XXII.
For never yet was the Tempter foiled
By the might of Jehovah's name,
But holy joys in the sufferer's heart,
Like blessed angels came.
And the terrible strife, and the desert drear,
Will pass like earthly things;
But the soul that has conquered will rest in peace,
'Neath angels' shadowing wings.
VANITAS
THE glory of Life is fleeting;
Its splendour passeth away,
With tints and odours meeting
The flowers we twined to-day.
How brightly, in varied light,
They reflected the morning sun;
But the chilling dews of the night
Withered them one by one.
So the stream of Existence floweth
O'er the golden sands of youth,
In the light of a joy that gloweth
From the depths of its love and truth.
But heavy, and cold, and fast,
The gathering clouds uprise,
Eclipsing the light, which cast
On the waters a thousand dyes.
And onward, in sullen endeavour,
Like a stream in a sunless cave,
It floweth in darkness ever:
Yet—could we thus reach the grave!
But we wake to a sorrow deeper—
The knowledge of all we have lost;
And the light grows fainter and weaker
As we're borne from youth's sunny coast.
Yet onward with drifting motion,
Still farther from life and light;
Around us a desert Ocean—
Above us eternal Night.
FATALITY
FROM THE GERMAN.