Fairings[ToC]
O, Father has donned his suit of brown
And saddled the gelding gray,
And he's ridden off to London town
Where the streets are fine and gay.
And Mother has asked for a yard of lace,
And Kate for a kerchief new,
And Moll for a mirror to look at her face,
And Bessie for beads, all blue;
And Dick has been promised a kite so tall,
And Jamie a leathern whip,
And Baby shall play with a painted ball,
And O! I have asked for a ship!—
But our eldest sister stood apart,
[39] And I think I heard her say:
'O bring me back a little white heart
Like the one I lost in May....'
The Flower to the Bud[ToC]
Tiny heart beneath my hand,
Say, what treasures will you hold?
O, what blossom will unfold,
Late to bloom, or soon to fade,
From this bud, my baby-maid?
Through what shallows will you wade,
To what heights will you aspire
In your spirit's white desire?
Will you mar or will you make?
Will you give or will you take?
Will you glow or will you break
With the running of the sand—
Tiny heart beneath my hand?...