ly

two and twenty Summers had passed., She

had bricUbeeti - ,•Pe,sseise4 with' an 'ennoble

beauty, aishe herself

says, Tattered andseuglt: for the eiterMs of

her face ;' htkalaSlnpoe'the fair brow, was

written,thatterrible'werd-7-prostitute!. Once

the pride "ofrespectable parentage,, her first

wrong step was the ,imall beginning •of the

'enmo old story over again,'.which has been

only the life history of 'thousands. Highly

educatid,•ora With' -necoMplished nuinnars,

she might lt‘e 'shoh'e in. the' beat Uciety.=-

BuVthe Onl:honi that proiUd 'her' ruin Wits

the door from which went Out the innocence

of childhood,' and having spent'a young life

in disgraCe end

,shame, the poor

,friendless

outcast., Among her personal effects, was

was found. in manuscript, The Beautiful

Snow,'- which was immediately carried .to

Enos B. Beet], a, gentlemantoreulture and

literary-tieto; who was at that time editor of

the irational Union. In the' columns of that

paper, on the morning of the day following

the girl's death, the poem appeared in print

for'thelfirst tune.

. the When paper containing the poem came

out on Sunday morning, the body of the via'

tiro had not received burial.. Tho , attention

of Thomas'Btichanan Read, one of the first

American poets, was.so taken with their stir­

ying

,pat)tos,nthat .he : immediately_ Jellowid

the corpse to its final resting place.

Such are ill° - Plain facts concerning her

whose 'Beautiful Snow'. shalilong be remain :

tiered as one of the beetitiful gems of 'Ameri­

can literature." , r

' THE BEAUTIFUL SNOW.

Oh I the Snow, the beautiful 'snow I

Filling the sky and the earth below,

Over the house-tope, over the street,

Over the heads of the people you meet,

•‘

, •Dancing,

• Flirting,

• Skipping along ; •

Beautiful snow I it can do nothing wrong,

Flying to kiss a fair cheek.

Clinging to lips in a frolicsome freak ;

Beautiful snow frorn.the henvond•above, '

Pure as an angel, gentle as love I

Ohl the 'snow, the beautiful snow I

How the flakes gather and laugh as they go

Whirling about in their 'maddening fun,

It plays in its glee with every one--

„ Chasing, • .

„, ..; .I,l,aughing,

llurrying by, . •

It lights on the face and sparkles the eye,

'And thipliiying dogs with:a bark and a

bound

Snap at the cryfttalsi that eddy arc= I

The fOwn.is,alive, and its henri in a glow

To welcome the coming of ,beautiful snow.

1i •

ow, wildly the crow swaying along,

liailing i encli other with humor and song 1

How the gay like meteors - pass by,

Brtght fora moment, then lost to the eye'!

Ringing,

-

-'Swinging, • :

Dashing they

Orpr tbeernst of the beautiful snow—,

Snow•se pure when it falls:from the sky, •

As to make ono regret to see it lip

To be tramped and tracked - by the thous­

.

ntids of feet,

Till it blends with the filth in the horrible

- street.

•

Once I was pure as the snow, but I fell—

Fell like the snow-flakes,'-from heaven to

hell;

Fell to be tramped ne filth in the street;'

Fell to be scoffed, to be spit on and be beat;'

Pleading.

Cursing,'

Dreading to.die;, -

Selling my, soul to mime). would bay ;

Dealing in shame for a morsel of bread ;

Hating the living and fearing the dead.

Mereiful'Gnd 1 Hove I fallen do low ?

And yet I vrasbnco like the beautiful snow.

Once I was fair es the,heautiful snow,

With an eye like 'a crystal, a heart like its

glow ;

,

'Once I was loved for my innocent grace,

Flattered and sought fur the charms of my

face.

Father, , • •

, . Mother,

,

Sister, all, ,

God apd myself have I lost by, my fall!

Tho veriest wretch that goes shivering by

Will make a wide swoop lest I wander

too nigh ;

For all that isen or nbovo me, I know

There's nothing so pure ae the beautiful

snow.

How strange it Should he that this beauti­

ful snow

Should fall on a sinner with nowhere to go!

How strange it should he when night comes

again,,

If the snow and the ice struck my despe­

rate brain I -

Fainting,

Freezing,

Dying alone.

'no wicked for Prayer,too weak for a moan,

To be heard in the streets of the crazy town,

Gone med in the joy of the snow coming

down.

To be and:to die in my terrible woe,.

With a bed and a shroud of the •beautiftil

snow.

Helpless and foul as the trampled snow,

Sinner, despair' notl Christ stooped low

To rescue the scul that is lost in its sin,

And raise it to life and enjoyment again.

Groaning,

Bleeding,

Ding for thee,

The crucified hung on the accursed tree,

His accents of mercy fell soft on thine ear.

Is there mercy for met Will He heed my

prayer?

0 God 1 In the stream that for sinners did

flow

Wash me, and I shall ho whiter than snow