Esther Nelson Karn

“ And hies to the mountain, but leaves in his stead
The Goddess of Love, with the blossom-crowned head;
And a breath that is filled with the nectar and dew,
She stole from the heart of the violet blue;
A voice—O, the music that swells on the air
From fresh-budding woodland, from hedge,—everywhere,
Caressed by the sunlight and bathed by the showers,
She walks on a carpet of mosses and flowers.
Again comes the pessimist, grumpy and grim,
And says the fair goddess has no charms for him.
"'Tis raining too often, the corn and the wheat
Will rot in the ground; there'll be nothing to eat ”

“ Whence that dimpled foot and hand,
Baby mine?
Came they here at love's command,
Baby mine?
Or did angels, in their flight,
Drop this little blossom white
On the stream of time one night,
Baby mine?
Dimples guard thy crimson lips,
Baby mine;
Prints of fairy finger-tips,
Baby mine.
Now the shade of angel wings
Sweet repose upon thee brings,—
Silken soft thy slumberings,
Baby mine.
[Pg 54]
LULLABY.
Rock-a-by, hush-a-by, baby, my dear,
Nothing can harm you, for mother is near.
The journey is short, and the stars twinkle bright
O'er your path into Byloland, baby, good-night. ”

“ Bedecked with golden sheen—
A fleecy cloudlet, here and there,
In azure sky is seen.
The gold and crimson leaves that give
The trees their autumn gown,
Are scattered by the gentle breeze
Upon the meadows brown.
Tho' summer flow'rs that were so fair
Have faded, one by one,
The goldenrod, in beauty rare,
Her reign has just begun. [Pg 9]
The grapevines now are laden with
Sweet clusters, oh, so blue!
And scattered o'er the orchard ground
Are rosy apples, too.
Oh, who could sigh for summer skies,
For summer flowers and trees,
For singing birds and rainbow showers,
'Mid autumn scenes like these? ”

“ Old earth now groans beneath her load
Of grain and fruited vine,
That thickly hangs o'er orchard wall,
And drips with mellow wine.
The birds fly lazily above,
Bathed in thy misty light,
While on the hillside loll the kine
In morning's gold delight.
Wrapped in thy folds of golden mist,
This restless soul of mine
Is lulled into a blissful dream
Of peace and love divine.
[Pg 15]
TO A WATER-LILY.
Sweet flower, what cold, unfeeling hand
Hath plucked thee from that shady land
Where clear, cool waters lie,
And velvet mosses kissed thy feet? ”

“ Of the sweets from the blossom-spangled sod,
While your weary frame is drenched,
And your thirsty soul is quenched,
In a shower of the great love of God.
[1] The above is a description of the Lakeside addition to Ft. Wayne, Ind.
[Pg 14]
AUTUMN.
Enchanting dawn of autumn days,
So clear, so cool, so calm,
O'er all creation breathing forth
Thy sweet refreshing balm!
The woodland dons its brightest hue,
Its rainbow-tinted gown;
Each soft and dreamy breeze that blows
Brings showers of crimson down. ”

“ From the God-given radiance of heaven's own blue. [Pg 23]
And cowslips and buttercups grow where we tread,
The breeze whispers soft through the trees overhead,
As showers of pink blossoms, with fragrance so rare,
They shed o'er the ground, over us,—everywhere.
Thou faithful old friend, always ready to go;
Ne'er found out of order like others I know;
And when off we go for a nice little spin,
Unlike others, thou'st never left me to "walk in."
Exchange for another that's handsome and new!
No, no, bonnie steed, I will not part with you. ”

“ Glide along with all ease in the sweet dreamy breeze,
Like balloons in soft heavens of blue? [Pg 90]
Mother: Not there, my child, not there.
Fort Wayne is a hustling city, my dear,
On the banks of the old Maumee,
Where most of the folks are too busy to care
The beauties of nature to see.
'Tis a place where they all pay a tax, my dear,
For repairing the street, you know,
That they all may enjoy their bicycles, dear,
As "bumpety bump" they go. ”

“ My bills, they increase, while my business is slow;
I soon shall be broken and bankrupt, I know!
There's no satisfaction on land or on sea,
For nothing is what I desire it to be."
Say, Pessimist, say, while you grumble and fret,
Know ye not there is One who your needs won't forget? [Pg 35]
Think ye the kind Father of wisdom so great
Forgetteth the things which His hands did create?
The sparrow sings neither by day nor by night,
Yet He, in His tenderness, guideth its flight.
He maketh the lily of waxen-white hue,
And feeds it on showers, on sunshine and dew ”

“ You hear the old pessimist counting his ills.
With a sorrowful shake of the head murmurs he,
"Such nasty cold weather I never did see;
The streets are so slip'ry one can't walk at all,
For danger of breaking a leg by a fall;
Unless a few days bring a great change about, [Pg 32]
The wheat in the ground will be all frozen out." ”

“ Weary of the world's vain, gilded styles,
Though my moments he with softest words beguiles;
Though he warble ne'er so blandly,
His old heart is false though friendly,
For he lingers near me but when fortune smiles. ”

“ The maple trees that spread their boughs
O'er the court-house yard below,
Each year yield up their foliage
To winter's frost and snow.
The birds that nest and sing among
Their boughs in summer time,
When winter winds begin to blow,
All seek a sunny clime.
But thou, oh, tried and faithful one,
Wert always just the same,
Keeping the time with merry chime
Through sunshine, snow, and rain.
For forty years thou'st kept the time,
While in the court below
Stood he who perpetrated crime, [Pg 94]
Waiting his doom to know ”

“ With thy sunshine and showers,
When young love awoke
From sleep 'mong the flowers.
Each year, in thy sunshine, 'neath heavens of blue,
With thy sweet, fragrant blossoms he's wakened anew.
Welcome, sweet May!
[Pg 12]
LAKESIDE. [1]
'Tis the dearest, coolest place I can find ”

“ For the breezes of June-time are whispering 'mid [Pg 28]
The flowers that blossom her pallet above,
Who tended that old-fashioned garden I love;
And singing their lullaby sweetest where lies
My playmate and sister with bonnie blue eyes.
And I hope when my sojourn of usefulness here
Is past, to the place that my bosom holds dear
I may go, and there pillow my head 'neath the tree
Where robin and oriole chirrup in glee,
While my soul slips away from the spot that I love,
To old-fashioned gardens that grow up above.
[Pg 29]
DANCE OF THE RIPPLES.
I stood, one night, by the old St. ”

“ Took his departure long ago.
"O'er roadside, field, and woodland, too,
Sweet violets grow, with eyes so blue;
Blossoms of every hue and shade
The balmy air with perfume lade.
"There's light and sunshine everywhere;
All nature is so wondrous fair ”

“ Now raideth the cornfields from morning till night.
A famine is certain! 'Tis sure to prevail!"
And thus the old pessimist keeps up his wail. [Pg 33]
At last this fair goddess descends from the throne,
Gives place to another we've all loved and known. ”

“ Rode on the soft breezes the summer day long.
The currant-bush flourished in rows near the wall,
The sugar corn waved its soft leaves over all;
And buttercups, daisies and peonies grew,
The fragrant June pinks and the wee bells of blue; [Pg 27]
The marigolds, poppies, and pansies so sweet
Lifted their dewy faces towards heaven to meet
The first smile of morning; the fragrant sweet pea
Wound its delicate tendrils round pickets, and we ”