lover of mine:
"And see how the gold round his face doth shine!"
So at once she began round the stem to twine;
But mark what befel in the sequel.

One morning, soon after, a hurricane rose:
And as most people know, when the storm-god blows,
The hollow of heart is the thing that goes
To the ground--and the wind sweeps past it.
So the arrogant Sunflower, lofty in pride,
And hollow from root to branch beside,
Soon tumbled before the stormy tide,
And lay where the wind had cast it.

It was well for the Vine that her tendrils' hold
Was a clasp that a moment served to unfold;
So she turned from the thing that she thought was gold
With a heart for the warning grateful:
And that which had dazzled her youthful eyes--
Which filled her young bosom with sweet surprise--
The flow'r which she took for a golden prize--
Became all to her that was hateful.

POETIC PROVERBS.

I.

"If thou be surety for thy friend, thou art snared with the words of
thy mouth,"--PROVERBS vi. _v._ 1, 2.

Think well, my son, before you lend
Your name as bond for any friend;
Or, when the day of reckoning comes,
Come broken hearts and blighted homes.
Think well, my son, before you give
Your trusty word, that knaves may live:
Be not for such the stepping-stone,
But strive to earn and keep thine own.

II.

"A wise son maketh a glad father; but a foolish son is the heaviness
of his mother."--PROVERBS x, _v._ 1.

Be wise, my son, as o'er the earth
Thou walk'st in search of wealth or fame;
Return her love who gave thee birth--
His, who thy youthful guide became.
That mother's heart must cease to beat;
That father's voice must cease to guide;
Oh! then what recollections sweet
Will cheer thy life's dark eventide.

III.

"Hope deferred maketh the heart sick; The desire accomplished is
sweet to the soul.--PROVERBS xiii, _v._ 12, 19.

I am watching--I am waiting;
And my heart droops sad and low.
No glad message brings me comfort
As the moments come and go.
While the flowers bask in sunshine;
While birds sing on every tree;
I am weary--weary, waiting--
For a message, love, from thee.

IV.

"A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband."--PROVERBS xii, _v._ 4.

As is the lustre to the lily;
As is the fragrance to the rose;
As is the perfume to the violet
In sweet humility that grows