DUTY.
When Duty doth call us,
Unless we obey,
No rest doth she give us
By night, nor by day.
We cannot escape her,
She gives us no peace.
Till duty is done
We have no release.
We try to avoid her,
Pretend not to see
The road she hath taken
O’er mountain or lea.
We cannot evade her,
For by us she stands,
And fetters the strongest
She binds on our hands.
Though we may not listen
To Duty’s loud voice,
Obeying her mandates
May not be our choice;
We ever are happy
When duty is done;
When self is once conquered,
A victory is won.
She smiles now upon us,
The demon is laid.
We’re glad that she conquered,
That we have obeyed.
We will no more stumble,
Nor push her aside,
Triumphant is Duty,
With us will aye bide.
We now have acknowledged
Her right to control
Each thought, and each action;
Yea—even our soul.
We give up the battle,
Proclaim our defeat,
Now Duty triumphant
Doth sweetly us greet.
We haul down our banner,
Put Duty on throne,
Though we were once traitors,
We now will atone
For all our past errors,
And sit at her feet,
With joy do her bidding,
Each duty will meet.
The battle is ended,
And now we are free
From selfish indulgence,
And happy are we.