The Poetical Works of Jonathan E. Hoag/A Voice Beneath the Evergreens
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A Voice Beneath the Evergreens
Beneath a canopy of green,
Now sleep our loved and lost;
We bring sweet flowers in summertime,
Ere comes the chilling frost.
Now sleep our loved and lost;
We bring sweet flowers in summertime,
Ere comes the chilling frost.
Alas! all crushed they lie beneath
A shroud of driven snow;
While gloom and silence brood o'er all,
Where'er our footsteps go.
A shroud of driven snow;
While gloom and silence brood o'er all,
Where'er our footsteps go.
Now doth the sere and yellow leaf
Hang trembling in the breeze;
The chilling blasts of winter days
Now sway the leafless trees.
Hang trembling in the breeze;
The chilling blasts of winter days
Now sway the leafless trees.
Here, 'neath the chiseled marble slab,
And 'neath the granite gray,
Watch souls in silence for the dawn
Of Resurrection Day.
And 'neath the granite gray,
Watch souls in silence for the dawn
Of Resurrection Day.
Tell me, O Fate, why silver threads
Remorselessly must break;
Why those we knew and loved so long
Time from our side must take?
Remorselessly must break;
Why those we knew and loved so long
Time from our side must take?
Why sever ties, which years of love
Have moulded to endure,
In homes where prattling children feel
Affection deep and pure?
Have moulded to endure,
In homes where prattling children feel
Affection deep and pure?
Hark! for a low and peaceful tone
Falls gently on our ears:
"Loved, yet not lost; we hover by,
To dry those crystal tears!"
Falls gently on our ears:
"Loved, yet not lost; we hover by,
To dry those crystal tears!"
Thus from beneath the evergreens,
That e'er their vigil keep,
Speak those who rest beneath the mould
From out their age-long sleep.
That e'er their vigil keep,
Speak those who rest beneath the mould
From out their age-long sleep.
They fondly scan each well-loved face,
That seeks those realms afar;
And wait to greet them, as they pass
Through pearly gates ajar!
That seeks those realms afar;
And wait to greet them, as they pass
Through pearly gates ajar!
1916