Chapter VII: Part 7

Murat, King of Naples, shot 1815.

Elizabeth Fry died 1845.

What stronger breast-plate than a heart untainted! Thrice is he
armed that hath his quarrel just, And he but naked, though locked up
in steel, Whose conscience with injustice is corrupted.

--William Shakespeare.

A man's accusations of himself are always believed, his praises
never.

--Montaigne.

Justice needs that two be heard.

--From Goethe's Autobiography.

That which is altogether just shalt thou follow, that thou mayest
live.

--Deuteronomy 16. 20.

Lord of justice, if I may be influenced this morning by doubt and am inclined to be resentful, wilt thou cause me to have a generous spirit and keep my faith. May I never descend to anything base or deceitful, but may I remember that if I lay down my life, I may have the power to take it up again. Amen.

OCTOBER FOURTEENTH

William Penn born 1644.

James Fenimore Cooper died 1851.

Duke of Wellington died 1852.

Do good with what thou hast, or it will do thee no good. If thou
wouldst be happy, bring thy mind to thy condition, and have an
indifferency for more than what is sufficient.

--William Penn.

The finest fruit earth holds up to its Maker is a finished man.

--Humboldt.

I considered Napoleon's presence in the field equal to forty men in
the balance.

--Duke of Wellington.

What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that
thou visitest him? For thou hast made him but little lower than God,
And crownest him with glory and honor.

--Psalm 8. 4, 5.

Eternal God, may I know the value of the gift of life. May I think seriously of it, and not through abuse or neglect cripple it, remembering that it is mine to sow, to grow, and to reap. I pray that I may care more for the food and raiment of my soul than I care for the food and raiment of my body. Amen.

OCTOBER FIFTEENTH

Virgil born B.C. 70.

Evangelista Torricelli born 1608.

Edward Fitzgerald born 1763.

Being not unacquainted with woe, I learned to help the unfortunate.

--Virgil.

There are some hearts like wells green-mossed and deep
As ever summer saw,
And cool their water is, yea, cool and sweet;
But you must come to draw.
They hoard not, yet they rest in calm content,
And not unsought will give;
They can be quiet with their wealth unspent,
So self-contained they live.

--Author unknown.

For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you
with many tears; not that ye should be made sorry, but that ye might
know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.

--2 Corinthians 2. 4.

Gracious Father, help me to understand that while I may be content to rest with what I have gathered, I cannot preserve the strength of my soul unless I share my possessions. Give me a passion for humanity that will advance gifts through love, and offer service without the need of an appeal. Amen.

OCTOBER SIXTEENTH

Bishop Hugh Latimer burned at Oxford 1555.

Albrecht von Haller born 1708.

Noah Webster born 1758.

Robert Stephenson born 1803.

As ships meet at sea--a moment together, when words of greeting must
be spoken, and then away upon the deep--so men meet in this world;
and I think we should cross no man's path without hailing him, and
if he needs, giving him supplies.

--Henry Ward Beecher.

Nothing is more unaccountable than the spell that often lurks in a
spoken word. A thought may be present to the mind, and two minds
conscious of the same thought, but as long as it remains unspoken
their familiar talk flows quietly over the hidden idea.

--Nathaniel Hawthorne.

And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others?

--Matthew 5. 47.

Heavenly Father, I pray that thou wilt give me a generous heart. May I not lose sight of the truth, that thou hast made others to have the same needs and wants that I may have. May I not through pride or egoism fail to help, and neglecting to speak, miss an opportunity to assist. May I be self-forgetful in friendly service. Amen.

OCTOBER SEVENTEENTH

Andreas Osiander died 1552.

Frederic Chopin died 1849.

Good name, in man or woman, dear my Lord, Is the immediate jewel of
their souls; 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.

--William Shakespeare.

Keep back your tears when a soul is untrue;
"Sorrow is shallow"; and one can wade through
The mud and the marshes, and still endure
If he finds he has kept his spirit pure.

The rose near died when it fell to its lot
To break its heart for forget-me-not;
But after its heart was healed by the dew,
Right by its side a sweet violet grew!

--M.B.S.

A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, And loving
favor rather than silver and gold.

--Proverbs 22. 1.

My Father, teach me the value of the possessions that can neither be handled nor seen; and may I not take them away from others. Help me to keep thy commandment "Thou shalt not steal," and interpret it in all its relations to life. Amen.

OCTOBER EIGHTEENTH

Matthew Henry born 1662.

Margaret (Peg) Woffington born 1720.

Helen Hunt Jackson born 1831.

Frederick Harrison born 1831.

Yet I argue not against heaven's hand or will, nor bate a jot of
heart of hope;, but still bear up and steer right onward.

--John Milton.

Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.
No man has learned anything rightly until he knows that every day is
doomsday.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

He mourns that day so soon has glided by:
E'en like the passage of an angel's tear
That falls through the clear ether silently.

--John Keats.

I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go:
I will counsel thee with mine eye upon thee.

--Psalm 32. 8.

My Father, if I may be living in bad habits, help me to get out of them. If I may be neglectful of good deeds, help me to get at them. May I reach for the highest purposes as I search for the realities, and may I not delay, but start to-day. Amen.

OCTOBER NINETEENTH

Dean (Jonathan) Swift died 1745.

Leigh Hunt born 1784.

Henry Kirke White died 1806.

Don't look too hard except for something agreeable; we can find all
the disagreeable things we want, between our own hats and boots.

--Leigh Hunt.

Instead of a gem or a flower, cast the gift of a lovely thought into
the heart of a friend.

--George Macdonald.

For the want of common discretion the very end of good breeding is
wholly perverted; and civility, intended to make us easy, is
employed in laying chains and fetters upon us, in debarring our
wishes, and in crossing our most reasonable desires and
inclinations.

--Jonathan Swift.

If it be possible, as much as in you lieth, be at peace with all
men.

--Romans 12. 18.

My Lord, help me to adjust my life to what I ought to be, rather than be content in what I am. May I not spend my time in dreaming of obstacles, or searching for things that hurt, but may I be gentle and kind, and as I see the truth speak for it and follow it. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTIETH

Sir Christopher Wren born 1632.

Thomas Hughes born 1823.

Charles Dudley Warner died 1900.

There has always seemed to me something impious in the neglect of
health. I could not do half the good I do if it were not for the
strength and activity some consider coarse and degrading.

--Charles Kingsley.

To keep well drink often, but water;
Eat not that which makes life shorter;
But first, with all your might and skill,
Just chain your habits to your will.

--M.B.S.

I will be lord over myself. No one who cannot master himself is
worthy to rule, and only he can rule.

--Goethe.

Know ye not that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit which is
in you, which ye have from God?

--1 Corinthians 6. 19.

Lord God, may I not wait until I am afflicted and cannot use them to thank thee for my blessings. Guard me against infirmities that are brought on through indulgences, and help me to control my life. May I never forget that regret will not retrieve the life that is spent, even if it brings forgiveness and hope for the days to come. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-FIRST

Samuel Taylor Coleridge born 1772.

Alphonse Lamartine born 1790.

Samuel F. Smith born 1808.

Will Carleton born 1845.

He prayeth best who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the dear God who loveth us,
He made and loveth all.

--Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

We thank thee, O Father, for all that is bright--
The gleam of the day and the stars of the night,
The flowers of our youth and the fruits of our prime,
And the blessings that march down the pathway of time.

--Will Carleton.

Thanklessness is a parching wind, drying up the fountain of pity,
the dew of mercy, the streams of grace. For doth not that rightly
seem to be lost which is given to one ungrateful?

--Saint Bernard.

O give thanks unto Jehovah; for he is good; For his lovingkindness
endureth for ever.

--Psalm 136. 1.

My Father, help me to understand that I cannot have self-development unless the spirit of truth drills my character. Cleanse my heart from all impurity, and strengthen me for all usefulness: help me to daily live this prayer. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-SECOND

Charles Martel died 741.

Franz Liszt born 1811.

George Eliot born 1819.

Sarah Bernhardt born 1844.

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
For miserable aims that end with self,
In thoughts sublime that pierce the night like stars,
And with their mild persistence urge man's search
To vaster issues.

This is life to come,
Which martyred men have made more glorious
For us to strive to follow. May I reach
That purest heaven, be to other souls
The cup of strength in some great agony,
Enkindle generous ardor, feed pure love,
Beget the smiles that have no cruelty,
Be the sweet presence of a good diffused,
And in diffusion ever more intense!
So shall I join the choir invisible
Whose music is the gladness of the world.

--George Eliot.

And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish.

--John 10. 28.

My Father, I pray that I may be more generous with my smiles and gladness, and more saving with my tears and sadness. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-THIRD

Anne Oldfield died 1730.

Robert Bridges born 1844.

Mollie Elliot Seawell born 1860.

O youth whose hope is high,
Who doth to truth aspire,
Whether thou live or die,
O look not back nor tire.

Thou that art bold to fly
Through tempest, flood and fire,
Nor dost not shrink to try
Thy heart in torments dire--

If thou canst Death defy,
If thy faith is entire,
Press onward, for thine eye
Shall see thy heart's desire.

--Robert Bridges.

Doubt indulged becomes doubt realized. To determine to do anything
is half the battle. Courage is victory, timidity is defeat.

--Nelson.

And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of
their words, though briers and thorns are with thee, and thou dost
dwell among scorpions.

--Ezekiel 2. 6.

Gracious Father, try me again by the courage I have to-day, if thou art judging me by the fear I held yesterday. Help me to see that wavering is misleading and temperament is deceptive. May I learn self-control. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-FOURTH

Hugh Capet died 996.

Sir Moses Montefiore born 1784.

Daniel Webster died 1852.

Exceeding peace made Ben Adhem bold,
And to the presence in the room he said,
"What writest thou?" The vision raised its head,
And, with a look made of all sweet accord,
Answered, "The names of those who love the Lord."
"And is mine one?" said Abou. "Nay, not so,"
Replied the angel. Abou spoke more low,
But cheerily still; and said, "I pray thee, then,
Write me as one that loves his fellow men."

The angel wrote, and vanished. The next night
It came again, with a great awakening light,
And showed the names whom love of God had blessed--
And, lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest!

--Leigh Hunt.

Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and will show thee great
things.

--Jeremiah 33. 3.

Lord God, may I keep within my heart that secret sympathy that adds to the power of life. Help me to seek the things that are real, and not be deceived by the things which only appear to be. May all with whom I have to do feel the better for my companionship. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-FIFTH

Geoffrey Chaucer died 1400.

William Hogarth died 1764.

George W. Faber born 1773.

Thomas B. Macaulay born 1800.

Wav'ring as winds the breath of fortune blows,
No power can turn it, and no prayers compose.
Deep in some hermit's solitary cell,
Repose, and ease, and contemplation dwell.
Let conscience guide thee in the days of need,
Judge well thy own, and then thy neighbor's deed.

--Geoffrey Chaucer.

To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late;
And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers
And the temples of his gods.

--Thomas B. Macaulay.

Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to
minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

--Matthew 20. 28.

Heavenly Father, help me to remember that I am to cover life's journey, even though I may go the way carelessly and aimlessly. May I make an estimate of what I am losing, by waiting so long at the resting places, "For the road winds up hill all the way to the end, and the journey takes the whole day long, from morn to night." Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-SIXTH

Dr. Philip Doddridge died 1751.

Count Von Moltke born 1800.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton died 1902.

One of the notable eddies of the present-day world currents is what
has been loosely called the "Woman Movement." The sensitive and
vicarious spirit of womanhood has been enlisted for service in
behalf of those who have been denied a fair chance, or who are the
victims of oppression, greed, and ignorance.

--William T. Ellis.

And whether consciously or not, you must be in many a heart
enthroned: queens you must always be: queens to your lovers; queens
to your husbands and sons; queens of higher mystery to the world
beyond, which bows itself, and will forever bow, before the myrtle
crown, and the stainless scepter of womanhood.

--John Ruskin.

O woman, great is thy faith: be it done unto thee even as thou wilt.

--Matthew 15. 28.

Lord and Master of all, I pray that thou wilt make me see through my prejudices and beyond my desires to the very "top of my condition." May I not wait for places or circumstances that are dimly in the distance or that are near at hand, but accomplish the work I should do to-day. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-SEVENTH

James Cook born 1728.

Nicolo Paganini born 1782.

Theodore Roosevelt, New York, twenty-fifth President United States, born 1858.

The vice of envy is not only a dangerous, but a mean vice; for it is
always a confession of inferiority. It may promote conduct which
will be fruitful of wrong to others, and it must cause misery to the
man who feels it.

--Theodore Roosevelt.

Of all the passions, jealousy is that which exacts the hardest
service, and pays the bitterest wages. Its service is to watch the
success of one's enemy; its wages to be sure of it.

--C.C. Colton.

Dear to me is the friend, yet I can also make use of an enemy. The
friend shows me what I can do, the foe teaches me what I should.

--Schiller.

Let us not become vainglorious, provoking one another.

--Galatians 5. 26.

Almighty God, I would ask thee that my days be filled with aspiration, and that my heart may know no envy. Help me to love humanity. May I be so glad of the success of others that I may never know what it is to be envious. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-EIGHTH

Desiderius Erasmus born 1465.

John Locke died 1704.

Georges Jacques Danton born 1759.

Not so in haste, my heart!
Have faith in God and wait;
Although he linger long,
He never comes too late.

Until he cometh, rest,
Nor grudge the hours that roll;
The feet that wait for God
Are soonest at the goal;

Are soonest at the goal
That is not gained by speed;
Then hold thee still, my heart,
For I shall wait his lead.

--Bayard Taylor.

It is good that a man should hope and quietly wait for the salvation
of Jehovah.

--Lamentations 3. 26.

Lord of life, may I pause to remember that rest may not be obtained with wretched thoughts, nor can it be enjoyed in discontent. In my moments of rest wilt thou show me how to relax, and with tranquillity may I gather hope for renewed ambition. Amen.

OCTOBER TWENTY-NINTH

Sir Walter Raleigh beheaded 1618.

James Boswell born 1740.

John Keats born 1795.

Thomas Bayard born 1828.

Thomas Edward Brown died 1897.

Rise, O my soul, with thy desires to heaven,
And with divinest contemplation use
Thy time where time's eternity is given,
And let vain thoughts no more thy thoughts abuse;
But down in darkness let them lie:
So live thy better, let thy worse thoughts die!

--Sir Walter Raleigh.

The great elements we know of are no mean comforters; the open sky
sits upon our senses like a sapphire crown--the air is our robe of
state, the Earth is our throne, and the Sea a mighty minstrel
playing before it.

--John Keats.

Ah Lord Jehovah! behold, thou hast made the heavens and the earth by
thy great power and by thine outstretched arm; there is nothing too
hard for thee.

--Jeremiah 32. 17.

Almighty God, I thank thee for the power that gives me the breath of life. May I be willing to be controlled by its guiding care. Amen.

OCTOBER THIRTIETH

Rev. John Whitaker died 1808.

John Adams, Massachusetts, second President United States, born 1735.

Adelaide Anne Procter born 1825.

And yet thou canst know,
And yet thou canst not see;
Wisdom and sight are slow
In poor humanity.
If thou couldst trust, poor soul,
In Him who rules the whole,
Thou wouldst find peace and rest;
Wisdom and right are well, but trust is best.

--Adelaide Anne Procter.

The heart to speak in vain essayed,
Nor could his purpose reach--
His will nor voice nor tongue obeyed,
His silence was his speech.

--John Quincy Adams.

But still believe that story wrong
Which ought not to be true.

--Richard Brinsley Sheridan.

Blessed is the man that maketh Jehovah his trust.

--Psalm 40. 4.

My Father, may I not be given to unkindly speech. Deliver me from a critical spirit; and may I not encourage mistrust, but cultivate the kindly considerations in which life abounds. Amen.

OCTOBER THIRTY-FIRST

All Hallow's Eve.

John Evelyn born 1620.

Christopher Anstey born 1724.

Ere, in the northern gale
The summer tresses of the trees are gone,
The woods of autumn, all around our vale,
Have put their glory on.

The mountains that unfold,
In their wide sweep, the colored landscape round,
Seem groups of giant kings, in purple and gold,
That guard the enchanted ground.

Ah! 'twere a lot too blessed
Forever in thy colored shades to stray;
Amid the kisses of the soft southwest
To rove and dream for aye;

And leave the vain low strife
That makes men mad; the tug for wealth and power,
The passions and the cares that wither life,
And waste its little hour.

--William Cullen Bryant.

Let the field exult, and all that is therein; Then shall all the
trees of the wood sing for joy.

--Psalm 96. 12.

My Father, may I have an appreciation of the wonderful creations of the earth. Give me a discriminating eye, that I may know the precious things that thou art growing; and throughout my life may I love the beautiful, and choose that which will make my life worthy of growth. Amen.

NOVEMBER

Who said November's face was grim?
Who said her voice was harsh and sad?
I heard her sing in wood paths dim,
I met her on the shore so glad,
So smiling, I could kiss her feet!
There never was a month so sweet.

--Lucy Larcom.

NOVEMBER FIRST

Sir Matthew Hale born 1609.

William M. Chase born 1849.

Sir Robert Grant died 1892.

O worship the King, all glorious above,
O gratefully sing his power and his love;
Our Shield and Defender, the ancient of days,
Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise.

Thy bountiful care what tongue can recite?
It breathes in the air, it shines in the light;
It streams from the hills, it descends to the plain,
And sweetly distills in the dew and the rain.

--Robert Grant.

Ye shall walk in all the way which Jehovah your God hath commanded
you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye
may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess.

--Deuteronomy 5. 33.

Almighty God, help me to make my life refulgent while I have the abundance of summer, that I may not find the November of life bleak and barren. Help me to live in the realities of life, that I may gain energy and repose, to use for the lonesome and anxious hours. May I be watchful for the conditions that thwart life, and with patience wait for the awakening of truth. Amen.

NOVEMBER SECOND

Marie Antoinette born 1755.

Field-Marshal Radetzky born 1766.

James Knox Polk, North Carolina, eleventh President United States, born 1795.

Overmastering pain--the most deadly and tragical element in
life--alas! pain has its own way with all of us; it breaks in, a
rude visitant, upon the fairy garden where the child wanders in a
dream, no less surely than it rules upon the field of battle, or
sends the immortal war-god whimpering to his father; and innocence,
no more than philosophy, can protect us from this sting.

--Robert Louis Stevenson.

My hopes retire; my wishes as before
Struggle to find their resting place in vain;
The ebbing sea thus beats against the shore;
The shore repels it; it returns again.

--W.S. Landor.

Yet Jehovah will command his loving-kindness in the day-time, And in
the night his song shall be with me.

--Psalm 42. 8.

Loving Father, I bless thee for thy goodness and tender mercy which is over all. May I trust thy provision and love through all circumstances, and as I trust myself to thee may I have faith to believe that thou wilt give me strength for what I may have to endure, and believe that thou wilt care for me, as thou dost care for all. Amen.

NOVEMBER THIRD

Lucan born A.D. 39.

William Cullen Bryant born 1794.

Francis D. Millet born 1846.

John Watson (Ian Maclaren) born 1850.

Pearl Mary Teresa Craigie (John Oliver Hobbes) born 1867.

Whither, midst falling dew,
While glow the heavens with the last steps of day,
Far, through their rosy depths, dost thou pursue
Thy solitary way!

Vainly the fowler's eye
Might mark thy distant flight to do thee wrong,
As, darkly painted on the crimson sky,
Thy figure floats along.

He who, from zone to zone,
Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight,
In the long way that I must tread alone,
Will lead my steps aright.

--William Cullen Bryant.

For Jehovah your God dried up the waters of the Jordan from before
you, until ye were passed over.

--Joshua 4. 23.

Almighty God, help me to guard against gratification that leads to disappointment, that I may not miss the true way. I pray that thou wilt lift me in my weakness, and carry me over the rough and discouraging places, that I may be made strong in thy loving care, and be able to continue alone. Amen.

NOVEMBER FOURTH

Guido Reni born 1575.

James Montgomery born 1771.

Edmund Keane born 1787.

Ernest Howard Crosby born 1856.

Eugene Field died 1895.

Keep me, I pray, in wisdom's way,
That I may truths eternal seek;
I need protecting care to-day--
My purse is light, my flesh is weak.

--Eugene Field.

No one could tell me where my Soul might be,
I searched for God, but God eluded me.
I sought my brother out, and found all three.

--Ernest H. Crosby.

In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he will direct thy paths.

--Proverbs 3. 6.

My Father, may I not face the going down of the sun to-day, looking at life, in a mirror that reflects my own privileges and prejudices, but may I see it as it is, known to those who are living to make it better. May the days to come prove my sincerity in wanting the truth that I might live by it, and help to do good with it. Amen.

NOVEMBER FIFTH

Hans Sachs born 1494.

Dr. John Brown born 1715.

Benjamin Butler born 1818.

The thing that goes the farthest
Toward making life worth while,
That costs the least, and does the most,
Is just a pleasant smile.
That smile that bubbles from a heart
That loves its fellow men
Will drive away the cloud of gloom
And coax the sun again.

--Anonymous.

One whom I knew intimately, and whose memory I revere, once in my
hearing remarked that, "Unless we love people we cannot understand
them." This was a new light to me.

--Christina G. Rossetti.

Oil and perfume rejoice the heart; So doth the sweetness of a man's
friend that cometh of hearty counsel.

--Proverbs 27. 9.

Lord God, I pray that I may be worthy of my friends. May I not fear to go where I am called, and may I go cheerfully, even though the way be dark and lonesome. Amen.

NOVEMBER SIXTH

James Gregory born 1638.

John Bright born 1811.

Sir George Williams died 1905.

Look full into thy spirit's self,
The world of mystery scan;
What if thy way to faith in God
Should lie through faith in man?

--John Bright.

Blessed are they who have the gift of making friends, for it is one
of God's best gifts. It involves many things, but above all, the
power of going out of oneself and seeing and appreciating whatever
is noble and loving in another.

--Thomas Hughes.

Be perfected; be comforted; be of the same mind; live in peace: and
the God of love and peace shall be with you.

--2 Corinthians 13. 11.

Lord God, I earnestly entreat thee to show me if I may be cramping the happiness in another's life by forcing in my selfishness and demands. May I understand that perfect gifts are those that come through loving sacrifice. Make me ashamed to ask for what I refuse or prefer not to give. Amen.

NOVEMBER SEVENTH

Sir Martin Frobisher died 1594.

William Stukeley born 1687.

Friedrich Leopold, Count von Stolberg, born 1750.

Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide,
In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side;
Some great cause, God's new Messiah offering each the bloom or blight,
Parts the goats upon the left hand, and the sheep upon the right;
And the choice goes by forever 'twixt that darkness and that light.

--James Russell Lowell.

We cannot command veracity at will; the power of seeing and
reporting truly is a form of health that has to be delicately
guarded, and as an ancient rabbi has solemnly said, "The penalty of
untruth is untruth."

--George Eliot.

Behold, this only have I found: that God made man upright; but they
have sought out many inventions.

--Ecclesiastes 7. 29.

My Father, help me to speak the truth and guard the truth, that righteousness may be an abiding influence in my life. Amen.

NOVEMBER EIGHTH

Edmund Halley born 1656.

John Milton died 1674.

Owen Meredith (Bulwer Edward Lytton) born 1831.

The morning drum-call on my eager ear
Thrills unforgotten yet! the morning dew
Lies yet undried along my field of noon.
But now I pause a while in what I do,
And count the bell, and tremble lest I hear
(My work untrimmed) the sunset gun too soon.

--Robert Louis Stevenson.

I fear
Life's many changes, not Death's changelessness.
So perfect is this moment's passing cheer,
I needs must tremble lest it pass to less.
Thus in fickle love of life I live,
Lest fickle life me of my love deprive.

--Owen Meredith.

And Jehovah said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore art thou thus
fallen upon thy face?

Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against
to-morrow.

--Joshua 7. 10, 13.

Almighty God, help me in these fleeting days that I may not use my time to consider and hesitate, but be positive in my desires and pursue them. Grant that I may have the strength to hold each day precious, and live it more than consistently. Amen.

NOVEMBER NINTH

Mark Akenside born 1721.

William Sotheby born 1757.

Charles F. Thwing born 1853.

The victor's road is the easy way.
Straight it stretches and climbs to where
Fame is waiting with garlands gay
To wreathe the fighter who clambers there.
There's applause in plenty and gold's red gleam
For the man who plays on the winning team.

The loser travels a longer lane;
Level it leads to a lonely land.
There's little glory for him to gain
The voices mock him on either hand;
But the man who wins in the greater game
Is the man who, beaten, fights on the same.

--G. Rice.

The hero is not fed on sweets,
Daily his own heart he eats;
Chambers of the great are jails,
And head-winds right for royal sails.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

He thanked God, and took courage.

--Acts 28. 15.

O Lord, I pray that whether I may be successful in the sight of the world, or whether I may be successful in my own sacrifices, I may have the freedom of courage, and be master of my life. Amen.

NOVEMBER TENTH

Martin Luther born 1483.

William Hogarth born 1697.

Oliver Goldsmith born 1728.

Johann von Schiller born 1759.

Joaquin Miller born 1841.

Henry van Dyke born 1852.

As faith, so is God.

--Martin Luther.

Learn the luxury of doing good.

--Oliver Goldsmith.

Love is the ladder by which we climb up to the likeness of God.

--Johann von Schiller.

And who will walk a mile with me
Along life's weary way?
A friend whose heart has eyes to see
The stars shine out o'er the darkening lea,
And the quiet rest at the end of the day--
A friend who knows and dares to say,
The brave sweet words that cheer the way
Where he walks a mile with me.

--Henry van Dyke.

And whosoever shall compel thee to go one mile, go with him two.

--Matthew 5. 41.

My Father, may I not dwell in the appearances of life, where I may grow selfish; but live in the realities of simplicity. May I not only seek those who may return me pleasure, but may I find delight in brightening the walk of a weary friend. Amen.

NOVEMBER ELEVENTH

Alfred de Musset born 1810.

Thomas Bailey Aldrich born 1836.

Rev. Joshua Brookes died 1821.

I'll not confer with Sorrow
Till to-morrow,
But joy shall have her way
This very day.

--Thomas Bailey Aldrich.

Shall we have ears on the stretch for the footfalls of sorrow that
never come, but be deaf to the whirr of the wings of happiness that
fill all space?

--Maurice Maeterlinck.

This day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we
tarry till the morning light, punishment will overtake, us; now
therefore come, let us go and tell the king's household.

--2 Kings 7. 9.

Loving Father, I pray that thou wilt help me to overcome unhappiness. May I not let depression overpower me, but claim the promises of joy that are open to every life. May I be blest by my own cheerfulness and encourage others to possess it. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWELFTH

Saint Augustine died A. D. 354.

Richard Baxter born 1615.

Amelia Opie born 1769.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton born 1815.

Thomas Lord Fairfax died 1671.

In life it is difficult to say who do you the most mischief--enemies
with the worst intentions or friends with the best.

--Edward Bulwer.

The friends thou hast, and their adoption tried, Grapple them to thy
soul with hooks of steel.

--William Shakespeare.

Where persons who ought to esteem and love each other are kept
asunder, as often happens, by some cause which three words of frank
explanation would remove, they are fortunate if they possess an
indiscreet friend who blurts out the whole truth.

--Thomas B. Macaulay.

Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted,
Who did eat of my bread,
Hath lifted up his heel against me.

--Psalm 41. 9.

Lord God, help me to consider more carefully what I offer to my friends; and may I not be critical of what I receive from my friends. May I not be a hindrance instead of a help to those who would have my companionship. Amen.

NOVEMBER THIRTEENTH

Sir John Moore born 1761.

Robert Louis Stevenson born 1850.

Sir John Forbes died 1861.

Little do we know our own blessedness; for to travel hopefully is a
better thing than to arrive, and the True Success is to labor.

--Robert Louis Stevenson.

Whether thy work be fine or coarse, planting corn or writing epics,
so only it be honest work, done to thine own approbation, it shall
earn a reward to sense as well as to the thought.

--Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Nature gives to labor; and to labor alone. In a very garden of Eden
a man would starve but for human exertion.

--Henry George.

But let each man prove his own work, and then shall he have his
glorying in regard of himself alone, and not of his neighbor.

--Galatians 6. 4.

My Father, make pure living clear to me, that I may not be deceived in my work; and may I not use my working hours searching for more suitable work, but may I be sure in what I am that I may feel secure in what I undertake to do. Amen.

NOVEMBER FOURTEENTH

Bishop Hoadley born 1676.

Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel born 1805.

Robert Smythe Hichens born 1864.

Give us, O give us, the man who sings at his work! Be his occupation
what it may, he is better than any of those who follow the same
pursuit in silent sullenness.

--Thomas Carlyle.

What doctor possesses such curative resources as those latent in a
single ray of hope? The mainspring of life is in the heart. Joy is
the vital air of the soul, and grief is a kind of asthma complicated
by atony.

--Amiel.

I will sing unto Jehovah as long as I live:
I will sing praise to my God while I have any being.

--Psalm 104. 33.

Loving Father, restore the spirit of gentleness and meekness if it may be withered within me, that I may be contented. May I make it a habit to be happy over my work and cheerful about my duties. May I never lose the view of the glory of thy kingdom. Amen.

NOVEMBER FIFTEENTH

William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, born 1708.

William Cowper born 1731.

Sir William Herschel born 1738.

Johann Lavater born 1741.

Richard Henry Dana born 1787.

Ida Tarbell born 1857.

The parting sun sends out a glow
Across the placid bay,
Touching with glory all the show--
A breeze! Up helm! Away!

Careening to the wind, they reach,
With laugh and call, the shore.
They've left their footprints on the beach,
But them I hear no more.

--Richard Henry Dana.

Art little? Do thy little well:
And for thy comfort know
The great can do their greatest work
No better than just so.

--Goethe.

But be thou an ensample to them that believe, in word, in manner of
life, in love, in faith, in purity.

--1 Timothy 4. 12.

Lord God, grant that if I may be complaining of what Providence has not sent me, I may not be neglecting what Providence has given me. May I not pause too long over what I have done, or over what I might have done, but may I be appreciative of what thou dost expect of me and endeavor to accomplish it. Amen.

NOVEMBER SIXTEENTH

Tiberius born B.C. 42.

Gustavus Adolphus killed 1632.

Francis Danby born 1793.

Judge not the workings of his brain
And of his heart thou canst not see;
What looks to thy dim eyes a stain
In God's pure light may only be
A scar, brought from some well-won field,
Where thou would'st only faint and yield.

And judge none lost; but wait and see,
With hopeful pity, not disdain;
The depth of the abyss may be
The measure of the height of pain
And love and glory that may raise
The soul to God in after days!

--Adelaide A. Procter.

I am more afraid of deserving criticism, than of receiving it.

--William Gladstone.

Judge not, that ye be not judged.

--Matthew 7.1.

Lord Jehovah, judge of all mankind, forbid that I should set myself as a judge of another's life, and neglect to live for the higher judgment of my own. May I not be absorbed in that which thrives in darkness, but live in the light of honesty and gentleness. Amen.

NOVEMBER SEVENTEENTH

Queen Mary of England died 1558.

Joost van den Vondel born 1587.

George Grote born 1794.

There are evergreen men and women in the world, praise be to
God!--not many of them, but a few. They are not the showy folk.
(Nature is an old-fashioned shopkeeper; she never puts her best
goods in the window.) They are only the quiet, strong folk; they are
stronger than Fate. The storms of life sweep over them, and the
biting frosts creep round them; but the winds and the frosts pass
away, and they are still standing, green and straight.

--Jerome K. Jerome.

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.

Gracious Lord, may I not spend most in equipment and forget the tides, which may desert me on the sands, or the rocks in the channels, which may crush the finest vessel. May I be prepared for the hard knocks if they come, but may I know how to keep clear of them. Amen.

NOVEMBER EIGHTEENTH

Sir David Wilkie born 1785.

Louis J. M. Daguerre born 1789.

Cyrus Field born 1819.

William S. Gilbert born 1836.

If e'er when man had fallen asleep,
I heard a voice, "Believe no more,"
A warmth within the breast would melt
The freezing reason's colder part,
And like a man in wrath, the heart
Stood up and answered, "I have felt."

--Alfred Tennyson.

Faith is the deep want of the soul. We have faculties for the
spiritual, as truly as for the outward world. God, the foundation of
all existence, may become to the mind the most real of all beings.
The believer feels himself resting on an everlasting foundation.

--William Henry Channing.

And they said one to another, Was not our heart burning within us,
while he spake to us in the way, while he opened to us the
scriptures?

--Luke 24. 32.

Lord God, save me from a hard and doubting heart. May I be trustful and come to thee in faith. All the days of my life may my lips sing thy praise as I unfold thy love and purposes. Amen.

NOVEMBER NINETEENTH

Nicolas Poussin died 1665.

Albert Thorwaldsen born 1770.

James A. Garfield, Ohio, twentieth President United States, born 1831.

Mary Hallock Foote born 1847.

Count Lyoff (Leo) Tolstoy died 1910.

And son I live, you see,
Go through the world, try, prove, reject,
Prefer, still struggling to effect
My warfare; happy that I can
Be crossed and thwarted as a man,
Not left in God's contempt apart,
With ghastly smooth life, dead at heart,
Tame in earth's paddock, as her prize.

--Robert Browning.

Be good at the depths of you, and you will discover that those who
surround you will be good even to the same depths. Therein lies a
force that has no name; a spiritual rivalry that has no resistance.

--Maurice Maeterlinck.

First of all, I must make myself a man; if I do not succeed in that,
I can succeed in nothing.

--James A. Garfield.

That we may be no longer children, tossed to and fro and carried
about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, in
craftiness, after the wiles of error.

--Ephesians 4. 14.

Eternal God, I thank thee for all the sterling elements that greaten the individual life. I pray that I may not desire to be kept a small creature, but seek to grow in wisdom and love, and qualify for mighty purposes and achievements. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTIETH

Paul Potter born 1625.

Thomas Chatterton born 1752.

William Ellery Channing born 1818.

Sir Wilfred Laurier born 1841.

Then why, my soul, dost thou complain?
Why drooping seek the dark recess?
Shake off the melancholy chain,
For God created all to bless.

The gloomy mantle of the night,
Which on my sinking spirits steals,
Will vanish at the morning light,
Which God, my East, my Sun, reveals.

--Thomas Chatterton.

Lady, there is a hope that all men have--
Some mercy for their faults, a grassy place
To rest in, and a flower-strewn, gentle grave:
Another hope which purifies our race,
That when that fearful bourne forever past,
They may find rest--and rest so long to last.

I seek it not, I ask no rest forever,
My path is onward to the farthest shores.

--William Ellery Channing.

He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay;
And he set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.
And he put a new song in my mouth.

--Psalm 40. 2, 3.

My Father, I pray that I may have patience to live through the difficulties of life. May I correct my faults, that they may not destroy my peace and take from me my strength; help me to center my life in brightness and hope. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-FIRST

Claude Lorraine died 1682.

Bryan Waller Procter (Barry Cornwall) born 1787.

Mary Johnston born 1870.

There is not a creature from England's king
To the peasant that delves the soil,
Who knows half the pleasures the seasons bring
If he had not his share of toil.

--Barry Cornwall.

It may be proved, with much certainty, that God intends no man to
live in this world without working; but it seems to me no less
evident that he intends every man to be happy in his work. Now, in
order that people may be happy in their work, these three things are
needed: they must be fit for it; and they must not do too much of
it; and they must have a sense of success in it.

--John Ruskin.

Let him labor, working with his hands the thing that is good, that
he may have whereof to give to him that hath need.

--Ephesians 4. 28.

My Father, if my work seems hard to-day, may I not cease working if I grow weary, but may my strength be renewed to continue my work. May the aim of my work be to please thee, and to help in the progress of humanity. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-SECOND

Saint Cecilia martyred A.D. 230.

Sir Henry Havelock died 1857.

Justin M'Carthy born 1830.

Sometimes the sun, unkindly hot,
My garden makes a desert spot,
Sometimes a blight upon the tree
Takes all my fruit away from me;
And then with throes of bitter pain
Rebellious passions rise and swell;
And so I sing and all is well.

--Paul Laurence Dunbar.

Such songs have power to quiet
The restless pulse of care,
And come like benediction
That follows after prayer.

--Henry W. Longfellow.

Songs consecrate to truth and liberty.

--Percy Bysshe Shelley.

David took the harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was
refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

--1 Samuel 16. 23.

Almighty God, I thank thee that thou wilt come to me as my heart cries for need. I bless thee that thou dost come to me as my lips sing thy praise. I pray that I may be saved from a cruel and cheerless heart, and be a sharer of the songs that are sung to the soul. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-THIRD

Thomas Tallis died 1585.

Franklin Pierce, New Hampshire, fourteenth President United States, born 1804.

Marie Bashkirtseff born 1860.

Asleep, awake, by night or day,
The friends I seek are seeking me;
No word can drive my bark astray,
Nor change the tide of destiny.

The stars come nightly to the sky,
The tidal wave unto the sea;
Nor time, nor space, nor deep, nor high,
Can keep my own away from me.

--John Burroughs.

If a man could make a single rose we would give him an empire; yet
flowers no less beautiful are scattered in profusion over the world,
and no one regards them.

--Martin Luther.

Let patience have its perfect work.

--James 1. 4.

My Creator, may I remember that after thou didst create the earth thou didst say it was good. May I love the fragrance and beauty of the flowers which were made to nourish the soul, and the fruits and herbs which were made to nourish the body. May my song of thanksgiving be new every morning, as I awake in the abundance of what thou hast prepared. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-FOURTH

John Knox died 1572.

Baron Spinoza born 1632.

Grace Darling born 1815.

Frances Hodgson Burnett born 1849.

I waited long until the sky
Should give me of its blue
To weave and wear, and share, and weave
The very stars into.
The days they went, the years they went,
And left my hands instead
Another thing for wonderment,
The mending and the bread.

Ah me, and one must set a hand
To burnish up the task,
And hush and hush the old demand
A wakeful heart will ask.
But with a star's clear eye on me,
O, I can hear it said,
"What souls there be that only see
The mending and the bread!"

--Josephine P. Peabody.

The riches of a commonwealth
Are free, strong minds and hearts of health.
And more to her than gold or grain,
The cunning hand and cultured brain.

--John G. Whittier.

For the life is more than the food, and the body than the raiment.

--Luke 12. 23.

My Father, I pray that thou wilt help me, that I may not consume my life in preparing clothes and food for my body. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-FIFTH

Charles Kemble born 1775.

John Bigelow born 1817.

Paul Haupt born 1858.

John Kitto died 1854.

I will not kill or hurt any living creature needlessly, nor destroy
any beautiful thing, but will strive to save and comfort all gentle
life and guard and perfect all natural beauty on earth. I will
strive to raise my own body and soul daily into all the higher
powers of duty and-happiness, not in rivalship or contention with
others, but for help, delight, and honor of others and for the joy
and peace of my own life.

--John Ruskin.

They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the
earth shall be full of the knowledge of Jehovah, as the waters cover
the sea.

--Isaiah 11. 9.

Lord God, I rejoice in the blessedness of peace. May I not try to force peace where cruelty has entered, but keep a watch for what may come into my life. I pray that if I may be in turbulence to-day, thou wilt quiet me with thy peace which knows no fear or wrong. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-SIXTH

Sir William Ware born 1594.

John Elwes died 1789.

John Loudoun Macadam died 1836.

I'd like a way
To change the clouds that bring us sorrow,
And build to-day a bright to-morrow;
To banish cares that tarry long,
And have the days like the blue-bird's song--
I'd like a way.

I'll find a way--
I'll set sail when the breeze is high,
And calmly drift when pleasure's nigh;
I'll steer a course afar from tears,
And take in joy the coming years--
I'll find a way.

I've lost the way!
Out through the gloom a beam of light
Looks like a purpose looming bright!
Up with the sail! I'll out to sea
And bring that purpose back with me,
Or go its way.

--M.B.S.

Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: He is
gracious, and merciful, and righteous.

--Psalm 112. 4.

My Father, I pray that I may not through indifference wander without a purpose, or through discouragement stumble through the darkness. May I be drawn to the light by the vision of hopeful and useful days. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-SEVENTH

Horace died B.C. 8.

Marquise d'Aubigné Maintenon born 16324.

General Artemus Ward born 1727.

Fanny Kemble born 1809.

Alexandra Dumas died 1895.

Be this thy brazen bulwark of defense, to preserve a conscience void
of offense, and never turn pale with guilt.

--Horace.

Is life a noxious weed which whirlwinds sow?
A useless flint o'er which the waters flow?
Not so!
A life well spent has not its weight in gold;
It is the clearest crystal earth doth hold,
A gem beside which suns seem dull and cold.

--Robert Louis Stevenson.

That they may lay hold on the life which is life indeed.

--1 Timothy 6. 19.

Lord God, I pray that my life may not be impoverished by neglect, nor burdened with indulgences, but that it may be kept in condition for high endeavors. Grant that I may never be content to rest in satisfaction and ease when I could struggle and accomplish a good work. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-EIGHTH

William Blake born 1757.

Anton G. Rubinstein born 1829

Washington Irving died 1859.

The sorrow for the dead is the only sorrow from which we refuse to
be divorced. Every other wound we seek to heal, every other
affliction to forget. Take warning by the bitterness of this thy
contrite affliction over the dead, and henceforth be more faithful
and affectionate in the discharge of thy duties to the living.

--Washington Irving.

Joy and woe are woven fine,
A clothing for the soul divine;
Every grief and pine
Runs a joy with a silken twine.

--William Blake.

Ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.

--John 16. 20.

Heavenly Father, grant that I may not lose the kindness that I may give and receive to-day. I thank thee for the memories of yesterday, the hope of to-morrow, and the wisdom of to-day. May I have a vision of immortality that will keep me through the closest sorrow. Amen.

NOVEMBER TWENTY-NINTH

Sir Philip Sidney born 1554.

A. Bronson Alcott born 1799.

Wendell Phillips born 1811.

Louisa M. Alcott born 1832.

Truth is sensitive and jealous of the least encroachment of its
sacredness.

--A. Bronson Alcott.

Faith that withstood the shocks of toil and time,
Hope that defied despair,
Patience that conquered care,
And loyalty whose courage was sublime;

Teaching us how to seek the highest goal,
To earn the true success;
To live to love, to bless,
And make death proud to take a royal soul.

--Louisa M. Alcott.

Nor is it
Wiser to weep a true occasion lost,
But trim our sails, and let old bygones be.

--Alfred Tennyson.

In hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before
times eternal.

--Titus 1. 2.

Heavenly Father, I pray that I may live in truth; and without fear of life or death live content in the faith of eternal life. Amen.

NOVEMBER THIRTIETH

Peregrine White born New England 1620.

Jonathan Swift born 1687.

Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) born 1835.

Winston Churchill born 1874.

He gave it for his opinion that whoever could make two ears of corn,
or two blades of grass, to grow upon a spot of ground where only one
grew before, would deserve better of mankind, and do more essential
service to his country, than the whole race of politicians put
together.

--Jonathan Swift.

That man may last, but never lives,
Who much receives, but nothing gives;
Whom none can love, whom none can thank,--
Creation's blot, creation's blank.

--Thomas Gibbons.

Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down,
shaken together, running over, shall they give into your bosom. For
with what measure ye mete it shall be measured to you again.

--Luke 6. 38.