And stirred with accents deep and loud
The hearts of all the listening crowd.

A gray old man, the third and last,
Sang in cathedrals dim and vast,
While the majestic organ rolled
Contrition from its mouths of gold.
And those who heard the Singers three
Disputed which the best might be;
For still their music seemed to start
Discordant echoes in each heart.

But the great Master said, "I see
No best in kind, but in degree;
I gave a various gift to each,

To charm, to strengthen, and to teach.
"These are the three great chords of might,
And he whose ear is tuned aright
Will hear no discord in the three,
But the most perfect harmony."

THE BRIDGE.

I stood on the bridge at midnight,
As the clocks were striking the hour,
And the moon rose o'er the city,
Behind the dark church-tower.

I saw her bright reflection
In the waters under me,
Like a golden goblet falling
And sinking into the sea.
And far in the hazy distance
Of that lovely night in June,
The blaze of the flaming furnace
Gleamed redder than the moon.

Among the long, black rafters

The wavering shadows lay,

And the current that came from the ocean Seemed to lift and bear them away;

As, sweeping and eddying through them, Rose the belated tide,

And, streaming into the moonlight,

The seaweed floated wide.

And like those waters rushing
Among the wooden piers,
A flood of thoughts came o'er me,
That filled my eyes with tears.

How often, O how often,

In the days that had gone by,

I had stood on that bridge at midnight
And gazed on that wave and sky!

How often, O how often,

I had wished that the ebbing tide
Would bear me away on its bosom
O'er the ocean wild and wide!

For my heart was hot and restless,
And my life was full of care,
And the burden laid upon me
Seemed greater than I could bear.
But now it has fallen from me,
It is buried in the sea;
And only the sorrow of others
Throws its shadow over me.

Yet whenever I cross the river

On its bridge with wooden piers,
Like the odor of brine from the ocean
Comes the thought of other years.

And I think how many thousands
Of care-encumbered men,
Each bearing his burden of sorrow,
Have crossed the bridge since then.

I see the long procession

Still passing to and fro,

The young heart hot and restless,
And the old subdued and slow!

And forever and forever,

As long as the river flows,

As long as the heart has passions,
As long as life has woes;

The moon and its broken reflection
And its shadows shall appear,
As the symbol of love in heaven,
And its wavering image here.

GOD'S ACRE.

I like that ancient Saxon phrase, which calls
The burial-ground God's Acre! It is just;
It consecrates each grave within its walls,

And breathes a benison o'er the sleeping dust. God's Acre! Yes, that blessed name imparts Comfort to those who in the grave have sown

The seed that they had garnered in their hearts,
Their bread of life, alas! no more their own.
Into its furrows shall we all be cast,

In the sure faith that we shall rise again
At the great harvest, when the archangel's blast
Shall winnow, like a fan, the chaff and grain.
Then shall the good stand in immortal bloom,
In the fair gardens of that second birth;
And each bright blossom mingle its perfume
With that of flowers which never bloomed on earth.
With thy rude ploughshare, Death, turn up the sod,
And spread the furrow for the seed we sow;
This is the field and Acre of our God,

This is the place where human harvests grow!

32.-FAMILIAR PSALMS.

PSALM I.

Blessed is the man that walketh not

In the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor standeth in the way of sinners,
Nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

But his delight is in the law of the Lord;

And in his law doth he meditate day and night.

He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,

That bringeth forth his fruit in his season:

His leaf also shall not wither;

And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

The ungodly are not so:

But are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous:

But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

O Lord our Lord,

PSALM VIII.

How excellent is thy name in all the earth!

Who hast set thy glory above the heavens.

Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies,

That thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.
When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers,

The moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
What is man, that thou art mindful of him?

And the son of man, that thou visitest him?

For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels,
And hast crowned him with glory and honor;

Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands. Thou hast put all things under his feet: all sheep and oxen,

Yea, and the beasts of the field;

The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea,

And whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.

O Lord our Lord,

How excellent is thy name in all the earth!

PSALM XXIII.

The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul:

He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
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.
Thou preparest a table before me

In the presence of mine enemies:

Thou anointest my head with oil: my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my And I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. [life:

PSALM XXXVII.

Fret not thyself because of evil doers,

Neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
For they shall soon be cut down like the grass,

And wither as the green herb.

Trust in the Lord and do good;
So shalt thou dwell in the land,
And verily thou shalt be fed.
Delight thyself also in the Lord;

And he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

Commit thy ways unto the Lord;

Trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light,
And thy judgment as the noonday.

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him:

Fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way,

Because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath:

Fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.

For evil doers shall be cut off:

But those that wait upon the Lord,

They shall inherit the earth.

For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be:

Yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the earth;

And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

PSALM LXXXIV.

How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts!

My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord: My heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.

Yea, the sparrow hath found a house,

And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, Even thine altars, O Lord of hosts, my King, and my God. Blessed are they that dwell in thy house:

They will be still praising thee.

Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee:

In whose heart are the ways of them.

Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well;

The rain also filleth the pools.

They go from strength to strength,

Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.

O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer:

Give ear, O God of Jacob.

Behold, O God our shield,

And look upon the face of thine anointed.

For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand.

I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God,

Than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield:

The Lord will give grace and glory:

No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. C Lord of hosts,

Blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.

PSALM XC.

Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place

In all generations.

Before the mountains were brought forth,

Or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world,