To tyrants and the tyrant crew,
Indeed, he was the bane;
He writ, and gave them all their due,
And signed it,—Thomas Paine.
Oh! how we loved to see him write
And curb the race of Cain!
They hope and wish that Thomas P——
May never rise again.
What idle hopes!—yes—such a man
May yet appear again.—
When they are dead, they die for aye:
—Not so with Thomas Paine.
[198] From the edition of 1815.