What doth the poor man's son inherit?
Wishes o'erjoyed with humble things,
A rank adjudged by toil-won merit,
Content that from employment springs,
A heart that in his labor sings;

A heritage, it seems to me,
A king might wish to hold in fee.

JAMES RUSSELL Lowell.

We are grateful to Thee, O God, for our daily bread. We are especially grateful because Thou dost not shower bread upon us like manna, but in order to get it we have to work for it; plant and weed and hoe and harvest. We thank Thee for raiment, but we are especially grateful that we are not furnished with feathers and fur like the birds of the air and the beasts of the field. If we would be clothed we must spin and weave and cut and sew. We are grateful to Thee for shelter from the wind and the rain, and for the hearth-stone around which the family gathers and calls by the sacred name of home. But we recognize Thy divine providence in the fact that if we would have shelter we must build, if we would have a fire on the hearth we must hew and delve for the fuel wherewith to make the fire burn. Urge us on to continuous effort that by constant endeavor we may at last attain to the fulness of the measure of the stature of the Carpenter of Nazareth, who said, "My Father worketh hitherto, and I work." Amen.

FRANK OLIVER HALL.

Would'st shape a noble life? Then cast
No backward glances toward the past.
And though somewhat be lost and gone,
Yet do thou act as one new-born;

What each day needs, that thou shalt ask,
Each day will set its proper task.

GOETHE.

God of the sunrise, we crave a fresh vision of Thyself and Thy will for this new day. Help us to be so interested in making the best possible to-day that we shall forget our bad yesterdays. Especially do Thou keep our minds from dwelling midst the chilling shadows of our sins. Have we not repented of them? Hast Thou not forgiven them? Deliver us from all hindering reminders of them. Help us to focus all our energies on to-day's tasks and possible triumphs. As each new door opens may we realize that Thine invisible hand leads the way, and that we may feel Thy comradeship inspiring us to walk with newness of life, radiant with Thy light and love. Amen.

L. H. DORCHESTER.

He sows June fields with clover and the world
Broadcasts with little common kindnesses.
The plain good souls He sends us, who fulfil
Life's homely duties in the daily path
With cheerful heart, ambitious of no more
Than to supply the wants of friend and kin,
Yet serve God's higher love to human hearts;
Giving a secret sweetness to the home,
The hidden fragrance of a kindly heart,
The simple beauty of a useful life,
That never dazzles and that never tires.

SAMUEL LONGFELLOW.

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, teach us to love what Thou hast loved; this world in all its beauty: teach us to lose ourselves in every task and there to find ourselves in the likeness of God: teach us to bear each sorrow and pain that, by its discipline, we may grow stronger and become masters of ourselves, and so to overcome each difficulty as to make them stepping-stones to a higher life. There in Thy clear light may we know the power of conquest and the joy of service, with a love like thine to spend our lives in the service of those about us, and in serving them to serve Thee. Amen.

EARNEST PUGH.

If thou wouldst live unruffled by care,
Let not the past torment thee e'er;
If any loss thou hast to rue,

Act as though thou wert born anew;
Inquire the meaning of each day,
What each day means itself will say;
In thine own actions take thy pleasure;
What others do, thou'lt duly treasure;
Ne'er let thy breast with hate be supplied
And to God the future safe confide.

GOETHE.

We thank Thee, our Father, for the gift of this new day, and may the golden hours be kept free from all unkindness or selfishness. Grant that we may be disenchanted from all illusions; set free from the spell of every false light; that we may be fully enlightened at every point of difficulty and be sure of every step; that we may be reinforced for every noble task confronting us; that the fulness of consolation may be ours from sources the world knows not of, for every loss and in every hour of trial. May we meet the privileges and the duties of the day with a serene and courageous spirit, proving ourselves faithful and helpful in every situation, and holding an unshaken faith in a gracious Providence. Amen.

NAPHTALI LUCCOCK.

Let us put by some hour of every day

For holy things! whether it be when dawn
Peers through the window pane, or when the noon
Flames, like a burnished topaz, in the vault,
Or when the thrush pours in the ear of eve
Its plaintive monody; some little hour.
From sordidness and self a sanctuary,
Swept by the winnowing of unseen wings,
And touched by the White Light ineffable!

CLINTON SCOLLARD.

Our Father, many little things will crowd this day. May we not miss the one big thing. Grant us help to rescue some moments from the grasp of sordidness and self and devote them to communion with Thee. Thus shall all moments and tasks be sacred, and we shall learn to love all work, knowing that Thou hast hallowed it. Thus shall we come to feel that our daily tasks are not ends, but steps by which to climb to heavenly mansions. Thus, also, shall we love all men, - wicked, weak, erring,

knowing that they are very dear to Thee. Then, when the twilight and evening star come, and the thrush pours his plaintive melody into the ear of eve may we hear the voice of the gentle Christ, "Come unto me and I will give you rest." Grant us, Father, such a day, for His Name's sake. Amen.

OLIVER W. HUTCHINSON.