WHEN words and acts, untrue, unkind,
Against thy life like arrows fly,
Receive them with a patient mind,
Seek no redress, make no reply.
O holy silence! ‘tis a shield
More strong than warrior’s twisted mail:
A hidden strength, a might concealed,
Which worldly shafts in vain assail.
He who is silent in his cause
Has left that cause to heavenly arms;
And heaven’s eternal aid and laws
Are swift to shield from threatened harms.