Says he, "I'd better call agin;"
Says she, "Think likely, Mister;"
Thet last word prick'd him like a pin,
An'—wal, he up an' kist her.
When Ma bimeby upon 'em slips,
Huldy sot pale ez ashes,
All kin' o' smily roun' the lips,
An' teary roun' the lashes.
For she was jes' the quiet kind
Whose naturs never vary,
Like streams that keep a summer mind
Snow-hid in Jenooary.
The blood clost roun' her heart felt glued
Too tight for all expressin',
Tell mother see how metters stood,
An' gin 'em both her blessin'.
Then her red come back like the tide
Down to the Bay o' Fundy;
An' all I know is they was cried
In meetin' come nex' Sunday.
THE HERITAGE.
BY JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
The Rich Man's Son inherits lands,
And piles of brick, and stone, and gold;
And he inherits soft white hands
And tender flesh that fears the cold—
Nor dares to wear a garment old:
A heritage, it seems to me,
One scarce could wish to hold in fee.
The Rich Man's Son inherits cares:
The bank may break—the factory burn;
A breath may burst his bubble shares;
And soft white hands could hardly earn
A living that would serve his turn.
The Rich Man's Son inherits wants:
His stomach craves for dainty fare;
With sated heart, he hears the pants
Of toiling hinds, with brown arms bare—
And wearies in his easy-chair.
What doth the Poor Man's Son inherit?
Stout muscles, and a sinewy heart,
A hardy frame, a hardier spirit;
King of two hands, he does his part
In every useful toil and art:
A heritage, it seems to me,
A king might wish to hold in fee.
What doth the Poor Man's Son inherit?
Wishes o'erjoyed with humble things;
A rank adjudged by toil-won merit,
Content that from employment springs,
A heart that in his labour sings!
What doth the Poor Man's Son inherit?
A patience learnt of being poor;
Courage, if sorrow come, to bear it:
A fellow-feeling that is sure
To make the Outcast bless his door.
Oh! Rich Man's Son, there is a toil
That with all others level stands;
Large charity doth never soil,
But only whiten soft white hands—
This is the best crop from thy lands.
A heritage, it seems to me,
Worth being rich to hold in fee.