This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
NEW-YEAR'S DAY, 1843,
This day may bear to some an aspect bright,
Of blushing hopes, or realised delight;
Or wake the heart from griefs that now must lie
In the long vista of eternity.
There seems a newness in all living things—
A very freshness that the season brings.
Friend meets with friend, and lends the list'ning ear
To the heart's promise of a brighter year.
And when the heart is young in voiceless care,
And no deep sorrow lurks in anguish there—
And youthful hope absorbs each transient ray
Of earth's rare loveliness, the bright and gay—
And friendship's smile, that sunshine of the heart,
That still will linger on as years depart—-
When relatives, the loved ones and the dear,
Are all around, the blissful heart to cheer—
When Death hath owned no fellowship with thine,
Thy lot on earth hath been a lot divine—

73