I cannot see Him,
I know He hears my praise;
For He has kindly promised
That even I may go
To sing among His angels,
Because He loves me so.

Emily Huntington Miller, 1867.

WOMEN WHO WROTE HYMNS FOR CHILDREN

Everybody loves the hymns the children sing. And that, perhaps, is the
reason why Emily Huntington Miller's name will not soon be forgotten, for
the hymns she wrote were children's hymns indeed--hymns that came from
the heart of one who understood the heart of a child.

The daughter of a Methodist clergyman, Emily Huntington was born in
Brooklyn, Conn., October 22, 1833. The spiritual and cultural influence
of a New England parsonage was not lost on this little child, who early
in life began to reveal unusual literary gifts. It was very unusual in
those days for young women to attend college, but Emily enrolled at
Oberlin College and graduated in the class of 1857.

Ten years later she became one of the editors of "_The Little Corporal_,"
a very popular magazine for children. Each month she contributed a poem
to this publication. Like all other contributors, she often found it
difficult to have her poem ready each month on the required day. One
month in 1867 she was handicapped by illness. The final day came, and her
poem was not written. In spite of her weakness, she aroused herself to
the task. The inspiration seemed to come immediately, and, so she tells
us, "in less than fifteen minutes the hymn was written and sent away
without any correction."

The hymn referred to was "I love to hear the story." Almost immediately
it sprang into popularity. In England it was admitted in 1875 to "Hymns
Ancient and Modern," the hymn-book of the Church of England. This was a
very unusual honor, since very few hymns of American origin have been
included in that famous collection. It is said that no one was more
surprised at the popularity achieved by the hymn than the author herself.

Another of her hymns that has won a place in the hearts of the smaller
children is the sweet little gem:

Jesus bids us shine
With a clear, pure light
Like a little candle
Burning in the night;
In the world is darkness,
So we must shine,
You in your small corner,
And I in mine.

Another of her hymns for children, though not so well known as the other
two mentioned, possesses unusual merit:

Father, while the shad