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THE NORTH STAR63
- The University of North Carolina Press
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96 America and Other Poems ’T was moral force which broke the chain, That bound eight hundred thousand men; And when we see it snapped in twain, Shall we not join in praises then?— And prayers unto Almighty God, Who smote to earth the tyrant’s rod? And from those islands of the sea, The scenes of blood and crime and wrong, The glorious anthem of the free, Now swells in mighty chorus strong; Telling th’ oppressed, where’er they roam, Those islands now are freedom’s home. THE NORTH STAR⁶³ STAR of the north! whose steadfast ray Pierces the sable pall of night, Forever pointing out the way That leads to freedom’s hallowed light: The fugitive lifts up his eye To where thy rays illume the sky. That steady, calm, unchanging light, Through dreary wilds and trackless dells, Directs his weary steps aright To the bright land where freedom dwells; And spreads, with sympathizing breast, Her ægis over the oppressed. 63. Written for the North Star; a newspaper edited by a fugitive slave [Whitfield’s note]. The poem first appeared in the North Star, 21 December 1849, 4. Douglass edited the North Star from 1847 to 1851, before changing the name of the paper to Frederick Douglass’ Paper. Whitfield added the footnote for the 1853 republication in America.. America and Other Poems 97 Though other stars may round thee burn, With larger disk and brighter ray, And fiery comets round thee turn, While millions mark their blazing way; And the pale moon and planets bright Reflect on us their silvery light. Not like that moon, now dark, now bright, In phase and place forever changing; Or planets with reflected light, Or comets through the heavens ranging; They all seem varying to our view, While thou art ever fixed and true. So may that other bright North Star, Beaming with truth and freedom’s light, Pierce with its cheering ray afar, The shades of slavery’s gloomy night; And may it never cease to be The guard of truth and liberty. [54.173.43.215] Project MUSE (2024-03-28 13:49 GMT) This page intentionally left blank ...