| |
| LEFT to the Saviour’s conquering foes, | |
| The land that girds the Saviour’s grave; | |
| Where Godfrey’s crosier-standard rose, | |
| He saw the crescent-banner wave. | |
| |
| There, o’er the gently broken vale, | 5 |
| The halo-light on Zion glowed; | |
| There Kedron, with a voice of wail, | |
| By tombs of saints and heroes flowed; | |
| |
| There still the olives silver o’er | |
| The dimness of the distant hill; | 10 |
| There still the flowers that Sharon bore, | |
| Calm air with many an odor fill. | |
| |
| Slowly the last Crusader eyed | |
| The towers, the mount, the stream, the plain, | |
| And thought of those whose blood had dyed | 15 |
| The earth with crimson streams in vain! | |
| |
| He thought of that sublime array, | |
| The hosts that over land and deep | |
| The Hermit marshalled on their way, | |
| To see those towers, and halt to weep! | 20 |
| |
| Resigned the loved familiar lands, | |
| O’er burning wastes the cross to bear, | |
| And rescue from the Paynim’s hands | |
| The empire of a sepulchre! | |
| |
| And vain the hope, and vain the loss, | 25 |
| And vain the famine and the strife: | |
| In vain the faith that bore the cross, | |
| The valor prodigal of life! | |
| |
| And vain was Richard’s lion-soul, | |
| And guileless Godfrey’s patient mind,— | 30 |
| Like waves on shore, they reached the goal, | |
| To die, and leave no trace behind! | |
| |
| “O God!” the last Crusader cried, | |
| “And art thou careless of thine own? | |
| For us thy Son in Salem died, | 35 |
| And Salem is the scoffer’s throne! | |
| |
| “And shall we leave, from age to age, | |
| To godless hands the holy tomb? | |
| Against thy saints the heathen rage,— | |
| Launch forth thy lightnings and consume!” | 40 |
| |
| Swift, as he spoke, before his sight | |
| A form flashed, white-robed, from above; | |
| All Heaven was in those looks of light, | |
| But Heaven, whose native air is love. | |
| |
| “Alas!” the solemn vision said, | 45 |
| “Thy God is of the shield and spear,— | |
| To bless the quick and raise the dead, | |
| The Saviour-God descended here! | |
| |
| “Ask not the Father to reward | |
| The hearts that seek, through blood, the Son; | 50 |
| O warrior! never by the sword | |
| The Saviour’s Holy Land is won!” | |
| |
