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<h4>The Light of Stars.</h4>
<blockquote>
<p>The night is come, but not too soon;<br/>
And sinking silently,<br/>
All silently, the little moon<br/>
Drops down behind the sky.<br/>
<br/>
There is no light in earth or heaven,<br/>
But the cold light of stars;<br/>
And the first watch of night is given<br/>
To the red planet Mars.<br/>
<br/>
Is it the tender star of love?<br/>
The star of love and dreams?<br/>
Oh, no! from that blue tent above,<br/>
A hero’s armour gleams.<br/>
<br/>
And earnest thoughts within me rise,<br/>
When I behold afar,<br/>
Suspended in the evening skies<br/>
The shield of that red star.<br/>
<br/>
O star of strength! I see thee stand<br/>
And smile upon my pain;<br/>
Thou beckonest with thy mailed hand,<br/>
And I am strong again.<br/>
<br/>
Within my breast there is no light,<br/>
But the cold light of stars;<br/>
I give the first watch of the night<br/>
To the red planet Mars.<br/>
<br/>
The star of the unconquered will,<br/>
He rises in my breast,<br/>
Serene, and resolute, and still,<br/>
And calm, and self-possessed.<br/>
<br/>
And thou, too, whosoe’er thou art,<br/>
That readest this brief psalm,<br/>
As one by one thy hopes depart,<br/>
Be resolute and calm.<br/>
<br/>
Oh, fear not in a world like this,<br/>
And thou shalt know ere long,<br/>
Know how sublime a thing it is<br/>
To suffer and be strong.<br/></p>
</blockquote>
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