The American common-place book of poetry with occasional notes |
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Sonnet. The Free Mind.—William Lloyd Garrison.
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 | The American common-place book of poetry |  |
Sonnet. The Free Mind.—William Lloyd Garrison.
High walls and huge the body may confine,And iron grates obstruct the prisoner's gaze,
And massive bolts may baffle his design,
And vigilant keepers watch his devious ways:
No chains can bind it, and no cell enclose:
Swifter than light, it flies from pole to pole,
And in a flash from earth to heaven it goes!
It leaps from mount to mount; from vale to vale
It wanders, plucking honeyed fruits and flowers;
It visits home, to hear the fire-side tale,
Or, in sweet converse, pass the joyous hours.
'T is up before the sun, roaming afar,
And, in its watches, wearies every star!
This sonnet, written during Mr. Garrison's despotic imprisonment, possesses a nobleness and an energy in the thought, a corresponding ease and originality in the expression, and an antique richness in its whole structure, which make it worthy of the happiest ‘Olden Times’ of the English Muse.
With all the heart, we bid its author God speed in his efforts in the cause of freedom. But it needs patience and prudence, as well as stern moral courage. The possible result of the Colonization Society, and the success which may attend the efforts for the entire abolition of slavery in this country, constitute the great problem, on the solution of which our prosperity, and perhaps even our existence as a nation, depends. Every man who can speak, every editor who can influence the public mind, should certainly be doing all in his power to hasten forward the period of complete emancipation.
“Speed it, O Father! Let thy kingdom come!”Ed.
| The American common-place book of poetry | |