n the earth or in the air,
From the land and from the sea,
And from under-land and sea,
Not a man shall missing be
From the past and present fighting-strength
Of that great company.
Those who lived, and those who died,
They were one in noble pride
Of desperate endeavour and of duty nobly done;
For their lives they risked and gave
Very Soul of Life to save,
And by their own great valour, and the Grace of God, they won.
Britons, Britons, Britons are they!--
Britons, every one!

WHEN HE TRIES THE HEARTS OF MEN

As gold is tried in the furnace,
_So He tries the hearts of men;_
And the dwale and the dross shall suffer loss,
_When He tries the hearts of men._
And the wood, and the hay, and the stubble
Shall pass in the flame away,
For gain is loss, and loss is gain,
And treasure of earth is poor and vain,
_When He tries the hearts of men._

As gold is refined in the furnace,
_So He fines the hearts of men._
The purge of the flame doth rid them of shame,
_When He tries the hearts of men._
O, better than gold, yea, than much fine gold,
_When He tries the hearts of men,_
Are Faith, and Hope, and Truth, and Love,
And the Wisdom that cometh from above,
_When He tries the hearts of men._

POISON-SEEDS

Is there, in you or me,
Seed of that poison-tree
Which, in its bitter fruiting, bore
Such vintage sore
Of red calamity--
Black wine of horror and of Death,
And soul-catastrophe?
Search well and see!

Yea--search and see!
And, if there be--
Tear up its roots with zealous care,
With deep soul-probing and with prayer,
Lest, in the coming years,
Again it bear
This same dread fruit of blood and tears,
And ruth beyond compare.

Each soul that strips it of one evil thing
Lifts all the world towards God's good purposing.

THE WAR-MAKERS

_Who are the Makers of Wars?_
The Kings of the earth.

_And who are these Kings of the earth?_
Only men--not always even men of worth,
But claiming rule by right of birth.

_And Wisdom?--does that come by birth?_
Nay then--too often the reverse.
Wise father oft has son perverse;
Solomon's son was Israel's curse.

_Why suffer things to reason so averse?_
It always has been so,
And only now does knowledge grow
To that high point where all men know--
Who would be free must strike the blow.