Hear a prayer for braveness.
Lord of the thin peaks,
Reared amid the thunders;
Keeper of the headlands
Holding up the harvest,
Keeper of the strong rocks
Hear a prayer for staunchness.
Young Man, Chieftain,
Spirit of the Mountain!
Interpreted by [signed] Mary Austin
To America—4 July, 1776
When England's king put English to the horn[1],
To England thus spake England over sea,
"In peace be friend, in war my enemy";
Then countering pride with pride, and lies with scorn,
Broke with the man[2] whose ancestor had borne
A sharper pain for no more injury.
How otherwise should free men deal and be,
With patience frayed and loyalty outworn?
No act of England's shone more generous gules
Than that which sever'd once for all the strands
Which bound you English. You may search the lands
In vain, and vainly rummage in the schools,
To find a deed more English, or a shame
On England with more honor to her name.
[written] Respectfully submitted to the Defenders of Democracy
[signed] M. Hewlett
(Westluilaruig[illegible, this is a guess], Chichester, England)
[1] To "put to the horn" was to declare an outlawry. [2] The "man" is George III, his "ancestor," Charles I.
The Need of Force to Win and Maintain Peace