 grew the long legal trial at Rochester before Judge E. 
 Darwin Smith in November of the same year, at which 
 trial it was decided that the election of the Ramsey 
 directors was legal, and that of the Gould and Fisk 
 directors illegal and void. But I must close ; yet be- 
 fore closing will digress and say that the Cherry Val- 
 ley Sharon and Albany railroad Company was char- 
 tered in i860. The road was completed and opened 
 for business in June 1870. The master spirits in its 
 construction were Dewit. C. Bates and James A. Young, 
 of Cherry Valley. The principal if not the sole con- 
 tractors for its construction were the Weed Bros. 
 Thos. H. Giles, the father of Harry Giles, now fire- 
 men on the engine running on that branch of the D. 
 & H. Co., during itsf construction, was engineer and 
 conductor combined, in charge of the work train. 
 Here the name of Giles brings to my mind another 
 " old timer " Gill Giles, now in charge of the D. & H. 
 water supply. He was with the Susquehanna Com- 
 pany from it's commencement, and has been with D. 
 & H. Co., since the lease by them of the road, so that 
 his doings have become a part of the history of the 
 line. One more chapter in this hurried history and 
 my work is done. Whilst the two parties which have 
 been mentioned were struggling for the mastership, 
 down among the coal fields of Pennsylvania, and in the 
 marts of New York City, were men, not of the dash 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 229 
 
 of James Fisk, Jr., nor the adroitness with which Jay 
 Gould is always credited, but men, reserved, solid, 
 cautious, diliberate, and far seeing; who were looking 
 up through from Honesdale, and Carbondale lo 
 Niueveh, thence down through the valley to Albany, 
 away along the shores of the Champlain to Canada, 
 and across New England to Boston; and they said, 
 what an outlet for our coal. What an inlet for the 
 iron ore up at Port Henry and Plattsburgh. Eureka, 
 we have found it. Let us lease the Albany and Sus- 
 quelianna Railroad for 99 years. Let us do so also 
 with the Rensealear and Saratoga Railroad. Let us 
 build a new road along the bank of the Champlain 
 and instead of putting out our coal to market through 
 the muddy vvatersof our canal, we will have a network 
 of railways over which our black diamonds shall pour 
 in incessant streams, and they did it. The Albany 
 and Susquehanna Railroad was leased to the Dele- 
 ware and Hudson Canal Company on the 24th day of 
 February, 1870. The Rensealear and the Saratoga later. 
 At this time Thos. Dixon was president of the D. & 
 H. Co., and Coe F. Young its general manager. 
 Who that ever saw these gentlemen at Cobleskill sta- 
 tion, asking to have some trifling service rendered 
 with the modesty of the most common patron, could 
 fail to recognize the solid greatness of the men. Both 
 have been gone from earth for many years, but their 
 mantels have fallen upon worthy shoulders. Among 
 the early conductors on the line who are living I recall 
 the blue eyed pleasant Gunnison, now a resident of 
 Bing^hamton, and W. E. Bartlett, now in the hardware 
 business at Jefferson, Oaklahoma territory. D. S. 
 Fero also remains with us living at Newburgh, N. Y. 
 
230 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Among the dead, the brusque but whole-souled 
 McCormick, first baggagemaster, then conductor, 
 whose light went out in Albany many years ago. The 
 venerable H. P. Dorr, the sedate '* Ham" Evarts, the 
 impassive, quiet, military Captain Merrehew, and 
 "Billy" Gardner, whose smile faded from his face 
 and blue eyes closed in death about fourteen years 
 ago ; and now during the last summer the chivalrous 
 and genial Coe F. Young, who went down to his grave 
 lamented by all, and honored for his bravery and de- 
 votion to his country during the war of the rebellion. 
 I must bring this history to a close ; but there is a cla«s 
 of men on all railroads who, in this article, have re- 
 ceived but little notice. Men with soiled hands, be- 
 grimed faces and dirty vests, but beneath whose rough 
 exteriors there are warm hearts, loyal hands and heroic 
 souls. I mean the locomotive engineers. 
 
 Of those first upon the road I recall Charley Delany 
 and Thos. Harden, whom I have mentioned as engineer 
 in charge of the engine drawing the first regular train 
 from Albany to Central Bridge. Next Wallace Blake 
 I believe in charge of the engine hauling the construc- 
 tion train when the road was being built through Cobles- 
 kill, and I think in charge of the engine which brought 
 the first passenger train to Cobleskill. Nor must I 
 forget to mention engineer Frank Eaton. Coming 
 early upon the road, if not among the first, he still 
 handles the lever and ranks among the most trusted 
 of the D. & H. Co.'s engineers, with headquarters at 
 Sidney. Delany and Blake have been dead a score of 
 years. The last I knew of Harden he had retired 
 from railroading and settled upon a farm. lyikely he, 
 too, ere this has passed on to join the great majority. 
 
ALBANY AND SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD. 23 1 
 
 " Charley " Jones, at one time our master mechanic, 
 with headquarters at Oneonta, was also early on the 
 road. It is only of recent date that he, too, passed 
 on to the world immortal. No one who ever knew 
 him will fail to bear testimony to his care and skill as 
 an engineer, and his solid worth as a Christian gentle- 
 man. And " Charley " Stickles too, he of long arms, 
 ruddy but spare countenance and hawk eyes, with his 
 tall form bent in the cab, neck and head extending 
 forward, eye scanning the track with a keenness that 
 would detect a fly upon the rails four rods ahead, who 
 would have supposed that he would have run engine 
 tender and baggage car all off the end of the rails of 
 the siding at Cobleskill, yet he did it. I had relieved 
 the switchman for the night, and promised to be on 
 hand and change the switch, so as to let the train out 
 of the yard in safety. At the time I was freight agent, 
 ticket agent and telegraph operator, and in the rush 
 of caers I forgot my promise to the switchman, and 
 was therefore responsible for the accident. As the 
 train pulled out I closed the ticket office window, and 
 was crossing the yard to the freight office, when I 
 heard the sharp, quick signal for " down brakes," and, 
 glancing towards the train, saw what happened. Going 
 down to the train I soon came face to face with the 
 then superintendent, J. H. Fonda. With a squeaky, 
 rasping voice, he demanded, *' Whose place was it to 
 be here and turn this switch?" Without bravado, 
 but with respectful firmness, I replied, ** It was mine, 
 sir. I relieved the switchman, and agreed to be here 
 and turn this switch myself." "You better quit 
 railroading then " was his rejoinder; to which 1 an- 
 swered, " That is for you to say, Mr. Fonda." As I 
 
232 EARLY HISTORY OF THE 
 
 was not discharged, I concluded that, although irrita- 
 ble and sometimes angry, Mr. Fonda had beneath his 
 rough exterior a tender heart, and in that particular 
 case appreciated truth-telling as compared to equivo- 
 cation and falsehood. 
 
 Of the later engineers comes the thought of poor 
 S. G. Cook, killed by a collision on the road. Always 
 affable and kind, notwithstanding the hardships and 
 exposures of an engineer's life, I loved the man and 
 revere his memory. And young "Jud"Mann, who 
 lost his life in a similar manner when nearing Oneonta 
 station. His literary tastes and affectionate nature 
 made him a general favorite, and his sad death fell 
 like a pall upon the hearts of all clavSses upon the road. 
 There were doubtless many others in all departments 
 of the road who deserve special mention, but they do 
 not occur to me now. To one who, during a service of 
 thirty-seven years on the road, received only kindness 
 from these men and the officers of the old Susque- 
 hanna Company and from its successor, the D. & H. 
 Co., the friendship of the living is precious, and the 
 memory of the dead rises up like the fragrance of 
 crushed flowers. To the living I say, here is my heart 
 and hand. Sad indeed will be the hour to me when 
 the time of parting comes. 
 
 'Tis hard to part when friends are dear, 
 
 Perhaps 'twill cause a sigh or tear ; 
 
 Then steal away, give not much warning, 
 
 Say not "good night," but in some brighter world, 
 
 Bid me, " Good morning," 
 
 H. T. DANA, 
 
 Cobleskill, N. Y. 
 January 4, 1903. 
 
MAY 28 1903 
 
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