H. P. Nichols

Awake! awake! the dusky night
    Is fading from the sky;
Awake! and with the early light
    To pleasant fields we'll hie.
Come with me, and I will show
Where the fragrant wild-flowers grow;
We will weave a garland gay
For our smiling Queen of May.

The sun peeps up behind the hills,
    And hark! the morning song
Of little birds the fresh air fills,
    As now we skip along.
By the brook-side cold and wet,
Blooms the pale, white violet;
There's the purple blossom, too,
Nodding with its weight of dew.

The gentle wind just lifts the head
    Of many a columbine;
And, taken from their rocky bed,
    They in our wreaths shall twine.
Saxifrage, so small and sweet,
Grows in plenty at our feet;
From the grass we gather up,

"When a child is cross and angry,
    Never must her voice be heard;
Only to herself most softly
    May she say this simple word,

"Lead us not into temptation;"
    That will angry thoughts remove,
Make her calm and still and gentle,
    With a spirit full of love.

Here's the purple aster,
    And the golden-rod,
And the blue fringed gentian,
    By the meadow sod.

And the scarlet cardinal
    Grows beside the brook,
And the yellow sunflower
    In some sheltered nook.

Maple boughs are covered
    With their foliage red,
And the withered elm leaves
    On the ground lie dead.

And within the orchard,
    Heavy-laden trees
Shower down the apples,
    With each passing breeze.

So by these we know thee,
    Lovely autumn time,
With thy deep blue heavens,
    And thy snowy rime.

And we gladly greet thee,
    With thy colors gay,
Though thou tell'st us summer
    Hence hath fled away.

"Little children, when rejoicing
    In the merry Christmas morn,
'Mid your sports remember ever
    'Tis the day that Christ was born.

"When on earth, the blessed Saviour
    Said, 'Let children come to me,'
And the little ones he folded
    In his arms, how tenderly!"

"But the Saviour is in heaven,
    And we cannot see him now;
We cannot receive his blessing,
    In his presence cannot bow."

"Listen. In the holy Bible,
    Jesus Christ tells every child
That the way to gain his blessing
    Is by being good and mild."

"Here on earth you may not see him;
    But when this short life is done,
You shall live with him forever
    Where there is no setting sun."

"So remember, Christmas morning,
    That on e...

Why, what a frightful face is this!
And what has happened, sir, amiss?
Come, let me wipe these tears away,
And see no more cross looks to-day.

If Kate did throw your blocks about,
She's very sorry, I've no doubt;
And here she stands to tell you so,
And build another house, I know.

No tears and crying here must be,
So have a pleasant smile for me.
There, that will do,--now run away,
And kindly with your sister play.

God has kept me, dearest mother.
    Kindly, safely, through the day:
Let me thank Him for His goodness,
    Ere the twilight fades away.

For my home and friends I thank Him,
    For my father, mother dear;
For the hills, the trees, the flowers,
    And the sky so bright and clear.

If I have been kind and gentle,
    If I've spoken what was true,
Or if I've been cross and selfish,
    He has seen and known it, too.

Those I love He will watch over,
    Though they may be far away,
For he loves good little children,
    And will hear the words they say.

The bird within its nest
    Has sung its evening hymn,
And I must go to quiet rest,
    As the bright west grows dim.

I see the twinkling star,
    That, when the sun has gone,
Is shining out the first afar,
    To tell us day is done.

If on this day I've been
    A selfish, naughty child,
May God forgive the wrong I've done,
    And make me kind and mild.

May he still bless and keep
    My father, mother dear;
And may the eye that cannot sleep
    Watch o'er our pillows here,

And guard us from all ill,
    Through this long, silent night,
And bring us, by His holy will,
    To see the morning light.

The sun has set behind the hill,
    The bird is sleeping in his nest;
And now, when all around is still,
    I lay me down to welcome rest.

May the kind God, who lives above,
    And watches o'er us day and night,
Bless us, and grant us, in His love,
    Again to see the morning light.

Now the sun hath gone to rest,
Stars are coming faint and dim,
And the bird within his nest
Sweetly sings his evening hymn.

Have I tried mamma to mind?
Was I gentle in my play?
Have I been a true and kind,
Pleasant little girl to-day?

Then will God take care of me
Kindly, through the long dark night;
Bright and happy, I shall see
Once again the morning light.

Give us this day our daily bread;
    Oh! children, when you pray,
And morn and night repeat these words,
    Think what it is you say.

You never asked a piece of bread,
    And had that wish denied;
For food to eat, and some to spare,
    Has always been supplied.

But o'er the ocean, many a cheek
    With want grows thin and pale;
And many suffer like the boy
    Of whom I tell this tale.

He lay upon some scattered straw,--
    His strength was almost gone,--
And, in a feeble voice, he cried,
    "Give me three grains of corn!"

Three grains from out his jacket torn,
    His trembling mother drew,
'Twas all she had--she gave them him,
    Though she was starving too!

Be very grateful, children, then,
    F...

"How beautiful it is, mamma,
    That God should love us all;
That He should listen to their prayer,
    When little children call!

"What shall I do for him, mamma?
    For He's so kind to me,--
How shall I show my love to Him
    Who made bird, flower and tree?"

"The only thing which you can do
    Is this, my darling child,
Be always gentle, full of love,
    In words and actions mild.

"Thus you will show your love to God
    Who is so kind to you;
And you will live with Him at last
    In His bright heaven, too."

God sees me always. When I sleep,
    He kindly watches near;
He loves the little child to keep,
    Who tries to please Him here.

When I'm alone He sees me too,
    Though no one else is by;
And every naughty thing I do,
    He sees it from on high.

He sees me, too, when I am rude,
    And cry, and fret, and tease;
He loves to see me when I'm good
    And try mamma to please.

Then, since He sees me day and night,
    And is so kind to me,
I must do always what is right,
    His gentle child must be.

'Twas morning, and the pleasant light
Shone on the hills, the trees, the flowers,
And made a far-off country bright,
A lovely land, but not like ours.

A mother led her little child
Forth from his father's door away;
And with the flowers he played, and smiled
As beautiful and bright as they.

But when, at noon, the warm sun beat
Upon the sweet boy's forehead fair,
Tired and thirsty from the heat,
He asked in vain for water there.

The bottle, filled with water clear
At early day, was empty now;
The mother laid her child so dear
Beneath an old tree's spreading bough.

She turned away, and heard the sound
Of water, gushing like the rain;
She raised her boy from off the ground,
He drank, and played and smiled again.

T...

How glad it makes me feel at night,
    When sitting on my mother's knee,
To hear her whisper "You've done right,
    And tried my gentle child to be."

But then I feel ashamed and sad
    If I've been cross and disobeyed,
Or if my selfish way I've had
    When I with other children played.

So if at night I'd call to mind
    A day of undisturbed delight,
The only way that I can find
    Is to be loving and do right.

When I play with little children
    I must very gentle be;
I must always do to others
    As I'd have them do to me.

I must like to give and lend them,
    If they want my prettiest toy;
More than my delight and pleasure
    I must love my playmate's joy.

Children who are kind and loving
    God above is pleased to see;
Let me ever this remember,
    Ever sweet and pleasant be.

Now again the yellow sun
Shines upon my window-pane;
Now anothor day's begun,
I can laugh and play again.

I must try to-day to be
Kind in all I say and do;
Then will God be pleased with me,
And mamma will love me too.

For she says that God above
Loves to see a little child
Sweet and gentle as the dove,
Like the pretty lamb so mild.

Now a new day just begun,
    I'll try to spend it well;
That I may have, when eveningcomes,
    No naughty deeds to tell.

So through my life may every day
    Be better than the past;
That God may take me, when I die,
    To live in heaven at last.

If I resolve, with the new year,
    A better child to be,
'Twill do no good at all, I fear,
    But rather harm to me,

Unless I try, with every day,
    No angry word to speak;
Unless, each morn, to God I pray
    To keep me mild and meek.

Then let me try with all my might,
    And may God help me too,
Always to choose the way that's right,
    Whatever act I do.