But if by faith to Christ allied,
Heaven's glory is both sure and clear.

We look from Nature to her God;
We feel his presence from above;
We know that when the earth he trod,
He preached through her his wondrous love.
What is there in our flitting years
With this pure treasure can compare?
His love can wipe away our tears,
His love can lighten every care.

THE MIGRATORY SWANS

A necklace in the depth of blue
Of scintillating, silvery pearls,
Which peering eagerly we view
As gracefully it curves and whirls,
Safely and swiftly, far away
They seek the groves of date and lime;
Naught can arrest and naught dismay
From heights so lofty and sublime.

In dreams alone their wintry home
Can haunt them with its ice and snow;
Mingled with visions as they come
Of shimmering waves where lilies grow
And open lakes are fresh and clear,
Fit mirror for a plumaged breast,
Shaded by moss-grown trees. 'Tis here
They'll dip and dive in gleeful rest.

Vanished! and vainly do we try
To trace upon the distant air
That scroll which written on the sky
Told of the hand which led them there.
Could we upon our heavenward way
From tempting snares as far remove
And be as disenthralled as they,
We'd plainer show a guiding love.

We skim too closely to the earth,
We press too slowly for the prize,
Let thoughts and cares of trivial worth
Retard our journey to the skies.
Oh, let us watch and pray to have
A loftier flight from transient things,
Inspired like swans at last to lave
In streams of bliss our wearied wings!

MINISTERING WOMEN

_And Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna and many
others who ministered unto him of their substance._--Luke 8:3. Mark
14:3-9. John 12:3-8. Matthew 26:6-13. Luke 7:37-50. John 11:3.

Those women who their Christ and Lord
Aided by gentle ministry,
Have gained their race a rich reward,
Treasured in sacred history.

Joanna is unknown at court,
Although entitled to be there;
The record of her life's report
In fadeless glory has its share.

Susanna's name is intertwined,
A gem as sparkling and as clear
As those with which it is enshrined;
And this is all we know of her.

And those whose names have not been given
Are now in realms of light an