 | Poems, Original & Selected |  |
LINES addressed to Mr. JAMES WATKINS, the Fugitive Slave.
Welcome stranger! welcome stranger,
To this land of liberty!
Welcome from thy recent danger,
We will lend our aid to thee.
To this land of liberty!
Welcome from thy recent danger,
We will lend our aid to thee.
Welcome! from those sunny plains,
From the throng, and cruel mart,
From the lash and heavy chains,
Scenes that e'en would rend the heart.
From the throng, and cruel mart,
From the lash and heavy chains,
Scenes that e'en would rend the heart.
Welcome! from those scenes of sadness:
Weep not for the sad “farewell,”
Breath'd to those thou left in sadness:
Come! in Freedom's land to dwell.
Weep not for the sad “farewell,”
Breath'd to those thou left in sadness:
Come! in Freedom's land to dwell.
Welcome! let not mere reflection
Rend thy heart, nor cause a tear;
Pray for those of tried affection,
Firm throughout each fleeting year.
Rend thy heart, nor cause a tear;
Pray for those of tried affection,
Firm throughout each fleeting year.
9
What though thou on earth may'st never
More embrace those ever dear?
Tho' compell'd from them to sever,
Live in faith,—dispel all fear.
More embrace those ever dear?
Tho' compell'd from them to sever,
Live in faith,—dispel all fear.
There's a home, if they believe in
Him who brought thee to our shore:
Where, if cleans'd from all their sin,
They shall dwell for evermore!
Him who brought thee to our shore:
Where, if cleans'd from all their sin,
They shall dwell for evermore!
Thomas Holland. Over Lane, Windsford, Cheshire, Feb. 27, 1856.
| Poems, Original & Selected | |