The American Union Speaker

by John D. Philbrick

If thou canst plan a noble deed,
And never flag till it succeed,
Though in the strife thy heart should bleed;—

If thou canst struggle day and night,
And, in the envious world's despite,
Still keep thy cynosure in sight;—

If thou canst bear the rich man's scorn,
Nor curse the day that thou wert born
To feed on husks, and he on corn;—

If thou canst dine upon a crust,
And still hold on with patient trust,
Nor pine that fortune is unjust;—

If thou canst see, with tranquil breast,
The knave or fool in purple dressed,
Whilst thou must walk in tattered vest;—

If thou canst rise ere break of day,
And toil and moil till evening gray,
At thankless work, for scanty pay;—

If in thy progress to renown
Thou canst endure the scoff and frown
Of those who strive to pull thee down;—

If thou canst bear the averted face,
The gibe, or treacherous embrace,
Of those who run the self-same race;—

If thou in darkest days canst find
An inner brightness in thy mind,
To reconcile thee to thy kind:—

Whatever obstacles control,
Thine hour will come—go on—true soul!
Thou'lt win the prize, thou'lt reach the goal.