beneath his foot,
And so be pedestaled in triumph? Pray
"Lead us into no such temptations, Lord!"
Yea, but, O thou whose servants are the bold,
Lead such temptations by the head and hair,
Reluctant dragons, up to who dares fight
That so he may do battle and have praise.

--Robert Browning.

Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things that
were heard, lest haply we drift away from them.

--Hebrews 2. 1.

Almighty God, if I am overwhelmed by the tides of temptation and
discouragement, let me not drift away to sea, but anchor and take
harbor in thee. May I not be afraid to trust in thy protection, but
calmly wait and watch for thy deliverance. Amen.

MAY SIXTEENTH

Sir William Patty born 1623.

Honore de Balzac born 1799.

William H. Seward born 1801.

Felicia Hemans died 1835.

Favored of Heaven! O Genius! are they thine,
When round thy brow the wreaths of glory shine;
While rapture gazes on thy radiant way,
'Midst the bright realms of clear mental day?
No! sacred joys! 'tis yours to dwell enshrined,
Most fondly cherished, in the purest mind.

--Felicia Hemans.

Genius is intensity.

--Honore Balzac.

But what if I fail of my purpose here?
It is but to keep the nerves at strain,
To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall,
And, baffled, get up and begin again--
So the chase takes up one's life, that's all.

--Robert Browning.

Be urgent in season, out of season.

--2 Timothy 4. 2.

My Lord, my life makes me conscious of weakness, and my memory brings
regret; forgive me for the lost strength I neglected to develop. In
thy compassion encourage me to be more watchful of my power, that I
may usefully increase it, and not willfully deplete it. May I learn
the need of constancy in well-doing. Amen.

MAY SEVENTEENTH

Heloise died 1163.

Matthew Parker died 1575.

Edwin Jenner born 1749.

The weakest among us has a gift, however seemingly trivial, which is
peculiar to him, and which worthily used, will be a gift to his race
forever.

--John Ruskin.

Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God who is our home.

--William Wordsworth.

A weak mind sinks under prosperity as well as under adversity. A
strong and deep mind has two highest tides-