,--
Lifting the soul from the common clod
To a purer air and a broader view.
--J. G. HOLLAND

Let me but do my work from day to day
In field or forest, at the desk or loom,
In roaring market-place or tranquil room;
Let me but find it in my heart to say,
When vagrant wishes beckon me astray,
"This is my work; my blessing, not my doom;
Of all who live, I am the only one by whom
The work can best be done in the right way."
--HENRY VAN DYKE

Good name, in man or woman, dear, my lord,
Is the immediate jewel of their soul.
Who steals my purse, steals trash; 'tis something, nothing;
'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name,
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed.
--SHAKESPEARE

God give us men! A time like this demands
Strong minds, great hearts, true faith, and ready hands;
Men whom the lust of office does not kill;
Men whom the spoils of office cannot buy;
Men who possess opinions and a will;
Men who have honour,--men who will not lie.
--J. G. HOLLAND

To live content with small means; to seek
elegance rather than luxury, and refinement
rather than fashion; to be worthy, not
respectable; and wealthy, not rich; to study
hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly;
to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages
with open heart; await occasions, hurry never;
in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and
unconscious, grow up through the common,--this
is my symphony.--CHANNING

O, may I join the choir invisible
Of those immortal dead who live again
In minds made better by their presence; live
In pulses stirred to generosity,
In deeds of daring rectitude, in scorn
Of miserable aims that end with self,
In thoughts sublime that pierce the night like stars,
And with their mild persistence urge men's minds
To vaster issues.
--GEORGE ELIOT

A thing of beauty is a joy forever