Poems (Angier)/Name Not the Dead
For works with similar titles, see Name not the Dead.
NAME NOT THE DEAD.
Oh! never say, name not the dead, Their memory we should keepAmong the heart's most cherished things O'er which we watch and weep.
Oh! never say, name not the dead, Nor bid us to forget;We prize not less the summer's sun Because that sun has set.
Oh! never say, name not the dead, Their record let it beEnshrined among our household gods, Things most we love to see.
Oh! never say, name not the dead, But give them still their place,And round the dear domestic hearth Bring each remembered face.
Oh! never say, name not the dead, It soothes the sufferer's lotTo whisper in the dying ear "Thou shalt not be forgot."
Name not the dead! Oh, speak not so, The low voice seems to say,Of one who like a dream of bliss Passed from our earth away.
Then never say, name not the dead, Their memory is givenTo link the chain good spirits weave Between our souls and heaven.
No! never say, name not the dead, These gentle accents comeFrom lips long since in silence sealed, The silence of the tomb.