Hesper, recurring to his object of showing Columbus the importance of his discoveries, reverses the order of time, and exhibits the continent again in its savage state—He then displays the progress of arts in America—Fur-trade—Fisheries—Productions—Commerce—Education—Philosophical discoveries—Painting—Poetry.
Hail, holy Peace, from thy sublime abode
Mid circling saints that grace the throne of God.
Before his arm around our embryon earth,
Stretcht the dim void and gave to nature birth,
Ere morning stars his glowing chambers hung,
Or songs of gladness woke an angel’s tongue,
Veil’d in the splendors of his beamful mind,
In blest repose thy placid form reclined,
Lived in his life, his inward sapience caught,
And traced and toned his universe of thought.
Borne through the expanse with his creating voice
Thy presence bade the unfolding worlds rejoice,
Led forth the systems on their bright career,
Shaped all their curves and fashion’d every sphere,
Spaced out their suns, and round each radiant goal,
Orb over orb, compell’d their train to roll,
Bade heaven’s own harmony their force combine,
Taught all their host symphonious strains to join,
Gave to seraphic harps their sounding lays,
Their joys to angels and to men their praise.
From scenes of blood, these verdant shores that stain,
From numerous friends in recent battle slain,
From blazing towns that scorch the purple sky,
From houseless hordes, their smoking walls that fly,
From the black prison ships, those groaning graves,
From warring fleets that vex the gory waves,
From a storm’d world, long taught thy flight to mourn,
I rise, delightful Peace, and greet thy glad return.
For now the untuneful trump shall grate no more;
Ye silver streams, no longer swell with gore,
Bear from your war-beat banks the guilty stain
With yon retiring navies to the main.
While other views unfolding on my eyes
And happier themes bid bolder numbers rise;
Bring, bounteous Peace, in thy celestial throng,
Life to my soul and rapture to my song;
Give me to trace, with pure unclouded ray,
The arts and virtues that attend thy sway,
To see thy blissful charms, that here descend,
Through distant realms and endless years extend.
Too long the groans of death and battle’s bray
Have rung discordant through my turgid lay:
The drum’s rude clang, the war wolfs hideous howl
Convulsed my nerves and agonized my soul,
Untuned the harp for all but misery’s pains
And chased the Muse from corse-encumber’d plains.
Let memory’s balm its pious fragrance shed
On heroes’ wounds and patriot warriors dead;
Accept, departed Shades, these grateful sighs,
Your fond attendants through your homeward skies.
And thou, my earliest friend, my Brother dear,
Thy fall untimely still renews my tear.
In youthful sports, in toils, in taste allied,
My kind companion and my faithful guide,
When death’s dread summons, from our infant eyes,
Had call’d our last loved parent to the skies.
Though young in arms and still obscure thy name,
Thy bosom panted for the deeds of fame;
Beneath Montgomery’s eye, when by thy steel
In northern wilds the frequent savage fell.
Fired by his voice and foremost at his call
To mount the breach or scale the flamy wall,
Thy daring hand had many a laurel gain’d,
If years had ripen’d what thy fancy feign’d.
Lamented Youth! when thy great leader bled,
Through the same wound thy parting spirit fled,
Join’d the long train, the self-devoted band,
The gods, the saviors of their native land.
On fame’s high pinnacle their names shall shine,
Unending ages greet the group divine,
Whose holy hands our banners first unfurl’d
And conquer’d freedom for the grateful world.
And you, their peers, whose steel avenged their blood,
Whose breasts with theirs our sacred rampart stood,
Illustrious relics of a thousand fields!
To you at last the foe reluctant yields.
But though the Muse, too prodigal of praise,
Dares with the dead your living worth to raise,
Think not, my friends, the patriot’s task is done,
Or Freedom safe, because the battle’s won.
Unnumber’d foes, far different arms that wield,
Wait the weak moment when she quits her shield,
To plunge in her bold breast the insidious dart
Or pour keen poison round her thoughtless heart.
Perhaps they’ll strive her votaries to divide,
From their own veins to draw the vital tide;
Perhaps, by cooler calculation shown,
Create materials to construct a throne,
Dazzle her guardians with the glare of state,
Corrupt with power, with borrowed pomp inflate,
Bid through the land the soft infection creep,
Whelm all her sons in one lethargic sleep,
Crush her vast empire in its brilliant birth
And chase the goddess from the ravaged earth.
The dragon thus, that watcht the Colchian fleece,
Foil’d the fierce warriors of wide-plundering Greece;
Warriors of matchless might and wondrous birth,
Jove’s sceptred sons and demigods of earth.
High on the sacred tree, the glittering prize
Hangs o’er its guard and tires the warriors’ eyes;
First their hurl’d spears his spiral folds assail,
Their spears fall pointless from his flaky mail;
Onward with dauntless swords they plunge amain;
He shuns their blows, recoils his twisting train,
Darts forth his forky tongue, heaves high in air
His fiery crest and sheds a hideous glare,
Champs, churns his poisonous juice, and hissing loud
Spouts thick the stifling tempest o’er the crowd;
Then, with one sweep of convoluted train,
Rolls back all Greece and besoms wide the plain
O’erturns the sons of gods, dispersing far
The pirate horde, and closes quick the war.
From his red jaws tremendous triumph roars,
Dark Euxine trembles to its distant shores,
Proud Jason starts confounded in his might,
Leads back his peers and dares no more the fight.
But the sly Priestess brings her opiate spell,
Soft charms that hush the triple hound of hell,
Bids Orpheus tune his all-enchanting lyre
And join to calm the guardian’s sleepless ire.
Soon from the tepid ground blue vapors rise,
And sounds melodious move along the skies;
A settling tremor through his folds extends,
His crest contracts, his rainbow heck unbends,
O’er all his hundred hoops the languor crawls,
Each curve develops, every volute falls,
His broad back flattens as he spreads the plain,
And sleep consigns him to his lifeless reign.
Flusht at the sight the pirates seize the spoil,
And ravaged Colchis rues the insidious toil.
Yes! fellow freemen,
