I Care Not

CARE NOT. (For the Improvement Era.) I care not for friendship which endures not the test; I care not for slander, with my conscience at rest; I gauge not my life by what others may do, But I love, 0 I love, the words that ring true. I care not for smiles, be they ever so bright, Which pass into shadow at the coming of night; I care not for tones, be they gentle as dew, Come they not from the heart—the heart that is true. Opinions may differ, mistakes may be made, Dismal failure on ashes of failure be laid; Keen judgment may err, and miss the right clue, I care not a whit, if the motive be true. But I do love the clasp of a good, honest hand, Be it hardened by toil, or born to command; And those who love me, be they many or few— God bless them, I love them, because they are true. Ruth May Fox. Salt Lake City.