Page 65 - Third Book of Reading Lessons

64
THIRD BOOK OF

LESSON III.
HYMN OF THE CITY.
1. NOT in the solitude
Alone, may man commune with heaven, or see
Only in savage wood
And sunny vale, the present Deity ; Or only hear his voice
Where the winds whisper, and the waves r oice.
2. Even here do I behold
y steps, Almighty ! here amidst the crowd Through the great city roll'd,
With everlasting murmur deep and loud­ Choking the ways that wind
'Mongst the proud piles, the work of human kind.
3. Thy golden sunshine comes
From the round heavens, and on their dwelling lies, And lights their inner ho es ;
For them thou ll'st with air th' unbounded skies, And givest them the stores
Of ocean, and the harvest of its shores.
4. Thy spirit is around,
Quick'ning the restless mass that sweps along ; And this eternal sound-
Voices and ot lls of the numberless throng­ Like the resounding sea,
Or like the rainy tempest, speaks of thee.
5. And when the hours of rest
Come like a calm upon the mid-sea brine,