Page:Hemans in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine 35 1834.pdf/11

Hath to his Master passed.—He waits thee there—
For love, we trust, springs heavenward from the grave,
Immortal in its holiness.—He calls
His brother to the land of golden light,
And ever-living fountains—couldst thou hear
His voice o'er those bright waters, it would say,
"My brother! oh! be pure, be merciful!
That we may meet again."
Enonio (hesitating.)Can I return
Unto my tribe, and unavenged?
Herrmann.To Him,
To Him, return, from whom thine erring steps
Have wandered far and long!—Return, my son,
To thy Redeemer!—Died he not in love,
—The sinless, the divine, the Son of God—
Breathing forgiveness midst all agonies,
And we, dare we be ruthless?—By His aid
Shalt thou be guided to thy brother's place
Midst the pure spirits.—Oh! retrace the way
Back to thy Saviour! he rejects no heart
Ev’n with the dark stains on it, if true tears
Be o'er them showered.—Aye, weep, thou Indian Chief!
For, by the kindling moonlight, I behold
Thy proud lips working—weep, relieve thy soul!
Tears will not shame thy manhood, in the hour
Of its great conflict.
Enonio (giving up his weapons to Herrmann.) Father, take the bow,
Keep the sharp arrows, till the hunters call
Forth to the chase once more.—And let me dwell
A little while, my Father by thy side,
That I may hear the blessed words again
—Like water-brooks amidst the summer hills—
From thy true lips flow forth. For in my heart
The music and the memory of their sound
Too long have died away.
Herrmann.Oh! welcome back,
Friend, rescued one!—Yes, thou shalt be my guest,
And we will pray beneath my sycamore
Together, morn and eve; and I will spread
Thy couch beside my fire, and sleep at last
—After the visiting of holy thoughts—
With dewy wing shall sink upon thine eyes!
—Enter my home, and welcome, welcome back,
To peace, to God, thou lost and found again!
[They go into the cabin together
Herrmann (lingering for a moment on the threshold, looks up to the starry skies.)
Father! that from amidst yon glorious worlds
Now look'st on us, thy children! make this hour
Blessed for ever! May it see the birth
Of thine own image in the unfathomed deep
Of an immortal soul;—a thing to name
With reverential thought, a solemn world!
To Thee more precious than those thousand stars
Burning on high in thy majestic Heaven!