Ha! o’er the Southern plains shall spread The children of the honoured dead, And evermore above their head The dear old flag shall wave;—
Shall wave with all its stars, a sign That though the hosts of hell combine, The cause of freedom is divine, And slavery must expire.
A sign that, not in vain, the great And good of every clime and state Have battled with a bloody fate, Breathing heroic fire.
I love the flag, because it flings Defiance in the face of kings, While Liberty expands her wings To crown the world’s desire.
[7] These lines were written in reference to the American civil war, at the time known as “Grant’s Battles in the Wilderness,” when, in a note to the War Department, (May 11, 1864), he penned those memorable words, “I propose to fight it out on this line, if it takes all summer.”
IN MEMORY OF JOSEPH GUIBORD.
1875.
The storm of six long years is past, And peacefully he rests at last.— Thrice hearsed, thrice cursed, let honest fame Blow treble honour to his name. If endless years of praise ensue, ’Tis but the hero’s earthly due. The humble printer’s mighty art, Though banned, will vindicate her son, And tell to every truthful heart While woods grow green and waters run— That he who braves a despot’s frown Will wear at length the victor’s crown; Even when slain, and torn asunder, And scattered piecemeal, trodden under The brutal feet of frenzied foes, His deeds will rise, as Christ’s arose, And, borne upon the chainless air, Will plead for freedom everywhere.