| Joseph Friedlander, comp. The Standard Book of Jewish Verse. 1917. | | | | Who Are the Wise? | | Anonymous |
| | From Ethics of the Fathers
THEY who have governed with a self control | |
| Each wild and baneful passion of the soul— | |
| Curbed the strong impulse of all fierce desires, | |
| But kept alive affection’s purer fires; | |
| Those who have passed the labyrinth of life | 5 |
| Without one hour of weakness or of strife; | |
| Prepared each change of future to endure, | |
| Humble tho’ rich, and dignified tho’ poor— | |
| Skilled in the latest movements of the heart— | |
| Learned in that lore which nature can impart; | 10 |
| Teaching that sweet philosophy aloud | |
| Which sees the silver lining of the cloud; | |
| Looking for good in all beneath the skies— | |
| Those only can be numbered with the wise. | | | | |
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