Charles Kingsley (b.1819, d.1875) was born at Holne, Devonshire, England.  He took his bachelor’s degree at Cambridge in 1842, and soon after entered the Church.  His writings are quite voluminous, including sermons, lectures, novels, fairy tales, and poems, published in book form, besides numerous miscellaneous sermons and magazine articles.  He was an earnest worker for bettering the condition of the working classes, and this object was the basis of most of his writings.  As a lyric poet he has gained a high place.  The “Saint’s Tragedy” and “Andromeda” are the most pretentious of his poems, and “Alton Locke” and “Hypatia” are his best known novels.

1.  “O Mary, go and call the cattle home,
       And call the cattle home,
       And call the cattle home,
     Across the sands o’ Dee!”
   The western wind was wild and dank with foam,
     And all alone went she.

2.  The creeping tide came up along the sand,
       And o’er and o’er the sand,
       And round and round the sand,
     As far as eye could see;
   The blinding mist came down and hid the land—­
     And never home came she.

3.  Oh, is it weed, or fish, or floating hair?—­
       A tress o’ golden hair,
       O’ drowned maiden’s hair,
     Above the nets at sea. 
   Was never salmon yet that shone so fair
     Among the stakes on Dee.

4.  They rowed her in across the rolling foam,
       The cruel, crawling foam,
       The cruel, hungry foam,
     To her grave beside the sea;
   But still the boatmen hear her call the cattle home,
     Across the sands O’ Dee.

Notes.—­The Sands O’ Dee. 
        The Dee is a river of Scotland, noted for its salmon fisheries. 
        O’ is a contraction for of, commonly used by the Scotch.

RKMARK.—­The first three lines of each stanza deserve special attention in reading.  The final words are nearly or quite the same, but the expression of each line should vary.  The piece should be read in a low key and with a pure, musical tone.

XV.  SELECT PARAGRAPHS.

1.  O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the people.  Sing unto him; sing psalms unto him; talk ye of all his wondrous works.  Glory ye in his holy name; let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.  Remember his marvelous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth.

2.  O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.  When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers; the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?  For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor.  Thou madest him to have dominion over the work of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet.  O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!