Part 3 — VERSES GIVEN TO W. C. WITH A BLANK BOOK, MARCH, 1844.

Thy other book to fill, more than eight years Have paid chance tribute of their smiles and tears; Many bright strokes portray the varied scene— Wild sports, sweet ties the days of toil between; And those related both in mind and blood, The wise, the true, the lovely, and the good, Have left their impress here; nor such alone, But those chance toys that lively feelings own Weave their gay flourishes 'mid lines sincere, As 'mid the shadowy thickets bound the deer Accept a volume where the coming time Will join, I hope, much reason with the rhyme, And that the stair his steady feet ascend May prove a Jacob's ladder to my friend, Peopled with angel-shapes of promise bright, And ending only in the realms of light. May purity be stamped upon his brow, Yet leave the manly footsteps free as now; May generous love glow in his inmost heart, Truth to its utterance lend the only art; While more a man, may he be more the child; More thoughtful be, but the more sweet and mild; May growing wisdom, mixed with sprightly cheer, Bless his own breast and those which hold him dear; Each act be worthy of his worthiest aim, And love of goodness keep him free from blame, Without a need straight rules for life to frame. Good Spirit, teach him what he ought to be, Best to fulfil his proper destiny, To serve himself, his fellow-men, and thee. These pages then will show how Nature wild Accepts her Master, cherishes her child; And many flowers, ere eight years more are done, Shall bless and blossom in the western sun.