Excerpt from Song Leaves: From the Book of Life and Nature Though Poetry may be classed among the elegancies of Literature, and be looked upon more as an ornamental appendage to the library and drawing-room than as a source of amusement or instruction, it has its mission upon earth as well as writings in prose. And that mission is to speak unto the hearts of men. To place itself on the side of Virtue and Truth; and, by its pictures of Life and Nature, graced, as the artist may be able, with the drapery of Romance, or the colors of Fancy, draw mankind closer together in bonds of sympathy and fellowship. And, while cultivating a taste for the Beautiful in Art and Nature, raise in the breast a desire to extend those earthly blessings which Providence has showered upon them to their less fortunate brethren. There have been occasions when a simple song has effected more than volumes of prose. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.