OFT as the balm the gentlest gale distils,
Sweet as the fragrance of the new mown hills; Her op'ning mind a thousand charms reveal'd, Proofs of those thousands which were yet conceal'd:
The loveliest flow'r in nature's garden plac'd,
Permitted just to bloom, then pluckt in haste;
Angels beheld her ripe for joys to come,
And call'd by God's command their sister home.
ANON.
Thou, Great Ruler, Lord of All!
JT chiefly Thou, Great Ruler! Lord of all!
Before whose throne archangels prostrate
fall,
If at thy nod, from discord, and from night,
Sprang Beauty, and yon sparkling worlds of light;
Exalt e'en me; all inward tumults quell;
The clouds and darkness of my mind dispel.
Thy pow'r, my weakness may I ever see,
And wholly dedicate my soul to thee!
Who decks the maiden Spring with flow'ry pride!
Who calls forth Summer like a sparkling bride!
Who joys the mother Autumn's bed to crown;
And bids old Winter lay her honours down!
O, may my understanding ever read
This glorious volume, which thy wisdom made!
May sea and land, and earth and heaven be join'd,
Yet, though thou wear'st the glory of the sky,
Wilt thou not keep the same beloved name,
The same fair thoughtful brow, and gentle eye,
Lovelier in heaven's sweet climate, yet the
same?
Shalt thou not teach me in that calmer home
The wisdom that I learned so ill in this-
The wisdom which is love-till I become
Thy fit companion in that land of bliss ?
ATHER of heaven! if by thy mercy's grace
A living branch I am of that true vine
Which spreads o'er all,—and would we did resign
Ourselves entire by faith to its embrace !—
In me much drooping, Lord, thine eye will trace,
Caused by the shade of these rank leaves of mine,
Unless in season due thou dost refine
The humour gross, and quicken its dull pace.
So cleanse me, that, abiding e'er with thee,
I feed me hourly with the heavenly dew,
And with my falling tears refresh the root.
Thou saidst, and thou art truth, thou'dst with
me be:
Then willing come, that I may bear much fruit,
And worthy of the stock on which it grew.
VITTORIA COLONNA, Trans. ANON.
OFT as the balm the gentlest gale distils,
Sweet as the fragrance of the new mown hills; Her op'ning mind a thousand charms reveal'd, Proofs of those thousands which were yet conceal'd:
The loveliest flow'r in nature's garden plac'd, Permitted just to bloom, then pluckt in haste; Angels beheld her ripe for joys to come,
And call'd by God's command their sister home. ANON.
Thou, Great Ruler, Lord of All!
UT chiefly Thou, Great Ruler! Lord of all!
Before whose throne archangels prostrate
fall,
If at thy nod, from discord, and from night,
Sprang Beauty, and yon sparkling worlds of light;
Exalt e'en me; all inward tumults quell;
The clouds and darkness of my mind dispel.
Thy pow'r, my weakness may I ever see,
And wholly dedicate my soul to thee!
Who decks the maiden Spring with flow'ry pride!
Who calls forth Summer like a sparkling bride!
Who joys the mother Autumn's bed to crown;
And bids old Winter lay her honours down!
O, may my understanding ever read
This glorious volume, which thy wisdom made!
May sea and land, and earth and heaven be join'd,
Yet, though thou wear'st the glory of the sky,
Wilt thou not keep the same beloved name,
The same fair thoughtful brow, and gentle eye,
Lovelier in heaven's sweet climate, yet the
same?
Shalt thou not teach me in that calmer home
The wisdom that I learned so ill in this—
The wisdom which is love-till I become
Thy fit companion in that land of bliss ?
ATHER of heaven! if by thy mercy's grace
A living branch I am of that true vine
Which spreads o'er all,—and would we did resign
Ourselves entire by faith to its embrace !—
In me much drooping, Lord, thine eye will trace,
Caused by the shade of these rank leaves of mine,
Unless in season due thou dost refine
The humour gross, and quicken its dull pace.
So cleanse me, that, abiding e'er with thee,
I feed me hourly with the heavenly dew,
And with my falling tears refresh the root.
Thou saidst, and thou art truth, thou'dst with
me be :
Then willing come, that I may bear much fruit,
And worthy of the stock on which it grew.
VITTORIA COLONNA, Trans. ANON.
OFT as the balm the gentlest gale distils,
Sweet as the fragrance of the new mown hills; Her op'ning mind a thousand charms reveal'd, Proofs of those thousands which were yet conceal'd:
The loveliest flow'r in nature's garden plac'd, Permitted just to bloom, then pluckt in haste; Angels beheld her ripe for joys to come,
And call'd by God's command their sister home. ANON.
Thou, Great Ruler, Lord of All!
UT chiefly Thou, Great Ruler! Lord of all!
Before whose throne archangels prostrate
If at thy nod, from discord, and from night,
Sprang Beauty, and yon sparkling worlds of light;
Exalt e'en me; all inward tumults quell;
The clouds and darkness of my mind dispel.
Thy pow'r, my weakness may I ever see,
And wholly dedicate my soul to thee!
Who decks the maiden Spring with flow'ry pride!
Who calls forth Summer like a sparkling bride!
Who joys the mother Autumn's bed to crown;
And bids old Winter lay her honours down!
O, may my understanding ever read
This glorious volume, which thy wisdom made!
May sea and land, and earth and heaven be join'd,
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