To drive the Roman robber. He who loves
His country, and who feels his country's shame ; Whose bones amid a land of servitude
Could never rest in peace; who, if he saw
His children slaves, would feel a pang in Heaven, . . He mounts the bark, to seek for liberty.
Who seeks the better land? The wretched one Whose joys are blasted all, whose heart is sick, Who hath no hope, to whom all change is gain, To whom remember'd pleasures strike a pang That only guilt should know,..he mounts the bark, The Bard will mount the bark of banishment; The harp of Cambria shall in other lands Remind the Cambrian of his fathers' fame; . The Bard will seek the land of liberty,
The World of peace... O Prince, receive the Bard!
He ceased the song. His cheek, now fever-flush'd Was turn'd to Madoc, and his asking eye Linger'd on him in hope; nor linger'd long The look expectant; forward sprung the Prince, And gave to Caradoc the right-hand pledge, And for the comrade of his enterprize, With joyful welcome, hail'd the joyful Bard.
Nor needed now the Searcher of the Sea Announce his enterprize, by Caradoc
song announced so well; from man to man
The busy murmur spread, while from the Stone
Of Covenant the sword was taken up,
And from the Circle of the Ceremony
The Bards went forth, their meeting now fulfill'd. The multitude, unheeding all beside,
Of Madoc and his noble enterprize
Held stirring converse on their homeward way, And spread abroad the tidings of a Land, Where Plenty dwelt with Liberty and Peace.
So in the court of Powys pleasantly,
With hawk and hound afield, and harp in hall,
The days went by; till Madoc, for his heart
Was with Cadwallon, and in early spring
Must he set forth to join him over-sea,
Took his constrain'd farewell. To Dinevawr
He bent his way, whence many a time with Rhys
Had he gone forth to smite the Saxon foe.
The Son of Owen greets his father's friend
With reverential joy: nor did the Lord
Of Dinevawr with cold or deaden'd heart
Welcome the Prince he loved; though not with joy
Unmingled now, nor the proud consciousness
Which in the man of tried and approved worth
Could bid an equal hail. Henry had seen
The Lord of Dinevawr between his knees
Vow homage; yea, the Lord of Dinevawr
Had knelt in homage to that Saxon king,
Who set a price upon his father's head,
That Saxon, on whose soul his mother's blood
Cried out for vengeance. Madoc saw the shame
Which Rhys would fain have hidden, and, in grief
For the degenerate land, rejoiced at heart
That now another country was his home.
Musing on thoughts like these, did Madoc roam Alone along the Towy's winding shore.
The beavers in its bank had hollow'd out
Their social place of dwelling, and had damm'd
The summer-current, with their perfect art
Of instinct, erring not in means nor end.
But as the floods of spring had broken down
Their barrier, so its breaches unrepair'd
Were left; and round the piles, which, deeper driven,
Still held their place, the eddying waters whirl'd.
Now in those habitations desolate
One sole survivor dwelt: him Madoc saw,
Labouring alone, beside his hermit house;
And in that mood of melancholy thought,..
For in his boyhood he had loved to watch
Their social work, and for he knew that man
In bloody sport had well-nigh rooted out
The poor community, . . the ominous sight
Became a grief and burthen. Eve came on;
The dry leaves rustled to the wind, and fell
And floated on the stream; there was no voice
Save of the mournful rooks, who overhead
Wing'd their long line; for fragrance of sweet flowers,
Only the odour of the autumnal leaves;..
All sights and sounds of sadness... And the place
To that despondent mood was ministrant; ..
Among the hills of Gwyneth and its wilds
And mountain glens, perforce he cherish'd still
The hope of mountain liberty; they braced
And knit the heart and arm of hardihood; ..
But here, in these green meads, by these low slopes
And hanging groves, attemper'd to the scene,
His spirit yielded. As he loiter'd on,
There came toward him one in peasant garb,
And call'd his name;.. he started at the sound,
For he had heeded not the man's approach;
And now that sudden and familiar voice
Came on him, like a vision. So he stood
Gazing, and knew him not in the dim light,
Till he again cried, Madoc!.. then he woke,
And knew the voice of Ririd, and sprang on,
And fell upon his neck, and wept for joy
And sorrow.
O my brother! Ririd cried,
Long, very long it is since I have heard
The voice of kindness! . . Let me go with thee !
I am a wanderer in my father's land,.
Hoel he kill'd, and Yorwerth hath he slain ;
Llewelyn hath not where to hide his head
In his own kingdom; Rodri is in chains;
Let me go with thee, Madoc, to some land
Where I may look upon the sun, nor dread
The light that may betray me; where at night
I may not, like a hunted beast, rouse up,
If the leaves rustle over me.
Of Ocean struggled with his swelling heart.
Let me go with thee?.. but thou didst not doubt
Thy brother?.. Let thee go? . . with what a joy,
Ririd, would I collect the remnant left,..
The wretched remnant now of Owen's house,
And mount the bark of willing banishment,
And leave the tyrant to his Saxon friends,
And to his Saxon yoke!.. I urged him thus,
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