Oh, be not the first to discover
A blot on the fame of a friend;
Oh, be not of discord the mover,
For hearts may prove true in the end.

We none of us know one another,
And oft into error we fall;
Then let us speak well of each other,
Or speak not of others at all.

A sigh or a smile may awaken,
Suspicion most false or untrue,
And thus our belief may be shaken
In hearts that are honest and true.

How often the friends we hold dearest,
Their noblest emotions conceal!
And bosoms the purest, sincerest,
Have secrets they cannot reveal.

Leave base minds to harbour suspicion,
And small ones to trace out defects;
Let ours be a noble ambition
To love as our Saviour directs.