38. work to do.
by R. H. Stoddard.
From the North and the West,That are joined, heart and hand,
For the flag of their sires,
And the laws of the land, [30]
Come forth, ye free men,
That are loyal thereto,
For Freedom has work
For her children to do!
Not the work that ye know,
That is best for the free,
Sowing towns in new lands,
Ploughing ships through the sea;
Ye are perfect in this--
It is old; but the new--
'Tis a grim work your sires
Left their children to do!
Could they speak from their graves,
They would shout to their sons:
“Leave your ploughs, drop your tools,
Run, and shoulder your guns!
Ye must march to the South,
Ye must cut your way through,
Or-leave the stern work
For your children to do!”
We hear the alarm,
Like the lightning it runs,
And thousands of freemen
Have shouldered their guns;
They will fall on the South,
They will crush and subdue,
Nor leave the sad work
For their children to do!
For the North and the West,
They have taken their stand
For the flag that they love,
And the laws of the land!
They'll maintain them till death,
Ay, and after it, too;
For they'll still leave the work
Which their children will do!
May 6, 1861.
--The World.
