The Mount Davys Bell

On the banks of a winding river,
‘Neath kindly Irish skies,
An old bell hung in a beech tree,
Almost hidden from prying eyes.

It called the labourer to his task
With deep full note of power,
With cheery sound it made hearts bound
At the welcome dinner hour.

When evening shadows softly fell,
And the rooks no longer roam,
The sound of that bell brought rest as well,
And the weary thought of home.

Faithful and true, pealed ever the sound,
So in farms by hill and by dale
Men worked or ceased from their labour,
When they heard the Mount Davys bell.

But changes came, as changes will,
And the bell’s life work seemed o’er;
Yet it proved the pathway
To a brighter life in store.

For loving hearts in the homeland
Have to Africa sent the bell,
And the natives of far Qua Iboe
Hear the sound we had known so well.

Above the waving palm trees
It calls to God’s house of prayer,
Where the heathen, who know not the Saviour,
May learn of His love and His care.

Here’s a lesson we all may ponder,
Live faithfully day by day;
Be as honest in work as with money,
Higher service comes only that way.

Let those who are growing older
Not think that their work is o’er,
Because of life’s certain changes,
And they feel not the strength of yore.

While sin abounds, and sorrow, and want,
Let us do what we can without fear,
For often God makes the Autumn crown
The earlier months of the year.

If we faithfully strive at our daily task,
At our life-work never rebel,
We will grow more fit for a higher place,
Like the old Mount Davys bell.

Author Unknown