Stand like a rock

NEVER GIVE UP. by Martin Tupper ******** Never give up! it is wiser and better Always to hope than once to despair: Fling off the load of Doubt's cankering fetter, And break the dark spell of tyrannical care; Never give up! or the burden may sink you-- Providence kindly has mingled the cup; And, in all trials or trouble, bethink you The watchword of life must be--Never give up! ********* Never give up!--there are chances and changes Helping the hopeful a hundred to one, And through the chaos High Wisdom arranges Ever success--if you'll only hope on; Never give up!--for the wisest is boldest, Knowing that Providence mingles the cup; And of all maxims the best, as the oldest, Is the true watchword of--Never give up! ********* Never give up!--though the grapeshot may rattle, Or the full thunder-cloud over you burst, Stand like a rock--and the storm or the battle Little shall harm you, though doing their worst. Never give up!--if adversity presses, Providence wisely has mingled the cup; And the best counsel, in all your distresses, Is the stout watchword of--Never give up. ********** Martin Tupper was born in 1810 the son of a doctor with a prosperous practice in the West End of London. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, and it was there he began his life-long friendship with the future PM, W E Gladstone. Their correspondence and the twenty-five scrapbooks which Tupper compiled formed the basis of Derek Hudson's book MARTIN TUPPER His Rise and Fall', published in 1949, to which I am indebted. ********** At Oxford Tupper was already an ardent Evangelical and hoped to make a career in the Church. But he suffered from a stammer which remained with him until he was about 35 when he cured it, according to his own notes, by constant prayer. Dr Tupper hoped his son would make a career in law, but after several years spent in chambers this idea was also abandoned. Already married and with the first of a large family to provide for, Tupper lived in a small house in London largely dependent on the generosity of his father. *************** TUPPER QUOTES Prayer is the slender nerve that moves the muscle of omnipotence. Martin Farquhar Tupper Ridicule is a weak weapon when pointed at a strong mind; but common people are cowards and dread an empty laugh. Martin Farquhar Tupper Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech. Martin Farquhar Tupper