3394
How he prayed and how be fasted,
How he lived, and toiled, and suffered,
3395
That the tribes of men might prosper,
That he might advance his people!"
3396
Ye who love the haunts of Nature,
Love the sunshine of the meadow,
3397
Love the shadow of the forest,
Love the wind among the branches,
3398
And the rain-shower and the snow-storm,
And the rushing of great rivers
3399
Through their palisades of pine-trees,
And the thunder in the mountains,
3400
Whose innumerable echoes
Flap like eagles in their eyries;–
3401
Listen to these wild traditions,
To this Song of Hiawatha!
3402
Ye who love a nation’s legends,
Love the ballads of a people,
3403
That like voices from afar off
Call to us to pause and listen,
3404
Speak in tones so plain and childlike,
Scarcely can the ear distinguish
Whether they are sung or spoken —
-“BB”-
3405
Listen to this Indian Legend,
To this Song of Hiawatha!
3406
Ye whose hearts are fresh and simple,
Who have faith in God and Nature,
3407
Who believe that in all ages
Every human heart is human,
3408
That in even savage bosoms
There are longings, yearnings, strivings
3409
For the good they comprehend not,
That the feeble hands and helpless,
3410
Groping blindly in the darkness,
Touch God’s right hand in that darkness
3411
And are lifted up and strengthened;–
Listen to this simple story,
3511
To this Song of Hiawatha!
-“BB”-
[wrong number]
3412
Ye, who sometimes, in your rambles
Through the green lanes of the country,