Poem by Christopher Morley

A Charm

               For Our New Fireplace,
               To Stop Its Smoking


O wood, burn bright; O flame, be quick;
O smoke, draw cleanly up the flue—
My lady chose your every brick
And sets her dearest hopes on you!

Logs cannot burn, nor tea be sweet,
Nor white bread turn to crispy toast,
Until the charm be made complete
By love, to lay the sooty ghost.

And then, dear books, dear waiting chairs,
Dear china and mahogany,
Draw close, for on the happy stairs
My brown-eyed girl comes down for tea! 

1. Pedometer
2. Ars Dura
3. The Church of Unbent Knees
4. Washing the Dishes
5. The New Altman Building

Rudyard Kipling A Charm ("Take of English earth as much")

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