Classic and Contemporary Poetry
PANAMA, by JAMES JEFFREY ROCHE Poet's Biography First Line: Here the oceans twain have waited Last Line: But -- the hand that ope'd the gate shall forever hold the key! Subject(s): Panama Canal; Canal Zone | ||||||||
HERE the oceans twain have waited All the ages to be mated, -- Waited long and waited vainly, Though the script was written plainly: "This, the portal of the sea, Opes for him who holds the key; Here the empire of the earth Waits in patience for its birth." But the Spanish monarch, dimly Seeing little, answered grimly: "North and South the land is Spain's; As God gave it, it remains. He who seeks to break the tie, By mine honor, he shall die!" So the centuries rolled on, And the gift of great Colon, Like a spendthrift's heritage, Dwindled slowly, age by age, Till the flag of red and gold Fell from hands unnerved and old And the granite-pillared gate Waited still the key of fate. Who shall hold that magic key But the child of destiny, In whose veins has mingled long All the best blood of the strong? He who takes his place by grace Of no single tribe or race, But by many a rich bequest From the bravest and the best. Sentinel of duty, here Must he guard a hemisphere. Let the old world keep its ways; Naught to him its blame or praise; Naught its greed, or hate, or fear; For all swords be sheathed here. Yea, the gateway shall be free Unto all, from sea to sea; And no fratricidal slaughter Shall defile its sacred water; But -- the hand that ope'd the gate shall forever hold the key! | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE PRESIDENT (THE PANAMA TOLLS) by ROBERT UNDERWOOD JOHNSON PANAMA; HOME OF THE DOVE-PLANT OR HOLY GHOST FLOWER by AMANDA THEODOSIA JONES THE SHIP CANAL FROM THE ATLANTIC TO THE PACIFIC by FRANCIS LIEBER LIGHT OF THE SOUTHERN CROSS; POEM ON UNION OF THE OCEANS AT PANAMA by CINCINNATUS HEINE MILLER THE FLAG; AN INCIDENT OF STRAIN'S EXPEDITION by JAMES JEFFREY ROCHE THE TIDES AT PANAMA by JOHN BANISTER TABB CUT ACROSS; A SONG OF THE PANAMA CANAL by AMOS RUSSEL WELLS THE CHRIST OF PANAMA by AMOS RUSSEL WELLS GETTYSBURG [JULY 1-3, 1863] by JAMES JEFFREY ROCHE |
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