For Good Supreme can never fail The life that floods the happy fields CHRISTOPHER PEARSE CRANCH. On the To a Waterfowl * Whither 'midst falling dew, While glow the heavens with the last steps of day, Vainly the fowler's eye Might mark thy distant flight to do thee wrong, Seek'st thou the plashy brink There is a Power whose care Teaches thy way along that pathless coast,— * By courtery of D. Appleton & Co., publishers of Bryant's Complete Poetical Works. On the The desert and illimitable air,— Wing Lone wandering, but not lost. All day thy wings have fanned, At that far height, the cold, thin atmosphere, And soon that toil shall end; Soon shalt thou find a summer home, and rest, Thou'rt gone, the abyss of heaven Hath swallowed up thy form; yet, on my heart He who, from zone to zone, Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight, In the long way that I must tread alone, Will lead my steps aright. WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT. Goldfinches Sometimes goldfinches one by one will drop Or perhaps, to show their black and golden wings, Were I in such a place, I sure should pray That naught less sweet might call my thoughts away Than the soft rustle of a maiden's gown Fanning away the dandelion's down. On the JOHN KEATS. The Sandpiper Across the narrow beach we flit, One little sandpiper and I; And fast I gather, bit by bit, The scattered driftwood, bleached and dry. As up and down the beach we flit,- Above our heads the sullen clouds On the Almost as far as eye can reach As fast we flit along the beach,- I watch him as he skims along, Comrade, where wilt thou be to-night CELIA THAXTER. The Eagle (Fragment) He clasps the crag with hookèd hands; Ring'd with the azure world, he stands. The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls; ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON. Child's Talk in April I wish you were a pleasant wren, Then you should see the nest I'd build, The wondrous nest for you and me; The outside rough perhaps, but filled With wool and down; ah, you should see We'd have our change of hope and fear, And fetch you dainty bits to eat. On the |