John Brown

Had he been made of such poor clay as we,
Who, when we feel a little fire aglow
'Gainst wrong within us, dare not let it grow,
But crouch and hide it, lest the scorner see
And sneer, yet bask our self-complacency
In that faint warmth - had he been fashioned so,
The nation n'er had come to that birth-throe
That gave the world a new humanity.
He was no vain professor of the word -
His life a mockery of the creed; - he made
No discount on the Golden Rule, but heard
Above the Senate's brawls and din of trade
Ever the clank of chains, until he stirred
The nation's heart on that immortal raid.