Chapter III: Part 3

Almighty God, grant that I may be spared the allurements of deceptive happiness which leaves weary days. I ask for wisdom that I may not speak foolishly, think foolishly, or act foolishly; and may I not be detained by the foolishness of others, but pursue my work, whether it be far or near. Amen.

APRIL SECOND

Charlemagne born 742.

Thomas Jefferson, Virginia, third President United States, born 1743.

Hans Andersen born 1805.

Frederic A. Bartholdi born 1834.

Emile Zola born 1840.

When a man assumes a public trust he should consider himself public
property.

--Thomas Jefferson.

We hold these truths to be self-evident--that all men are created
equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the
pursuit of happiness.

--Declaration of Independence.

Breathes there the man with soul so dead
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land!
Whose heart hath ne'er within him burned
As home his footsteps he hath turned
From wandering on a foreign strand?

--Sir Walter Scott.

Render therefore unto Cæsar the things that are Cæsar's.

--Matthew 22. 21.

My Lord, I thank thee for the wisdom and love that is spoken through the lives of strong men and women. Grant that I may be willing to learn of them, and gladly serve where I am needed, remembering that thou art Lord of all. Amen.

APRIL THIRD

George Herbert born 1593.

Washington Irving born 1783.

Edward Everett Hale born 1822.

John Burroughs born 1837.

Sum up at night what thou hast done by day
And in the morning what thou hast to do:
Dress and undress thy soul: mark the decay
And growth of it; if with thy watch that too
Be dowl, then wind up both; since we shall be
Most surely judged, make thy accounts agree.

--George Herbert.

To look up and not down,
To look forward and not back,
To look out and not in, and
To lend a hand.

--Edward E. Hale.

There is a healthy hardiness about real dignity that never dreads
contact and communion with others, however humble.

--Washington Irving.

I put on righteousness, and it clothed me:
My justice was as a robe and a diadem.

--Job 29. 14.

My Lord, I pray that I may always be found clothed in love and kindness. Make me worthy to minister to those who may be dependent on me, and whether they be rich or poor, high or low, may I try to help them. Amen.

APRIL FOURTH

Oliver Goldsmith died 1774.

Dorothea Dix born 1802.

James Freeman Clarke born 1810.

"The greatest object in the universe," said a certain philosopher,
"is a good man struggling with adversity"; yet there is still a
greater, which is the good man who comes to relieve it.

--Oliver Goldsmith.

Yet I believe that somewhere, soon or late,
A peace will fall
Upon the angry reaches of my mind;
A peace initiate
In some heroic hour when I behold
A friend's long-quested triumph, or unbind
The tressed gold
From a child's laughing face. I still believe--
So much believe.

--J. Drinkwater.

But whoso hath the world's goods, and beholdeth his brother in need,
and shutteth up his compassion from him, how doth the love of God
abide in him?

--1 John 3. 17.

Almighty God, may I have a liberal heart. Grant that I may feel the needs of thy children in all lands; and may I be willing to give of thy blessings, as I am ready to receive them. May my tribute be not only of tender thoughts and kind words, but may I give of myself, and of what I have, as thou hast through love and wisdom done for me. Amen.

APRIL FIFTH

Elihu Yale born 1648.

Sir Henry Havelock born 1795.

Frank Stockton (Francis) born 1834.

Algernon Charles Swinburne born 1837.

As morning hears before it run
The music of the mounting sun,
And laughs to watch his trophies won
From darkness, and her hosts undone,
And all the night becomes a breath,
Nor dreams that fear should hear and flee
The summer menace of the sea,
So hear our hope what life may be,
And know it not for death.

--Algernon Charles Swinburne.

I came from God, and I'm going back to God, and I won't have any
gaps of death in the middle of my life.

--George MacDonald.

The hope of the righteous shall be gladness;
But the expectation of the wicked shall perish.

--Proverbs 10. 28.

Lord God, teach me the way and show me the light of the eternal day; and may the vision fill my soul as I take courage and follow it. May I not be fearful of what may be provided, but remember that before the creation of life thou didst have a purpose in death. May I be trustful. Amen.

APRIL SIXTH

Albert Dürer died 1528.

James Mill born 1773.

Jean Baptiste Rousseau born 1669.

Even if the sacrifices which are made to duty and virtue are painful
to make, they are well repaid by the sweet recollections which they
leave at the bottom of the heart.

--Jean B. Rousseau.

I am the man of a thousand loves,
A thousand loves have I;
And all my loves are white-winged doves,
That into my soul would fly.

I am the man of a thousand friends
Of tuneful memory;
And each of them spends the delicate ends
Of a brilliant day with me.

And all my gifts are magical words
That sing sweet songs to me;
And the sensitive words are caroling birds
In the garden of imagery.

--Edwin Leibfreed.

Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life.

--Revelation 2. 10.

Loving Father, I bless thee for thy love and ministry. May I enter into a broader conception of sharing thy gifts. May I not seek thy blessings to keep, but to use for renewed inspiration. Amen.

APRIL SEVENTH

Saint Francis Xavier born 1506.

William Wordsworth born 1770.

William Ellery Channing born 1780.

My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began;
So is it now I am a man;
So be it when I shall grow old,
Or let me die!
The child is Father of the Man;
And I could wish my days to be
Bound each to each by natural piety.

--William Wordsworth.

A self-controlled mind is a free mind, and freedom is power. I call
that mind free which jealously guards its intellectual rights and
powers. I call that mind free which resists the bondage of habit,
which does not live on its old virtues, but forgets what is behind,
and rejoices to pour itself forth in fresh and higher exertions.

--William Ellery Channing.

That ye be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new
man, that after God hath been created in righteousness and holiness
of truth.

--Ephesians 4. 23, 24.

Lord God, give me the power to control my mind and heart, that I may not be a slave to habits that may keep me from eternal love and blessedness. May I have sympathy and compassion for others, and cherish thy tenderness and mercy as I hold it in my daily life. Amen.

APRIL EIGHTH

Petrarch crowned 1341.

William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke, born 1580.

David Rittenhouse born 1732.

If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life from aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.

--Emily Dickinson.

The most solid comfort one can fall back upon is the thought that
the business of one's life is to help in some small way to reduce
the sum of ignorance, degradation, and misery on the face of this
beautiful earth.

--George Eliot.

Make full my joy, that ye be of the same mind, having the same love,
being of one accord, of one mind; doing nothing through faction or
through vainglory, but in lowliness of mind each counting other
better than himself.

--Philippians 2. 2, 3.

My Father, take away the spirit, if I may be inclined to keep the best, and to be always seeking my portion. May I have the desire to share with those who have less, and to give to those who may have more, whether it be of bread or love. Amen.

APRIL NINTH

Fisher Ames born 1758.

John Opie died 1807.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti died 1882.

Gather a shell from the strown beach
And listen at its lips; they sigh
The same desire and mystery,
The echo of the whole sea's speech.
And all mankind is this at heart--
Not anything but what thou art:
And Earth, Sea, Man are all in each.

--Dante Gabriel Rossetti.

And as, in sparkling majesty, a star
Gilds the bright summit of some glory cloud;
Brightening the half-veil'd face of heaven afar;
So when dark thoughts my boding spirit shroud,
Sweet Hope! celestial influence round me shed,
Waving the silver pinions o'er my head.

--John Keats.

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
that ye may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit.

--Romans 15. 13.

Almighty God, may I ever know the generous glow that comes with an overwhelming desire to cultivate the soul. With hope may I find the way through the darkness that leads to immortality, even if I may have to experience the weariness that may accompany it. Amen.

APRIL TENTH

Hugo Grotius born 1583.

William Hazlitt born 1778.

General Lew Wallace born 1827.

General William Booth born 1829.

The essence of happy living is never to find life dull, never to
feel the ugly weariness which comes of overstrain; to be fresh,
cheerful, leisurely, sociable, unhurried, well-balanced. It seems to
me impossible to be these things unless we have time to consider
life a little, to deliberate, to select, to abstain.

--Arthur C. Benson.

Four things come not back--the spoken word, the sped arrow, the past
life, the neglected opportunity.

--William Hazlitt.

Wherefore, brethren, give the more diligence to make your calling
and election sure.

--2 Peter 1. 10.

My Father, may I not miss my work through indifference and feel it is thy neglect of me. May I be reminded that the enrichment of life comes through persistency and being consistent, and may not be found on the idle paths of extravagant ways. Help me to take up my work with a willing spirit and give my best to it. Amen.

APRIL ELEVENTH

George Canning born 1770.

Edward Everett born 1794.

Donald G. Mitchell (Ik Marvel) born 1822.

The safe path to excellence and success in every calling, is that of
appropriate preliminary education, diligent application to learn the
art of assiduity and practicing it.

--Edward Everett.

That nothing walks with aimless feet;
That not one life shall be destroyed,
Or cast as rubbish to the void,
When God hath made the pile complete.

Behold, we know not anything:
I can but trust that good shall fall
At last--far off--at last, to all,
And every winter change to spring.

--Alfred Tennyson.

And we desire that each one of you may show the same diligence unto
the fullness of hope even to the end: that ye be not sluggish, but
imitators of them who through faith and patience inherit the
promises.

--Hebrews 6. 11, 12.

Lord God, help me in all my circumstances, and be with me in my daily work. Help me in my efforts, as I endeavor to attain, and may my will be hid in thine. Amen.

APRIL TWELFTH

Edward Young died 1765.

Edward Bird born 1772.

Henry Clay born 1777.

I would rather be right than be President.

--Henry Clay.

Who does the best his circumstances allow
Does well, acts nobly; angels could no more.

--Edward Young.

Pedigree haz no more to do in making a man aktually grater than he
iz than a pekok's feather in his hat haz in making him aktually
taller. When the world stands in need of an arestokrat, natur
pitches one into it, and furnishes him papers without enny flaw in
them.

--Josh Billings.

Cast not away therefore your boldness, which hath great recompense
of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, having done the will
of God, ye may receive the promise.

--Hebrews 10. 35, 36.

Lord God, help me to select with care the site, the plans, and the foundation of my life. May I use the best material; and may it be worthy of a permanent home. Amen.

APRIL THIRTEENTH

Madame Jeanne Guyon born 1648.

Dr. Thomas Beddoes born 1760.

James Harper born 1795.

If there were dreams to sell,
Merry and sad to tell,
And the crier rang the bell,
What would you buy?

A cottage lone and still
With bowers nigh,
Shadowy, my woes to still,
Until I die.
Such pearl from Life's fresh crown
Fain would I shake me down,
Were dreams to have at will
This would best heal my ill,
This would I buy.

--Thomas Lovell Beddoes.

I pray you, bear me hence From forth the noise and rumor of the
field Where I may think the remnant of my thoughts In peace, and
part this body and my soul With contemplation and devout desires.

--William Shakespeare.

Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest awhile.

--Mark 6. 31.

Lord God, help me to bear in mind that to step aside and safeguard the mind in contemplation is a safe guard to the soul. Amen.

APRIL FOURTEENTH

Dr. George Gregory born 1754.

George Frederic Handel died 1759.

Horace Bushnell born 1802.

Flower in the crannied wall,
I pluck you out of the crannies--
Hold you here, root and all, in my hand,
Little flower--but if I could understand
What you are, root and all, and all in all,
I should know what God and man is.

--Alfred Tennyson.

So much is history stranger than fiction, and so true it is Nature
has caprices which Art dares not imitate.

--Thomas Macaulay.

Nature is the face of God. He appears to us through it, and we can
read his thoughts in it.

--Victor Hugo.

Many, O Jehovah my God, are the wonderful works
which thou hast done,
And thy thoughts which are to us-ward.

--Psalm 40. 5.

Eternal God, I thank thee for the seasons which bring abundance and beauty. I thank thee for thy loving care, which is over all and forever. May I behold thy works and make thee a very present help for all my needs, and perceive the joy of thy love through the greatness of the earth. Amen.

APRIL FIFTEENTH

Emile Souvestre born 1806.

John Lothrop Motley born 1814.

Henry James born 1843.

Abraham Lincoln died 1865.

Two thirds of human existence are wasted in hesitation, and the last
third in repentance.

--Emile Souvestre.

And, having thus chosen our course, let us renew our trust in God
and go forward without fear and with manly hearts.

--Abraham Lincoln.

The barriers are not erected which shall say to aspiring talent,
"Thus far and no further."

--Beethoven.

Be strong and of good courage.

--Joshua 1. 6.

Almighty God, I pray that I may always be alive to my opportunities, but may I never leave others impoverished by taking advantage of them. May my prosperity be conducted with my eyes open, guarding what I give and receive, that my possessions may remain valuable through life. Amen.

APRIL SIXTEENTH

Charles Montagu, Earl of Halifax, born 1661.

Charles W. Peale born 1741.

Sir John Franklin born 1786.

Weary of myself and sick of asking
What I am, and what I ought to be,
At the vessel's prow I stand, which bears me
Forward, forward, o'er the starlit sea

O air-born voice! long since severely clear,
A cry like thine in my own heart I hear.
Resolve to be thyself: and know that he
Who finds himself, loses his misery.

--Matthew Arnold.

This above all to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou can'st not then be false to any man.

--William Shakespeare.

Let thine eyes look right on,
And let thine eyelids look straight before thee.
Make level the path of thy feet,
And let all thy ways be established.

--Proverbs 4. 25, 26.

My Father, give me a sense of nearness to thee when I may be faltering from weariness in well doing. May I hold to my determinations. Help me to know what is useless, that I may not give unnecessary energy, and to know what is worth while, that I may acquire strength through the power of truth. Amen.

APRIL SEVENTEENTH

Bishop Benjamin Hoadley died 1761.

Benjamin Franklin died 1790.

William G. Simms born 1806.

Shall I ask the brave soldier who fights at my side,
In the cause of mankind, if our creeds agree?
Shall I give up the friend I have valued and tried,
If he kneel not before the same altar as me?

--Thomas Moore.

I met a little Elf-man once,
Down where the lilies blow.
I asked him why he was so small
And why he didn't grow.

He slightly frowned, and with his eye
He looked me through and through.
"I'm quite as big for me," said he
"As you are big for you."

--John Kendrick Bangs.

Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their
own sight!

--Isaiah 5. 21.

Loving Father, grant that I may not barter love with formalities, nor sacrifice love for customs. But, may I have a fellowship that is true and sincere, and that may be counted on, though all and for all. Amen.

APRIL EIGHTEENTH

Lord Jeffreys died 1689.

George Henry Lewes born 1817.

Sir Francis Baring born 1740.

Nor can I count him happiest who has never
Been forced with his own hand his chains to sever,
And for himself find out the way divine;
He never knew the aspirer's glorious pains,
He never earned the struggler's priceless gains.

--James Russell Lowell.

There is not time for hate, O wasteful friend.
Put hate away until the ages end.
Have you an ancient wound? Forget the wrong--
Out in my West a forest loud with song
Towers high and green over a field of snow,
Over a glacier buried far below.

--Edwin Markham.

Fight the good fight of the faith, lay hold on the life eternal,
whereunto thou wast called, and didst confess the good confession in
the sight of many witnesses.

--1 Timothy 6. 12.

Lord God, help me to realize the power of my life. I feel ashamed and alarmed when I think of the grievous wrongs I may have done for greed. May I have delight in the struggles I have made for the ways of righteousness. Make me careful to avoid the things that debase life. May I aspire for the highest and best. Amen.

APRIL NINETEENTH

Roger Sherman born 1721.

Lord Byron died 1824.

Lord Beaconsfield (Disraeli) died 1881.

Charles Darwin died 1882.

The secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his
opportunity when it comes. --Disraeli.

One sees, and the other does not see; one enjoys
an unspeakable pleasure, and the other loses that
pleasure which is as free to him as the air....
The whole outward world is the kingdom of the
observant eye. He who enters into any part of
that kingdom to possess it has a store of pure enjoyment
in life which is literally inexhaustible and
immeasurable. His eyes alone will give him a life
worth living.

--Charles W. Eliot.

Having eyes, see ye not?

--Mark 8. 18.

My Father, help me to realize that I cannot feel the joy that breathes through the early morning unless I am with it. May I see distinctly the glory of to-day. Help me to be watchful and keep my spirit awake, that I may receive thy revelations. Amen.

APRIL TWENTIETH

Marcus Aurelius born 121.

Elizabeth Barton (Maid of Kent) executed 1534

Sir Francis T. Baring born 1796.

Alice Cary born 1820.

Do not act as if you had ten thousand years to throw away. Death
stands at your elbow. Be good for something while you live and it is
in your power.

--Marcus Aurelius.

And O, my heart, my heart,
Be careful to go strewing in and out
The way with good deeds, lest it come about
That when thou shalt depart,
No low lamenting tongue be found to say,
The world is poorer since thou went'st away

--Alice Cary.

A good man prolongs his life; to be able to enjoy one's past life is
to live twice.

--Martial.

The righteous shall be had in everlasting remembrance.

--Psalm 112. 6.

Heavenly Father, thou hast made my life dear; forgive me if I have made dearer the things that I have put around it. Many days have been used for costly things that have faded and are laid aside. May I realize the meaning of days that have been lost. Make me more concerned for what I put in the days to come. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-FIRST

Peter F. Abelard died 1142.

Friedrich Fröbel born 1782.

Reginald Heber born 1783.

James Martineau born 1805.

Charlotte Brontë born 1816.

Henry Shaw (Josh Billings) born 1818.

Education should lead and guide man to clearness concerning himself
and in himself, to peace with nature, and to unity with God.

--Friedrich Fröbel.

When spring unlocks the flowers, to paint the
laughing soil;
When summer's balmy showers refresh the mower's
toil;
When winter binds in frosty chains the fallow and
the flood,
In God the earth rejoiceth still, and owns its maker
good.

--Reginald Heber.

A memory without a blot or contamination must be an inexhaustible
source of pure refreshment.

--Charlotte Brontë.

For ye are all sons of light, and sons of the day: we are not of the
night, nor of darkness.

--1 Thessalonians 5. 5.

Lord of light, thou art the light of my life. May I make thee the joy and light of my soul. Call me to where it is clear and high, that I may see above the mist. May I not weary in climbing to reach thee in the high places. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-SECOND

Henry Fielding born 1707.

Immanuel Kant born 1724.

Philip James Bailey born 1816.

We live in deeds, not years: in thoughts, not breaths:
In feelings, not in figures on a dial.
We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives
Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best.

--Philip James Bailey.

Men cease to interest us when we find their limitations. The only
sin is limitation. As soon as you once come up with a man's
limitations it is all over with him.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

But he that looketh into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so
continueth, being not a hearer that forgeteth but a doer that
worketh, this man shall be blessed in his doing.

--James 1. 25.

Lord God, help me to break away from habits that fasten me in the ruts of life. Draw me out to thy broad way, where there are no limits to thy wonderful works, that I may expand my life. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-THIRD

William Shakespeare born 1564, died 1616.

Cervantes died 1616.

J.M.W. Turner born 1775.

James Buchanan, Pennsylvania, fifteenth President United States, born 1791.

James Anthony Froude born 1818.

Thomas Nelson Page born 1853.

Edwin Markham born 1852.

My crown is in my heart, not on my head:
Not decked with diamonds and Indian Stones,
Nor to be seen. My crown is called content.
A crown it is that seldom kings enjoy.

--William Shakespeare.

At the heart of the cyclone tearing the sky
And flinging the clouds and the towers by
Is a place of central calm:
So here in the roar of mortal things,
I have a place where my spirit sings,
In the hollow of God's Palm.

--Edwin Markham.

Rest in Jehovah, and wait patiently for him:
Fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way.

--Psalm 37. 7.

Almighty God, my heart beats quicker and the desire for thy care grows stronger when I remember thy promises are given for all eternity. May I be grateful and contented with thy love and care. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-FOURTH

Edmund Cartwright born 1743.

Anthony Trollope born 1815.

Arthur Christopher Benson born 1862.

By religion I mean the power, whatever it be, which makes a man
choose what is hard rather than what is easy; what is lofty and
noble rather than what is mean and selfish; that puts courage into
timorous hearts and gladness into clouded spirits.

--Arthur C. Benson.

For all noble things the time is long and the way rude.... For every
start and struggle of impatience there shall be so much attendant
failure.... But the fire which Patience carries in her own hand is
that truly stolen from heaven--unquenchable incense of life.

--John Ruskin.

But they that wait for Jehovah shall renew their strength; they
shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be
weary; they shall walk, and not faint.

--Isaiah 40. 31.

My Father, I pray that I may not be indifferent to the call of my soul. May I not seek to serve the disappearing and neglect to make life worthy. Acquaint me with the permanent values of life. Make clear the way of strength, that I may not be misled by ease and carried to weakness. May my life be ennobled by the power of my possessions. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-FIFTH

Oliver Cromwell born 1599.

John Keble born 1792.

Alexander Duff born 1806.

Guglielmo Marconi born 1874.

Mrs. Burton Harrison (Constance Cary) born 1846.

Samuel Wesley died 1735.

Truly God follows us with encouragements: let him not lose his
blessing upon us! They come in season, and with all the advantages
of heartening, as if God should say, "Up and be doing, and I will
stand by you and help you!" There is nothing to be feared but our
own sin and sloth.

--Oliver Cromwell.

Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear,
It is not night if thou be near;
O may no earthborn cloud arise
To hide thee from thy servants' eyes.

--John Keble.

For Jehovah God is a sun and a shield:
Jehovah will give grace and glory;
No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

--Psalm 84. 11.

My Father, may I not err in choosing thy benefits, nor fail from the neglect to use them. Make me appreciative of all thy gifts, and, through thy wisdom and power, may I find the best use for them. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-SIXTH

David Hume born 1711.

Daniel Defoe died 1791.

Charles F. Browne (Artemus Ward) born 1834.

How strange a chequer-work of Providence is the life of man! and by
what secret different springs are the affections hurried about, as
different circumstances present! To-day we love what to-morrow we
hate; to-day we seek what to-morrow we shun; to-day we desire what
to-morrow we fear; nay, even tremble at the apprehension of.

--Daniel Defoe.

Now don't do nothin' which isn't your Fort, for ef you do you'll
find yourself splashin' round in the Kanawl, figgeratively speakin'.

--Artemus Ward.

Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there
are diversities of ministrations, and the same Lord. And there are
diversities of workings, but the same God, who worketh all things in
all.

--1 Corinthians 12. 4-6.

Lord forbid that I should fear to change for the better or be so pleased with myself and the things which surround me that I feel no need for a higher life. Make me dissatisfied if I am not trying to grow in truth and to live in noble deeds. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-SEVENTH

Samuel Morse born 1791.

Lajos Kossuth born 1802.

Herbert Spencer born 1820.

Ulysses S. Grant, Ohio, eighteenth President United States, born 1822.

Ralph Waldo Emerson died 1882.

People who are dishonest, or rash, or stupid will inevitably suffer
the penalties of dishonesty, or rashness, or stupidity.

--Herbert Spencer.

Abide in the simple and noble regions of thy life; obey thy heart.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Well, then, we must cut our way out.

--General Grant.

Wherefore take up the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to
withstand in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand.

--Ephesians 6. 13.

Loving Father, help me to live a simple and noble life. Grant that I may have the blessedness that comes through peace, and escape the misery that comes from cruelty and untruth. Through my life may what I reap show that I have been careful in choosing and cultivating what I have sown. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-EIGHTH

Charles Cotton born 1630.

James Monroe, Virginia, fifth President United States, born 1758.

Anthony Ashley, Earl of Shaftesbury, born 1801.

During a long life I have proved that not one kind word ever spoken,
not one kind deed ever done, but sooner or later returns to bless
the giver, and becomes a chain, binding men with golden bands to the
throne of God.

--Earl of Shaftesbury.

There's many a time when the bitterest thing
Is said without reason, and God knows
The courage it takes to suffer the sting,
By hiding the wounds that the heart shows.

There's many a sob we bravely keep down
For the sake of old times revered so,
There's many a head with thorns for a crown
Where kisses would soon make the heart glow.

--Edwin Leibfreed.

So shalt thou know wisdom to be unto thy soul;
If thou hast found it, then shall there be a reward,
And thy hope shall not be cut off.

--Proverbs 24. 14.

My Father, if I am to-day without happiness, may I go in search of it. Help me to remember that the will thou hast given me to overcome evil with good I may use to overcome misery with happiness. Make me careful that I may not be trapped by selfishness as I look for joy. May I delight in the sweet sensations that are felt in having consideration for others, and may I make kindness a daily habit. Amen.

APRIL TWENTY-NINTH

Michel Ruyter died 1676.

Abbe Charles de St. Pierre died 1743.

Matthew Vassar born 1792.

Edward Rowland Sill born 1841.

Never yet was a springtime,
Late though lingered the snow,
That the sap stirred not at the whisper
Of the south wind, sweet and low;
Never yet was a springtime
When the buds forgot to blow.

Ever the wings of the summer
Are folded under the mold;
Life that has known no dying,
Is Love's, to have and to hold,
Till, sudden, the burgeoning Easter!
The song! the green and the gold![1]

--Margaret E. Sangster.

In tracing the shade, I shall find out the sun.

--Owen Meredith.

All chastening seemeth for the present to be not joyous but
grievous; yet afterward it yieldeth peaceable fruit unto them that
have been exercised thereby, even the fruit of righteousness.

--Hebrews 12. 11.

Almighty God, grant that as the fulfillment of the green comes to the withered grass, so thy restoring may come to me with the glory of life that comes in the resurrection of the soul. I trust thee to bring me out of winter's seal, that I may help make the spring. Amen.

[Footnote 1: From Easter Bells. Copyright, 1897, by Harper & Brothers.]

APRIL THIRTIETH

Chevalier de Bayard killed 1524.

Sir John Lubbock born 1834.

James Montgomery died 1854.

David Livingstone died 1873.

We scatter seeds with careless hands,
And dream we ne'er shall see them more;
But for a thousand years
Their fruit appears
In weeds that mar the land.

--John Keble

And there came up a sweet perfume
From the unseen flowers below,
Like the savor of virtuous deeds,
Of deeds done long ago.

--Mrs. Southey.

Mary therefore took a pound of ointment of pure nard, very precious,
and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair:
and the house was filled with the odor of the ointment.

--John 12. 3.

My Father, I pray that it may be mine to have the recollection of happy deeds, and not the memory of unkept promises. Help me to remember that one act is worth a thousand intentions, and that memory is the storehouse that supplies old age. Make me careful of my memory, that it may not be burdened. Amen.

MAY

I cannot see what flowers are at my feet,
Nor what soft incense hangs upon the boughs,
But, in the embalmed darkness, guess each sweet
Wherewith the seasonable month endows
The grass, the thicket, and the fruit tree wild;
White hawthorn, and the pastoral eglantine;
Fast-fading violets covered up in leaves;
And mid-May's wildest child,
The coming musk-rose, full of dewy wine,
The murmurous haunt of flies on summer eves.

--John Keats.

Such a starved bank of moss
Till that May morn,
Blue ran the flash across:
Violets were born.

--Robert Browning.

MAY FIRST

Arbor Day.

Joseph Addison born 1672.

Arthur, Duke of Wellington, born 1769.

If you wish to succeed in life, make perseverance your bosom friend,
experience your wise counselor, caution your elder brother, and hope
your guardian genius.

--Joseph Addison.

He who plants a tree, he plants love;
Tents of coolness spreading out above
Wayfarers, he may not live to see.
Gifts that grow are best;
Hands that bless are blest;
Plant-life does the rest!
Heaven and earth help him who plants a tree,
And his work his own reward shall be.

--Lucy Larcom.

And he shall be like a tree planted by the streams of water,
That bringeth forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also doth not wither;
And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

--Psalm 1. 3.

My Creator, give me joyful eyes for joyful nature. May I be alive to the gentle influences of a May day which bring new experiences to all who may receive them: and may I serve thee by unfolding to others the love of truth, the love of good, and the love of beauty. Amen.

MAY SECOND

Leonardo da Vinci died 1519.

Robert Hall born 1764.

Jerome K. Jerome born 1859.

William Henry Hudson born 1862.

Without a false humility;
For this is love's nobility,--
Not to scatter bread and gold,
Goods and raiment bought and sold;
But to hold fast his simple sense,
And speak the speech of innocence,
And with hand and body and blood,
To make his bosom-counsel good.
He that feeds man serveth few;
He serves all who dares be true.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Small service is true service while it lasts:
Of humblest friends scorn not one:
The daisy, by the shadow it casts,
Protects the lingering dewdrop from the sun.

--William Wordsworth.

Surely then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot;
Yea, thou shalt be steadfast, and shalt not fear.

--Job 11. 15.

Heavenly Father, I would be thankful for the blessings I am inclined to forget. Give me a heart of gratitude, and forbid that I should hold my friends for material gain or selfish ends. May I through the truthfulness of my lips, and the honor of my acts, be a necessary friend. Amen.

MAY THIRD

Niccolo Machiavelli born 1469.

Thomas Hood died 1845.

Jacob Riis born 1849.

The longing for ignoble things;
The strife for triumph more than truth;
The hardening of the heart that brings
Irreverence for the dreams of youth;

All these must first be trampled down
Beneath our feet, if we would gain
In the bright fields of fair renown
The right of eminent domain.

--John Keble.

One lesson, and only one, history may be said to repeat with
distinctness; that the world is built somehow on moral foundations;
that in the long run, it is well with the good; in the long run it
is ill with the wicked.

--James Anthony Froude.

No soldier on service entangleth himself in the affairs of this
life; that he may please him who enrolled him as a soldier. And if
also a man contend in the games, he is not crowned, except he have
contended lawfully.

--2 Timothy 2. 4, 5.

Gracious Father, may my heart be mindful of thee, that I may discover the truth and possess it. Steady me in my affections and save me from wandering impulses; and may I help to put wrong down and uplift humanity. Amen.

MAY FOURTH

Frederick Edwin Church born 1826.

Isaac Barrow died 1677.

John James Audubon born 1780.

Horace Mann born 1796.

Thomas Henry Huxley born 1825.

The chess board is the world, the pieces are the phenomena of the
universe, the rules of the game we call the laws of nature. My
metaphor will remind some of you of the famous picture in which
Retzsch has depicted Satan playing chess with man for his soul.
Substitute for the mocking fiend in that picture a calm, strong
angel, who is playing "for love," as we say, and would rather lose
than win, and I should accept it as an image of human life.

--Thomas Henry Huxley.

Riches and nobility fade together. O, my God! be thou praised for
having made love for all time, and immortal as thyself.

--George Sand.

He hath given food unto them that fear him:
He will ever be mindful of his covenant.
The works of his hands are truth and justice;
All his precepts are sure.

--Psalm 111. 5, 7.

Father of life, I know I cannot hold youth. I may have prosperity or poverty. I thank thee that thou hast taught me that love may be kept changeless through all. Amen.

MAY FIFTH

Napoleon Bonaparte died 1821.

Empress Eugenie born 1826.

Bret Harte died 1902.

As I stand by the cross, on the lone mountain's crest,
Looking over the ultimate sea,
In the gloom of the mountain a ship lies at rest,
And one sails away from the lea;
One spreads its white wings on the far-reaching track,
With pennant and sheet flowing free;
One hides in the shadow with sails laid aback--
The ship that is waiting for me.

But lo! in the distance the clouds break away,
The gate's glowing portals I see,
And I hear from the outgoing ship in the bay
The song of the sailors in glee.
So I think of the luminous footprints that bore
The comfort o'er dark Galilee,
And wait for the signal to go to the shore
To the ship that is waiting for me.

--Bret Harte.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil; for thou art with me;
Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.

--Psalm 23. 4.

Eternal God, I praise thee, that "thy love is broader than the measure of man's mind," and that through all my years I may hide myself in thee, trusting thee to the end. Amen.

MAY SIXTH

Plato born B.C. 427.

Robespierre born 1758.

General Andrea Messena born 1758.

Hard ye may be in the tumult,
Red to your battle hilts;
Blow give blow in the foray,
Cunningly ride in the tilts.
But tenderly, unbeguiled--
Turn to a woman a woman's
Heart, and a child's to a child.

Test of the man if his worth be
In accord with the ultimate plan
That he be not, to his marring,
Always and utterly man.
That he may bring out of the tumult,
Fetter and undefiled,
To woman the heart of a woman--
To children the heart of a child.[1]

--O. Henry.

A man's concern is only whether in doing anything he is doing right
or wrong--acting the part of a good man or a bad.

--Plato.

A faithful man shall abound with blessings.

--Proverbs 28. 20.

Almighty God, I pray that I may seek sincerely those whom I approach with sympathy, and by my honor may they feel the same sincerity for me. Amen.

[Footnote 1: Special permission Cosmopolitan Magazine, New York.]

MAY SEVENTH

Correggio born 1494.

Robert Browning born 1812.

Johannes Brahms born 1833.

Lord Rosebery (Archibald Primrose) born 1847.

So, take and use thy work: amend what flaws may lurk,
What strain o' the stuff, what warpings past the aim!
My times be in Thy hand! perfect the cup as planned!
Let age approve of youth, and death complete the same!

--Robert Browning.

No matter how often defeated, you are born to victory. The reward of
a thing well done is to have done it.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

When I hear a young man spoken of as giving promise of high genius,
the first question I ask about him is always--Does he work?

--John Ruskin.

Ye therefore shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

--Matthew 5. 48.

O God, I pray that thou wilt search me, and in the silent moments show me myself without obstruction. Breathe upon me thy awakening breath, that I may be revived to nobler activities. Amen.

MAY EIGHTH

Rev. William Jay born 1769.

François Mignet born 1796.

Louis Gottschalk born 1829.

John Stuart Mill died 1873.

A profound conviction raises a man above the feeling of ridicule.

--John Stuart Mill.

A garden is a lonesome thing, God wot!
Rose plot,
Fringed pool,
Ferned grot--
The veriest school
Of peace; and yet the fool
Contends that God is not--
Not God! in the gardens! when the eve is cool?
Nay but I have a sign;
'Tis very sure God walks in mine.

--Thomas E. Brown.

Jehovah bless thee, and keep thee:
Jehovah make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
Jehovah lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

--Numbers 6. 24, 25, 26.

My Father, may this be a day of usefulness. Make me sure of myself, that I may not spend my days in questioning, but accept with gratefulness thy love and tender care. Make me worthy to be called thy child. Amen.

MAY NINTH

John Brown (Ossawattomie) born 1800.

Johann Schiller died 1805.

J.M. Barrie born 1860.

Have love! not love alone for one,
But man as man thy brother call:
And scatter like the circling sun
Thy charities on all.

--Johann Schiller.

He spoke, and words more soft than rain
Brought the Age of Gold again:
His action won such reverence sweet,
As hid all measure of the feat.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

That their hearts might be comforted, they being knit together in
love.

--Colossians 2. 2.

Gracious Lord, I pray that I may not only be known to those who are my own, but may I consider all mankind. May those who need me find me through my gentleness, and may they be assured by quiet confidence and faith. Amen.

MAY TENTH

Rouget de l'Isle born 1760.

Jared Sparks born 1789.

James Bryce born 1838.

Sir Henry Stanley died 1904.

For four months and four days I lived with David Livingstone in the
same house, or in the same boat, or in the same tent, and I never
found a fault in him. I am a man of quick temper, and often without
sufficient cause, I dare say, have broken the ties of friendship;
but with Livingstone I never had cause for resentment, but each
day's life with him added to my admiration for him.

--Sir Henry Stanley.

In speech right gentle, yet so wise: princely of mien,
Yet softly mannered; modest, deferent,
And tender-hearted, though of a fearless blood.

--Edwin Arnold.

Ye are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.

--Matthew 5. 14.

Almighty God, help me to aspire, that my life may tend toward the ideal. May I be persuaded that I cannot be that which I do not possess, nor can I live in that which I do not know. Help me to put the best in what I do, that I may not feel I have failed, even though it may not seem to be a success. Amen.

MAY ELEVENTH

Baron Münchhausen born 1720.

William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, died 1778.

Jean Léon Gérôme born 1824.

And methought that beauty and terror are only one, not two;
And the world has room for love, and death, and thunder and dew;
And all the sinews of hell slumber in the summer air;
And the face of God is a rock, but the face of the rock is fair.
Beneficent streams of tears flow at the finger of pain;
And out of the cloud that smites, beneficent rivers of rain.

--Robert Louis Stevenson.

It is more shameful to be distrustful of our friends than to be
deceived by them.

--La Rochefoucauld.

Thou shalt rejoice in all the good which Jehovah thy God hath given
unto thee.

--Deuteronomy 26. 11.

Lord God, may I comprehend the sacredness of friendship. I thank thee for my friends, and for all the beautiful influences which they bring to my life. May I never hold friendship without the sincerity to return it. Correct my faults, and cause me to learn the secret of cheerful endurance, that I may be steadfast. Amen.

MAY TWELFTH

Robert Fielding died 1712.

James Sheridan Knowles born 1784.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti born 1828.

Jules Massenet born 1842.

Look in my face; my name is Might-have-been;
I am also called No-more, Too-late, Farewell;
Unto thine ear I hold the dead sea-shell
Cast up thy Life's foam-fretted feet between;
Unto thine eyes the glass where that is seen
Which had Life's form and Love's, but by my spell
Is now a shaken shadow intolerable,
Of ultimate things unuttered the frail screen.

--Dante Gabriel Rossetti.

Let me not pass my work at morn
And then at eve,
Find for what purpose I was born--
Just as I leave.

--M.B.S.

We must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the
night cometh, when no man can work.

--John 9. 4.

Lord God, I do earnestly pray that thou wilt give me strength to break away, if I may be trying to free myself from habits that mar my character. May I not lose courage and fall back in the old ways, but by faith be led where I should go. Amen.

MAY THIRTEENTH

Carolus Linnæus (Karl von Linné) born 1707.

Alphonse Daudet born 1840.

Sir Arthur Sullivan born 1842.

I heard a voice in the darkness singing
(That was a valiant soul I knew),
And the joy of his song was a wild bird winging
Swift to his mate through a sky of blue.

And his song was of love and all its bringing
And of certain day when the night was through;
I raised my eyes where the hope was springing,
And I think in his heaven God smiled too
(That was a valiant soul I knew).

--J. Stalker.

The soul aids the body, and at certain moments raises it. It is the
only bird which bears upward its own cage.

--Victor Hugo.

But desire earnestly the greater gifts.

--1 Corinthians 12. 31.

Gracious Lord, I rejoice that thou dost know the depths of my soul, and that I may call upon thee to supply its needs. Make me worthy that I may not be kept from the springs of joy where my soul may be refreshed, and where I may gather hope and encouragement for the greater loves of life. Amen.

MAY FOURTEENTH

John Dutton born 1659.

Gabriel D. Fahrenheit born 1686.

Robert Owen born 1771.

Henry Grattan died 1820.

They that wander at will where the
Works of the Lord are revealed,
Little guess what joy can be got
From a cowslip out of the field.

--Alfred Tennyson.

Move onward serenely, cast aside regret, cleanse and purify life,
only be undismayed and hopeful, as you turn page after page of the
revelation of God.

--Arthur C. Benson.

Thou wilt show me the path of life:
In thy presence is fullness of joy;
In thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

--Psalm 16. 11.

My Father, I thank thee that nature reveals thy power as she unfolds her beauty and wonder to the searching eye. Guide me that I may see in the little flower the smile of welcome, the look of kindness, and the beauty of hope which it renders to all; and may I learn from it thy protection in the smallest things of life. Amen.

MAY FIFTEENTH

Ephraim Chambers died 1740.

Florence Nightingale born 1820.

Michael W. Balfe born 1808.

Edmund Keane died 1833.

Daniel O'Connell died 1847.

Light human nature is too lightly lost
And ruffled without cause, complaining on,
Restless with rest, until being overthrown,
It learneth to lie quiet.

--Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

Was the trial sore?
Temptation sharp? Thank God a second time!
Why comes temptation but for a man to meet
And master and make crouch 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--when the moon is at
full, and when there is no moon.

--Julius Hare.

Thou hast granted me life and lovingkindness; And thy visitation
hath preserved my spirit.

--Job 10. 12.

Almighty God, I pray that I may have a true appreciation of the quality of life. Reveal to me my responsibilities and help me to make them my opportunities. Keep me in search of thoughts and deeds that will increase the delight of my soul. Amen.

MAY EIGHTEENTH

Francis Mahony (Father Prout) died 1866.

Mrs. Johnson (Stella) born 1735.

John Wilson (Christopher North) born 1785.

Longing is God's fresh heavenward will,
With our poor earthly striving;
We quench it, that we may be still
Content with merely living.

But would we learn that heart's full scope
Which we are hourly wronging,
Our lives must climb from hope to hope,
And realize our longing.

--James Russell Lowell.

Pretexts are not wanted when one wishes a thing.

--Goldoni.

Friendship is for all aid and comfort through all the relations of
life and death--for serene days and graceful gifts and country
rambles; but also for rough roads, and hard fare, shipwreck,
poverty, and persecution.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Strive to enter in by the narrow door.

--Luke 13. 24.

Eternal God, I pray that thou wilt graciously restore my spirits if I may have settled into despondency over my disappointments. May I have the will to rise above them, and patiently strive for renewed hope. Amen.

MAY NINETEENTH

James Boswell died 1795.

Johann Gottlieb Fichte born 1762.

William E. Gladstone died 1898.

Tired! Well, what of that?
Didst fancy life was spent on beds of ease,
Fluttering the rose-leaves scattered by the breeze?
Come! rouse thee, work while it is called to-day!
Coward, arise--go forth upon the way!

Lonely! And what of that?
Some one must be lonely; 'tis not given to all
To feel a heart responsive rise and fall,
To blend another life into its own;
Work may be done in loneliness; work on.

Dark! Well, what of that?
Didst fondly dream the sun would never set?
Dost fear to lose thy way? Take courage yet,
Learn thou to walk by faith and not by sight,
Thy steps will be guided, and guided right.

--Unknown.

And let us not be weary in well-doing: for in due season we shall
reap, if we faint not.

--Galatians 6. 9.