The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1880-07-06

bY CHARLES JAMES WRTTg.
The nations anniversary We sing,
The cannOn's thunder tones in chorus ring
TIE birthday Of the Union, ersndly free.
With native pride and love We welcome thee
Compare In history the land to-day,
With what It was when battles stern array
And war-clouds dun were rolling Aerce and low
Der IRE and blood, hundred years agoi
An infant nation struggling to be free,
While sons and sires both fought for liberty,
band Of heroes, BY hero led,
Thus bravely for our country fought and bled
And when the people heard the noble call
For liberty or death, to stand or fall,
How well they rallied to the call to arms,
How nobly stood mid battles dread alarms
Bless'd be the memory Of those who fen,
And those who lived the tale Of blood to tell
And hless'd be he, vnEinia's noble son,
The good. the brave, immortal Washington
The varied scenes on historys changing page,
The grand and vast republic Of the age,
Thus born and fostered in the nations blood,
Through mighty warn it proudly, bavely stood
When battle thunden burst 1t bore the shock
Firm and defiant as the solid rock
And thus we thank the pow'r divine for peace,
And pray that precious blessing may not cease.
But now We view this fair and sunny land
From sea to ocean and from strand to strand
From verdAnt Northern wales to Southern bow'rs
The hills Of Maine, the sunny land Of now'rs,
The mighty forests Of the North we pass
The Western prairies Hike . sea of grass
With undalating beauty grandly wave,
And lakes whose waters as the ocean lave
Whose shores are fnnged with Lowell iness serene,
Both art and nature blended in the scene
Then, on the margin Of that mighty river,
Where Snce the savage with his bow and quiver
At early morn roamed through the valley vast,
Or when the sun rose high at noon he basked
Beside the stream, beneath the verdant shade,
The naughty lord Of river hill and glade.
How changed the scene from then which now we viey
The spires OF cities where the forests grew
The beautiful savannah once here
Now cultivated lands and homes appear
The works Of art and science here find
The schools Of learning useful and rehn'd.
Thus chang'd where erst fair nature only smil'd
With grand enulgence DER the western wild
Still onward over regions then unknown
The Union now proclams them all its own.
We tnrn our gaze toward the southern land
Where tropic beauty smiles from strand to strand
The fair peninsula that from the sea
With grandeur rises, beautiful and free.
Where once the Spanish flag was seen to wave
Upon the castle where the breakers lave
Where natures breath 10 rsrest ofperfume
And bowrs fragrant with the orange bloom
Where sweet aroma watts on zephyr's wing
And joyous warblers bithely softly sing,
How different now the scene on every hand
Since the wild Seminol le ruled the land,
Long may our banner nutter in the air
Long may our people peacefully forbear
To mar the nations harmony and law,
Or raise again the direful voice of war!
Then Ging the banners to the balmy breeze
Ger mountains, va lleys, and DER lakes and seas
In ev'ry cline that nag may chance to be,
Wave it aoft, the emblem of the freel
We view the vastness Of the scene in thought
The greatness that century has wrought
The strength, extent, the pow'r On land and sea,
The peoples pride and love Of liberty,
Union grand Of many lovely climes
North, South, East, West in harmony combines
When northern snow is sparkling on the trees,
The orange bloom perfumes the southern breeze
And when the morn beams On cur eastern main.
The gloom Of night hangs DER the western plaln
When sullen darkness wells our eastern sky,
Or Dian proudly soars before the eye,
Far westward DER the Rocky Mountain pile
The sunbeAms In their glory grandly smile.
Thus DER the land . single instant may
Such difference Of scene at once portray.
And vernal beanty-winter-day and night
In fancy fash at once before the sight,
So grAndly vast and picturesque in thought,
So fairiy-bravey won and nobly wrought
Thank God for pOw'r to do what has been dsne
And bless the memory Of Washington!
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla, July 1880.