Hunt and Lee, comps. The Book of the Sonnet. 1867.
III. The SisterMrs. Sarah Josepha Hale (17881879)
The Empire of Woman—A Series of Sonnets
W
The wakening spirit of the boy doth spring,
Spurning the rein Authority would fling,
And striving with his peers for mastery:
But in the household gathering let him see
His sister’s gentle smile, and it will bring
A change o’er all his nature; patiently,
As cagéd bird that never used its wing,
He turns him to the tasks that she doth share;
His better passions kindle by her side;
Visions of angel beauty haunt the air:
May she not summon such to be his guide?
Our Saviour listened to a sister’s prayer,
When “Lazarus, from the tomb come forth!” he cried.