"My new one, that daddy has just taught me?" the child inquired, turning to his mother.
She smiled at him. "Yes, dearest," she said gently.
The little boy came and stood beside my bed, and, in a voice that betokened a love and understanding of every line, repeated Mrs. Browning's lovely poem:—
"They say that God lives very high!
But if you look above the pines,
You cannot see our God. And why?
"And if you dig down in the mines,
You never see Him in the gold,
Though from Him all that's glory shines.
"God is so good, He wears a fold
Of heaven and earth across His face—
Like secrets kept, for love, untold.
"But still I feel that His embrace
Slides down, by thrills, through all things made,
Through sight and sound of every place:
"As if my tender mother laid
On my shut lids, her kisses' pressure,
Half-waking me at night; and said,
'Who kissed you through the dark, dear guesser?'"
Beyond question the clergyman had expected a less unusual selection than this; but he smiled very kindly at the little boy as he said the beautiful words. At the conclusion he merely said, "You have a good father, my boy."
"Do you like my new hymn?" the child asked me.