When suddenly upon the air.
Rang out a sweet bird's song,
No feeble, weak, uncertain note,
No plaint of grief or wrong,
No "Miserere Domine,"
No "Dies Irea" sad,
But "Gloria in Excelsis" rang,
In accents wild and glad.

How could he sing? a birdling caged,
And in the dark alone,
And then methought that he had seen,
Some vision from God's throne,
The little birdling's eyes were bright,
While mine with tears were dim,
Had some bright watcher glided by,
And spake in joy to him?

Then I remembered what Christ said,
The God of love's dear Son,
"Not one of these small birds forgot
Beneath the glorious sun."
They have no load of grief to bear,
Of sin no dark, deep stain,
And yet in patience take their share
Of storm, and frost and rain.

Oh, can it be unknown to us,
Without one human word,