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Do not deface books by marks and writing. A.^^r^^b/, Cornell University Library PS 2391.04 1903 An ode on the semi-centennial of Frankji 3 1924 022 428 357 .un,.,.! AN ODE UPON THE SEMI-CENTENNIAL OF FRANKLIN AND MARSHALL COLLEGE, JUNE, 1903 BY LLOYD MIFFLIN Si monumentum reguiris, eircumspice Now, on this memorable day. Within this fertile garden of the land Blessed with perennial streams, Swatara, Conowingo, and Pequea, And hundred brooklets clear as they With which the region teems ; Rich with alluvial valleys, that the hand Sprung from the German, honorably tills, And where the cattle on a thousand hills Browse ankle-deep in clover-bloom, Or by the Conestoga margin wade Far in the willowy shade ; Now, when the green illimitable vales And dimpled slopes and dells Shed round the rare perfume Of coming harvests with their wealth replete, And here, returning to the dales Amid the fruitful heat, June, reminiscent of the rippling sea And all its rolling swells. Waves with her breath our ripening fields of grain And makes a billowy ocean of the wheat ; Now, when the Tambs are in the flock And call across the green ; And when the red-winged blackbird on the dock Sings as he settles down, serene In cloudless ecstasy, And the dear lark, with joy akin to pain, Floats o'er our fields — a feathered song- — Pathetically sweet ; — In such a time — so joyous — it were meet That we, ephemera of an hour Who to the living still belong. Should lift our voices through the lips of Song In recognition of the price. In recognition of the faith — the power. The courage and the sacrifice, The struggles, often threatening defeat, — The final triumph of the men now dead, Enghsh and German bred, Whose effort and whose aid Made possible this studious retreat, These College Halls, cresting the gentle glade, These Academic bowers, These stately Walls in classic shade Crowned with their clustered towers ! Well may we praise these men of old, Whose work of faith untold — A faith that here survives — Helped rear this dual Hall ; And those who brought their gold. And those who, being poor, gave more than ali In that they gave their lives ! Honor the Founders ! men to be revered ; We need not name them, are they not renowned And to the heart endeared? And those that clustered round Your ahen Flower from Heidelberg ; And him who drew the lightnings down. The generous Printer of renown Who, at the age of eighty-one, With patriot hands — That now are dust a hundred years and more — Here where the College stands, Laid the first corner-stone, — His name in part your Alma Mater bears ; While as an added coronal she wears Others especially her own — A glorious line of men of lore : Your College knows each honored name, She held them reverent of yore And worthy of acclaim ; And in your Annals where each one appears The page is blotted by her grateful tears. You love their memory, and they live apart Enshrined within the sanctum of the heart : Honor the Scholar, and the Good, the Just ! Honor the silent dust ! Yea ! honor them — the dead ! as time withdraws We see they bravely battled in their cause. Duty hath still her heroes — valiant Knights Unblazoned by the world, but in men's hearts Their silent deeds, like beacon-lights Shine on, and guide us from afar. The mortal comes ; he labors, and departs ; But strongly girt with spiritual powers His soul beams on us like a star That still doth shed Its first effulgence though the star be dead — Though gone, the light survives : And if our lips are sealed From plaudits for the living, none the less Time, the recorder, on his scroll revealed, Will show the morrow they fulfilled their trust With honor and with nobleness : Teachers of fervid zeal ; The guardian mentors in an age complex ; Torch-bearers of the future's weal ; True to the motto on their chosen Seal — Lux et Lex ! Lo, the old Nation, day by day, Passes, alas ! away, And the new Nation needs Men of high purpose and heroic deeds For the stern conflict of the Country's life. Send forth, O College, such as these ! Unto thy land give thou such legacies ! Equip thy youth with . rugged virtues high. Not with that apathy the indifferent wear Fatal to man and state, But anchored, resolute to do and dare, Unpurchasable, of nerve and deed, Men simply-great, With deep conviction, who, at utmost need Would stand the champions of the State, Against her foes Storming the enemy's gate With thundrous eloquence of patriot words ; Or, if necessity arose, Girt with inviolate swords Fulgent with light. Battle for Conscience, Liberty and Right ; Such men the voice of History doth revere — O nurture them within this College here ! What of the donors ? — those who in the stress Of arduous seasons to the rescue came, — Look o'er that fair demesne, — The statued lawn, the noble piles, the storied green, — Are not the beauty and the loveliness Of such Memorials sufficient fame. With sweet remembrance through the ages hence ? — Sufficient recompense ? . . . . From the lone bourn of life's long pilgrimage Let him reply, who dwells in honored age — Founder of that fair Hall which bears his name — ' Is there a crown more grateful to the brow Than this that crowns him now? Mother of Learning, hail ! Oh, mayst thou, prosperous, rejoice For years recurrent of thy Jubilee ! Long may thy turrets beckon, and thy voice Summon the youth from many a distant vale ! Long may men find in thee. Within thy classic pale. Blessing of studious serenity — The ethereal fruit and flower of the Wise ! And when this age shall pass, as pass it must. And crumble into dust, Thy towers shall still arise, gladding the eyes Of true men yet to be. And by the side of these Grouped 'mid the gracious trees, — Mater of sweet amenities ! — May added Halls and new-built spires Lift their enlightening crests above the lawn ; And the still Greater College rear her head — Greater, not dearer than the old, — And wider radiance shed, And by her lustrous effluence manifold Illumination spread, — True harbinger of the new-born world's desires, Forerunner of the hoped-for Dawn That ever in the future glows. To which the soul aspires ; And as the depths of Ignorance decrease And the dense darkness goes, Oh, mayst thou, filled with potency anew The sacred cause pursue Nor with the Century cease. But still may Learning blossom as the rose And all thy paths be peace ! Norwood June, 1903. PRINTED BY THE HOFFER PRES MOUNT JOY, PA. The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924022428357 >?? 3!%i£ ,:# ^'^ % -t; vc-S'