Emily Dickinson Lexicon

STEALTH, n. [stelth.]

1. The act of stealing; theft. The owner proveth the stealth to have been committed on him by such an outlaw. – Spenser.
2. The thing stolen; as, cabins that are dens to cover stealth. [Not in use.] – Ralegh.
3. Secret act; clandestine practice; means unperceived employed to gain an object; way or manner not perceived; used in a good or bad sense. Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame. – Pope. The monarch blinded with desire of wealth, / With steel invades the brother's life by stealth. – Dryden.