FAITH, HOPE, AND LOVE.
INSCRIBED TO MISS NORA ELDRIDGE ON HER WEDDING-DAY.
No gems that are gleaming and glowing I bring, No glittering gold from the deep of the mine,'T is only a song of the heart I would sing; 'T is only heart-flowers I lay on your shrine.
Yet soft is their fragrance, and pure as the snow The white lily petals of Faith that unfold;And bright as the morning's first passionate glow Hope's roses, arrayed in their crimson and gold.
Still fairer and fresher and sweeter by far, Dew-beaded with gems from the heavens above,Their leaflets more precious than all others are, The blue, bending bells of the flower of Love.
All these I would bring, in their beauty and bloom, Undimmed by a breath of the world in its pride;Fresh-gathered, and fragrant with fairy perfume, Entwining the hearts of the bridegroom and bride.
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