The Pastor's Reverie

The pastor sits in hls easy-chair, With the Bible upon nis knee. Froin gold to purple the clouas in the west Are changiug luomcntly; The shndows lie in tho valleys below, And liidc in the cnrtain's fold ; And the page grows dim wheroou he reads, I remember the dayn of old." Not clear nor dark," as the Scripture saith, ■The paBtor's memories are ; No day that is gone was shadowless, No night was without its star But mingled bitter and sweet hath been The portion of his clip; " The hand that in l"e hath smitten," he saith, Innove hath bound us up." - Fleet flies hie thought over many afleid Of stubble and snow and bloom, And now it trips through a festival, And now it halts at a tomb; Young faces smile in his rêverie Of those that are young no more, And voices aíe heard that only come With the wlnds from a far-off shore. He thinks of the day when flrst with f ear And faltoring lips, he stood To spoak in tho sacredjlace tho Word To the waitmg multitude; Hd walks aeain to the houso of God, ,,,:,'tu tho voice of joy and praise, With many whose feet long time havo pressed Heaven's safe and blessed ways ne enters again the homes of toil, And joins in the homely chat He stands in the shop of the artisan He sits, whero the Mastor Bat, At the poor man's fire and the rich min's fcast isut who to-day are the poor ; And who are the rich ? Ask Him who keeps -The treasures that ever endure. Ol??íc the green and tho rOT0 sound With the merry children's din ■ He hears their shout at the Christmas-tido, When Santa Claus stalks in Once more he lists while the caniD-flre roars On the distant mountain-side, " Or, proving apostleship, plics the brook Where the flerce young trouthngs hide. And now he beholds the wedding train To the altar elowly move, And the solemn words are said that eeal The sacrament of love. Anon at the font he meets once more Xhe tremulous youthful pair With a white-robed cherub crowing response lo the consecrating prayer. By the couch of pain ho kneels, agam Again, the thin hand lies Cold in nis palm, whüe the last far look oteáis into the steadfast eyes ■ And now the burden of hearts that break Lies heavy upon his own- The widow's woe and the orohan's cry And the desolate mothfir'a'mnan So blitho and glad, so heavy and sad Are the days that are no more, „.1ufnflllly swcet are the sounds that float Witlx the winrJsfrom the far-off Bhore I 'af pastor has learned what nieaneth the word Inat ís given him to keep " Bejoice with thera that do rejoice And weep irith them that weep." It is not in vain that he has trod Thislonely ani toilsome way, It is not in vain that he has Tought In the vineyard aU th day For the soul that giTM i the soul that lives And bearing another's load Doth Ughten your own, and shorten the way And bnghten the homeward road -Harper'a Magazine for September.