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Page 12
That old familiar tree,
Whose glory and renown
Are spread o'er land and sea,--
And wouldst thou hew it down?
Woodman, forbear thy stroke!
Cut not its earthbound ties!
Oh, spare that aged oak,
Now towering to the skies!
When but an idle boy
I sought its grateful shade;
In all their gushing joy,
Here, too, my sisters played.
My mother kissed me here,
My father pressed my hand:
Forgive this foolish tear,
But let that old oak stand.
My heart-strings round thee cling,
Close as thy bark, old friend;
Here shall the wild bird sing,
And still thy branches bend.
Old tree, the storm still brave!
And, woodman, leave the spot!
While I've a hand to save,
Thy ax shall harm it not.
_George P. Morris_.
LESSON XXXI
FLOWERS
He who cannot appreciate floral beauty is to be pitied, like any other
man who is born imperfect. It is a misfortune not unlike blindness.
But men who reject flowers as effeminate and unworthy of manhood reveal
a positive coarseness.
Many persons lose all enjoyment of many flowers by indulging false
associations. There are some who think that no weed can be of interest
as a flower. But all flowers are weeds where they grow wild and in
abundance; and somewhere our rarest flowers are somebody's commonest.
And generally there is a disposition to undervalue common flowers.
There are few that will trouble themselves to examine minutely a
blossom that they have often seen and neglected; and yet if they would
question such flowers and commune with them, they would often be
surprised to find extreme beauty where it had long been overlooked.
It is not impertinent to offer flowers to a stranger. The poorest
child can proffer them to the richest. A hundred persons turned into a
meadow full of flowers would be drawn together in a transient
brotherhood.
It is affecting to see how serviceable flowers often are to the
necessities of the poor. If they bring their little floral gift to
you, it cannot but touch your heart to think that their grateful
affection longed to express itself as much as yours.
You have books, or gems, or services that you can render as you will.
The poor can give but little and can do but little. Were it not for
flowers, they would be shut out from those exquisite pleasures which
spring from such gifts. I never take one from a child, or from the
poor, without thanking God, in their behalf, for flowers.
CHARACTERISTIC OF HEROISM
The characteristic of heroism is its persistency. All men have
wandering impulses, fits and starts of generosity. But when you have
chosen your part, abide by it, and do not weakly try to reconcile
yourself with the world. The heroic cannot be the common, nor the
common the heroic.
_R. W. Emerson_.
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