Ballads for the Times (Now first collected,) Geraldine, A Modern Pyramid, Bartenus, A Thousand Lines, and other poems. By Martin F. Tupper. A new Edition, enlarged and revised |
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 | Ballads for the Times |  |
252
The Order of Alfred.—1849.
Alfred the Great upon his thousandth year!—
Who would not give him honour far and near?
Where is the mind of Anglo-Saxon mould
Unstirr'd by those brave memories of old,
When the seed-acorn of our English oak
First from the soil with stubborn sinews broke,
Put forth its towering leader, and, ere long,
Grew like a giant, lusty, straight, and strong,
Up to the zenith flung its leafy crown,
Down—to the centre struck its taproot—down,
Clung to the very ribs of mother earth,
Her sturdy son, her never-dying birth,
And now, more vigorous for a thousand years,
Has overgrown a brace of hemispheres!
Who would not give him honour far and near?
Where is the mind of Anglo-Saxon mould
Unstirr'd by those brave memories of old,
When the seed-acorn of our English oak
First from the soil with stubborn sinews broke,
Put forth its towering leader, and, ere long,
Grew like a giant, lusty, straight, and strong,
Up to the zenith flung its leafy crown,
Down—to the centre struck its taproot—down,
Clung to the very ribs of mother earth,
Her sturdy son, her never-dying birth,
And now, more vigorous for a thousand years,
Has overgrown a brace of hemispheres!
O royal Alfred, look on me thy son,
Thy faithful Abdiel, if thine only one!
In thee the Saxon David I behold,
Meek as the lamb and as the lion bold,
Tinged with some fault as may become a man,
But doing yet the best a mortal can,
In weal and woe the bright exemplar still
To kings who compass good and combat ill.
Fear'd by thy foes, as by thy friends admired,
And changing foes to friends with love inspired,
Great in adversity, but greater far
In the full blaze of fortune's favouring star,
All things to all men was thy bright career,
A man for saints to love, and fiends to fear!
Thy faithful Abdiel, if thine only one!
In thee the Saxon David I behold,
Meek as the lamb and as the lion bold,
Tinged with some fault as may become a man,
But doing yet the best a mortal can,
In weal and woe the bright exemplar still
To kings who compass good and combat ill.
Fear'd by thy foes, as by thy friends admired,
And changing foes to friends with love inspired,
Great in adversity, but greater far
In the full blaze of fortune's favouring star,
253
A man for saints to love, and fiends to fear!
For, well I wot thy greatness of old time,
Well do I note that greatness still sublime:
From thee, as root, old England's glory grew,
Thee the first-fruit, and trunk, and acorn too.
Father and founder of this ruling race,
King in all climes, and priests in every place,—
Lawgiver, statesman, teaching now as then,
For ever living in the hearts of men,
Thee may thy children title, as they can,
The pattern prince, the model Englishman!
Well do I note that greatness still sublime:
From thee, as root, old England's glory grew,
Thee the first-fruit, and trunk, and acorn too.
Father and founder of this ruling race,
King in all climes, and priests in every place,—
Lawgiver, statesman, teaching now as then,
For ever living in the hearts of men,
Thee may thy children title, as they can,
The pattern prince, the model Englishman!
Through thee, fair Order rested on the land,
Mercy and Justice walking hand in hand;
Each village church is thine, with all its good;
Each hamlet stands where at thy word it stood:
Merchants, who waft your venture on the breeze,
He gave you first the freedom of the seas;
Sailors, ten centuries our British boast,
He sent you first afloat on every coast;
Yeomen, who guard your homes and their increase,
He arm'd your prowess, and decreed your peace;
Soldiers, whose valour rings from pole to pole,
Your glory dates from Alfred's royal soul!
Mercy and Justice walking hand in hand;
Each village church is thine, with all its good;
Each hamlet stands where at thy word it stood:
Merchants, who waft your venture on the breeze,
He gave you first the freedom of the seas;
Sailors, ten centuries our British boast,
He sent you first afloat on every coast;
Yeomen, who guard your homes and their increase,
He arm'd your prowess, and decreed your peace;
Soldiers, whose valour rings from pole to pole,
Your glory dates from Alfred's royal soul!
And where was Oxford with her beacon light
Before this meteor blazed upon the night?
Before his mind, illumining the world,
Flash'd o'er the nations like a flag unfurl'd,
And princely gifts, as well as student-toil,
Fed learning's golden lamp with midnight oil!
Remember, London! once so desolate,
Through him, thine Ezra, thou art grown so great;
Sing, ye dark places of the land made fair,
For Nehemiah breathed in Alfred there!
Before this meteor blazed upon the night?
Before his mind, illumining the world,
Flash'd o'er the nations like a flag unfurl'd,
And princely gifts, as well as student-toil,
Fed learning's golden lamp with midnight oil!
254
Through him, thine Ezra, thou art grown so great;
Sing, ye dark places of the land made fair,
For Nehemiah breathed in Alfred there!
And see, how Science at his fostering voice
With sister Art could at their task rejoice:
Never, since Alfred was a king of men
Has honour gilt the pencil or the pen
With half the richness of that generous age
When he stood by the student or the sage;
Never has King, or Queen, or Royal Prince,
To his true nobles been an Alfred since!
With sister Art could at their task rejoice:
Never, since Alfred was a king of men
Has honour gilt the pencil or the pen
With half the richness of that generous age
When he stood by the student or the sage;
Never has King, or Queen, or Royal Prince,
To his true nobles been an Alfred since!
Aye; and to these, the Lawgiver, the King,
The statesman, chieftain, patron, everything,
Under whose laws we live, whose light yet shines,
Whose character with England's intertwines,—
Add the calm virtues of a Christian mind,
The glorious will and power to bless mankind,
The guileless heart scarce mix'd with worldly leaven,
The meekness of a sainted child of heaven,
And tell me, Earth our Mother, where and when
Hadst thou another such a man of men?
The statesman, chieftain, patron, everything,
Under whose laws we live, whose light yet shines,
Whose character with England's intertwines,—
Add the calm virtues of a Christian mind,
The glorious will and power to bless mankind,
The guileless heart scarce mix'd with worldly leaven,
The meekness of a sainted child of heaven,
And tell me, Earth our Mother, where and when
Hadst thou another such a man of men?
Yea! for his greatness, faintly seen from far,
Is as the glimmering greatness of a star
Which common ignorance, with vacant stare,
Sees as a petty spangle shining there!
Yea! for his glory, like the noonday sun,
So little praised by that it shines upon,
Has lighten'd church and state in every way,
And men think nothing of the common day!
To us he was, as to the Hebrew stock
Stood father Abraham, both root and rock,
To us the Noah of our shipwreck'd helm,
The Adam of this Anglo-Saxon realm!
Is as the glimmering greatness of a star
Which common ignorance, with vacant stare,
Sees as a petty spangle shining there!
Yea! for his glory, like the noonday sun,
So little praised by that it shines upon,
Has lighten'd church and state in every way,
And men think nothing of the common day!
255
Stood father Abraham, both root and rock,
To us the Noah of our shipwreck'd helm,
The Adam of this Anglo-Saxon realm!
Forgetful Britain! haste, redeem the day,
Before this grand occasion dies away:
There yet is time one trophied Praise to rear
To Alfred's honour on his thousandth year,
Better than statues or a tardy tomb
To one who lives beyond the crack of doom,
A Praise like him to live, and be, and grow
In hearts that still for God and goodness glow,
A Praise, where Alfred's own example stood,
Himself the paragon of all things good.
Before this grand occasion dies away:
There yet is time one trophied Praise to rear
To Alfred's honour on his thousandth year,
Better than statues or a tardy tomb
To one who lives beyond the crack of doom,
A Praise like him to live, and be, and grow
In hearts that still for God and goodness glow,
A Praise, where Alfred's own example stood,
Himself the paragon of all things good.
Stablish, O Queen! a new found honour here,
King Alfred's Order on his Thousandth Year;
For peaceful merit of whatever kind,
The duteous martyr, or the master-mind,
For keen invention, and for high-toned art,
For every excellence of head and heart,
For wit and wisdom, holiness and skill,
For Man's and Woman's God-devoted will,
For all things wise, and generous, and good,
Stablish this seal of England's gratitude!
King Alfred's Order on his Thousandth Year;
For peaceful merit of whatever kind,
The duteous martyr, or the master-mind,
For keen invention, and for high-toned art,
For every excellence of head and heart,
For wit and wisdom, holiness and skill,
For Man's and Woman's God-devoted will,
For all things wise, and generous, and good,
Stablish this seal of England's gratitude!
Let Alfred's badge,—his collar, bâton, star,
Decorate Worth, more worth than that of War:
The pure and patient labourers for truth,
Neglected Mentors of our wayward youth;
The pastor, and the poet, and the sage,
Forgotten comforters from youth to age;
The good physician, quick to cheat the grave
Of dying want, whom skill and science save;
The poor man's advocate; the outcast's friend,
Who heals the wounds that woes unkindly rend;
The Hero, whatsoe'er his rank or name,
Who does his duty well, and finds it fame;
And the wise phalanx of untitled men
Who wield with giant force the generous pen,
And do more good through all creation still
Than cut-and-dried diplomacy does ill:
O, there are many who would scorn to share
The bloodstain'd ribbon with those courtiers there,
Many, who marvel that for peace and worth
Is dealt a badge most worthless upon earth!
Decorate Worth, more worth than that of War:
The pure and patient labourers for truth,
Neglected Mentors of our wayward youth;
The pastor, and the poet, and the sage,
Forgotten comforters from youth to age;
256
Of dying want, whom skill and science save;
The poor man's advocate; the outcast's friend,
Who heals the wounds that woes unkindly rend;
The Hero, whatsoe'er his rank or name,
Who does his duty well, and finds it fame;
And the wise phalanx of untitled men
Who wield with giant force the generous pen,
And do more good through all creation still
Than cut-and-dried diplomacy does ill:
O, there are many who would scorn to share
The bloodstain'd ribbon with those courtiers there,
Many, who marvel that for peace and worth
Is dealt a badge most worthless upon earth!
True: these have their Reward, more glorious far,—
And take small comfort from a tinsel star:
Yet, for the good encouragement of all,
God's creature, Honour, is a mighty call;
And none may scorn, however pure or wise,
Such earthly symbol of a heavenly prize,
Because our Sovereign's praise betokens thus
The praise of God, Her Sovereign, upon us!
And take small comfort from a tinsel star:
Yet, for the good encouragement of all,
God's creature, Honour, is a mighty call;
And none may scorn, however pure or wise,
Such earthly symbol of a heavenly prize,
Because our Sovereign's praise betokens thus
The praise of God, Her Sovereign, upon us!
So then, let Alfred's bright Memorial be
A smile reflected, Gracious Queen, from Thee!
A smile on merit, wheresoever found,
Topping the clouds or cowering on the ground,—
An honour, which the Good, though poor, may gain,
And Evil in high places seek in vain,
A wise new bulwark to our Church and State,
King Alfred's Order for the Good and Great!
A smile reflected, Gracious Queen, from Thee!
A smile on merit, wheresoever found,
Topping the clouds or cowering on the ground,—
An honour, which the Good, though poor, may gain,
And Evil in high places seek in vain,
A wise new bulwark to our Church and State,
King Alfred's Order for the Good and Great!
| Ballads for the Times | |