Classic Poem

Sweet pious gift! — to truth a richer feast
Than all the diamonds of the pamper'd east,
More bright, more precious than the ruby's glare,
To speak a mother's love and fervent care.
Ah, more than that! — In every beauteous line
There gleams the sacred power of love divine!
That blessed name the christian shall adore
When time, and sense, and change shall be no more;
That name adorns and animates the page,
More rich than fancy, and more wise than age:
And sweetly may the grateful child revere
What dying saints might prize and martyrs hear!