Friendship, No. I.

Friendship, No. I. [No. 75]

Seek not for Friendship with the Vile of Earth,
Whose highest aspirations are to gain
Honours unearn’d and Wealth, whatever Pain
They give their Fellow-men: those who from Birth
Have Crawl’d, or Stalk’d, or Run, as best they could, 5
Along the Path of Life; pushing aside
More modest Merit, in their bloated Pride;
Worldly Success their God. But with the Good
Of every Creed and Clime—though they may not
See with the eyes in Statesmanship, but love 10
Fair Freedom here, and hope for Peace above,
In the Grand Lodge Eternal—cast thy lot.
The Friends we lose we may never recall:
Then let us Strive through Life to Keep them All.

by George Markham Tweddell 1st published c 1887