The lines of his cuirassiers came,
Like breakers wind-driven from seaward,
Dark tossed in a whirlwind of flame.
I hated the shot that must enter
That steel-girt and confident breast,
And quench that brave spirit for ever,
That light on the cataract's crest
But I gave forth the word, and our volley
Rang clear o'er the thunder of feet
That rolled not to us, for Destruction
Rejoiced their proud splendour to greet.
And the leader who laughed at our columns,
At the ranks that bid gaiety die,
On his red bed of honour at even
Lay smiling his scorn at the sky.
_THE IRISH EMIGRANT._
1880.
Look not for me at eventide,
I cannot come when work is done;
I go to wander far and wide,
For 'tis not here that gold is won.
Perchance where'er I go, these hands
May find me what I need to live;
Whate'er they win, if house, or lands,
I'd yield for what they cannot give.
For who can turn away his face
From home and kin and be at rest?
What country e'er can take the place
That Ireland fills within my breast?
More kindly smile the distant skies,
They say, beyond yon angry sea;
I know not what they mean, mine eyes
Have never seen these frown on me.
To me these hills beside the wave
With every year have dearer grown;
Is it so great a thing to crave
To call my native land, mine own?
But why these useless plaints renew?
Farewell! That word, it seems a knell!
If still I'm dear, kind hearts, to you,
'Tis all I ask, Farewell, Farewell!
_THE IRISH EMIGRANT._
1883.
"They sow in tears who reap in joy,"
Was truly said of old:
We wandered far, but round us still
Stretched God Almighty's fold.
'Twas He who led us forth; our grief
Discerned His chastening hand,
And saw not, though before our eyes
Shone bright His promised land.
O bless Him for the love that made
The parting greeting sore,
But for the bold heart that He gave
We bless our God yet more!
He gave us hope, He gave us strength;
For us His prairies smile,
The new world's untouched soils for us
Spread boundless, mile on mile.
The richest heritage on earth
For us His mercy saved;
For ages Nature's harvests here
Unknown, ungathered, waved.
Ours now the grain which decks the plains,
Ours all their wondrous yield;
Our children, and our kin possess
Their own, in house and field.
What wonder then if many laugh,
And wonder joy was dumb!
To friends in older lands with less
Our happy hearts say "Come."
_SONG._
OSBORNE, 1882.
Here Rose and Magnolia
Our dearest enshrine,
The prayer of the south wind
Is thine and is mine,
For Child and for Mother
Here sweetly twice isled,
Brave Seamen are praying
For Mother and Child.
Where State must surround them
Beneath the Great Keep,
And green oaks of Windsor
Shade River and Steep,
For Child and Queen-Mother
The choristers aisled,
With armed men are chanting
For Mother and Child.
Away where the Heather
Blooms far o'er the Pine,
The Highlander's blessing
Is mine and is thine,
For Child and for Mother
Beloved and mild;
What heart does not bless them,
Dear Mother and Child.
_SONNET._
LORD F. DOUGLAS KILLED ON THE MATTERHORN, SWITZERLAND, 1865.
Not home to land and kindred wast thou brought,
Nor laid 'mid trampled dead of battle won,--
Nor after long life filled with duty done
Was thine such death as thou thyself had'st sought!
No, sadder far, with horror overwrought
That end that gave to thee thy cruel grave
Deep in blue chasms of some glacier cave,
When Cervins perils thou, the first, had'st fought
And conquered, Douglas! for in thee uprose
In boyhood e'en a nature noble, free,--
So gently brave with courtesy, that those
Old Douglas knights, the "flowers of Chivalry,"
Had joyed to see that in our times again
A link of gold had graced their ancient chain!
_SADOWA_
JULY 1866.
Wet, cheerless was our bivouac last eve, but still we spoke
Of fighting and of winning, to-morrow, when day broke:
That day the thundering echoes of cannon in our front
Had louder grown until around had raged the battle's brunt
At last the carnage ended, and our regiment's retreat
Was marked by many wounded, who shrieked beneath our feet!
But here in closer order rides past a Lancer Troop--
They had but late been charging like falcons when they swoop.
How few there are remaining! Now the river's bank is gained;
The Trumpeter's white charger with blood on neck is stained.
His snowy flanks are heaving; he shudders on the brink,
Then, gently urged, he halts again, and stoops his head to drink.
He cannot ford the river, for lost are strength and speed:
The Trumpeter, dismounted, now swims beside his steed.
Together they have struggled; he will not let him die,
And soon he stands beside him though the balls are rushing by.
He takes him by the bridle;--would lead him to the town,--
Too late,--for life is ebbing,--the gallant steed is down!
Ah! long I saw that horseman kneel by his charger's head,
And when at last he left him, I knew the horse was dead.
How fiercely as he passes that comrade on the plain,
Remounted on the morrow, shall sound the "charge" again!
_ON A FOREIGN WAR SHIP'S SALUTE TO THE QUEEN'S STANDARD AT OSBORNE._
With their deep voice, monotonous and slow,
The cannon's thunders roll along the sea;
But 'tis in reverence, and to work no woe
Those sounds here reach the shore and onward flee
Past the oak woods that climb the grassy lea,
To strike thy terraces, and palace fair
With stately salutation offered thee
Who of these potent realms the crown dost wear.
So to the fabric of our future fame,
Set in the green oak of our Empire's might:
Shall history's voice, with measured praise, proclaim
Thy life-long love of justice and of right,
And the good era that thy reign hath been.
To hail thee, reverently, Victoria, Queen.
SPEECHES AND ADDRESSES.
_Some of the Speeches, and a few of the answers to Addresses,
delivered during Lord Lorne's term of office in the Dominion, are
printed in the following pages._
On taking leave of his constituents in 1878, in a speech delivered at
Inveraray, Lord Lorne said:--
Judge of the wishes of our colonies, not from your own point of view
only, but from that of their interests also, and from that of the
well-being of the whole Empire, whose glory and power is at once the best
result and the surest guarantee of the freedom which is yours, and
which the colonies inherit from you. Many of you know well, because
many of your relations are settled there, the great British Colonies of
North America. The Dominion now stretches from ocean to ocean across
that vast continent, embracing lands of every nature--some valuable for
corn, some for pasture, for timber or for other treasures which will in
future centuries make the country one of the richest on the earth--for
coal and other minerals. As your former member is about to join the
number of your friends who are already there, you will allow him to say
a good word for those provinces of the Dominion, the threshold of which
civilisation has already passed, and whose fair vacant chambers tempt
the settler from the Old World to enter further and to occupy.
Some years ago, at a public meeting in Glasgow, I took the opportunity
to describe the temptations offered by the Canadian Government to men
employed in agriculture here to settle in Manitoba, and since that day,
as before it, hundreds of happy homesteads have risen, and the energies
of the Dominion have been directed towards the completion of that
railway which will make Manitoba as accessible as is Inveraray. Now,
let me again invite attention to this great Province and the vast
territories beyond. In Argyleshire we have too few men, and we want
more to settle with us, but Canada is a formidable competitor even to
this fair country; and in other places, in the towns of this land,
there are plenty of men who would do well, if they can hold the plough,
to follow the gallant example of their countrymen who have added glory
to Britain by forming another great British nation. Instead of leading
an unhealthy city life, it were well that many of our townsmen should
take to the life-giving work of a settler in the agricultural regions
of Western Canada, where they are likely to live longer and to be
happier than is the lot of the great majority of mankind.
On embarking at Liverpool in 1878 for Canada, Lord Lorne spoke as
follows in reply to an address presented by the Mayor of that city:--
We shall not forget the attention we have received, nor the great
demonstration made by the people of Liverpool, of the interest
entertained by them in the good of Canada, and of the love borne by the
whole country for her children across the Atlantic. You who dwell at
this great port, and see so many leave their native land for distant
climes, will not misunderstand me when I say that we do not lightly
leave you. The heart is often sad at leaving home when the ship is
about to start and the anchor is being weighed, however cheery the
voices of those who raise it, and hearty the farewell greetings of
friends on shore. It is, however, the duty of those who go, to look
forward and not back, and it is pleasant to think that across the water
we shall find ourselves among our own countrymen and in our own country,
among the same institutions as those we know here and under the same
flag. We shall find the same laws and the same determination to uphold
and abide by them, the same love of liberty as we have here, and the
same ability to guard it in honour and order, the same loyalty to the
Throne for the same cause, because it is the creation of freemen, the
bond of strength, and the symbol of the unity and dignity of the
British people Where in the British North American provinces we do not
find men of our own stock, we are fortunate in finding those who
descend from the noble French race--that race whose gallantry we have
for ages learnt to respect and to admire--the friendship of whose sons
to the Empire and their co-operation in the public life of Canada,
which is adorned by their presence, are justly held to be essential
Nowhere is loyalty more true and more firmly rooted than among the
French Canadians, enjoying, as all do, the freedom of equal laws and
the justice of constitutional rule. In conclusion, I will only say that
nothing has struck me more than the enthusiasm manifested towards
Canada among all classes of the community in England and Scotland
wherever I have of late had an opportunity of hearing any expression of
the public mind. Crowds at any public gathering have always given
cheers for Canada. The great gathering of to-day is a renewed symptom
of the same favourable augury, for a good augury I hold it to be, that
men in the old country are ready to call "Hurrah for Canada!" On the
other side of the ocean they are as ready to call "Hurrah for the old
country!" and these cries are no mere words of the lips, but come from
the heart of great peoples. So long as the feelings which prompt these
sayings endure--and endure, I believe they will--we may look forward
with confidence to the future, and know that those bonds of affection
which have been knit by God through the means of kinship and justice
will not be sundered by disaster or weakened by time. (Great cheering.)
In reply to an address from the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, which
was read by Mr. W. B. Forwood, President of the Chamber, the Marquis
said:--
You may well believe how highly I value the sentiments which have
prompted you to come forward today with the address to which we have
all just listened with interest, for Liverpool represents not only much
of the trade of England, but much of the commerce of the world. It is
perhaps the port more intimately connected than any in Europe with the
American continent. It is between your quays and those of New York,
that a steam service is conducted with the certainty and regularity
which tells of the ablest seamanship, and it is by your river that the
fine Canadian vessels of the Allan Line come, the magnificent
representatives of the prospering mercantile marine of the Dominion,
and proud may that country be of such a fleet. Your address shows how
highly you value the friendship of the Canadian people, in what regard
you hold their esteem, and with what interest and sympathy you watch
the progress they are making. It seems to me but a short while ago
since I last visited Canada; but in twelve years there is a great
change to be seen. Twelve years ago the British North American
provinces were only isolated colonies, bound together by no Federal
union, and lacking in the strength and deprived of the advantages of
unity. Now the decrees of the Central Parliament at Ottawa are passed
by the representatives of peoples whose mandates are obeyed through all
that broad zone of productive land which crosses the mighty continent,
and the name of our Sovereign is hailed with, the same affection as
before, but by no mere collection of colonies, for we see a great
Federal people. It is for their welfare that you, on behalf of the
merchants of Liverpool, express your just and confident hope; and the
feelings of sympathy you have shown will, I know, find a response on
the other side of the Atlantic. I consider it of the highest value that
such a true expression of the affection entertained by the great
commercial centres of England should be heard and known. The sentiments
which make the hearts of the natives of these isles beat fast with the
just pride of nationality, when they see in far distant countries the
flag of St. George, St. Andrew, and St. Patrick, is felt to the full by
your colonists, who uphold the flag as speaking to them of the great
days of old of which they, with us, are the heirs. This common loyalty
to the Queen and pride in her ensign is a sure guarantee for the
continued greatness of our country. You, gentlemen, have at heart the
interests of commerce, and, as merchants, the peace and prosperity of
the world. There is no better hope for this than in the unity between
these kingdoms and the great dependencies of the Crown. You know well
how real that unity is, and you will, I believe, join me in the
confident expectation that the eyes of men may long see, beneath our
Western sky, the bright apparition of Peace speeding the beneficent
navies of commerce as they bear to all lands the fruits gathered from
the great harvest which is earned by industry and wisdom.
On passing Londonderry the representatives of the municipality came on
board "The Sarmatian," and in reply to the "God speed" of the visitors,
the Marquis of Lorne said:--
It is most cheering to receive from you the expression of your sympathy
with our mission. We shall feel, after seeing and hearing you, that we
leave the Irish shore bearing with us a precious message of goodwill
given on the part of its people to their fellow-subjects in Canada. The
Dominion of Canada owes much to Ireland. Who does not recall with
gratitude to the country that gave him birth, the rule of the late
Governor-General of Canada, the Earl of Dufferin? Canada will never
forget him, or fail to remember that it was an Irish noble whose career
has given her so bright a page in her history. And from the
Governors-General, on through a long list of rulers whose presence was
a benefit to the Dominion, we know also that Canada is indebted to
Ireland for many a hardy agriculturist and many a clever artisan. It
would be difficult to speak of any part of our Empire which is not in a
similar case, and which does not point with pride to the services of
Irishmen, for on what field of honour has the genius of the Irish race not
contributed to our power? on what path of victory has not an Irish hand
carried forward among the foremost the banner of our union? It is under
that ensign alone, of all in the world, that an Irishman stands beneath
the cross of the Royal saint of Ireland, and each patriotic effort made
by a son of Erin adds another leaf to the wreath of renown which, for
so many centuries, has made the piety and gallantry of the race a
household word among the nations. In parting from you we shall not
forget your kind words, and our visit to the neighbourhood of your city
will always be a pleasant recollection. We thank you again, and ask you
to convey to your fellow-townsmen the expression of our regret that
circumstances have prevented us from receiving your address within
their walls.
Arriving at Montreal, the Princess and Lord Lorne attended the "St.
Andrew's Ball," and replying to Colonel Stevenson, who tendered the
welcome of the committee, Lord Lorne said:--
Colonel Stevenson and Gentlemen, the Members of the St. Andrew's
Society,--To me, I need hardly say, it is a great pleasure to find
myself to-night among so many of my countrymen who hail from Scotland,
and in saying this I am certain I shall have with me the sympathy of
all Canadians of whatever race--English, French, or Irish. For all
these nationalities wish you well. As for the English, it is impossible
for them to feel anything but good-will, for they have as a people been
so grateful for the last two centuries to Scotsmen for giving them a
king, that they have ever since been only too happy to see Scotsmen
getting their way everywhere. The French population shares in the
goodwill felt towards you, for they remember that in the old days it
was a Scotch regiment, the King's Bodyguard, which was the most popular
corps at Paris, and that the French troops who guarded Edinburgh were
there as the allies of Scotland. It is impossible for Irishmen to feel
anything but the most cordial feeling of love for you, for what is
Scotland but an Irish colony? But it is a colony of which Ireland, as a
Mother Country, may well be proud. Gentlemen, as one bearing the name
of one of the first of those old Irish colonists and civilisers of
Scotland, I feel I have a right to be proud of the position taken by
Scotsmen in Canada. We have had the good fortune since leaving England
to be constantly under the guidance or tutelage of Scotsmen. The owner
of the great line of steamships, in one of whose vessels we came here,
is a distinguished Scotsman, well known to all in this hall. I am happy
to say that the captain of our steamer was a Scotsman, the chief
engineer was a Scotsman, and, best of all, the stewardess was a
Scotswoman. Well, as soon as we landed we were met by a Scotch
Commander-in-Chief and by a Scotch Prime Minister, who had succeeded a
Prime Minister who is also a Scotsman. What wonder is it that Canada
thrives when the only change in her future is that she falls from the
hands of one Scotsman into that of another? Our countrymen are fond of
metaphysical discussion, and are apt to seek for subtle reasons for the
cause of things. Here it is unnecessary for them to do more in
inquiring the reasons of the prosperity of the country, than to look
around them and to note the number of their countrymen, and the
existence of such societies with such chiefs as the St. Andrew's
Society of Montreal But it is time to put an end to such light
discourse, and to proceed to the graver terpsichorean duties of the
evening.
At Montreal, where a most cordial and memorable welcome was given, the
following reply to the Mayor's address was made:--
TO HIS WORSHIP THE MAYOR, AND TO THE CITIZENS OF MONTREAL:--Mr.
Mayor and Gentlemen,--In the name of our Queen I ask you to accept our
thanks for your loyal and eloquent address. I need hardly say with what
pleasure the Princess and I have listened to the courteous expressions
with which we are now greeted--and for your most hearty and cordial
welcome. We consider ourselves fortunate that so soon after our arrival
in the Dominion, we have an opportunity of passing this great city; and
while halting for a short time within its walls, on our journey to
Ottawa, to make the acquaintance, at all events, of some among the
community which represents so large and important a centre of
population and industry. Your beautiful city sits, like a queen
enthroned, by the great river whose water glides past in homage,
bringing to her feet with the summer breezes the wealth of the world.
It is the city of this continent perhaps the best known to the dwellers
of the old country; and not only is it famous for the energy, activity,
and prosperity of its citizens, but it is here that the gigantic
undertaking of the Victoria Bridge has been successfully carried out;
and the traveller in crossing the mighty stream feels, as he is borne
high above it through the vast cavern, that such a viaduct is a worthy
approach to your great emporium of commerce. Its iron girders and
massive frame are worthy of the gigantic natural features around, and
it stands, spanning the flowing sea, as firm and as strong as the
sentiment of loyalty for her whose name it bears--a love which unites
in more enduring bonds IP than any forged with the products of the
quarry or the mine, the people of this Empire. It seems but a short
time ago since the Prince of Wales struck the last rivet in yonder
structure; and yet what wonderful strides have been made in the
progress of this country since that day! Every year strikes a new rivet,
and clenches with mighty hand that enduring work--that mighty fabric--
the prosperity of the Dominion. Long may your progress in the beautiful
arts and industries continue, and far be the day on which you may point
to any marks but those which tell of the well-earned results of
indomitable energy and determined perseverance. The people of this
country may be well assured that the Earl of Dufferin has carried home
with him ample proofs of the profound love Canada bears to the Mother
Country, and these assurances have been conveyed by him personally to
Her Majesty. We wish, in answering your address, to acknowledge the
extreme loyalty exhibited by the French-Canadian populations, as well
as the populations of the Maritime Provinces, through whose country we
have, during the last two days, travelled, and to thank them once again
as we had the opportunity this morning, for the kindness shown toward
us personally. This scene, the magnificent reception of your great city,
we shall ever remember with pride and gratitude.
On arriving at Ottawa, His Excellency spoke as follows in reply to the
greeting of the citizens of the capital of the Dominion:--