Prediction to Joshua Relative to America

Far o'er yon azure main thy view extend,
Where seas and skies in blue confusion blend:
Lo, there a mighty realm, by Heaven design'd
The last retreat for poor, oppress'd mankind;
Form'd with that pomp which marks the hand divine,
And clothes yon vault where worlds unnumber'd shine.
Here spacious plains in solemn grandeur spread,
Here cloudy forests cast eternal shade;
Rich valleys wind, the sky-tall mountains brave,
And inland seas for commerce spread the wave.
With nobler floods the sea-like rivers roll,
And fairer lustre purples round the pole.
Here, warm'd by happy suns, gay mines unfold
The useful iron and the lasting gold;
Pure, changing gems in silence learn to glow,
And mock the splendours of the covenant bow.
On countless hills, by savage footsteps trod,
That smile to see the future harvest nod,
In glad succession plants unnumber'd bloom,
And flowers unnumber'd breathe a rich f ertiime.
Hence life once more a length of days shall claim,
And health, reviving, light her purple flame.
Far from all realms this world imperial lies,
Seas roll between, and threat'ning tempests rise.
Alike removed beyond ambition's pale,
And the bold pinions of the venturous sail;
Till circling years the destined period bring,
And a new Moses lift the daring wing,
Through trackless seas an unknown flight explores,
And hails a new Canaan's promised shores.
On yon far strand behold that little train
Ascending venturous o'er the unmeasured main;
No dangers fright, no ills the course delay;
'Tis virtue prompts, and God directs the way.
Speed — speed, ye sons of truth! let Heaven befriend,
Let angels waft you, and let peace attend.
O! smile, thou sky serene; ye storms, retire;
And airs of Eden every sail inspire.
Swift o'er the main behold the canvass fly,
And fade and fade beneath the farthest sky;
See verdant fields the changing waste unfold;
See sudden harvests dress the plains in gold;
In lofty walls the moving rocks ascend,
And dancing woods to spires and temples bend...
Here empire's last and brightest throne shall rise,
And Peace, and Eight, and Freedom greet the skies;
To morn's far realms her trading ships shall sail,
Or lift their canvass to the evening gale:
In wisdom's walks her sons ambitious soar,
Tread starry fields, and untried scenes explore.
And, hark! what strange, what solemn breaking strain
Swells, wildly murmuring, o'er the far, far main!
Down Time's long, lessening vale the notes decay,
And, lost in distant ages, roll away.