"O, that is pretty!" said Lois. "But do you remember how it runs?—
'Nine years old! The first of any
Seem the happiest years that come—'"
"Go on, Lois," said her friend. And the request being seconded, Lois gave the whole, ending with—
'Oh the birds, the tree, the ruddy
And white blossoms, sleek with rain!
Oh my garden, rich with pansies!
Oh my childhood's bright romances!
All revive, like Hector's body,
And I see them stir again!
'And despite life's changes—chances,
And despite the deathbell's toll,
They press on me in full seeming!
Help, some angel! stay this dreaming!
As the birds sang in the branches,
Sing God's patience through my soul!
'That no dreamer, no neglecter
Of the present work unsped,
I may wake up and be doing,
Life's heroic ends pursuing,
Though my past is dead as Hector,
And though Hector is twice dead.'"
"Well," said Mrs. Lenox slowly, "of course that is all true."
"From her standpoint," said Lois. "That is according to my charge, which you disallowed."
"From her standpoint?" repeated Mr. Lenox. "May I ask for an explanation?"
"I mean, that as she saw things,—