O Freedom

O Freedom, in thy cause I fought,
  For twenty years I fought in vain;
And in my mountain shelter naught
  But worthless trophies now remain.
Yet in my heart I hear a cry,
  Which never there makes a vain appeal:
I would once more beneath thy sky
  Brandish my sharp and shining steel.

How much one stakes upon thy dream,
  How much for but thy name we pay;
How cheap the passing ages seem,
  When years are given for thy day.
How many still would fight and die
  In thine old cause and for thy weal!
I would once more beneath thy sky
  Brandish my sharp and shining steel.

The purest love I give away,
  The bliss of it I set at naught;
Again I’m on my wayward way
  Seeking what I have often sought.
My wounded hopes, my bleeding ties,
  No peace inglorious e’er shall heal:
I would once more beneath thy skies
  Brandish my sharp and shining steel.

O Freedom, though thy price be high,
  Though one for thee his life must seal,
I would once more beneath thy sky
  Brandish my sharp and shining steel.