,
If good she may only do.

A teacher who knows her subjects
And has much of didactic art,
Will present the truths of science
To the youthful mind and heart,
In ways so apt and skillful
They will never more depart,

But will gather strength and beauty
With every day and hour,
Until they become a fortress--
An irresistible power
To dispel the gloom of doubting
That oft o'er the mind may lower.

No truth is learned by mere telling,
The mind must conceive and apply;
There is inspiration, knowledge,
In one's own discovery
That lead to efforts and struggles
For a greater mastery.

Herein lies the power of teaching:
A systemized method to do
That reaches the understanding,
And leads on to fields anew,
Where _Thought_ shall be the head master,
And Truth shall Error subdue;

A heart that is wholly given
To leading the youthful mind,
To discover the powers and virtues
They within themselves shall find,
And mould them into actions
Progressive, strong, refined;

A spirit that sees in the being
A gift from God unto man,
That must live on thro' all ages,
Though influenced by some plan
That here has been determined,
But God shall hereafter scan;

A tongue that is but the voicing
Of a heart aflame with its cause,
That speaks of science and morals
From a knowledge of their laws;
That speeds the true and worthy,
But bids all deception pause;

A judgment so wisely balanced
As to know what must be done
To avoid the indiscretions
Into which so many run,
Of telling, instead of leading,
Till the victory has been won.

* * * * *

In reckoning the moral stock
Of any man or woman,
It is but right to recollect
That all of us are human;
If heart be true, the body frail,
And honestly he's striven,
Tho' oft a brother's plans may fail,
He ought to be forgiven.

MIND AWAKENED.

The battle is not to the mighty,
Nor the race to the fleet of foot,
The peak is not reached by bounding,
Nor the goal by a devious route;
The problems of science and culture
Have been ages upon the way;
The greatest vict'ries 'mong nations
Have not been won in a day.
'Tis the steady tramping onward
Of feet that will not turn