LIVE FOR SOMETHING. Live for something, be not idle, Look about thee for employ, Sit not down to useless dreaming,-- Labor is the sweetest joy. Folded hands are ever weary, Selfish hearts are never gay, Life for thee hath many duties,-- Active be, then, whilst thou may. Scatter blessings in thy pathway! Gentle words and cheering smiles Better are than gold and silver, With their grief-dispelling wiles. As the pleasant sunshine falleth Ever on the grateful earth, So let sympathy and kindness Gladden well the darkened hearth. Hearts there are oppressed and weary,-- Drop the tear of sympathy; Whisper words of hope and comfort; Give, and thy reward shall be Joy unto thy soul returning, From this perfect fountain-head; Freely, as thou freely givest, Shall the grateful light be shed. THE BEAUTIFUL. The beautiful! the beautiful! Where do we find it not? It is an all-pervading grace, And lighteth every spot. It sparkles on the ocean wave, It glitters in the dew; We see it in the glorious sky. And in the floweret's hue. On mountain-top, in valley deep, We find its presence there; The beautiful! the beautiful! It liveth every where. The glories of the noontide day, The still and solemn night; The changing seasons,--all can bring Their tribute of delight. There's beauty in the child's first smile; And in that look of faith, The Christian's last on earth, before His eyes are closed in death. And in the beings that we love, Who have our tenderest care, The beautiful! the beautiful! How sweet to trace it there! 'Twas in the glance that God threw o'er The young created earth; When He proclaimed it very good, The beautiful had birth. Then who shall say this world is dull, And all to sadness given, While yet there grows on every side, The smile that came from heaven? If so much loveliness is sent To grace our earthly home, How beautiful! how beautiful! Will be the world to come. DON'T KILL THE BIRDS. Don't kill the birds!--the little birds, That sing about your door, Soon as the joyous spring has come, And chilling storms are o'er. The little birds!--how sweet they sing! Oh! let them joyous live; And do not seek to take the life Which you can never give. Don't kill the birds!--the pretty birds, That play among the trees! 'Twould make the earth a cheerless place, Should we dispense with these. Don't kill the birds!--the happy birds, That bless the field and grove; So innocent to look upon,-- They claim our warmest love. LITTLE ACTS OF KINDNESS. Little acts of kindness, Trifling though they are, How they serve to brighten This dark world of care! Little acts of kindness, Oh, how potent they, To dispel the shadows Of life's cloudy day.