in tender guise
A thought of one so like her--
Long years in Paradise.

Dear Margaret! that "pearl-name"
Is thine--and may it be
The synonym of goodness,
Of truth and purity,
And all ennobling graces
Exemplified in thee.

Christmas Bells.

Ring out, O bells, in joyful chime!
Again we hail the Christmas time;
In melting, mellow atmosphere,
The crown and glory of the year.

When bitterness, distrust, and awe
Dissolve, like ice in winter's thaw,
Beneath the genial touches of
Amenity, good will, and love.

When flowers of affection grow,
Like edelweiss mid alpine snow,
In lives severe and beautiless,
Unused to warmth or tenderness.

Let goodness, grace, and gratitude
Revive in music's interlude,
And paean notes, till time shall cease,
Proclaim the blessed reign of peace.

Ring, Christmas bells! for at the sound
Sweet memories of Him abound
Who laid aside a diadem
To be the babe of Bethlehem.

By the Sea.

I am longing to dwell by the sea,
And dip in the surf every day,
And--height of subaqueous glee--
With the sharks and the porpoises play.

To novelty ever inclined--
Instead of a calm evening sail,
'Twould suit my adventurous mind
To ride on the back of a whale.

I want to disport on the rocks
Like a mythical mermaiden belle,
And comb out my watery locks,
Then dive to my cavernous cell.

I want to discover what lends
Such terror to all timid folks--
That serpent whose mystery tends
To make one believe it a hoax.

They say he's been captured at last;
The news is too good to be true--
He's slippery, cunning, and fast,
And likes notoriety too.

Once had I such longings to be
A sailor--those wishes are o'er,
But ever in dreams of the sea
My horoscope rests on the shore.

Oh, give me a home by the sea--
A cottage, a cabin, a tent!
Existence should ecstasy be
Till summer were joyfully spent.

A Song.

Oh, sing me a merry song!
My heart is sad tonight;
The day has been so drear and long,
The world has gone awry and wrong,
Discouragements around me throng,
And gloom surpassing night.

Oh, sing again the song for me
My mother used to sing
When