Bold Freedom's shrine our only vows require;
Proud in her cause, each hero would expire;
Life is no gift without her honour'd name,
The very sound e'en props my wither'd frame.
Unlike your race, we own but one degree;
No slaves, nor masters; all alike are free.
Age makes the King by all the tribe confess'd,
Nor lives there one yet richer than the rest!
Each independent can his wants supply,
And ev'ry face displays a brother's eye;
The earth and sea afford their open stores,
And, gold despising, love our native shores.
To-morrow's fare no anxious thoughts create,
And present joys by reas'ning ne'er abate :
Eight hundred miles the ocean wets our land, 170
Where fruitful soil repays th' usurper's hand:
Tho' sanguine foes oft hunt within our lines,
Sweet Peace, now smiling, guards the wild confines.
When drooping man's advanc'd in life's short race,
And aged limbs resign the toiling chase,
His next of kin that holds his youthful prime, Whose hast'ning years scarce reach the marriage time,
Attend the sire, and all his wants provide,
From wat'ry depths, or from the mountain's side.
That you are white, and I of iron hue,
And some are black, the eye declares is true;
While doubts and wonders friv'lous minds engage,
No questioning thoughts in Indian bosoms rage.
God made a mould, and first the white man threw,
Till, by the clay, the mould soon darker grew;
Next sprung the Indian with his copper cast, 186
And from the dross the slavish black came last." -
Here ceas'd the King, enrob'd in low attire,
Assum'd his pipe, and stir'd his blazing fire;
To Edward's heart his reas'ning wing'd its way, 190
Whose convert mind now hails a new-born day;
For him the Squa's with active hands prepare
An Indian dress, a charm to ev'ry care!
Close by the camp a river's rapid stream,
Through shades of maple show'd its silver gleam; 195
Where whistling robins, 'midst the foliage plac'd,
With native music cheer'd the savage waste.
Here Edward hastens to the woody steep,
And, pleas'd with wonder, eyes the boiling deep!
First from his shoulders throws the fashion'd coat,
Till all his clothes upon the surface float;
In strict obedience, from our hero's eyes
The sliding current bears its foreign prize;
Then, headlong darting thro' the rapid stream,
Remembers oft the vision in his dream;
His active limbs that plough the swelling wave,
In sportive turns enjoy the cooling bath;
Like ancient Lethe by poets fam'd in song,
So equal virtues to those waves belong;
As civil life, with all its polish'd kind,
To dark oblivion fly young Edward's mind;
For mem'ry's pow'r some heav'nly goddess breaks,
And from past cares a new-born man awakes.
But lo! some foot the peaceful bank disturbs,
And kind Susannah spoke the well-tim'd words: 215
"If Edward's swimming dares with Indians cope,
Inspect this basket which for him I drop;"
Then to the deep commits her wickers gay,
And thro' the woods in laughter bounc'd away.
The floating prize keeps driving with the tide, 220
Till Edward's arm secure its painted side;
Then stretching slowly to the verdant shore,
Beneath a tree the wicker'd bandage tore.
Within the box, by oziers neatly bound,
A hunter's suit the naked Edward found;
The silver stream reflects the neighb'ring trees,
And his own form at last distinctly sees;
Soon by its aid the Indian garb assumes,
Whilst various songsters raise their native tunes;
Pleas'd with himself, he eyes the savage dress, 230
And Nature's glass the simple charms confess :
A hairy belt, none of the smallest size,
And coat of skins around his middle ties;
A musk-rat pouch, suspended from this belt,
Affords the use that's from the pocket felt;
The maugosines so handsome to the view,
Surpass the comfort of the best-made shoe;
To grace the leg or suit the toiling field,
The finest stockings must to leggings yield;
A cap of fur, where wav'd an eagle's tail,
Now crown'd our Hero in the silent vale.
Home to the camp with new flush'd spirit goes,
Where round wood fires his brethren sit in rows;
Where laughter reigns, where ev'ry face looks gay
And sparkling eyes their welcome guest survey ! 24
END OF THE FIRST CANTO,
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