Translations of Metrical Passages 799
P. 191Venerable Congress, of a people free and good
You have cemented the glory and union;
You have delivered America and its waters
From the furious Leopards, the tyrant of two worlds:
Clear- headed scrutinizers of our vain prejudices,
You have descended to the depth of our hearts;
You plunge into them a torrent of light,
Which brings clarity to this sad hemisphere,
Strikes its tyrants, and from their shameful yoke
Invites us to break the detestable bonds.Where without distinction of birth or rank,
The most honest man, the most worthy of respect,
The most useful in short, is always the greatest.P. 192–93Be free! (say it in high victory note,
Enraptured song!) free, free now, America!Thine example calls out loud to the Nations:
“Free is, who free will be, and is worthy to be!”...O land to the singer dearer than Fatherland!
The first shoots of thy freedom grow quickly
To the tree....Where sweet equality dwells, and the spawn of nobles,
The plague of Europe, does not defile the manners of simplicity,
Without desert, in spite of better men.O take, beloved, take the stranger up,
The weary stranger; let me at your breast
Allay the long consuming sorrows,
The bitter pangs of secret grief.Why do I tarry? Still clank the iron chains,
Reminding me, poor me, that I am a German.
I see you, lovely scenes, disappear,
Sink back into the depth, and weep.