The Thoughts of Night.

New Zealand Illustrated Magazine, 1 February 1901, Page 364

The Thoughts of Night.

The day is done, and the night time Has spread, like a cloak, o'er the scene, And the stars, the eyes of the Watcher, Glance down with a gaze cold and keen ; While the moon, the lamp of the Heavens, Diffuses her pitying rays, - And under them, far in the woodland Securely are dancing the fays. And out on the ocean roadway, At rest on the swift-flowii.g tide, The towering liner- is looming, With the stately barque at her side ; And the lights of the silent vessels Resemble the star-sprinkled sky, While the song of a midnight boatman Floats up, as he drifts slowly by.

And I think, as I'm watching the midnight, What a beautiful time it is, And of all the hours of God's world The midnight supremely is His ; For how gloriously calm, and earnest, Are the beams of refulgent light That come, like a symbol of God's love, In the hush of the stilly night. And one knows that God's in existence, That His eye is upon us still, And His arms are for ever open To gather us in when we will ; And a feeling of peace and safety Steals into our hearts as we think, And soothes us, and quiets our longings, Like a pure and life-giving drink.

And so, while we're musing and watching, The night-time is passing away, Fur there comes a brightening yonder, And the darkness is merged into day. And we watch the sun proudly rising, As he gilds the pale earth with light; And we find that our thoughts are broken, That the spell is gone with the night. H. W. Harcourt.