gination outstrips his understanding; his emotions carry him far beyond the narrow reach of his intelligence. He has but one lesson to learn, the les son of enjoyment, and that it hardly lies in our power to teach. We can but show him the fair fields of song, and let him glean where he will. All the harvest is ripened to his hand, and he knows where his own store lies. In selecting these few poems I have had no other motive than to give pleasure to the children who may read them; and I have tried to study their tastes, and feelings, and desires. If I succeed, my reward will be very great; for to help a child to the love of poetry is to insure for him one source of happiness in a not too happy world. It is to charm and brighten the gray routine of life, and to lift him for some brief, sweet moments from all the cares, and vexations, and drudgeries of earth up to those shining abodes |