OF LOVE.

THERE is a fragrant blossom, that maketh glad the garden of the heart.
Its root lieth deep; it is delicate, yet lasting, as the lilac crocus of autumn.
Loneliness and thought are the dews that water it morn and even ;

Memory and Absence cherish it, as the balmy breathings of the south:
Its sun is the brightness of affection, and it bloometh in the borders of

Hope;

Its companions are gentle flowers, and the brier withereth by its side.
I saw it budding in beauty; I felt the magic of its smile;

The violet rejoiced beneath it, the rose stooped down and kissed it;
And I thought some cherub had planted there a truant flower of Eden,
As a bird bringeth foreign seeds, that they may flourish in a kindly soil.
I saw and asked not its name; I knew no language was so wealthy,
Though every heart of every clime findeth its echo within.

And yet what shall I say?
Hath a seducer known it?

Is a sordid man capable of-Love?
Can an adulterer perceive it?

Or he that seeketh strange women, can he feel its purity?

Or he that changeth often, can he know its truth?

Longing for another's happiness, yet often destroying its own;

Chaste, and looking up to God, as the fountain of tenderness and joy.
Quiet, yet flowing deep, as the Rhine among rivers;

Lasting, and knowing not change-it walketh with Truth and Sincerity

LOVE: what a volume in a word, an ocean in a tear,
A seventh heaven in a glance, a whirlwind in a sigh,
The lightning in a touch, a millennium in a moment,
What concentrated joy or woe in blest or blighted love!

honest praise,

For it is that native poetry springing up indigenous to Mind,
The heart's own country music thrilling all its chords,
The story without an end that angels throng to hear,
The word, the king of words, carved on Jehovah's heart!
Oh! call thou snake-eyed malice mercy, call envy
Count selfish craft for wisdom, and coward treachery for prudence,
Do homage to blaspheming unbelief as to bold and free philosophy,
And estimate the recklessness of license as the right attribute of liberty.---
But with the world, thou friend and scholar, stain not this pure name;
Nor suffer the majesty of Love to be likened to the meanness of desire:
For Love is no more such, than seraphs' hymns are discord,
And such is no more Love, than Ætna's breath is summer

Love is a sweet idolatry, enslaving all the sour,

A mighty spiritual force, warring with the dulness of matter,

An angel-mind breathed into a mortal, though fallen yet how beautıful
All the devotion of the heart in all its depth and grandeur.
Behold that pale geranium, pent within the cottage window ;
How yearningly it stretcheth to the light its sickly long-stalked leaves,
How it straineth upward to the sun, coveting his sweet influences,
How real a living sacrifice to the god of all its worship!

Such is the soul that loveth; and so the rose-tree of affection

Bendeth its every leaf to look on those dear eyes,

Its every blushing petal basketh in their light,

And all its gladness, all its life, is hanging on their love.

If the love of the heart is blighted, it buddeth not again;

If that pleasant song is forgotten, it is to be learnt no more:

Yet often will thought look back, and weep over early affection ;

And the dim notes of that pleasant song will be heard as a reproachful

spirit,

Moaning in Æolian strains over the desert of the heart,

Where the hot siroccos of the world have withered its one oasis

OF MARRIAGE.

SEEK a good wife of thy God, for she is the best gift of his providence ; Yet ask not in bold confidence that which he hath not promised.

Thou knowest not his good-will:—be thy prayer then submissive there

unto;

And leave thy petition to his mercy, assured that he will deal well with

thee.

If thou art to have a wife of thy youth, she is now living on the earth; Therefore think of her, and pray for her weal; yea, though thou hast not seen her.

They that love early become like-minded, and the tempter toucheth them

not:

They grow up leaning on each other, as the olive and the vine.

Youth longeth for a kindred spirit, and yearneth for a heart that can commune with his own;

He meditateth night and day, doting on the image of his fancy.

Take heed that what charmeth thee is real, nor springeth of thine own

imagination;

And suffer not trifles to win thy love; for a wife is tnine unto death.
The harp and the voice may thrill thee,-sound may enchant tnine ear,
But consider thou, the hand will wither, and the sweet notes turn to dis
cord.

The eye, so brilliant at even, may be red with sorrow in the morning;
And the sylph-like form of elegance must writhe in the crampings of pain

O nappy lot, and hallowed, even as the joy of angels,

Where the golden chain of godliness is entwined with the roses of love:

But beware, thou seem not to be holy, to win favour in the eyes of a

creature,

For the guilt of the hypocrite is deadly, and winneth thee wrath elsewhere. The idol of thy heart is as thou, a probationary sojourner on earth; Therefore be chary of her soul, for that is the jewel in her casket.

Let her be a child of God, that she bring with her a blessing to thy house,

A blessing above riches, and leading contentment in its train:

Let her be an heir of heaven: so shall she help thee on thy way;

For those who are one in faith, fight double-handed against evil.
Take heed lest she love thee before God; that she be not an idolater:
Yet see thou that she love thee well: for her heart is the heart of woman;
And the triple nature of humanity must be bound by a triple chain,
For soul and mind and body—godliness, esteem, and affection.

How beautiful is modesty! it winneth upon all beholders:

But a word or a glance may destroy the pure love that should have been for thee.

Affect not to despise beauty; no one is freed from its dominion:

But regard it not a pearl of price :-it is fleeting as the bow in the clouds. If the character within be gentle, it often hath its index in the countenance: The soft smile of a loving face is better than splendour that fadeth quickly. When thou choosest a wife, think not only of thyself,

But of those God may give thee of her, that they reproach thee not for their being:

See that he hath given her health, lest thou lose her early and weep; See that she springeth of a wholesome stock, that thy little ones perish not before thee:

For many a fair skin hath covered a mining disease,

And many a laughing cheek been bright with the glare of madness.

MARK the converse of one thou lovest, that it be simple and sincere;
For an artful or false woman shall set thy pillow with thorns.

Observe her deportment with others, when she thinketh not that thou art

nigh,

For with thee will the blushes of love conceal the true colour of her

Hath she learning? it is good, so that modesty go with it:

Hath she wisdom? it is precious, but beware that thou exceed;
For woman must be subject, and the true mastery is of the mind.
Be joined to thine equal in rank, or the foot of pride will kick at thee;
And look not only for riches, lest thou be mated with misery:

Marry not without means; for so shouldst thou tempt Providence;

But wait not for more than enough; for marriage is the DUTY of most

men;

Grievous indeed must be the burden that shall outweigh innocence and health,

And a well-assorted marriage hath not many cares.

In the day of thy joy consider the poor; thou shalt reap a rich harvest of

blessing;

For these be the pensioners of One who filleth thy cup with pleasures; In the day of thy joy be thankful: He hath well deserved thy praise: Mean and selfish is the heart that seeketh him only in sorrow.

For her sake, who leaneth on thine arm, court not the notice of the world, And remember that sober privacy is comelier than public display.

If thou marriest, thou art allied unto strangers: see they be not such as

shame thee:

If thou marriest, thou leavest thine own; see that it be not done in anger.

BRIDE and bridegroom, pilgrims of life, henceforward to travel together,
In this the beginning of your journey, neglect not the favour of Heaven:
And at eventide kneel ye together, that your joy be not unhallowed:
Angels that are round you shall be glad, those loving ministers of mercy,
And the richest blessings of your God shall be poured on his favoured
children.

Marriage is a figure and an earnest of holier things unseen,
And reverence well becometh the symbol of dignity and glory,
Keep thy heart pure, lest thou do dishonour to thy state;
Selfishness is base and hateful; but love considereth not itself.

The wicked turneth good into evil, for his mind is warped within him;
But the heart of the righteous is chaste; his conscience casteth off sin.
If thou wilt be loved, render implicit confidence;

If thou wouldst not suspect, receive full confidence in turn:

For where trust is not reciprocal, the love that trusted withereth.