Classic Poem

From sylvan shades, cool bowers and fragrant gales,
Green hills and murm'ring Streams and flowery vales,
My soul ascends of nobler themes to sing;
A MERICA shall wake the sounding string.
Accept, my native Land, these humble lays,
This grateful song, a tribute to thy praise.
When first mankind o'er spread great A SIA 's lands,
And nations rose unnumber'd as the sands,
From eastern shores, where Amour rolls his streams,
And morning suns display their earliest beams,
T ARTARS in millions, swarming on the day,
Thro' the vast western ocean steer'd their way;
From east to west, from north to south they roll,
And whelm the fields from D ARIEN to the pole.
Sunk in barbarity, these realms were sound,
And Superstition hung her clouds around;
O'er all, impenetrable Darkness spread
Her dusky wings, and cast a dreadful shade;
No glimpse of science through the gloom appear'd;
No trace of civil life the desart chear'd;
No soft endearments, no fond social ties,
Nor faith, nor justice calm'd their horrid joys:
But furious Vengeance swell'd the hellish mind,
And dark-ey'd Malice all her influence join'd.
Here spread broad plains, in blood and slaughter drown'd;
There boundless forests nodded o'er the ground;
Here ceaseless riot and confusion rove;
There savage roarings shake the echoing grove.
Age after age rolls on in deepening gloom,
Dark as the mansions of the silent tomb.
Thus wasting Discord, like an angry sea,
Swept mighty kings and warring worlds away,
And (ages past) succeeding times beheld
The same dire ruin clothe the dreary field.
At length (C OLUMBUS taught by heaven to trace
Far-distant lands, through unknown pathless seas)
A MERICA 's bright realms arose to view,
And the old world rejoic'd to see the new .
When blest E LIZA rul'd th' A TLANTIC main,
And her bold navies humbled haughty S PAIN ;
Heaven sent undaunted R ALEIGH , E NGLAND 's pride,
To wast her children o'er the briny tide,
In fair V IRGINIA 's fields to fix her throne,
And stretch her sway beneath the falling sun.
Then C HARLES and L AUD usurp'd despotic powers,
And Persecution sadden'd A LBION 's shores;
With racks and flames, Religion spread her sway,
B RITONS were learn'd to torture, laws t'obey.
Forc'd from the pleasures of their native soil,
Where Liberty had lighten'd every toil;
Forc'd from the arms of friends and kindred dear,
With scarce the comfort of one parting tear,
Whilst wives clung round and took a final gaze,
And reverend sires prolong'd the last embrace;
To these far-distant climes our fathers came,
Where blest N EW -E NGLAND boasts a parent's name.
With Freedom's fire their gen'rous bosoms glow'd,
Warm for the truth, and zealous for their God ;
With these, the horrors of the desart ceas'd;
Without them, A LBION less than desarts pleas'd;
By these inspir'd, their zeal unshaken stood,
And bravely dar'd each danger — to be good;
Th' unfathom'd ocean, roll'd in mighty storms,
Want and Disease in all their dreadful forms,
The freezing blast that roar'd through boundless snows,
And War fierce-threat'ning from surrounding foes.
Yet here Contentment dwelt, and Pleasure smil'd,
And rough-brow'd Labour every care beguil'd,
Made fruitful gardens round the forests rise,
And calm'd the horrors of the dreary skies.
P ENN led a peaceful train to that kind clime,
Where Nature wantons in her liveliest prime,
Where mighty Del'ware rolls his silver tide,
And fertile fields adorn the river's side.
Peace rul'd his life; to peace his laws inspir'd;
In peace the willing savages retir'd.
The dreary Wilderness, with glad surprise,
Saw spacious towns and golden harvests rise.
Brave O GLETHROPE in G EORGIA fix'd his seat,
And deep distress there found a calm retreat;
Learning and life to orphans there were given,
And drew down blessings from approving heaven.
Happy they liv'd, while Peace maintain'd her sway,
And taught the furious savage to obey,
Whilst Labour fearless rear'd the nodding grain,
And Innocence securely trod the plain:
But soon, too soon, were spread the dire alarms,
And thousand painted nations rush'd to arms,
War's kindled flames blaz'd dreadful round the shore,
And hills and plains with blood were crimson'd o'er,
Where late the flocks rov'd harmless on the green,
Where rising towns and cultur'd fields were seen,
Illimitable desarts met the eye,
And smoking ruins mounted to the sky.
Oft when deep silent Night her wings had spread,
And the vast world lay hid in peaceful shade,
In some lone village mirth led on the hours,
And swains secure to sleep resign'd their powers;
Sudden the fields resound with war's alarms,
And earth re-echoes — arms, to arms, to arms;
Faint through the gloom the murd'ring bands are seen;
Disploded thunder shakes the darksome green;
Broad streams of fire from falling structures rise,
And shrieks and groans and shouts invade the skies;
Here weeping mothers piercing anguish feel;
There smiles the babe beneath the lifted steel;
Here vig'rous youth from bloody vengeance flies;
There white-hair'd age just looks to heaven, and dies.
The sons of G AUL in yonder northern lands
Urg'd the keen sword and fir'd the painted bands;
Priests, cloath'd in Virtue's garb, destruction spread,
And pious fury heap'd the fields with dead.
Rous'd by increasing woes, our fires bade sound
The trump of war, and squadrons gather'd round,
Where L OUISBOURG , adorn'd with towering spires,
Defy'd the terror of the B RITISH fires;
Bands, who ne'er heard the thundring cannon's roar,
Nor met a foe, nor view'd a wall before,
By Freedom warm'd, with native brav'ry crown'd,
Bade her proud towers be humbled to the ground.
E'en Heaven itself approv'd a war so just;
In Heaven let injur'd nations put their trust.
Yet still destruction spread around the shore,
And the dire savage bath'd in B RITISH gore,
'Till W OLFE appear'd and led his freeborn bands,
Like a dark tempest to yon G ALLIC lands:
Then shook Quebec at his exalted name,
And her high walls already seem'd to flame.
Lo! where deep forests roar with loud alarms,
Th' exalted hero shines in blazing arms;
His squadrons, rolling like the billow'd main;
Dart a bright horror o'er th' embattl'd plain;
Whilst from ascending domes and losty towers
Pale quivering thousands view the hostile powers.
The B RITISH host, stretch'd out in dark array,
Rush fearless on and sweep their foes away;
From smoky volumes rapid flames aspire,
And bursting cannon set the fields on fire;
Fate swells the sound; whole troops of heroes fall;
And one unbounded ruin buries all.
As o'er the western dark clouds arise,
Involve the sun and blacken all the skies;
The whirlwinds roar; heaven's awful thunders roll,
And streamy lightnings flash around the pole;
Descending floods along the meadows flow,
And bursting torrents whelm the world below.
Then glorious A MHERST joins his utmost force,
And tow'rd C ANADIA 's realms inclines his course;
Immense destruction marks his dreadful way,
And smoking towns spread terror on the day;
O'er all the land one boundless waste is seen,
And blazing hills and gloomy streams between.
The voice of Desolation fills the gales,
And boding Horror sighs along the vales;
Deep in the woods the savage world retires,
Far from the thunder and the wasting fires.
At length these realms the B RITISH scepter own,
And bow submissive at great G EORGE 's throne.
Almighty God of heaven! thy wondrous ways
Demand loud anthems and eternal praise.
Through earth, through heaven's immeasurable rounds,
Thy Greatness beams; thy being knows no bounds.
E'er Time began, unbounded and alone,
Beyond the vast of space thy Glory shone;
'Till that great moment when th' almighty call
From endless darkness wak'd this earthly ball:
Then Being heard his voice, and round the sky
Glow'd the bright worlds, which gild the realms on high;
Time then appear'd; the Seasons deck'd his train,
And Hours and Years danc'd joyous o'er the plain;
Millions of morning stars J EHOVAH sung,
And the whole universe with praises rung.
Yon world of fire, that gives a boundless day,
From thy effulgence darts the burning ray.
Thou bid'st yon starry flames adorn the pole;
Thy word ordains, and circling seasons roll:
At thy command awakes the lovely Spring;
Beauty breaks forth; the hills with musick ring:
In Summer's fiercer blaze thy thunders roar;
Nature attends, and trembling realms adore:
When Autumn shines, thy fruits bedeck the plain,
And plenteous harvests joy the humble swain:
On Wintry winds thine awful chariot flies,
When gath'ring storms envelope all the skies;
On Glory thron'd, with flames about thee roll'd;
Light forms thy robes, and clouds thy wheels infold;
Around, ten thousand sparkling angels glow,
Brighten the heavens, and shake the world below.
At thy command, war glitters o'er the plain;
Thou speak'st — and peace revives the fields again,
Vast empires rise, and cities gild the day;
Thou frown'st — and kings and kingdoms melt away.
B RITANNIA 's happy islands, rais'd by Thee,
Awe the wide world, and rule the boundless sea;
Led by thine arm, W OLFE humbled haughty G AUL ,
And glorious A MHERST taught her pride to fall.
May this blest land with grateful praise adore
Such boundless goodness, and such boundless power.
See heaven-born Peace, descending from the sky,
Bids discord vanish, and her horrors fly;
The wearied nations hear her gentle voice,
Own her glad sway, and wish for milder joys;
Swift o'er the land, the blissful tidings ring,
The vallies brighten and the nations sing.
As when long night has dwelt on Z EMBLA 's shore,
Where winter reigns, and storms around him roar,
Soon as the rising sun begins to roll,
And gild with fainter beams the frozen pole,
The streams dissolve, the fields no longer mourn,
And raptur'd regions hail his glad return.
Where once dark Superstition fix'd her throne;
Where soul-exalting science never shone;
Where every social joy was drown'd in blood;
Where Hunger ceaseless rang'd the groves for food;
Where no gay fruits adorn'd the dreary plain;
No mountains brighten'd with the teeming grain;
No flocks nor herds along the hills were seen,
Nor swains nor hamlets chear'd the lonely green:
See num'rous infant states begin to grow;
See every state with peace and plenty flow;
See splendid towns o'er all the land extend;
The temples glitter and the spires ascend.
The rip'ning harvest waves along the hills,
The orchard blossoms, and the pasture smiles.
Unnumber'd vessels skim the liquid plain,
Search every realm, that hears the roaring main,
And fill'd with treasures, bid our shores behold
The eastern spices and the southern gold.
Celestial science, raptur'd we descry
Refulgent beaming o'er the western sky;
Bright Liberty extends her blissful reign,
With all the graces sparkling in her train:
Religion shines with a superiour blaze,
And heaven-born virtue beams diviner rays;
Justice enthron'd maintains an equal sway,
The poor dwell safely, and the proud obey.
O Land supremely blest! to thee tis given
To taste the choicest joys of bounteous heaven;
Thy rising Glory shall expand its rays,
And lands and times unknown rehearse thine endless praise.
As in a lonely vale, with glooms o'erspread,
Retir'd I rov'd, where guiding fancy led,
Deep silence reign'd; a sudden stream of light
Flam'd through the darksome grove & chear'd the night;
An awful form advanc'd along the ground,
And circling glories cast a radiance round:
Her face divine with sparkling brightness shone
Like the clear splendour of the mid-day sun;
Robes of pure white her heavenly limbs infold,
And on her scepter F REEDOM blaz'd in gold.
" Mortal! attend " (she laid and smil'd sublime)
Borne down the stream of ever rolling time,
View the bright scenes which wait this happy shore,
Her virtue, wisdom, arts and glorious power. "
" I see, where Discord thund'ring from afar,
Sounds her shrill trump and wakes the flames of war;
Rous'd by her voice, vast hosts together driven,
Shake the wide earth, rend air, and darken heaven:
The cannons roar, the fields are heap'd with slain,
And storms of fire are blown along the plain. "
" Behold! my Heroes lead the glorious way,
Where warring millions roll in dread array,
Awful as Angels, thron'd on streams of fire,
When trembling nations feel the thund'rer's ire:
Before them, Terror wings the rapid flight,
And Death behind them shrouds whole realms in night. "
" Then, white-rob'd Peace begins her milder reign,
And all the virtues croud her lovely train.
Lo! heaven-born Science every bosom warms,
And the fair Arts unveil their lovely charms. "
" See! blest Philosophy inspires the soul
To roam from land to land, from pole to pole;
To soar beyond the sun, to worlds on high,
Which roll in millions round th' unmeasur'd sky;
To mark the comet thro' his pathless maze,
Whilst his bright glories set the heavens on blaze. "
" Her nobler Sister too shall charm the mind
With moral raptures and with truths refin'd;
Religion lead whole realms to worlds of joy,
Undying peace and bliss without alloy. "
" See Hist'ry all the scenes of time unveil
And bid my sons attend her wondrous tale!
Led by her voice, behold them mount the throne
And stretch their sway to regions yet unknown! "
" See all the powers of Poetry unite
To paint Religion, charms divinely bright;
To sing his name, who made yon orbs of fire,
Spread out the sky and form'd th' angelic choir:
Seraphs themselves inspire the sacred lays,
And stoop from heaven to hear their Maker's praise! "
" See Sculpture mould the rude unpolish'd stone,
Give it new forms and beauties not its own;
Bid the gay marble leap to life and breath,
And call up heroes from the realms of Death! "
" Behold the canvas glow with living dies,
Tall groves shoot up, streams wind and mountains rise!
Again the fair unfolds a heaven of charms,
And the bold leader frowns in dreadful arms. "
" Then Eloquence soft pity shall inspire,
Smooth the rough breast, or let the soul on fire;
Teach guilt to tremble at th' Almighty name,
Unsheath his sword and make his lightnings flame;
Or reach out grace more mild than falling dews,
While pale Despair th' affrighted soul pursues. "
" Hail Land of light and joy! thy power shall grow
Far as the seas, which round thy regions flow;
Through earth's wide realms thy glory shall extend,
And savage nations at thy seepter bend.
Around the frozen shores thy sons shall sail,
Or stretch their canvas to the A SIAN gale,
Or, like C OLUMBUS , steer their course unknown,
Beyond the regions of the flaming zone,
To worlds unfound beneath the southern pole,
Whose native hears Antarctic oceans roll;
Where artless Nature rules with peaceful sway,
And where no ship e'er stemm'd the untry'd way. "
For thee, proud I NDIA 's spicy isles shall blow,
Bright silks be wrought, and sparkling diamonds glow;
Earth's richest realms their treasures shall unfold,
And op'ning mountains yield the flaming gold;
Round thy broad fields more glorious R OMES arise,
With pomp and splendour bright'ning all the skies;
E UROPE and A SIA with surprize behold
Thy temples starr'd with gems and roof'd with gold.
From realm to realm broad A PPIAN ways shall wind,
And distant shores by long canals be join'd,
The ocean hear thy voice, the waves obey,
And through green vallies trace their wat'ry way.
No more shall War her fearful horrors sound,
Nor strew her thousands on th' embattled ground;
No more on earth shall Rage and Discord dwell,
But sink with Envy to their native hell. "
" Then, then an heavenly kingdom shall descend,
And Light and Glory through the world extend;
Th' Almighty Saviour his great power display
From rising morning to the setting day;
Love reign triumphant, Fraud and Malice cease,
And every region smile in endless peace:
Till the last trump the slumbering dead inspire,
Shake the wide heavens, and set the world on fire;
Thron'd on a flaming cloud, with brightness crown'd,
The Judge descend, and angels shine around,
The mountains melt, the moon and stars decay,
The sun grow dim, and Nature roll away;
God 's happy children mount to worlds above,
Drink streams of purest joy and taste immortal love. "