The Token

I.

Only a ringlet of flaxen hair,
Tied with a ribbon blue,
Laid by the hand of a mother there--
Cherished with love so true!


II.

Only a soft and silken curl,
Bound with a knotted bow;
Worn on the head of a little girl
Lost in the long-ago.


III.

Only a hallowed treasure kept
From the grave's decay and mold,
Over which her eyes have wept
With anguish all untold!


IV.

Only a link in the golden chain,
By Death's cold hand unbroken,
Which leads to where she'll meet again
The wearer of this token.


V.

Only a relic undefiled,
Enshrined in a broken heart--
Rent in twain when a darling child
And a loving mother part!


VI.

Only a ringlet of flaxen hair,
Tied with a ribbon blue,
Clipped from the head of an angel fair,
Whose hands are beckoning you!