18.12.2012, 00:57
Th' invader oft has trampled on a clime,
As on glorious freedom worship'd there
With the devotion earnest and sublime
Of pilgrims, who to honour'd shrines repair,
But never was it welcom'd by the call
Of right and stern necessity, than when
The phalanx'd strength of Macedon crush'd all
The might of haughty Persia, and men
Requited the oppression of long years,
Engrafting on the barbarian stock,
All civilization accustom'd rears,
But here experience would its pow'r mock
For still each original trait it wears,
Impervious to advancement as the blacken'd rock.
As on glorious freedom worship'd there
With the devotion earnest and sublime
Of pilgrims, who to honour'd shrines repair,
But never was it welcom'd by the call
Of right and stern necessity, than when
The phalanx'd strength of Macedon crush'd all
The might of haughty Persia, and men
Requited the oppression of long years,
Engrafting on the barbarian stock,
All civilization accustom'd rears,
But here experience would its pow'r mock
For still each original trait it wears,
Impervious to advancement as the blacken'd rock.