BRIGHTER HOURS.
BY GEORGIANA BENNETT.
Though dark the present hour may seem,
With sorrow, care and strife;
Though gladness may not shed her beam
Upon the sky of life;
Yet fear not, for amidst the gloom
One hope is ever hours –
That joy may yet our lot illume,
And bring us Brighter Hours!
Droop not, but nobly struggle still,
For others look to thee;
And they would cease to strive with ill,
If though shouldst conquered be.
In darkest nights some star appears –
In winter’s hand, some flowers;
So shines for us, in adverse years,
The hope of Brighter Hours!
With fearless spirits still press on –
Act thine allotted part!
Life’s high rewards were never won
By faint and coward heart!
Keep on thy course, and falter not,
Though the dread Tempest lours,
But still, however sad thy lot,
Hope on for Brighter Hours!
Cares may be round thee; doubts and fears
Thy trembling soul oppress –
Mourner! look upward through thy tears,
Thy God is near to bless!
E’en if Hope’s earthly ray grows dim,
A better light is ours,
Which leads us on to trust in Him,
Who gave us brighter hours!
Title:Brighter Hours
Author:Georgiana Bennett
Publication:The Bolton Chronicle
Published in:Bolton
Date:23rd August 1862
Commentary
This religious sentimental poem by Georgiana Bennett encourages fortitude in the face of adversity and suggests that better times will always come in the future. Poems of this nature were commonly published in newspapers during the Cotton Famine and might be seen as an attempt to shore up relief efforts and charitable work done by private institutions and local and national governments by promoting patience in the face of the economic disaster befalling large sections of the population. – SR