By universal consent, indeed, "The Chambered Nautilus" is considered the gem of Doctor Holmes' beautiful lyrics. The poet always kept in his study specimens of the nautilus shell, cut entirely across, to show the spiral ascent of its curious inhabitant. He delighted to show these shells to his visitors; and, as he replaced them on the shelves, he would often repeat the last stanza of his beautiful poem:—
Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul,
As the swift seasons roll;
Leave thy low-vaulted past;
Let each new temple, loftier than the last,
Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast,
Till thou at length art free,
Leaving thine out-grown shell by life's unresting sea.
Among the poems of Oliver Wendell Holmes are seven that may truly be called "Hymns;" and it is well to remember that the test of the use and value of a hymn is not the occasion for which it was written, but its adoption into hymnal collections, and its use thereafter.
"We were singing one of Doctor Holmes' hymns in our church," said Rev. Minot Savage, "that Sunday morning when the great singer was passing into the higher choir.
"Doctor Holmes was manly in his religion, and his songs show the bright and noble spirit that dominated his life. He was worshipful and trustful, and always hopeful. He was a firm, even passionate, believer in an existence after death, and found the ground of his trust in the dissecting-room. As a scientist he faced everything, and then believed that the soul was more than the body."
Of these seven hymns of Doctor Holmes', the familiar one beginning,—
Lord of all being, throned afar,
Thy glory flames from star to star,
the poet appropriately characterized his "Sunday Hymn." It first appeared in the Atlantic Monthly of December, 1859, and the "Professor" prefaced it with these words:—
"Peace be to all such as may have been vexed by any utterance the pages have repeated. They will doubtless forget for the moment the difference in the lines of truth we look at through our human prisms, and join in singing (inwardly) this hymn to the Source of the Light we all need to lead us, and the warmth which alone can make us all brothers."
In the many heartfelt tributes to Doctor Holmes, it is interesting to note that his spiritual character was appreciated and approved by men differing from him very widely in religious belief. Indeed, it would be impossible for any one to hold communion with him through his writings without growing more kindly, more loving toward his fellow-men, and more reverent, more filial, towards his Heavenly Father.