| General Introduction |
| | The Purpose of Poetry by Bliss Carman (1861–1929) |
| Introductory Essay |
| | Young People and the Poets by William Darnall MacClintock (1858–1936) |
| |
| Poems of Home |
| I. About Children |
| | The Baby by Kalidasa (c. 4th Century) |
| | Birth by Annie R. Stillman (Grace Raymond) (b. 1855) |
| | The Baby by George MacDonald (1824–1905) |
| | Weighing the Baby by Ethelinda Elliott Beers (Ethel Lynn) (1827–1879) |
| | Laus Infantium by William Canton (1845–1926) |
| | Étude Réaliste by Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837–1909) |
| | The Babie by Jeremiah Eames Rankin (1828–1903) |
| | The Angel’s Whisper by Samuel Lover (1797–1868) |
| | Lullaby by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892) |
| | The Happy Hour by Mary Frances Butts (1890–1937) |
| | Cradle Song—Anonymous |
| | Cradle Song by Josiah Gilbert Holland (1819–1881) |
| | Japanese Lullaby by Eugene Field (1850–1895) |
| | Philip, My King by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik (1826–1887) |
| | Baby May by William Cox Bennett (1820–1895) |
| | Little Feet by Elizabeth Akers Allen (1832–1911) |
| | Baby Louise by Margaret Winship Eytinge (“Madge Elliot”) (b. 1833) |
| | Silent Baby by Ellen Bartlett Currier |
| | The Household Sovereign by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) |
| | On the Picture of an Infant by Leonidas of Alexandria |
| | The Mother’s Sacrifice by Seba Smith (1792–1868) |
| | Mother and Child by William Gilmore Simms (1806–1870) |
| | Children by Walter Savage Landor (1775–1864) |
| | Polly by William Brighty Rands (1823–1882) |
| | To my Infant Son by Thomas Hood (1799–1845) |
| | Letty’s Globe by Charles Tennyson Turner (1808–1879) |
| | Willie Winkie by William Miller (1810–1872) |
| | To J. H. by Leigh Hunt (1784–1859) |
| | Seven Times Four by Jean Ingelow (1820–1897) |
| | The Mother’s Hope by Laman Blanchard (1803–1845) |
| | Bedtime by Francis, Earl of Rosslyn (1833–1890) |
| | To Hartley Coleridge by William Wordsworth (1770–1850) |
| | “My little Girl” by Samuel Minturn Peck (1854–1938) |
| | Little Goldenhair by Mrs. F. Burge Smith (1826–1900) |
| | The Unfinished Prayer—Anonymous |
| | Cuddle Doon by Alexander Anderson (1845–1909) |
| | The Witch in the Glass by Sarah Morgan Bryan Piatt (1836–1919) |
| | Small and Early by Tudor Jenks (1857–1922) |
| | Seven Times One by Jean Ingelow (1820–1897) |
| | The Lost Heir by Thomas Hood (1799–1845) |
| | The Gambols of Children by George Darley (1795–1846) |
| | The Child in the Garden by Henry van Dyke (1852–1933) |
| | A Portrait by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806–1861) |
| | To a Child During Sickness by Leigh Hunt (1784–1859) |
| | Baby Bell by Thomas Bailey Aldrich (1836–1907) |
| | Our Wee White Rose by Gerald Massey (1828–1907) |
| | Baby’s Shoes by William Cox Bennett (1820–1895) |
| | Baby Zulma’s Christmas Carol by Augustus Julian Requier (1825–1887) |
| | On the Death of an Infant by Dirk Smits (1702–1752) |
| | “She came and went” by James Russell Lowell (1819–1891) |
| | “Three years she grew” by William Wordsworth (1770–1850) |
| | “We are seven” by William Wordsworth (1770–1850) |
| | Boyhood by Washington Allston (1779–1843) |
| | Pictures of Memory by Alice Cary (1820–1871) |
| | The Mitherless Bairn by William Thom (1799–1848) |
| | My Mother’s Picture by William Cowper (1731–1800) |
| | “I remember, I remember” by Thomas Hood (1799–1845) |
| | The Barefoot Boy by John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892) |
| | Rain on the Roof by Coates Kinney (1826–1904) |
| | Whittling by John Pierpont (1785–1866) |
| | The Old Oaken Bucket by Samuel Woodworth (1784–1842) |
| | The Old Arm-Chair by Eliza Cook (1818–1889) |
| | “Woodman, spare that tree” by George Pope Morris (1802–1864) |
| | A Parable by Mathilde Blind (1841–1896) |
| |
| II. For Children |
| | The Piper by William Blake (1757–1827) |
| | Choosing a Name by Mary Lamb (1764–1847) |
| | “What does little birdie say?” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892) |
| | A Cradle Hymn by Isaac Watts (1674–1748) |
| | Go Sleep, ma Honey by Edward D. Barker |
| | No Baby in the House by Clara G. Dolliver |
| | A Dutch Lullaby by Eugene Field (1850–1895) |
| | Half-Waking by William Allingham (1824–1889) |
| | Twinkle, Twinkle—Anonymous |
| | Pretty Cow by Jane Taylor (1783–1824) |
| | The Three Little Kittens by Eliza Lee Follen (1787–1860) |
| | The Land of Counterpane by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | “How doth the little busy bee” by Isaac Watts (1674–1748) |
| | Try Again—Anonymous |
| | Good Night and Good Morning by Richard Monckton Milnes, Lord Houghton (1809–1885) |
| | The Spider and the Fly by Mary Howitt (1799–1888) |
| | Thread and Song by John Williamson Palmer (1825–1906) |
| | “Let dogs delight to bark and bite” by Isaac Watts (1674–1748) |
| | The Children’s Church by Karl von Gerock (1815–1890) |
| | Child’s Evening Hymn by Sabine Baring-Gould (1834–1924) |
| | “It is finished” by Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830–1894) |
| | A Little Child’s Hymn by Francis Turner Palgrave (1824–1897) |
| | Sheep and Lambs by Katharine Tynan Hinkson (1861–1931) |
| | “By cool Siloam’s shady rill” by Reginald Heber (1783–1826) |
| | The Romance of the Swan’s Nest by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806–1861) |
| | A Good Play by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | A Life-Lesson by James Whitcomb Riley (1849–1916) |
| | The Dead Doll by Margaret Thomson Janvier (Margaret Vandegrift) (1845–1913) |
| | Foreign Children by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | The Unseen Playmate by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | The Shadows by Frank Dempster Sherman (1860–1916) |
| | The Dancers by Michael Field (Katherine Harris Bradley) (1846–1914) |
| | My Shadow by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | Little Bell by Thomas Westwood (1814–1888) |
| | Wings by Mary Louise Ritter |
| | Foreign Lands by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | Under My Window by Thomas Westwood (1814–1888) |
| | The Land of Story-books by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | Fairy Days by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863) |
| | The Wind in a Frolic by William Howitt (1792–1879) |
| | The Wind by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | The Man in the Moon by James Whitcomb Riley (1849–1916) |
| | The Fairies of the Caldon Low by Mary Howitt (1799–1888) |
| | The Elf and the Dormouse by Oliver Herford (1863–1935) |
| | A Little Dutch Garden by Harriet Whitney Durbin |
| | The First Rose of Summer by Oliver Herford (1863–1935) |
| | A Belated Violet by Oliver Herford (1863–1935) |
| | The Frost by Hannah Flagg Gould (1789–1865) |
| | A Visit from St. Nicholas by Clement Clarke Moore (1779–1863) |
| | Little Orphant Annie by James Whitcomb Riley (1849–1916) |
| | Old-School Punishment—Anonymous |
| | In School-Days by John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892) |
| | Seein’ Things by Eugene Field (1850–1895) |
| | A Mortifying Mistake by Anna Maria Pratt |
| | The Smack in School by William Pitt Palmer (1805–1884) |
| |
| III. Fun for Little Folk |
| | “There was a little girl” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) |
| | The Story of Cruel Frederick by Heinrich Hoffmann (1809–1894) |
| | The Dreadful Story about Harriet and the Matches by Heinrich Hoffmann (1809–1894) |
| | The Story of Johnny-Head-in-Air by Heinrich Hoffmann (1809–1894) |
| | The Three Children—Anonymous |
| | The Owl and the Pussy-cat by Edward Lear (1812–1888) |
| | Mr. and Mrs. Spikky Sparrow by Edward Lear (1812–1888) |
| | The Walrus and the Carpenter by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) (1832–1898) |
| | Good King Arthur—Anonymous |
| | “Max and Maurice” by Wilhelm Busch (1832–1908) |
| | Preface |
| | Trick First |
| | Trick Second |
| | Trick Third |
| | Last Trick |
| | The Jumblies by Edward Lear (1812–1888) |
| | The History Lesson—Anonymous |
| | Sage Counsel by Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch (1863–1944) |
| | Limericks by Edward Lear (1812–1888) |
| | “There was a small boy of Quebec” by Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936) |
| | “There was a young lady of Niger”—Anonymous |
| | Finis—Anonymous |
| |
| IV. Youth |
| | The Days Gone by by James Whitcomb Riley (1849–1916) |
| | Seven Times Two by Jean Ingelow (1820–1897) |
| | A Farewell by Charles Kingsley (1819–1875) |
| | Riding Down by Nora Perry (1831–1896) |
| | A Girl of Pompeii by Edward Sanford Martin (1856–1939) |
| | In the Season by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | “Sweet stream that winds” by William Cowper (1731–1800) |
| | To My Grandmother by Frederick Locker-Lampson (1821–1895) |
| | The School Girl by William Henry Venable (1836–1920) |
| | Maidenhood by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) |
| | To a Highland Girl by William Wordsworth (1770–1850) |
| | Ruth by Thomas Hood (1799–1845) |
| | The Pretty Girl of Loch Dan by Samuel Ferguson (1810–1886) |
| | Ben Bolt by Thomas Dunn English (1819–1902) |
| | Honey Dripping from the Comb by James Whitcomb Riley (1849–1916) |
| | Lying in the Grass by Edmund Gosse (1849–1928) |
| | My Mother’s Bible by George Pope Morris (1802–1864) |
| | To the Virgins by Robert Herrick (1591–1674) |
| | Lauriger Horatius by From the Medieval Latin |
| | The “Old, Old Song” by Charles Kingsley (1819–1875) |
| | Gaudeamus Igitur by From the Medieval Latin |
| | To Thaliarchus by Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65–8 B.C.) |
| | A Knot of Blue by Samuel Minturn Peck (1854–1938) |
| | Dollie by Samuel Minturn Peck (1854–1938) |
| | Beware! by From the German |
| | Peg of Limavaddy by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863) |
| | The Girl of All Periods by Coventry Patmore (1823–1896) |
| | On a Distant Prospect of Eton College by Thomas Gray (1716–1771) |
| | Spring Song by Bliss Carman (1861–1929) |
| | Youth and Love by Philip James Bailey (1816–1902) |
| | The Joys of the Road by Bliss Carman (1861–1929) |
| | Hope and Fear by Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837–1909) |
| | The Heritage by James Russell Lowell (1819–1891) |
| | To Youth by Walter Savage Landor (1775–1864) |
| | My Lost Youth by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) |
| | Youth by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834) |
| | The Flight of Youth by Richard Henry Stoddard (1825–1903) |
| |
| V. The Home |
| | Ode to Solitude by Alexander Pope (1688–1744) |
| | Home by Leonidas of Alexandria |
| | “The day is done” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) |
| | The Happiest Heart by John Vance Cheney (1848–1922) |
| | “Out of the old house, Nancy” by Will Carleton (1845–1912) |
| | The Homes of England by Felicia Dorothea Hemans (1793–1835) |
| | The Auld House by Carolina Oliphant, Lady Nairne (1766–1845) |
| | The House Beautiful by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) |
| | “If we knew” by May Riley Smith (1842?–1927) |
| | The Soldier’s Dream by Thomas Campbell (1777–1844) |
| | The Happy Mother by Alexander Laing (1787–1857) |
| | Tired Mothers by May Riley Smith (1842?–1927) |
| | The Song of the Old Mother by William Butler Yeats (1865–1939) |
| | Rock Me to Sleep by Elizabeth Akers Allen (1832–1911) |
| | The Children by Charles M. Dickinson (1842–1924) |
| | Not One to Spare—Anonymous |
| | Seven Times Six by Jean Ingelow (1820–1897) |
| | “I knew by the smoke that so gracefully curled” by Thomas Moore (1779–1852) |
| | The Ingle-Side by Hew Ainslie (1792–1878) |
| | By the Fireside by Lucy Larcom (1826–1893) |
| | My Ain Fireside by Elizabeth Hamilton (1758–1816) |
| | A Winter-Evening Hymn to My Fire by James Russell Lowell (1819–1891) |
| | The Light’ood Fire by John Henry Boner (1845–1903) |
| | The Cotter’s Saturday Night by Robert Burns (1759–1796) |
| | A New England Home in Winter by John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892) |
| | Heart-Rest by Sir Henry Taylor (1800–1886) |
| | The Means to attain Happy Life by Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey (1517–1547) |
| | Homeward Bound by Gaius Valerius Catullus (c. 84–c. 54 B.C.) |
| | The Hudson by George Sidney Hellman (1878–1958) |
| | The Wanderer’s Home by Oliver Goldsmith (1730–1774) |
| | A Picture by Charles Gamage Eastman (1816–1860) |
| | In the Cellar by Josiah Gilbert Holland (1819–1881) |
| | Two Pictures by Annie D. Green (Marian Douglas) (1842–1913) |
| | A Shepherd’s Life by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) |
| | The Country Life by Richard Henry Stoddard (1825–1903) |
| | The Swiss Peasant by Oliver Goldsmith (1730–1774) |
| | When the Cows Come Home by Agnes E. Mitchell |
| | Home Song by Duncan Campbell Scott (1862–1947) |
| | Labor Song by Denis Florence Mac Carthy (1817–1882) |
| | The Village Blacksmith by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) |
| | Christmas by George Wither (1588–1667) |
| | The Auld Folks by Andrew Park (1807–1863) |
| | A Petition to Time by Bryan Waller Procter (Barry Cornwall) (1787–1874) |
| | Home, Sweet Home by John Howard Payne (1791–1852) |
| |
| Poems of Friendship |
| | Friendship by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) |
| | Friendship by Edward Young (1681–1765) |
| | Bill and Joe by Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809–1894) |
| | Early Friendship by Aubrey Thomas de Vere (1814–1902) |
| | Young Friends by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) |
| | Friendship by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) |
| | The Memory of the Heart by Daniel Webster (1782–1852) |
| | A Wayfaring Song by Henry van Dyke (1852–1933) |
| | Parted Friends by James Montgomery (1771–1854) |
| | “When to the sessions of sweet silent thought” by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) |
| | Jaffar by Leigh Hunt (1784–1859) |
| | The Vale of Avoca by Thomas Moore (1779–1852) |
| | “We have been friends together” by Caroline Elizabeth Sarah (Sheridan) Norton (1808–1877) |
| | “Too late I stayed” by William Robert Spencer (1770–1834) |
| | “We are brethren a’” by Robert Nicoll (1814–1837) |
| | Wife, Children, and Friends by William Robert Spencer (1770–1834) |
| | Benedicite by John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892) |
| | “When in disgrace” by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) |
| | “Jenny kissed me” by Leigh Hunt (1784–1859) |
| | “Not marble, not the gilded monuments” by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) |
| | The Dead Friend by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892) |
| | Elegy on Captain Matthew Henderson by Robert Burns (1759–1796) |
| | “And doth not a meeting like this” by Thomas Moore (1779–1852) |
| | We Love but Few—Anonymous |
| | The Garret by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863) |
| | A Temple to Friendship by Thomas Moore (1779–1852) |
| | Platonic by William B. Terrett |
| | Friend and Lover by Mary Ainge De Vere (Madeline Bridges) |
| | The Boys by Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809–1894) |
| | The Cane-Bottomed Chair by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863) |
| | The Welcome by Faríd-Uddín Attar (c. 1145–c. 1220) |
| | Quarrel of Brutus and Cassius by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) |
| | Sparkling and Bright by Charles Fenno Hoffman (1806–1884) |
| | “Wreathe the bowl” by Thomas Moore (1779–1852) |
| | A Winter Wish by Robert Hinckley Messinger (1811–1874) |
| | The Mahogany-Tree by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863) |
| | The Ballad of Bouillabaisse by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863) |
| | The Dead Poet-Friend by Callimachus (c. 310–240 B.C.) |
| | Mors et Vita by Samuel Waddington (1844–1923) |
| | To Seek a Friend by William Cowper (1731–1800) |
| | Advice by William Dunbar (1460?–1520?) |
| | The Friend by Nicholas Grimald (1519–1562) |
| | “Take the world as it is” by Charles Swain (1801–1874) |
| | Auld Lang Syne by Robert Burns (1759–1796) |
