And drop a tear for an expiring gnat.”

True benevolence, so her creed ran,

“... rises energetic to perform

The hardest task, or face the rudest storm.”

Duty and sacrifice are her watchwords. The search for happiness brings only “The lessons taught at Disappointment’s knee.” Earth is wonderful, but men misuse it, seeking worthless things in their madness; yet:

“The soul—perhaps in silence of the night

Has flashes, transient intervals of light;

When things to come without a shade of doubt

In terrible reality stand out.

...