I.
O, nobly hast thou fallen in the fight
Of holy freedom ! and thy name shall be
Henceforth the watchword of the good and free,
Whose arms are nerved to battle for the right!
In the dark days before us, 'mid the night
Of a stern tyranny, we'll think of thee,
Martyr of God! and strike for liberty
With faith unwavering, and an arm of might!
Not unavenged, O brother, shall thy blood
Sink in the ground; its voice shall upward ring
A fearful cry to wake the slumbering,
Reaching the ear of an avenging God !
And millions, roused, shall swear upon thy grave
Death to oppression, freedom to the slave !
II.
And thou, devoted wife! who nobly stood
With martyr-zeal, and in the strength sublime
Of a fond heart withstood the men of crime
Who sought, with fiend-like rage, thy husband's blood —
Bereft of earthly hope, and in the flood
Of a dark sorrow overwhelmed, what now
For thee remains? Submissively to bow
And own the chastening of a Father's rod!
God help thee, broken heart! Thy sacrifice
Is mighty, but it shall not be in vain!
His blood, thy tears, they shall not sink, like rain,
Unnoted to the ground! From freemen's eyes
The scales are falling, and this woe shall be
The ransom of a people, — joy, in grief, for thee!
III.
Joy, that through this, thy fearful suffering,
Deliverance for the captive shall be wrought!
The chain is snapped that bound the indignant thought
In human breasts too long, and men will fling
Fear from their spirits as they think of thee,
And strike for freedom till the earth be free!
For a stern purpose thou art set apart
By this most bloody baptism! 'Mid distress
Then bear thou up, and gird around thy heart
Strength for his sake who now is fatherless
Lean upon God and linger yet awhile,
And from thy desolation thou shalt see
The dawning of the day of jubilee,
When the freed earth shall bask in Heaven's reviving smile!
William Henry Burleigh
The Martyr