Ev'n so, with all submission, I
. . . .
Send you each year a homely letter,
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Ev'n so, with all submission, I
. . . .
Send you each year a homely letter,
Who may return me much a better.

Carrier of news and knowledge,
Instrument of trade and industry,
Promoter of mutual acquaintance,
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Carrier of news and knowledge,
Instrument of trade and industry,
Promoter of mutual acquaintance,
Of peace and good-will
Among men and nations.

Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor night stays these couriers
from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.

Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor night stays these couriers
from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.

And he wrote in the king Ahasuerus' name, and sealed it with the
king's ring, and sent letters by read more

And he wrote in the king Ahasuerus' name, and sealed it with the
king's ring, and sent letters by posts on horseback, and riders
on mules, camels, and young dromedaries: . . . .
So the posts that rode upon mules and camels went out, being
hastened and pressed on by the king's commandment. And the
decrees was given at Shushan the palace.

The welcome news is in the letter found;
The carrier's not commission'd to expound;
It speaks itself, read more

The welcome news is in the letter found;
The carrier's not commission'd to expound;
It speaks itself, and what it does contain,
In all things needful to be known is plain.

Now my days are swifter than a post: they flee away, they see no
good.

Now my days are swifter than a post: they flee away, they see no
good.

Heav'n first taught letters for some wretch's aid,
Some banish'd lover, or some captive maid.

Heav'n first taught letters for some wretch's aid,
Some banish'd lover, or some captive maid.

An exquisite invention this,
Worthy of Love's most honeyed kiss,--
This art of writing billet-doux--
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An exquisite invention this,
Worthy of Love's most honeyed kiss,--
This art of writing billet-doux--
In buds, and odors, and bright hues!
In saying all one feels and thinks
In clever daffodils and pinks;
In puns of tulips; and in phrases,
Charming for their truth, of daisies.

Kind messages, that pass from land to land;
Kind letters, that betray the heart's deep history,
In read more

Kind messages, that pass from land to land;
Kind letters, that betray the heart's deep history,
In which we feel the pressure of a hand,--
One touch of fire,--and all the rest is mystery!