Poor, and unbless'd, not mine the power
To shield from want one frugal hour,
Yet from thy rich regard I drew,
The bread of peace, and promise too.
How vain the pride of man appears,
How weak the vigour of his years;
But thou one vital spark has given
To light, and lead his hope to Heaven.
PRAYER AND PRAISE TO GOD.
O Thou, who ere the lapse of time
Wert glorious, with unfading prime.
Enduring God! thy pity give
To me who but a moment live.
Thy strength the elements controls,
And rest the axis of the poles,
To me in sinful suffering weak,
The words of pardoning mercy speak.
Thou Light of Worlds! whose quenchless ray
Blooms in the brilliant blush of day,
On me, in darkest error blind,
Pervading pour the all-seeing mind.
Parent of Life to thee we owe
The nerves that thrill, the veins that glow;
Me, who descend the oblivious grave,
May thy absolving goodness save.
Immortal Being! God alone,
All-giving Nature is thy own,
To Thee her wandered race restore,
And bid her breathing world adore.
[P. Folio.