Independence. 7's & 6's M.
We come, with joy and gladness,
To breathe our songs of praise,
Nor let one note of sadness
Be mingled in our lays ;
For, 't is a hallowed story,
This theme of freedom's birth:
Our fathers' deeds of glory
Are echoed round the earth.
The sound is waxing stronger,
And thrones and nations hear-
Proud men shall rule no longer,
For God the Lord is near:
And he will crush oppression,
And raise the humble mind,
And give the earth's possession
Among the good and kind.
And then shall sink the mountains,
Where pride and power are crowned,
And peace, like gentle fountains,
Shall shed its pureness round.
O God! we would adore thee,
And in thy shadow rest;
Our fathers bowed before thee,
And trusted, and were blessed.
"A glorious day is dawning,"
And o'er the waking earth
The heralds of the morning
Are springing into birth.
In dark and hidden places
There shines the blessed light;
The beam of truth displaces
The darkness of the night.
The advocates of error
Foresee the glorious morn,
And hear, in shrinking terror,
The watchword of reform.
It rings from hill and valley,
It breaks oppression's chain,
A thousand freemen rally,
And swell the mighty strain.
The watchword has been spoken,
The light is breaking forth,
Far shines the blesséd token
Upon the startled earth.
To souls and homes benighted
The blessed truth is given,
And peace and love, united,
Point upward unto heaven.
Life from God. C. M.
Let others boast how strong they be,
Nor death nor danger fear;
But we'll confess, O Lord, to thee,
What feeble things we are.
Our life contains a thousand springs,
And dies if one be gone;
Strange! that a harp of thousand strings
Should keep in tune so long.
But 't is our God supports our frame,
The God who made us first;
Salvation to th' Almighty Name,
That reared us from the dust.
Death in the School. C. M.
We come our Sabbath hymn to raise,
Our humble prayer to pour;
One voice is hushed, its notes of praise
Shall mingle here no more.
The lips are still, the eye is dim
That beamed with joy and love;
The spirit-it hath gone to Him
Who gave it from above.
Death of a Scholar. 8's & 7's M.
One sweet flower has drooped and faded,
One sweet warbler hence has fled;
One fair.brow the grave has shaded,
One dear schoolmate now is dead.
She has gone to heaven before us;
But she turns and waves her hand,
Pointing to the glories o'er us,
In that happy spirit-land.
May our footsteps never falter
In the path that she has trod;
Let us worship at the altar
Where she gave her heart to God.
Lord! may angels watch above us,
Keep us from all error free;
May they guard, and guide, and love us,
Till, like her, we go to thee.
Death of a Teacher. L. M.
Not of this world the hand that takes
Our loved, our lovely, to the tomb;
Not of this world the light that breaks,
Resplendent, from its vanished gloom.
The heart may bleed, the eye may weep;
Frail nature's sorrows must flow on;
Unmurmuring trust our spirits keep:
Father, 'tis thou-thy will be done!
Dear as thou wert, and justly dear,
We will not weep for thee:
One thought shall check the starting tear;
It is, that thou art free.
And thus shall faith's consoling power
The tears of love restrain:
O, who that saw thy parting hour
Could wish thee here again?
Triumphant in thy closing eye.
The hope of glory shone;
Joy breathed in thy expiring sigh,
To think the race was run.
The passing spirit gently fled,
Sustained by grace divine;
O, may such grace on us be shed,
And make our end like thine!
Death of a Pastor. 8's & 7's M.
Pastor, thou art from us taken
In the glory of thy years,
As the oak, by tempests shaken,
Falls ere time its verdure sears.
All thy love and zeal to lead us
Where immortal fountains flow,
And on living bread to feed us,
In our fond remembrance glow.
May the conquering faith that cheered the
When thy foot on Jordan pressed,
Guide our spirits while we leave thee
In the tomb that Jesus blessed.
Death of a Scholar. 8's & 7's M. H. BACOX.
One dear schoolmate now has vanished,
Never more to meet us here!
But from life and love not banished,
Dwelling in a holier sphere.
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