My tears must stop, for every drop

Hinders needle and thread.

Thomas Hood (1798-1845): The Song of the Shirt.

With fingers weary and worn,

With eyelids heavy and red,

A woman sat in unwomanly rags

Plying her needle and thread,—

Stitch! Stitch! Stitch!

Thomas Hood (1798-1845): The Song of the Shirt.

Needle in a bottle of hay.

Field (—— -1641): A Woman's a Weathercock. (Reprint, 1612, p. 20.)

As down in the sunless retreats of the ocean

Sweet flowers are springing no mortal can see,

So deep in my soul the still prayer of devotion,

Unheard by the world, rises silent to Thee.

As still to the star of its worship, though clouded,

The needle points faithfully o'er the dim sea,

So dark when I roam in this wintry world shrouded,

The hope of my spirit turns trembling to Thee.

Thomas Moore (1779-1852): The Heart's Prayer.

True as the needle to the pole,

Or as the dial to the sun.

Barton Booth (1681-1733): Song.

Nor peace nor ease the heart can know

Which, like the needle true,

Turns at the touch of joy or woe,

But turning, trembles too.

Mrs Greville (Circa 1793): A Prayer for Indifference.