Christian Worship For A Liberty Meeting On The Fourth Of July.
O Thou! whose presence went before
Our fathers in their weary way,
As with thy chosen moved of yore
The fire by night-the cloud by day!
When, from each temple of the free,
A nation’s song ascends to heaven,
Most Holy Father! unto thee,
May not our humble prayer be given,-
For those to whom this day can bring,
Not, as to us, the joyful thrill;-
For those, who, under freedom’s wing,
Are bound in slavery’s fetters still:-
And grant, O Father! that the time
Of Earth’s deliverance may be near,
When every land, and tongue, and clime,
The message of thy love shall hear.
When smitten, as with fire from heaven,
The captive’s chain shall sink in dust,
And to his fettered soul be given
The glorious freedom of the just.