Oh! Where's The Slave
by Thomas Moore
Oh, where's the slave, so lowly,
Condemn'd to chains unholy,
Who, could he burst,
His bonds at first,
Would pine beneath them slowly?
What soul, whose wrongs degrade it,
Would wait till time decay'd it,
When thus its wing
At once may spring
To the throne of Him who made it?
Farewell, Erin! farewell all
Who live to weep our fall!
Less dear the laurel growing,
Alive, untouch'd, and blowing,
Than that, whose braid
Is pluck'd to shade
The brows with victory glowing!
We tread the land that bore us,
Our green flag glitters o'er us,
The friends we've tried
Are by our side,
And the foe we hate before us!
Farewell, Erin, farewell all
Who live to weep our fall!
Source:
The Poetical Works of Thomas Moore.Copyright undated, very old
The Walter Scott Publishing Co. Ltd.