Ardelia Maria Cotton Barton

“ In thy heart find resting place,
If with Love thou meetest troubles,
And with him thou keepest pace.
[Pg 127]
THE DEAD SUMMER.
In the forest, in the autumn,
’Neath the oaks, and ’neath the beeches,
Are the dead and dying children
Of the mother trees.
And the trees are sighing, moaning,
And the clouds are weeping, weeping
Tears of sorrow for the summer
That is dead, and gone.
E’en the sun his face has hidden
By a veil of clouds and shadows,
All the earth seems grieved and troubled
At the summer’s death.
But the earth has a new carpet,
Gorgeous with its brilliant colors. ”

“ Dost thou not know, my precious!
That for thy love I pine?
Was’t kind in me, thy mother
To give to thee earth-life?
With all of its wild turmoil,
[Pg 62] And all of its fierce strife.
If life shouldst be a burden,
No joy in it for thee,
Will future life repay thee?
And I forgiven be?
Will heaven be compensation
For all of earthly care?
Wilt thou forgive thy mother
For all that thou must bear?
In vain is all my pleading—
Alas! it is too late,—
For thou must bear life’s burdens,
And thou must meet thy fate.—
But, angels guard, and keep thee,
This is thy mother’s prayer. ”

“ Enticed my vain heart from my lover of old.
The white man so subtile flattered my pride—
He promised me honor for aye by his side.
I loved him not ever, ’twas only my pride
That caused me to waver, and leave thy dear side
I beg dear Oswega that thou wilt forgive,
And that in thy love-light again I shall live.
Yes, I will return to my lover so brave,
For home without love is as cold as the grave. ”

“ O thou uncanny, fearful thing!
A flaming sword art thou;
Thou may’st be sent by demon’s hand
Among the stars to plough.
Thou’st travelled on for many years,
And still must travel on.
Thy master’s bidding thou must do
Until the victory’s won.
Sometime perhaps thy anger fierce
No more will burn in wrath.
Thou’lt gently fall upon the earth,
Leave blessings in thy path.
Thou art a mystery now to us,
Thy life may be divine—
Although it seems that demons black
Hath part in life like thine.
[Pg 131]
LOVE’S DART.
My heart is filled with joy today ”

“ O thou fair daughter of a northern clime!
To thee, dear heart, I dedicate my rhyme.
Dost know that life to thee shouldst be sublime?
Though thou hast many problems yet to face,
Thou wilt not fall, nor falter in the race.
Nor e’en the smallest thing in life debase.
“New England” blood is coursing through my veins,
No evil deed, nor thought, thy pure heart stains.
Thy life is melody,—not sad refrains.—
In brightest life, some shadows there will be. ”

“ Thou never canst atone, O Sun,
For all the misery thou hast wrought—
’Tis evermore on earth, dark night;
Though I have life, ’tis dearly bought.
Farewell! Farewell! defeated Sun!
Thou now art dead; thy race is run.—
[Pg 118]
IF THERE IS NO HEREAFTER.
If soul has no hereafter,
What is the unknown bond
That bindeth soul to matter,
And what is the beyond?
What is the power that buildeth?
What is the mind that wills?
What is the power within us
That all our being thrills?
If there is no hereafter
What use to us was birth?
We’re naught but vegetation
Encumbering the earth. ”

“ Dominion o’er my heart and home;
For home is drear indeed,
Though lacking nothing but sweet Love;
For Love the world doth lead.
My guests brought Jealousy one day.
Destroyer it, of peace.
When he came in, Love fled in fright,
And took with her sweet peace.
For Honor, Fame, and Love, can ne’er
In peace together dwell.
When Jealousy once joins the throng,
It is Love’s funeral knell.
When Love within our household reigns
Let none usurp her place. ”

“ Thou grand old granite mountain
Canst tell me what thy age?
What secrets art thou holding
Within thy heart O sage.
Couldst man find out by delving
Deep in thy stony breast,
How long thou hast been rearing
On high, thy hoary crest.
Hadst thou e’er a beginning?
Wilt thou in death e’er fall?
Canst thou these questions answer?
On thee I humbly call.
Is life, within thy bosom?
Or art thou cold and dead?
Thou standest in thy myst’ry
[Pg 161] No tears of misery shed.
Thy heart, thy life is granite,
Thou carest not for woe.
If tear thou ever sheddest
It turns to ice and snow. ”

“ A century seems a long, long time
For thee to lie in gloom.
How didst thou know when to arise?
And thy new garment don;
Thou mightst have slept thy life away
Whilst time was going on.
Was there a power within thy soul?
A wish within thy heart?
To soar above all other flowers,
And with the birds take part
In singing songs of grateful joy
That thou hast waked from sleep,
That thou again dost see the light,
[Pg 209] Hast risen from the deep;
The grave where thou so long hast lain.
To raise thy head on high,
And looking up to Deity
Once more; then droop and die. ”

“ Ne’er in heart shall malice lurk.
We are sowing, ever sowing—
Soon the harvest we shall reap;
We are planting for the morrow.
Deeds will ripen while we sleep.
We may harvest richest blessings,
Or may gather thorns instead.
We may place Love’s choicest garland
[Pg 101] On some tired and drooping head.
If an unkind word we utter,
We shall make some poor heart sad.
If we give a cup of water,
It will make some faint heart glad.
We may often light life’s pathway
With the candle of our love,
And its beams will shine forever
In the heaven we make above. ”

“ And yet—O heart be still!
I find that love, and pity
Lie deep within my heart.
I cannot, cannot hate thee—
Thou art of life a part.
Farewell! Farewell! ’Tis better
For both; that we are free.
For life, when trust hath left us
Is naught but misery. ”

“ In thine own soul life’s problems lie.
I cannot teach thee how to live,
I cannot teach thee how to die.
Take up thy burdens, and thy cares.
With patience bear thy every grief.
Thy back is fitted for each cross,
Death is surcease, and brings relief.
Though I have passed from earth away,
I still do feel what thou must bear.
But knowing what thy crosses are,
I say, be brave, thy crosses bear.
Do what thou canst for others’ weal,
Do what thou canst to conquer sin.
Then leave the rest in hands of God.
[Pg 218] With pitying love he looks within,
And sees the burdens thou must bear. ”

“ That thou hast fought most valiantly.
Wast ever foremost in the fight,
No rest for thee by day, nor night.
I too have fought most manfully,
And stand erect, defying thee.
I’ve fought the fight, have gained the day,
I shall live on forever, aye.—
Farewell then Sun, for thou must die;
While I have gained eternity.
When thou art dead and cold, O Sun,
Thou’lt be a crownless king laid low. ”

“ If I am parted dear from thee.
Farewell! Farewell! I give thee up.
[Pg 50] The dregs of life I now must sup.
But loving thee, I can forgive.
Without thy love, I cannot live.
Alone, forsaken, and bereft,
There’s naught on earth for me now left.
Farewell! farewell! our past is dead,
All happiness from me hath fled.
The dreary future must be met;
I find that I can not forget.
I think that thou wilt love me dear,
When I am dead, and o’er my bier
Thou bendest down to look at me.
My heart will then from grief be free.
[Pg 51]
FAREWELL.
My lover of the past, farewell! ”

“ When thou dost wake again to life,
Wilt thou awake to weep?
If thou rememberest aught of past,
Thou mayst perhaps regret
The flowers, and trees, now dead and gone,
And for them mourn e’en yet.
A generation will have passed;
A new one thou wilt greet;
All will be strangers unto thee,
No friend of past thou’lt meet. ”

“ I love thee Oswega, will love thee for aye—
’Twas but for a time that my heart went astray.
I’ll come to thy wigwam, will care for thy home,
And never again from my lover will roam.
Oswega! Oswega! my heart is as true
As thine is for me, and I bitterly rue
That vanity caused my heart to grow cold,
By flattering words and the glamour of gold.
The dream is now o’er, it was but for a day.
My vain heart was flattered, I could not say nay.
My beauty may fade, but I know that thy heart
Will ever be mine, and ne’er more shall we part.
[Pg 18]
AT LAST.
I struggle on blindly ”

“ The dead cannot by them be grieved,
Their hearts not filled with dread.
Nor filled with fear and hopelessness.—
And you will not regret
That you have caused unhappiness.
For you can ne’er forget
That you have caused a loved one grief,
Your words have given pain.
You never can forgive yourself,
[Pg 193] And Love you may have slain.
A word seems but a little thing,
But it may break a heart,
Though thought is but a vapor light,
It causes many a smart. ”

“ To confront me by and by.
Though dark clouds are overhanging,
Shining is the sun in sky.
All the little clouds, and shadows
I will drive from out my heart;
For I love the sunshine better,
From no sunbeam will I part.
Though the raindrops may be falling,
Though the day is dark and drear;
It will clear before Life’s evening,
And Life’s sun again appear.
[Pg 72]
A MOHAMMEDAN’S PRAYER.
Thou art Allah, God divine,
And we bow before Thy shrine.
Humbly bend to Thee in prayer.
Thou my God art everywhere.
Thou hast willed th’ stars into space,
Everywhere we see Thy face. ”

“ If we can keep the rose.
If our own ship outrides the gale,
Life’s bar we’ve safely crossed—
All other ships may be engulfed;
Or on rough waves be tossed.
Our careless words may pierce some heart,
And cause it deepest pain—
Awakening memories of the past
Which long in grave have lain.
’Tis ever so in life I fear.
Love’s flowers neglected are.
The weeds will thrive where flowers die,
And thus Love’s garden mar.
[Pg 223]
THE FLOWER’S PRAYER FOR IMMORTALITY.
The fragrance of th’ dying flower
Ascends ’e’en unto God;
Returning to its Maker
From birthplace ’neath the sod. ”

“ And is life without a tear?
Manned is bark with happiness?
Hath thy sky been ever clear?
Dost thou bless thy natal day?
Long’st thou not for day of death?
Art thou willing to live on
Blessing God that thou hast breath? ”

“ So think no evil, if not evil thou wouldst be,
For as thou thinkest, so wilt thou e’en be.
If hate thou thinkest, hate will thee control.
If love thou thinkest, love will fill thy soul.
If seeking ill, ill in thy friend thou’lt find.
If seeking good, to good thou wilt him bind.
Instead of seeking in thy friend for sin,
O turn a retrospective glance within.
For what thou seekest thou wilt surely find,
For good, or evil is in thine own mind.
For as thou thinkest, thou wilt surely be
Then seek for good, and happier thou wilt be. ”

“ Thou pitiest us, Thy children,
Wouldst teach us the right way
Wherein to walk, and what to do,
Wouldst teach us to obey
The law which Thou hast made supreme,
But if we disobey,
Thou still dost plead for our return
To straight and narrow way.
O God our Lord we reverence Thee!
And humble aye would be.
We love Thee ever, though we sin
Throughout eternity.
We know Thou art the only Power
Which reigns supreme on earth,
And though we many trials have,
[Pg 36] We thank Thee for our birth. ”

“ Come back to the forest where we’ve wandered alone;
Come back to my wigwam, and I will condone
The sin of thy leaving, for thou didst not know
The wiles that the white man around thee couldst throw.
The white man will tire of thy beauty so rare,
His plaything thou’lt be, O Winona beware!
Return to thy lover before ’tis too late—
The love of an Indian is as strong as his hate.
Winona! Winona! this is my last plea!
Return unto me! O return unto me!
[Pg 16]
WINONA’S REPLY.
Oswega! ”

“ A fallen king thou soon wilt be.
One moment I shall stand erect;
A sovereign of the earth, and space;
Then die as thou hast died, O Sun,
The last of all my dying race.
The last of all humanity—
I’ve struggled hard to win the race;
Have conquered too, for now I stand
Alone on earth, grim death to face.
The earth is mine, I’ve conquered thee—
One moment witness thy defeat,
Then falling to the earth, now king;
A dead, cold Sun, I proudly greet. [Pg 117]
The earth is cold ”

“ We’ll bear the cares most cheerfully.
Love hath with us no ending.
When Death shall come, as come he must,—
For life is short, and fleeting,
With outstretched hands and happy smile,
We’ll give him kindly greeting.
[Pg 34]
A PRAYER.
O Thou Almighty Presence—
O Thou Almighty Power—
No greater in the heavens,
Than in the smallest flower.
We bow to Thee in reverence,
We kneel to Thee in prayer.
We see Thee in the tiny weed,
We see Thee everywhere.
We know that we are ignorant,
And oftimes sinful are,
But we would keep thy every law,
No plan of Thine e’er mar. ”

“ Canst thou tell me dear friend of the other side?
Of thy beautiful home over there.
Dost thou love us the same as when here on earth?
Canst thou help us our burdens to bear?
And is heaven the same thou once thought it was?
Hast thou met thy dear friends gone before?
Wouldst thou wish to come back to this earth again? ”

“ Sits with us at table to sup.
The mirror I crave is the love-light
That beams in thine eyes, and thy face,
And, cottage when furnished with love-deeds;
[Pg 229] Of poverty shows not a trace.
Love ever looks upward, not downward,
Will therefore not think of bare floor;
And will not fly out of the window,
Though Poverty enters at door.
My gowns may be cotton, or linen;
It matters but little to me.—
My beauty is not of much value,
Unless it is pleasing to thee.
The nest thou hast built by the brookside,
Is better, far better for me
Than mansion, or palace, or castle ”

“ Art thou glad that thou’st lived, and loved, and e’en died?
Canst thou now upon others bestow
The sweet peace that is thine, the love of thy soul?
Canst thou teach us to live, and to die?
Canst thou meet us, and guide us to heaven above,
Solve the problems that in us e’er lie? [Pg 217]
I’ve lived my life, thou must live thine. ”

“ O thou my conquered, fallen foe.
Thou seem’st to laugh exultantly—
Thou shalt be humbled, haughty Sun;
He laughs the best, who laughs the last,
For now thy race is nearly run.
I stand alone defying thee
One moment, then, I too shall die.
But I have gained the victory;
I nevermore to thee shall cry.
Thou standest in thy majesty,
Thou standest in thy glorious might.
With scorn thou viewest dying man
From out thy wondrous, wondrous height
Thou lookest down on me, O Sun,
And dost contempt upon me cast.
But thou art slowly dying, Sun,
[Pg 116] Thy greatness is but of the past. ”

“ For the autumn leaves have covered
And hid the sodden ground.
[Pg 128]
THERE IS A RIFT IN THE CLOUDS.
Though life may be gloomy,
And dark be thy way,
No light in thy pathway,
Not even one ray.
Look up to the heavens;
There’s a rift in the clouds.
Though life may be warfare,
Thy heart have no peace,
Fear not, thou wilt conquer,
Thy heart have surcease.
Look upward, not downward,
There’s a rift in the clouds.
Though friends may prove faithless,
And false unto thee;
There may be a reason
That thou dost not see.
Have charity always,
[Pg 129] And see rift in the clouds. ”

“ As usual, the money poured in unto him.
He now with the highest magnates took rank,
For money he had in every bank.
But magnates, like others, sometime must die,
And in the same earth with poverty lie. ”