Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, WRITTEN FOR AN ALBUM, by JOHN GARDINER CALKINS BRAINARD


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

WRITTEN FOR AN ALBUM, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: See to your book, young lady, let it be
Last Line: And such, young lady, always may you be.
Subject(s): Writing & Writers


SEE to your book, young lady; let it be
An index to your life -- each page be pure,
By vanity uncolored, and by vice
Unspotted. Cheerful be each modest leaf,
Not rude; and pious be each written page,
Without hypocrisy, be it devout;
Without moroseness, be it serious;
If sportive, innocent: and if a tear
Blot its white margin, let it drop for those
Whose wickedness needs pity more than hate.
Hate no one -- hate their vices, not themselves.
Spare many leaves for charity -- that flower
That better than the rose's first white bud
Becomes a woman's bosom. There we seek
And there we find it first. Such be your book,
And such, young lady, always may you be.






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