BRITAIN AND AMERICA.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1367, 12 May 1898, Page 29

BRITAIN AND AMERICA.

GREAT BRITAIN'S MESSAGE.

POEM BY THE POET LAUREATE.

We are indebted to Mr Thomas Turnbull, architect, for th« following 1 extract from the Scottish American, which is of very special interest at this juncture:— New York, Wednesday, March 30th, 1898.—-All the London papers on Monday morning gave prominence to the following poem by Mr Alfred Austin, the Poet Laureate, which, it seems, was inspired by a despatch from New York recording a feeling in favour of an Anglo-American entente. The poem was immediately cabled to this country, and is meeting with much laudation on account both of its chivalrous and friendly tone and its undoubted poetic merits: — What is the voice I hear On the wind of the Western Sea? Sentinel, listen, from out Cape Clear, And say what the voice may be. " '"lis a proud, free people calling loud To a people proud and free. " And it says to them, ' Kinsmen, hail! We covered have been too long. \Now*. let u* have don l * vuh a worn-out tale— The Tiale of an aaoiont wrong ; And our friendship laiii ior.g as love doth last, And be stronger than Death is strong.' " Answer them, sons o£ the self-same race, And blood of the self-same clan, Let us speak to each other face to face, And answer as man to man ; And loyally love and trust each other As none but freemen can. Now fling them out to the breezeShamrock, Thistle and Rose ; And the Star Spangled Banner unfurl with these— A message to friends and foes, Wherever the Eails of peace are seen, And wherever the warwind blows. As message to bond and thrall to wake; For, wherever we come, we twain, The throne of the tyrant shall reck and quake, And his menace be void and vain. For you are lords of a strong, young land, And we are lords of the main. Yes, this is the voice on the bluff March gale : " We severed have been too long." But now we have done with a worn-out tale The tale of an ancient wrong,; And our friendship laat long as love doth last, And be stronger than Death is strong.