For a Father or Mother,
'Oh children, dear, when I was alive,
To get you bread I hard did strive;
I now am where I need no bread,
And wear a halo round my head.
Weep not upon my tomb, I pray,
But do your duty day by day.'
The last but one was still more beautiful,—
For a Child who suffered a Long Illness before Decease.
[I remarked casually that a child could not suffer even a short illness after decease. Bilger smiled a watery smile and said 'No.']
'For many long months did we fondly sit,
And watch our darling fade bit by bit;
Till an angel called from out the sky,
“Come home, dear child, to the Sweet By-and-By.
Hard was your lot on earth's sad plain,
But now you shall never suffer again,
For cherubims and seraphims will welcome you here.
Fond parents, lament not for the loss of one so dear.”'
[N.B.—“These are very beautiful lines.”]
The gem of the collection, however, was this:—
Suitable for a child of any age. The beautiful simplicity of the words have brought us an enormous amount of orders from bereaved parents.
'Our [Emily] was so fair,
That the angels envied her,
And whispered in her ear,
“We will take you away on [Tuesday] night.”'
[“Drawing of angels carrying away deceased child, is. 6d. extra.”]