Bless O Thou Mighty Ruler of the Universe Thy servants to whom are committed the Executive, the Legislative and Judicial government of this land; that Thou wouldst be pleased to direct and prosper all their consultations to the advancement of Thy glory, the good of Thy Church, the safety, honor and welfare of Thy people; that all things may be so ordered and settled by their endeavors, upon the best and surest foundations, that peace and happiness, truth and justice, religion and true liberty may be established among us for all generations. Make us to know, therefore, that on this day of our Nation's festivity, and to consider it in our hearts, that Thou art God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath, and that there is no God else beside Thee. Enable us to keep Thy statutes and Thy judgments which Thou hast.coinmanded, that it may go well with us and with our children that we and they may fear Thy rame and obey Thy law, and that Thou mayest prolong the days of this nation through all coming time. Establish Thy kingdom in the midst of this land. Make it "Emmanuel's land," a "mountain of holiness and a dwelling place of righteousness." Inspire Thy Church with the spirit of truth, unity and concord, and grant that every member of the same in his vocation and ministry may serve Thee faithfully. Bless the rulers of this city and commonwealth, and grant that they may truly and impartially administer justice to the punishment of wickedness and vice, and to the maintenance of Thy true religion and virtue. Pour out Thy Fatherly blessing upon our whole country, upon all our lawful pursuits and industries, upon all our households and institutions of learning and benevolence, that rejoicing in Thy smile, and strengthened by Thy might, this nation may go on through all the years of this new century, a praise and a joy of the whole earth, so that all who look upon it may be able to say, "Truly God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved." These things and whatsoever else we need for our national preservation and perpetuity, we humbly ask, in the name and through the mediation of Thy dear Son, to whom with the Father and the Holy Ghost, be ascribed all might, majesty, dominion and power, world without end. Amen. WELCOME TO THE NATIONS. BY OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES. SUNG AT PHILADELPHIA, JULY 4, 1876. I. Bright on the banners of lily and rose Wreath the black cannon that scowled on our foes, All but her friends and their welcome forgets! II. Welcome! a shout like the war trumpet's swell Welcome! the walls of her temple resound! III. Thrones of the Continents! Isles of the Sea! Yours are the garlands of peace we entwine; Welcome, once more, to the land of the free, Shadowed alike by the palm and the pine; Softly they murmur, the palm and the pine; "Hushed is our strife, in the land of the free;" Over your children their branches entwine, Thrones of the Continents! Isles of the Sea! THE NATIONAL ODE. BY BAYARD TAYLOR. DELIVERED AT PHILADELPHIA. JULY 4, 1876. I.-1, SUN of the stately Day. Let Asia into the shadow drift, Let Europe bask in thy ripened ray, Of the Land that waits to behold thee rise: With hope on the lip and pride on the brow, To smile on the love we bear her,- In the clefts of the rocks, in the secret places, On the hills, in the crash of woods that fall, When the lines of battle broke, We saw her face in the fiery smoke; With the grace of a virgin Nation Who shall rejoice With a righteous voice, Far-heard through the ages, if not she? And she stands acknowledged, and strong and free! II.-1. Ah, hark! the solemn undertone Our eras are the dust of Time. To write eternal words on granite pages; And Man his manhood by the Ganges found,- And still by some pale splendor crowned, Chill as a corpse-light in our full-orbed day, In ghostly grandeur rise And say, through stony lips and vacant eyes: "Thou that assertest freedom, power and fame, Declare to us thy claim!" I.-2. On the shores of a Continent cast, By loss of heirdom of all the Past, She walked with fearless feet Till the veins of the mountains beat To turn the mills of her bread; Through the prairie's thousand-centuried sleep; And the nameless rivers in thunder and foam Nor paused, till her uttermost home II.-2. The race, in conquering, Some fierce Titanic joy of conquest knows Provokes the level-eyed, heroic mood. |