O gentle Night! O thought-inspiring Night! Humbly I bow before thy sovereign power; Sadly I own thy all-unequalled might To calm weak mortal in his darkest hour: Spreading thy robe o’er all the mass of care, Thou bidd’st the sorrowful no more despair. When high in heaven thou bidd’st thy torches shine, Casting on earth a holy, peaceful light, My heart adores thee in thy calm divine, Is soothed by thee, O hope-inspiring Night! All anxious thoughts, all evil bodings fly; My soul doth rest, since thou, O Night! art nigh. When thou hast cast o’er all the sleeping land Thy darkened robe, the symbol of thy state, Alone beneath heaven’s mightiness I stand, Musing on life, eternity, and fate; Mayhap with concentrated thought I try To pierce the cloud of heaven’s great mystery. ’Tis then sweet music in the air I hear, Like rippling waters falling soft and low; With soul enraptured do I list, yet fear— ’Tis not such music as we mortals know; It wafts the soul from earthly things away, Leaving behind the senseless frame of clay. Friends, kindly faces crowd around me there, Friends loved the better since they passed away, Leaving a legacy of wild despair— And now I see them as in full orb’d day, The long-lamented once again descry, Bask in each smile, gaze in each speaking eye. O blest reunion, Night’s almighty gift, Lent for a time unto the thoughtful mind; When memory can o’er the clouds uplift The startled soul away from all mankind, Throw wide eternity’s majestic gate, And grant a view of the immortal state. And thou, O Night! who can’st these spirits raise, Giv’st immortality to mortal eyes, To thee I tune mine unadornèd praise, And chant thy glories to the list’ning skies: Waft, O ye winds! the floating notes along; Ye woods and mountains, echo back the song. ROBERT A. NEILSON. * * * * * The Conductor of CHAMBERS’S JOURNAL begs to direct the attention of CONTRIBUTORS to the following notice: _1st._ All communications should be addressed to the ‘Editor, 339 High Street, Edinburgh.’ _2d._ For its return in case of ineligibility, postage-stamps should accompany every manuscript. _3d._ MANUSCRIPTS should bear the author’s full _Christian_ name, Surname, and Address, legibly written; and should be written on white (not blue) paper, and on one side of the leaf only. _4th._ Offerings of Verse should invariably be accompanied by a stamped and directed envelope. _If the above rules are complied with, the Editor will do his best to insure the safe return of ineligible papers._ * * * * * Printed and Published by W. & R. CHAMBERS, 47 Paternoster Row, LONDON, and 339 High Street, EDINBURGH. * * * * * _All Rights Reserved._